Keep Portland Weird

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"Keep Portland Weird" is a slogan that appears on bumper stickers in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is based on the "Keep Austin Weird" slogan, and is intended to promote local businesses[citation needed]. The slogan has inspired articles that attempt to quantify whether or not Portland is "weird", or unusual. Aspects of the city and its residents singled out as weird include leisure activities and the local government.

Contents

Slogan [edit]

More than 18,000 bumper stickers with the slogan are said to exist, according to accounts from local media.[1][2] It was created with the intention of supporting local businesses in Portland, Oregon.[3] Businesses that participate in the Keep Portland Weird organization include Cinema 21 and Music Millennium.[4] The slogan is similar to and is predated by the Keep Austin Weird slogan and organization used in Austin, Texas.[5] The slogan has been called the unofficial motto of Portland,[6][7][8][9] as well as the informal mantra of the city's residents.[10]

Weirdness [edit]

Contestants in the Portland Urban Iditarod

The Oregonian newspaper developed a "weird" scale in response to the slogan, and Portland ranked 11th, with high rates of hiking, hunting, and hybrid car ownership. The most "normal" cities in the U.S. were in the Midwest, and Salt Lake City and San Francisco were among the "weirdest".[11] In comparing Portland to New York City and San Francisco, Lonely Planet writer Becky Ohlsen said "Something about how cheap and isolated Portland is, allows oddballs to explore odd behavior without being squished by economics or the harsh judgment of fashion people."[2]

Items mentioned as illustrating the residents' eccentricities include the Voodoo Doughnut shop, the Velveteria Museum of Velvet Paintings, the 24 Hour Church of Elvis, the World Naked Bike Ride, the Zoobomb cycling events, artist Adam Kuby’s Portland Acupuncture Project, the popularity of yarn bombing, and the Portland Urban Iditarod.[12][13][14][15]

Portland's city commission government—a type of municipal governance now rare in the U.S.—has been described as another aspect of its weirdness, compounded by the various peculiarities of its implementation.[16]

Controversies [edit]

The slogan "Keep Portland Weird" has created controversy and been imitated with slogans such as "Keep Portland Beered" and others.[11] Also suggested is that Portland might not have been originally weird, but the campaign leads to a new weirdness among some Portlanders. Not all citizens view the campaign in a positive light. Some have advanced the idea that Portland's weirdness is an excuse for the younger generation to be underachievers. Also some citizens claim that the intended effect of the campaign—economic stimulation for local businesses—has not achieved the desired results.[2][17][18]

In early 2011, the "Keep Portland Weird" slogan was used in a debate about Portland's refusal to join the federal government's Joint Terrorism Task Force. Portland originally opted out of the task force in 2005 over concerns for civil liberties. Recent potential threats have prompted local officials to reconsider joining the task force. Those opposed to joining the task force adopted the "Keep Portland Weird" slogan to point out that Portland was different from other cities and should continue to opt out of the task force and not join with other government forces. Opposing citizens felt joining the task force could have potentially affected Portland's traditionally progressive stance on civil liberties.[19][20][21]

Gallery [edit]

  • The Peculiarium

  • The 24-hour Church of Elvis

  • The TARDIS Room

See also [edit]

References [edit]

  1. ^ "The Portlandification of Brooklyn". Willamette Week. August 10, 2011. Retrieved August 20, 2011. 
  2. ^ a b c "Keep Portland…quaint?". Portland Tribune. June 11, 2009. Retrieved April 28, 2013. 
  3. ^ "Keep Portland Weird". Retrieved August 23, 2011. 
  4. ^ "List of Participating Business". Keep Portland Weird. Retrieved August 23, 2011. 
  5. ^ "Travel & Leisure". Travel + Leisure 38. 2007. Retrieved August 20, 2011. 
  6. ^ Craft Beers of the Pacific Northwest: A Beer Lover's Guide to Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. ISBN 1-60469-089-5. 
  7. ^ Washington, Oregon & the Pacific Northwest. p. 158. ISBN 1-74059-534-3. 
  8. ^ San Diego Magazine 62. [full citation needed]
  9. ^ Ortiz, Julio Angel. The Perceived Impact of Municipal Wireless Broadband Networks on the Digital Divide: A Tale of Five Cities (Thesis). Pennsylvania State University. p. 158. http://gradworks.umi.com/33/36/3336101.html. Retrieved August 22, 2011.
  10. ^ Samson, Karl (April 26, 2011). Frommer's Oregon. Frommer's. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-470-53771-8. Retrieved August 20, 2011. 
  11. ^ a b "'Keep Portland Weird' makes sense as a jobs strategy". The Oregonian. February 13, 2010. Retrieved August 23, 2011. 
  12. ^ Frazier, Joseph B. (May 12, 2008). "Portland, Ore., celebrates its quirky side". USA Today. Retrieved 2011-08-23. 
  13. ^ "Portland Artist Adam Kuby Installs Giant Acupuncture Needles to Help Kick Off Phase II of the Portland Plan". City of Portland. April 28, 2010. Retrieved 2011-08-23. 
  14. ^ "Oregon "yarn bombers" knit graffiti for lamp posts, trees". Reuters UK. February 5, 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-24. 
  15. ^ "'Urban Iditarod' keeps Portland weird". KATU. March 20, 2009. Retrieved 2011-08-25. 
  16. ^ Svara, James H. (December 15, 2010). More Than Mayor or Manager: Campaigns to Change Form of Government in America's Large Cities. Georgetown University Press. p. 279. ISBN 978-1-58901-709-2. Retrieved August 22, 2011. 
  17. ^ Keep Portland Weird, by Nancy Levenson, About.com Guide, October 4, 2006.
  18. ^ Cortright, Joe (February 15, 2010). 'Keep Portland Weird' makes sense as a jobs strategy, The Oregonian.
  19. ^ Public Voices Concerns About Joining Terrorism Task Force, April Baer, January 14, 2011, Portland, Oregon
  20. ^ Joint Terrorism Task Force debate captures Portland's idiosyncratic attitude, March 11, 2011, Brad Schmidt, The Oregonian; http://www.portlandonline.com/leonard/index.cfm?a=341100&c=27435
  21. ^ http://www.portlandonline.com/mayor/jttfreview/

External links [edit]

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