Editor’s Note: Responses have been edited for clarity and concision.
Activist and founder of the Oregon Remembrance Project Taylor Stewart (‘18) has dedicated his career towards racial justice in Oregon. This year, he was featured in a documentary from Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) titled “Road to sunrise: A journey to reconcile Oregon’s racist history.” The video follows Stewart as he drives to Coos Bay and Grants Pass, deciphering the history of racism in Oregon and its hopeful future.
Taylor spoke with The Beacon about his work, his experience in the film and his future plans.
The Beacon:
“How did this documentary come to be?”
Taylor Stewart:
“I've been in touch with someone from OPB since around when we did the historical marker unveiling in 2021. And they just reached out to me at some point earlier this year and [were] like, ‘Hey, what's been going on recently with the Oregon Remembrance Project?’ And so I told him about the Sunrise Project, and I met with them at their facility in South Portland. They just sort of talked to me like, ‘Yeah, we'd be really interested in doing something specifically around the parade that we had happening in Grants Pass.’ And so in May of this year, OPB followed me on a trip to Coos Bay and Grants Pass.”
The Beacon:
“What did the filming process look like?”
Taylor Stewart:
“[OPB] came over to my house sometime early spring and interviewed me. They interviewed me at my house for about four hours, and that's where a lot of the overlay of voice audio came from, and then we headed to Coos Bay. It was a really interesting experience for me, just as a storyteller, to see someone else using their storytelling ability and foray in a different capacity than what my personal skill is. And so I really enjoyed being a part of the filming experience, and I would hope that we'll be doing something like that again in the future.”
The Beacon:
“What’s been the most rewarding part of this project?”
Taylor Stewart:
“You know, for other Oregonians to learn about these projects that are happening in communities in our state, and to be able to take away that there's hope on the other end of this sort of difficult historical reconciliation work. What I really appreciate about the film is it feels like a very honest portrayal, both of the struggle as well as the positive. And so my hope is that it really is a hopeful inspiration for other communities who can consider doing their own truth and reconciliation projects, that there really is hope on the other end of these difficult conversations, this difficult history. Doing this work, I don't, per se, have clients that I work with so much as I have communities, communities who I form relationships with. And so for me, what I'm most proud about is the communities and the people who are able to showcase the work that we've done together.”
The Beacon:
“What were some challenges you faced?”
Taylor Stewart:
“Just from the perspective of doing this work, doing interviews, you kind of have to flip a switch on. You're like, ‘Okay, I am being recorded. I am answering questions. People are going to really take the words that I have to say with great gravity.’ To not really have an opportunity to turn that switch off over the course of the filming was the most personally draining. That probably is the most difficult trip I've taken, just the fact of having to be ‘on’ for so long.”
The Beacon:
“What’s your favorite off-screen memory?”
Taylor Stewart:
“People hear about this work happening in their community, and they're genuinely excited. But those little conversations, talking to strangers about the work that we're doing is something that is most rewarding for me. People go through this sort of process facially — when I say the word ‘sundown,’ often, their face goes sad, but two seconds later, when I say the word ‘sunrise,’ their face goes happy. And so for me, that smile, that, ‘Oh, okay, I see what you're doing. I like what you're doing, you're providing a path forward for our community.’ And for me, those are some of the most rewarding encounters that I’ve had during my travels to communities.”
The Beacon:
“You mentioned the Civil Rights Immersion changing your life. Do you think UP students should take the opportunity to go on immersions?”
Taylor Stewart:
“I spent my whole life wanting to be a prosecutor. But towards the end of my time at UP, I had realized that the answer to the question I'd wondered my whole life of ‘what would I have done had I been around during the Civil Rights era,’ was ‘what was I doing right now?’ And I had just met a civil rights lawyer, and so I switched from wanting to be a prosecutor to wanting to do civil rights law. And because of that, I just so happened to see a flier in Franz advertising this thing called the Civil Rights Immersion. We went to Alabama, Mississippi and Arkansas, and I am into place-based encounters with history and that, yes, I can read or watch all the documentaries or books about the Civil Rights era, but actually, physically being in those spaces carries a different weight and increases the impact of that history.”
The Beacon:
“Oregon is commonly seen as a politically progressive place. Why do you think it’s necessary to learn about the history of racism in politically progressive places like Oregon? “
Taylor Stewart:
“For a state like Oregon, I would say how we actually are and how we see ourselves are two different things, and when it comes to race, we often conflate our progressivism in other topics such as environmental, gender, sexuality. And we conflate our progressivism in those spaces to mean that we are progressive in all spaces, when in fact we still lag behind in terms of advancing racial justice here in Portland, in the state of Oregon.
“I really think that there is an energy and a passion and an enthusiasm to do this work in Oregon, I just don't think that so far, we have channeled that energy or enthusiasm into things that create real change. I think that it is especially important for Oregon to do this historical reconciliation work because we can't ever actually be a truly racially just community if we are unaware of the things that have contributed to our present-day state, and specifically they're sort of what white Oregonians think of Oregon. While we may have that progressive reputation in sort of white liberalism circles, specifically for African Americans, there is a strong avoidance of Oregon because of our history of racial injustice.”
The Beacon:
“What’s a lesson that you’re going to take away from this experience?”
Taylor Stewart:
“It's really great to collab with other storytellers whose medium is different from my own on a personal sort of takeaway. I talk about it a little bit in the film, but there's a great personal cost to doing this work. I don't always enjoy doing this work. It's that dream job that can, at times, feel more like a nightmare. And so, for me, the sort of personal takeaway is just a reminder of why I do this. With things like the film, things that are in my office, reminding myself that I'm on a unique path right now. And even though it's difficult, there are things that remind me that it's worth it. And so, for me, the biggest sort of personal takeaway from the film is that impetus to keep going. Not like, ‘Oh man, keep going so you can be in more films and feel like a big deal or something,’ but to keep going because you're making an impact in communities, and specifically being reminded of that impact is really important for me to keep that fire going.”
The Beacon:
“What are some of your future plans?”
Taylor Stewart:
“My overarching goal for the Oregon Remembrance Project is to rewrite the ending to the story of the state founded with racially exclusionary laws. And to do so, I want to raise the African American population of Oregon. I want to create more Black community fixtures in the state of Oregon that can act as what I've called cultural anchors and cultural magnets, things that tether you to a space and things that draw you in. And so for me, this goal for the next 25 years, and how I hope to spend the majority of my professional career, is both being able to retain our communities of color and African American population. I want to be able to, in some capacity, financially incentivize Black people from across the country to move to Oregon. Programs that are specifically focused on — be it home ownership, small business — starting things that will allow people to develop their own cultural anchors and magnets in the community.”
More information about Stewart’s work on the Oregon Remembrance Project and how to get involved can be found here.
Nandita Kumar is a reporter for The Beacon. She can be reached at kumarn27@up.edu.
Tiffany Marquez Escobar is the Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Editor for The Beacon. She can be reached at marqueze25@up.edu.
