Demonstrators against Eugene hosting the World Athletics Championships Oregon22 gathered Saturday night, claiming leaders have prioritized beautifying the city for the event’s thousands of guests instead of focusing on issues like homelessness.
At least 50 demonstrators gathered at Campbell Park for the event organized by local activists with signs that read “Survival Over Sports” and “Rich Play Workers Suffer.”
The group walked toward 5th Street Public Market shouting chants like “No housing, no peace” and “If they can house the sports elite, they can stop death on the street,” briefly blocking traffic in some streets. The group stopped in front of Nike, criticizing the sports giant and capitalism.
“Rent has gone up and now there’s just no place that homeless people are allowed to be,“ said Anya Dobrowolski, an organizer with Stop the Sweeps Eugene. “It’s really clear there’s a cause-and-effect thing going on here.”
It’s not the first demonstration against the world championships. The slogan “100s displaced for your little race” can be found around the city, alluding to when Eugene closed sanctioned camp sites months ago.
The city is adamant the closure of the camps and other actions are unrelated to the World Athletics Championships and the Olympic Trials, as both had to be rescheduled due to the pandemic.
