Sex and the City

Karol Collymore

Portland has had only six women as city commissioners in its 157 years of being a city. If that sounds less than progressive than our status claims, you are right. I was given this fun fact from current commission candidate, Amanda Fritz. I sought out Amanda partly out of curiosity, partly out of wanting to support the woman in the race.

My previous experience with Amanda is gossip-based only. Her reputation as a bit antagonist, a rabble rouser and stubborn is well-known in some circles. I've shared my desire to vote for her with other people "in the know" and have seen jaws fall open across town. One friend even said, "Don't do it." But with all things being equal in this race, I want to support the woman. I am motivated by the belief that representative government should reflect the population. Last time I checked, women lived in Portland. So I emailed her and she accepted my offer for a chat.

I told Amanda almost right away that I was compelled to talk to her because she's the only woman in this male-dominated election. She acknowledged the importance in that but wanted the focus to be about why she's the best person, not the best woman. Fair enough. Amanda shared some of what she'd tackle if she were elected and I'll share some here. She thinks the public, especially candidates, need a full education on public financing can be used. As some other candidates know well, there is no manual on how to run a campaign and how much to pay staff...ahem. Amanda would also like to pay stringent attention to the budget to make sure money is being spent responsibly and things we all want - sidewalks, less potholes, stop signs - are being covered before the City tackles less necessary projects. She'd also like to resurrect the bureau advisory committees; filled with regular citizens who act as our watchdogs.

Amanda had some great ideas about schools and doesn’t have a preference for what bureau she’d like to oversee. “Whatever the four guys don’t want,” she said, since they will have been working together for months before her potential arrival. And what about Amanda’s pesky reputation? She calls herself an advocate for her city. She also argues that no one can get anything done by being negative and antagonistic and she believes that if elected, she’ll work collaboratively with the other commissioners.

But let’s face it, Amanda is the only woman in the race for ANY of City Hall’s elected positions, even if she doesn’t want that spotlighted. Amanda’s most memorable moment from her last race? The time an Oregonian reporter called her “shrill.” I’m going to guess that many men don’t have that adjective used very often for them. In an election year where we’ve been walking the line between sexism and racism constantly, shouldn’t her gender be part of the discussion in our fair city?

Please check out amandafritzforcitycouncil.com for more information.

By Karol Collymore July 23, 2008