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Activist Rich Rohde is the regional organ izer for Oregon Action, which strives for equal justice. Ashland Daily Tidings file photo Searching for social justice By Mat Marr Special to The Tidings Rich Rohde learned first-hand the dangers that can come with social activism - in North Carolina in the late 60's. "The pastor of the church I went to (a black man who had been active in the social justice movement) had a cross burned in his yard," Rohde said. "When the neighbors got mad and called the police it was the first time in North Carolina that someone was prosecuted for cross burning." But rather than frightening him away, his experience in the South lead Rohde to a life in activism. Rohde gained his community spirit as a child in Salem in the 1950's. "My mother really gave me my sense of values," Rohde said. "But the notion of community was all around me, in my family, and at church." Returning to Oregon, Rohde helped found Oregon Fair Share in the 1970's. It was in his work with Fair Share in Portland that Rohde meet his wife, Caren Caldwell, who was in seminary studying to be a minister at the time. Rohde and Caldwell see their faith life and justice work as closely inter-woven. "I look at Jesus and see a person who cared for the sick, ministered to the poor and the outcasts, and I see a model for a life of faith in what he did," said Caldwell, who is a minister in Ashland. "When we were married we put into our marriage vows that we would work for justice together," she said. Rohde has continued to work for social justice at Fair Share's new incarnation, Oregon Action, where he is regional organizer. Oregon Action, which has 25,000 member families, works to involve the public in addressing fundamental root causes of economic and social problems, according to Rohde. In his work at Oregon Action, Rohde has become something of a mentor to less experienced organizers around the valley. Cindy McMurphy, a client advocate for Community Emergency Resources and Vital Services (CERVS) in Medford, said that Rohde is the primary reason that she is involved in activism. "Before I met Rich I felt like I didn't have any power," McMurphy said. "Now I help other people to empower themselves." On this morning Rohde is meeting with Jane Serlin, who is taking over the job of board president of CERVS from him. Serlin is concerned that she does not have experience in using parliamentary procedure to run meetings. Rohde tells her there are better ways to guide meetings than standard protocol. "One key thing to meetings is humor. If people laugh they will enjoy the meeting," Rohde said. "But I do find that hard, so I kind of try and import it." After his meeting with Serlin, Rohde heads to his downtown Medford office to attend to several administrative matters. Rohde's office tells the story of the history of his activism. There are posters that tell of the increasing number of homeless children. One poster is from a 1987 march for peace. Charts and graphs from various causes Rohde is involved in are piled against the walls of the small office. Books that Rohde has collected over his years of involvement line his walls. One book for him stands out as important to his activist career. When Rohde read Sal Alinsky's book Rebly for Radicals he saw a road map for how to start his organizing in the South. Because of reading that book, when he was in graduate school Rohde connected to a group of Alinsky followers in Minnesota. "Connecting with them was much more important than graduate school because they were able to teach me group organizing in our large cities," Rohde said. At Fair Share, Rohde found a new mentor in Kim Clerc, the first director of Fair Share. "He was really an inspiration to me," Rohde said. "He knew how to inspire people in a way that few others can match." Rohde puts his own people-motivating skills to the test that night at an organizing meeting for a committee to find a business to replace the Safeway that moved out of West Medford. Although there is a small turnout at the meeting, everyone has a strong opinion on what should happen to the site. One of the people at the meeting is Dennis Kidwell, a handicapped man who relied on the old Safeway for groceries. "I want to see half the space subleased to non-profits that each could pursue their own grants," Kidwell said. "That site could provide not only foods but also services to a vast number of people." Rohde listens to all the ideas community members present at the meeting. It is his role to focus the energy of the group on achievable goals. "Can we stay with these priorities and move forward," Rohde asks of the group. After an hour discussion each of the attendees leaves with tasks to complete before the next meeting. "Part of meetings is a validation of people moving forward," Rohde said, "Most of the work goes on outside meetings. When everybody takes something and everyone is prepared to do work then that is a good meeting." Although Oregon Action will work with other community organizations on short-term issues such as the West Medford Safeway, most of the group's work is on long-term systematic change. Currently Oregon Action is in a long term battle to create more Living Wage jobs in Oregon. Living Wage jobs are those that pay enough for a family of four to live on at a decent level - about $18 an hour. According to McMurphy, who is President of the Oregon Action board this year, passing a countywide living wage ordinance is Oregon Action's number one priority. But not everyone approves of those goals. There are "a whole lot of holes in the Living Wage concept," said Jackson County Commissioner Ric Holt. "Just for starters some of the people who were diametrically opposed to the highest wage jobs in Southern Oregon (timber) are part of this (Living Wage) group. "They should be creating a climate that attracts businesses that pay a decent wage," Holt said, "rather than trying to pass an absurd new minimum wage." But some see Oregon Action's goals as noble enough to join the group full-time. Bernardo Capetillo started working with Oregon Action six months ago. "I am almost 50 years old, and I wasn't really happy with what I was doing," he said. "I wanted to work with the community." Through the Veterans Administration Capetillo has been able to receive on-the-job-training in community organizing. "Here (at Oregon Action) I've gotten to look inside myself. You have to have convictions here," Capetillo said. Rohde sees people like Capetillo as critical to real activism. "As people are involved in the community, as we can influence concerns that affect the families, we are working on the real long term goals," Rohde said. "These goals are bigger than Safeway, broader than Universal Health Care. It is how a community is built, it's how we share our values across cultural lines. "People who have spent time in the trenches are carried by their values and their connection to other people. "Our ultimate goal is having a lot of those folks," he said. Mat Marr, a 1999 Ashland High graduate, was an editorial intern at the Tidings this summer, until leaving for college last week. The Tidings wishes him well. Email your... 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