PrideScape

“ Made with Pride ” Series: LGBTQ2SIA+ Veterans Village with Ian Michael  In this episode PrideScape Host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with Ian Michael (he/they). Ian is a USMC Veteran, and the LGBTQ+ Veteran Coordinator at the Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs in the Appeals & Special Advocacy Division. Ian, for the last several years has also been instr...

In this month's episode of PrideScape, Pride Northwest Executive Director and podcast host, Debra Porta sits down with two of our reigning 2025 Portland Gay Prides Pageant title holders for an inspiring conversation about community, visibility and what it means to represent their community throughout their reigning year.  Mr. Gay Pride Austin Lindsey and Ms. Gay Pride Saint Syndrome share what...

Rejoin PrideScape Host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with Ian Morton, Pride Northwest Director of Programs and Max Micozzi, Project Coordinator of Pride Elder Connections for part two of this episode highlighting Pride Northwest’s newest program. Tune in as Debra, Ian and Max discuss how both LGBTQ2SIA+ elders and the broader community can get involved and support...

In this episode PrideScape Host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with Ian Morton, Pride Northwest Director of Programs and Max Micozzi, Project Coordinator of Pride Northwest’s newest program Pride Elder Connections! Join Debra, Ian, and Max as they discuss the origins of the program, issues elders in our community face, and the program mission. They also take a momen...

In this episode PrideScape Host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with Pride Northwest Program Assistant, Karianne Horton. On top of all the amazing work Karianne does year-round with Pride Northwest, Karianne is instrumental for coordinating Portland Pride registration.  Join Debra and Karianne as they reflect on the work that has happened to professionalize and strea...

Season 4, Episode 7- Year End Review with Debra Porta and Ian Morton (Part 2) In part 2 of this episode of PrideScape, host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with Ian Morton, Pride Northwest Director of Programs to close out the 2025 year. Join Debra and Ian as they take a moment to look back at everything 2025 brought to Pride Northwest. And as they celebrate the prog...

In this episode of PrideScape Host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with Ian Morton, Pride Northwest Director of Programs to close out the 2025 year. Join Debra and Ian as they take a moment to look back at everything 2025 brought to Pride Northwest. And as they celebrate the progress, reflect on the journey, give thank you’s, and set the stage for what’s next.

In this episode PrideScape Host and Pride Northwest Executive Director, Debra Porta, sits down with award-winning Portland filmmaker, playwright, and storyteller, Sean Brown whose work dives deep into the complexities of LGBTQIA2S+ identity, resilience and survival.  Join Debra and Sean in this powerful conversation that touches on the diversity within the LGBTQIA2S+ community, and highlights that...

In this episode, Pride Northwest Director of Programs and this month's guest host of PrideScape, Ian Morton, guides listeners through a look at one powerful piece of a broader fight for food security, a central focus of Pride Northwest's winter “Drive to Thrive” campaign. The spotlight is on Mis Tacones, a restaurant where food, culture, and social justice intersect in meaningful ways.  Ow...

In this episode, Executive Director of Pride Northwest and PrideScape Host, Debra Porta (she/they) sits down with PrideScape special guest, Abby Ross (they/them), a truly multifaceted guest. From academia, government, to the arts, Abby shares about their journey and how they ended up in Portland. Debra and Abby discuss one of Abby’s recent blog posts, Authoritarianism Survival Kit: On Being Ready...

In this episode, Executive Director of Pride Northwest and PrideScape Host Debra Porta, and PrideScape special guest, Representative Travis Nelson, sit down for an open and engaging conversation about the impact of recent legislation impacting the LGBTQIA2S+ community and the importance of utilizing the leverage our community has.  Rep. Nelson also touches on his journey, identity, what drives him...

Season 4, Episode 1: " A History of Ballroom in Portland" Whether you’re a ballroom veteran or just curious about the world behind ballroom culture: join Debra Porta and Daniel Giron as they dive heels-first into the vibrant and resilient history of Portland’s ballroom scene. This episode explores how ballroom culture took root in the Pacific Northwest, the pioneers who carved out space for self-e...

Join us as we spend some quality time with cartoonist and community-builder Rupert Kinnard, to talk about his journey and latest project "Ooops...I Just Catharted!: 50 Years of Cathartic Comics!" Rupert Kinnard is an American cartoonist who is best known for creating the first ongoing gay/lesbian-identified African-American comic-strip characters: the Brown Bomber (a teenage superhero) a...

In this episode, Pride Northwest Executive Director Debra Porta is joined by the Development Director of Rose Haven, Liz Starke. Debra and Liz discuss the services Rose Haven provides day-to-day as the only day shelter and community center specifically serving women, children, and gender-diverse people in Portland. The conversation also includes topics such as how the LGBTQIA2S+ community is impac...

Pride Northwest is excited to support Portland Backpack as part of this year's Community Impact Drive. Portland Backpack's Mission is to serve children who are at risk of hunger by providing food sacks for weekend days when food scarcity is higher. They believe that engaging the community in their efforts creates a greater impact that reached beyond reducing hunger. Learn more about this g...

In this extended episode, Executive Director of The Equi Institute Katie Cox returns to the PrideScape program to chat with Pride Northwest Executive Director Debra Porta once again. The two discuss updates from Equi and how the landscape of LGBTQIA2S+ supportive services looks currently, the work being done in the LGBTQIA2S+ housing collaborative the two organizations are founding members of, the...

In this episode, Executive Director Debra Porta sits down with Ian Morton, the new Director of Programs at Pride Northwest. The two discuss what this new position means for Pride Northwest, goals for the upcoming year and beyond, and how this year's Portland Pride Waterfront Festival and Parade went. To learn more about Pride Northwest's programs and get involved, visit pridenw.org .

In this episode, Pride Northwest Executive Director Debra Porta speaks with Cayla McGrail and Eden Dabbs from the LGBTQ+ Historic Sites Project, which is housed within the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability’s Historic Resources Program. The LGBTQ+ Historic Sites Project is a multi-year effort that works to identify, document, and preserve historic places and resources associated with lesbian, g...

In this episode, Executive Director Debra Porta spoke with Vegas Flights, an up-and-coming drag performer, producer, director, and more. For those unaware, Pride Northwest and Vegas Flights previously partnered on The Takeoff, an all-queer youth drag show that premiered in November 2022. Debra and Vegas discuss Vegas's experience growing up, what brought them to performing, and their experienc...

This month, Pride Northwest Executive Director Debra Porta sat down with Dr. Sandra C. Comstock, Executive Director of Hygiene4All, to discuss how Hygiene4All came about and what they do, how the pandemic has affected the local houseless community, what the landscape of resources looks like now, and how folks can engage to support Hygiene4All's mission. They also address the City of Portland's pla...

In this extended episode, Pride Northwest Executive Director Debra Porta talks with Dana Louis, Executive Director and Shepherd of Gather:Make:Shelter, a local organization that works with populations experiencing houselessness and poverty to engage in collaborative, skill-building creative projects. Debra and Dana discuss the origins of Gather:Make:Shelter, the collaboration between Pride Northwe...

Executive Director of Pride Northwest Debra Porta is joined this episode by Tony Camacho Martinez, Program Director at p:ear, a local Portland organization that works with houseless youth. Started in 2002 and founded by 3 women, p:ear focuses on establishing connections and relationships with homeless youth, supporting them through art, education, recreation, mentorship, and work programs. Tony an...

In this episode, Debra Porta meets with Natalie Berning, Financial Advisor with OnPoint Financial Services and Raymond James at OnPoint Community Credit Union. They discuss the difference between a credit union and a bank, how to decide which financial institution to bank with, how to protect yourself financially in an economic downturn, and resources for folks needing more help with financial pla...

In this extended special episode, Debra is joined by Robin Will, President of GLAPN, and Melissa Lang, Vice-President. They discuss what GLAPN does, LGBTQIA2S+ history in Portland and Oregon dating back to 1912, the 30 year anniversary of the start of “the Measure 9 years” and what we can learn from that time, as well as GLAPN’s current programming and how you can support them in their efforts to...

Keely Helmick, President of Oregon SAIGE and owner of Connective Therapy Collective, joins us this episode to discuss all things ORSAIGE and our upcoming collaboration at Portland Pride. We discuss who ORSAIGE is, why it’s important to have a chapter of SAIGE in Oregon, their advocacy to bring a bill to legislature to ban conversion therapy in adults in Oregon, supporting LGBTQIA+ therapists and L...