Oregon

Klamath Basin Alliance
2575 Campus Drive #346 
Klamath Falls, OR 97601 
Phone: (541) 880-2606 
Contact: Lynn Bayona
Email: thealliance@basinalliance.com 
Website: http://www.basinalliance.com

Why was the group formed?
We were formed to prevent the transfer of public forest lands to the exclusive jurisdiction of the Klamath tribes. We are founded in the Klamath Basin, but we are open to anyone, anywhere who shares our mission. We believe all people should be treated equally under the law as the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution requires.

What are your goals?
1) We want to live as One Basin, One Community and One Nation.
2) We want to retain public access to the Winema and Fremont National Forest for wood cutting, hunting, fishing, snowboarding, horseback riding, skiing, and other recreational opportunities, which the public enjoys.
3) We want to see that the Winema and Fremont National Forest remains free and open for public use. We want to keep the National Forests and other public lands of Oregon and of the United States always free and open for use by all people.

Our successes so far?
Our group was just formed a couple of months ago. 
So far our biggest success is getting the news out to the public and getting people involved. We have done this by going door to door with petitions, talking to people, and supplying information on how this can and will effect all of us. We are on the phone, emailing and faxing our officials weekly. And, have gotten quite a bit of positive response. We are having meetings to keep up on all that's happening, setting up booths all over town to continue to get the word out. 

Once we are fully organized , we expect to report more progress.

People Against a Casino Town (PACT)

PACT
P.O. Box 978
Florence, Oregon  97439
Contact:  Susie Dewberry, Spokesperson
E-mail:  pactlist@teloflex.com
Website: http://www.teloflex.com/pact

PACT was organized in March, 2003 to oppose the placement of a tribal casino in our community against our will. The issues this small community of about 7,500 faces are detailed on the PACT web site at : http://www.teloflex.com/pact

One way PACT is working to inform members of our community is by sending out an email newsletter called "PACT Announcement" newsletter.  The newsletter is sent out a couple of times a week to mobilize our supporters and provide them with research we and others have done.  We've found that education is key to getting support.  We're reaching at least 500 people with this, and likely more as things are forwarded.

We realize that even though our local problems require local action, the real solution lies with Congress, and we are working in that direction as well.

When we first started, our City Council was knee-deep in a (very quietly held) negotiation process with casino developers.  They had already begun the process for providing water and sewer to the casino site, and were considering an astoundingly inequitable agreement with the tribes. Through sheer will-power on the part of one of our founding supporters, we forced a public Town Hall meeting.  Eventually, after a number of 16-hour-day education campaigns, we got the council to throw out the agreement and reverse their decision about providing water and sewer.

After many more education campaigns, we moved community public opinion from one of disinterest/apathy/nothing we can do (It's a done deal) - to majority concern, and a good level of action taking - letters, phone calls, e-mails, turn-out at public meetings, etc.

We circulated petitions to the Governor and DOI and got over 2,300 signatures.

We moved City Council from resigned 'it's a done deal' attitude to unanimously adopting a resolution asking Governor and DOI to stop casino development here in Florence.

For casino addicts, it may be 'one day at a time'.  For casino activists, sometimes it's 'one inch at a time'.