1000 Friends of Oregon
1000 Friends of Oregon was a non-governmental organization (NGO) formed in 1974, following the creation of Oregon's statewide land-use system in 1973. Its nominal area of interest was in advocating for sustainable communities, protection of farmland and forests, and conservation of natural areas and resources in Oregon, with a focus on land-use planning. It is a still-active group, which has broadened its advocacy to include climate-change-related issues.
During the 1980s, one of the group's ongoing activities was fighting what it claimed to be improper land-use by the rapidly growing community of Rajneeshpuram. Bob Stacey, the group's senior staff attorney at the time, recalled in 2018 that "if incorporation was a loophole to urbanize a rural area, any development entity could move 150 people onto a site, hold an election, and approve an annexation." Because of such legitimate aims, it became a focal point for more xenophobic interests, with many people allying with it simply as a practical way to enforce their prejudices.
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