Vortex 1: How a rock festival saved Portland from chaos
By (Eric Cain)
Aug. 28, 2020 4:28 p.m.
Fifty years ago, Oregon’s Republican governor did something that has never been done before or since: He authorized and encouraged young people to attend a free, drug-fueled rock concert at a state park. The decision might have ended in disaster. Instead, tens of thousands of people attended, successfully drawing anti-war protesters away from President Richard Nixon’s planned visit to Portland.
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