Researchers shared key results from the 2026 State of Black Oregon report at a Portland State University event on Oct. 6. The full report, which compares data reaching back at least 16 years, is scheduled for release next month. It follows a similar Urban League study published in 2015.

Among the clearest gains, Black voter registration increased 24% from 2012 to 2024. The share of Black Oregonians who voted grew from 37% to 63% over the same period. Black representation in both chambers of the Oregon Legislature also roughly doubled between 2015 and 2026, the report found.

At the event, Portland State Black studies professor Bright Alozie said political participation reflects a longer history of organizing, as well as more recent moments including the 2020 racial justice protests. He said concerns about access to public services and voting could also motivate people to participate.

The report’s findings point to sharper concerns in education. From 2014 to 2025, English and math proficiency declined among Black fourth-graders and high school students. The share of Black students with at least one disciplinary incident rose more than the corresponding share among white students. In the 2024-25 school year, Black students made up 2.5% of Oregon’s student population, while Black teachers represented 0.9% of teachers.

Higher education showed improvement: the share of Black Oregonians with a bachelor’s degree rose from 17% in 2015 to 22% in 2023. But writer and nonprofit leader Lakayana Drury questioned whether public schools are adequately serving Black students, and raised concerns about retaining teachers.

Health measures were mixed. The report found fewer Black Oregonians died of cancer in 2024 than in 2015, and diabetes diagnoses declined between two three-year periods. But suicide deaths among Black Oregonians increased from 2017 to 2024, while the suicide rate for Black youth ages 10 to 24 was unchanged from 2014. The share of infants born to Black mothers with low birth weight rose from 9.4% in 2016 to 10.7% in 2024.

Economic trends also diverged. Black-owned businesses grew from 1% of Oregon businesses in 2012 to 3% in 2021, and unemployment among Black residents older than 16 fell between 2015 and 2024. Yet the annual income gap between Black and white households widened by about $9,000 from 2010 to 2023, and the share of Black households that owned their homes declined between 2010 and 2024.

The report also found that Black adults’ share of the incarcerated population remained level, while the proportion of youth in juvenile detention who were Black rose from 8.6% in 2015 to 14% in 2024. The share of pedestrian stops involving Black Oregonians increased from 7.1% in 2019 to 8.6% in 2024.

More than 100,000 Black people live in Oregon, about 2.5% of the state’s population, according to census data. Jazzmine Waugh, who led the Urban League study, said the data raise questions about how to advocate for Black residents across the state.

Panelists were asked what they hoped a similar report would show a decade from now. Alozie called for Black students to thrive in schools and find clear paths into careers, and described a future in which Black Oregonians can afford to stay in the state by choice. Other panelists spoke about stronger literacy outcomes and making Oregon a place where Black young professionals want to build their lives.