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On Tuesday night, WW put up a post saying that feminist bookstore and community center In Other Words—famous as the setting for the Toni and Candace sketches on IFC's sketch show Portlandia—had apparently ended their relationship with the show and placed a "Fuck Portlandia" sign in the window.
On Tuesday, the bookstore refused comment to WW in very colorful terms.
Related: Feminist Bookstore Made Famous on Portlandia Posts "Fuck Portlandia" Sign
Today, however, In Other Words has put up a blog post explaining how their relationship with Portlandia came to an end:
"This was a direct response to a particular egregious filming of the show in our space which saw our store left a mess, our staff mistreated, our neighbors forced to close and lose business for a day without warning, and our repeated attempts to obtain accountability or resolution dismissed. It was also a direct response to a show which is in every way diametrically opposed to our politics and the vision of society we're organizing to realize. A show which has had a net negative effect on our neighborhood and the city of Portland as a whole. Shortly after this decision was made, a volunteer placed the Fuck Portlandia sign in our window."
We've reached out to producers at Portlandia for response as to the circumstances of that shoot—as well as a few other claims on that post—but have not yet received comment.
In Other Words also says they have not made significant money from shooting fees, and have also not profited much from the attention offered by fans of the show. There's no itemized accounting of any income received from the show in their 990-form nonprofit filings—although In Other Words' 2012 form does show $600 in "rental income."
IOW also criticizes the lack of representations of black people on the show, and writes that Portlandia's crew asked IOW to remove a Black Lives Matter sign in their window for the shoot, which they write that they refused to do.
And in a phrase familiar from the "Fuck Portlandia" sign, the store cites the "trans-antagonistic and trans-misogynist" nature of the Toni and Candace sketches, declaring "LOL Fred Armisen in a wig and a dress" to be a "deeply shitty joke whose sole punchline throws trans femmes under the bus by holding up their gender presentation for mockery and ridicule."
For In Other Words' full post describing the reasons why they no longer allow Portlandia to film there, go here.
In Other Words' blog post closes with the following message:
"The current board, staff, and volunteers were not involved in the decision, made six years ago, to allow Portlandia to film at In Other Words. We stand behind our collective decision to discontinue our relationship with the show. And we fucking love the sign."
Willamette Week