In response to claims of racism and other hate speech concerning one of its contractors, the Port of Coos Bay’s citizen board said this week that it will evaluate its leasing standards.
The port has been urged to refuse business relations with a local business owner who has been named by anti-fascist activists in Oregon as a neo-Nazi and an outspoken white supremacist by a coalition of human rights organizations, environmental groups, a labor union, and other nonprofits.
The dispute arises at a time when the Port of Coos Bay, the biggest deepwater coastal shipping port between Seattle and San Francisco, is about to undergo a major makeover. In southwest Oregon, it recently secured $54 million in federal money for a potential $2.3 billion expansion and what may eventually become a major rail and shipping hub, opening the door for thousands of jobs.
The campaign, which targets a contractor with relatively small contracts with the government, has prompted port officials to act quickly. Michael Whitworth Gantenbein, the contractor, called the accusations a smear effort. In two phone interviews with The Oregonian/OregonLive, he disputed the accusations.
He answered, “I don’t do that kind of stuff.” None of it describes me as a racist.
An investor in the development group that has agreed to construct and run a new terminal, a former state lawmaker, has already notified the port that his organization will not be entering into a contract with Whit Industries, a Coos Bay hydraulics company that is owned by Gantenbein.
Brian Clem, a member of the Oregon House from 2007 to 2021, told The Oregonian/OregonLive that he would never receive a single penny of our funds. According to Clem, a native of Coos Bay, the terminal project will cost the developers at least $800 million.
The alliance driving the campaign against Gantenbein sent accusations compiled by CVAntifa, an antifascist collective located in Corvallis, and Left Coast Right Watch, an investigative journalism organization, to port officials.
They claim that Gantenbein was a previous head of a White Lives Matter branch that has since disbanded and been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.
The audio recordings from a White Lives Matter Telegram discussion group are referenced in the letter to the port. A man whom activists say is Gantenbein provides his home address in the audio; the address is the same one linked to Gantenbein in public records, according to public records reviewed by The Oregonian/OregonLive.
The following organizations have signed the letter to the port: Unite Oregon and Western States Center, Rogue Climate, Sierra Club Oregon Chapter, South Coast Health Equity Coalition, Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition, Oregon Just Transition Alliance, and International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local Union 932.
The groups urged port officials to reject leasing to businesses owned by Gantenbein; port representatives, however, say they are unaware of any pending transactions that would require the board s signoff.
There are no imminent plans for lease transfers involving the Shipyard, Kyle Stevens, president of the Port of Coos Bay Commission, told the group in a written response.
We are reviewing our policies for leasing property to ensure they comply with Title VI and will share any policy revisions publicly, he wrote. Title VI prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color and national origin in programs that receive federal dollars.
“We are dedicated to ensuring that this process is transparent,” Stevens stated. Future lease transfers would be governed by the newly created policy.
Gantenbein declined to respond to each allegation of racist activity and said he had never been the leader of any racist group.
He acknowledged the authenticity of an image the groups are circulating showing him sitting down eating lunch with a man activists identified as a White Lives Matter leader.
I met with this guy and when I found out what this was about, I walked away immediately, he said.
He called the allegations a bunch of propaganda.
I m not a bad person or an evil person, he said. I have people of color that work for me. I mean, this is just ridiculous. The people that know me know this, so it boggles the mind.
Gantenbein is a longtime hydraulics contractor with port contracts, Stevens confirmed in an email to The Oregonian/OregonLive.
As of Nov. 5, the port had paid Gantenbein s company, Whit Industries, nearly $290,000 since 2015.
Stevens said contracts with Whit Industries on three projects remain ongoing; he said the board is reviewing those agreements, which involve repairs to port equipment.
Stevens said port staff contacted Gantenbein when the allegations of racism first surfaced to discuss various public information requests the port received regarding business dealings with Whit Industries.
Stevens said Gantenbein cut them off and informed them he did not want to hear it and that he keeps his personal life separate from his professional life.
Stevens said the board recently adopted a non-discrimination policy and is developing an official complaint process for potential violations.
There is no place for discrimination in our community and we remain committed to ensuring any and all employees and contractors uphold that same commitment as part of our public mission, he said.
Noelle Crombie is an enterprise reporter with a focus on criminal justice. Reach her at 503-276-7184;[email protected]
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