I'm trying to pull the starter on my 1989 escort. I don't have ramps to put the car up. can anyone tell me what the easiest way to do this would be?

It is easiest to do from underneath with either ramps or jackstands, but if you can't get the car raised you should still be able to remove it by reaching around the backside of the engine. It will be done much more by feel than by sight, guy can be done.

Also... I am not sure about the 89, but removing the battery and intake hose might give you better visual on the starter.

Find some cider blocks. Jack the car up and then lower the tires down onto the blocks.

The inexpensive ramps are pretty easy to buy, but before I had a set of them, I used to do 'underneath' work by driving the car over a deep depression next to a high curb. One wheel being up on the curb.
I recently took the engine/trannny out of an Escort and put them back in, with the front of the car just raised on cement blocks and pieces of 4" by 4" lumber and some 1 by 4 lumber. If I hadnt had my floor rack, I could have raised the car one side at a time with the little scissor jack that came with it.