Post-Election Reconciliation: Signs of the Times

Above: In the spirit of peace, Glen Anderson, left, and Bob Zeigler each hold handmade signs at the northwest corner of Sylvester Park at Legion Way and Capitol Way on Wednesday afternoon in downtown Olympia.

By Janine Gates

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

Glen Anderson of Lacey, a retired state employee and local community organizer with the Olympia Fellowship of Reconciliation, has dedicated himself to stand or sit every Wednesday during the noon hour at the corner of Sylvester Park in downtown Olympia with hand-made signs since March 5, 1980 – that’s 36 ½  years. 

If ever there was a presidential post-election thought expressing Glen Anderson's feelings on what continued for many to be a gut-wrenching, emotionally wild day, his message, “Be gentle with one another,” summed it up. 

Those powerful, few words, written on a handmade sign, offered passersby an ever-so-brief suggestion of how to treat each other, while adding a calming, implied reminder, perhaps, to breathe.

Between waving to pedestrians and drivers, some who honk in apparent appreciation or agreement, Anderson said he specifically chose this sign to hold, one day after the election of president-elect Donald J. Trump.

“The political system and political culture is full of blame, full of shame, and trauma. This year, it has lifted up stuff that was already there so vigorously – anti-gay, anti-Muslim and racist sentiments – that it caught people by surprise,” said Anderson.

Anderson said both major party presidential campaigns were based on fear.

“Both parties are quite broken. The remedy for blame, shame, and trauma is not through the electoral option. If you want change, you have to work at the grassroots. That means sitting on street corners and talking to people. It means connecting….”

At that point, Bob Zeigler, another retired state employee and local community activist who is concerned about the climate crisis and the activities of the Port of Olympia, arrived to hold a sign. 

The sign he chose amongst an inventory of pre-prepared signs: “Act from love, not fear.”

Anderson also hosts and produces a monthly show related to peace, social justice, economics, the environment, and nonviolence on Thurston Community Media (formerly Thurston Community Television).

Anderson said his December program, which will be taped next week, will feature four community guests who will speak about the theme of healing from political blame, shame and trauma.

His guests will be Liv Monroe, a certified communications specialist in nonviolence and compassion, Robert Lovitt, a local Buddhist, Keylee Martineau, a mental health counselor who works with at-risk young adults at Community Youth Services, and the Reverend John Van Eeewyk, a local priest and clinical psychologist.

The Olympia Fellowship of Reconciliation is also co-sponsoring the Western Washington Fellowship of Reconciliation’s 2016 Fall Retreat on Saturday, November 12, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at the Gwinwood Conference Center in Lacey. 

The theme will be “Interracial and Intergenerational Movement Building: Weaving Activism into Our Lives.”

The Fellowship of Reconciliation is a 100 year old pacifist organization founded at the beginning of World War I. 

For more information about the Fellowship of Reconciliation show, times, and how to access it through your computer, go to www.olympiafor.org/tv_programs.htm. For informtion about the 2016 Fall Retreat, or the organization's many activities, go to www.olympiafor.org or www.wwfor.org or contact Glen Anderson at (360) 491-9093 or glen@olympiafor.org. 

Above: Glen Anderson sits with his sign, “Create peaceful foreign policy,” at Percival Landing in downtown Olympia by The Kiss statue in October. Wind, rain, sleet, or snow, every Friday from 4:30 p.m. to 6:00 p.m., Anderson is there with many others, including the Artesian Rumble Arkestra street band. Anderson has many signs to choose from, and encourages individuals to participate. “Just dress for the weather and show up!” laughed Anderson.  

Arts Walk and Arab Festival Offer Culture

By Janine Unsoeld
www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

The weather cooperated all weekend, and Arts Walk continued on Saturday in downtown Olympia, with some exhibits scheduled to be on display throughout the month. The pace on Saturday was quieter, and allowed more time to see art and speak with artists about their work.

 

Above: Pianist Luke Davis, 16, played outside Browser’s Bookstore on Capitol Way for Arts Walk. Davis said he’s been playing for eight years and has participated at Arts Walk for six years. He attends Black Hills High School. He says donations are going toward his college fund, and parts for his car. “My window isn’t staying up,” he said.

Above: Members of Shahrazad dance Ensemble of Seattle perform at the Olympia Arab Festival yesterday at The Olympia Center.

The Olympia Arab Festival

Coinciding with Arts Walk was the Olympia Arab Festival, sponsored by the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace & Justice.

The theme of its second annual event was “Shuruq II,” which means sunrise. In a celebration of Arab culture, the event featured food, performances, speakers, and children’s activities.

Rachel Corrie, Olympia, was killed in the Gaza Strip in 2003 as she tried to prevent the demolition of the home of two Palestinian families.

The Rachel Corrie Foundation was established by Rachel’s family to continue the work that she hoped to accomplish. The Foundation conducts and supports programs that foster connections between people that build understanding, respect and appreciation for differences.

Above: Laith Amireh, 20, of Amman, Jordan, attends Bellevue College and is taking courses in computer science and programming. He says he enjoys being part of the Arabic Culture Student Association, which has 138 members. For more information about the club, go to www.learnarabicculture.org. This is the club’s first visit to Olympia.

Above: The Olympia-Rafah Sister City Mural Project on Capitol Way and State Street in downtown Olympia. For taped recorded information about the wall and the artists, call (360) 252-9779.

Above: Omar demonstrates the fine art of Arabic coffee making at the Olympia-Rafah Mural today. The smell was irresistible. The result of just one cup made for a very productive afternoon and evening! The site at the mural featured a hookah lounge at last night’s Arts Walk.

For more information about the Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace & Justice, go to www.rachelcorriefoundation.org.

Arts Walk is sponsored by the City of Olympia Arts Commission and the Department of Parks, Arts & Recreation with plenty of support by local businesses and artists. For more information about Arts Walk, go to www.olympiawa.gov/parks.

Making Legislative Priorities Heard in Olympia

Above: Marchers with Washington CAN! and POWER! walked to the Capitol Building, then spoke with their legislators about their concerns today.

 

By Janine Unsoeld

www.janineslittlehollywood.blogspot.com

“An individual has not started living fully until they can rise above the narrow confines of individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of humanity.”

 – Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Marching from downtown Olympia to the Washington State Capitol building, activists with Washington CAN! (Community Action Network), and POWER! (Parents Organizing for Welfare and Economic Rights), converged today as a collective force to express their priorities to their legislators.

Today is also Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.

Washington CAN! is a grassroots community organization with over 44,000 dues paying members from every legislative district in the state. Emphasizing racial, social and economic justice, about 140 members of that organization came to Olympia today to meet with their legislators on four main priorities:

-Realize the promise of health reform and save Basic Health (SB 6231);

-Urge the Washington State Senate to pass the DREAM Act (HB 1817);

-Increase access to dental care for consumers (HB 2321); and

-Give workers access to paid sick days (HB 1313).

Organizing all morning at the Capitol Theater in downtown Olympia, activists were briefed on state legislation regarding Basic Health, the Dream Act, paid sick days, and dental access, then broke into small role-playing groups to rehearse brief, personal statements about their own experiences on these issues.

Mariah McKay, a lead WA-CAN! organizer, said the group at today’s effort included about 50 people from Eastern Washington, 30 from Seattle, 30 from the Greater Seattle area, 10 from Olympia, 10 from Tacoma, and 10 from rural communities throughout the state.

Shancie Wagner, a dentist from Spokane, came to Olympia to testify this afternoon to the House Health Care & Wellness Committee in support of HB 2321 to expand access to dental care. Wagner is the first private dentist in the state to express her support of dental access for all.

HB 2321 would create a new mid-level dental provider – a dental therapist – as an effective way to create much needed jobs and meet the growing demand, particularly among low-income people, communities of color and Native communities.  According to Washington-CAN!, thirty out of 39 counties in Washington face a shortage of dental care professionals. 

Wagner said she helped pass a bill in Minnesota similar to Washington’s HB 2321, and that the dental therapist model that exists in Minnesota and Alaska works well.  

“A dental therapist is like a hygienist and a dentist – the person would do extractions and fillings. I trained with the very first dental therapist in Minnesota and saw first-hand that these people are competent because they are trained in limited procedures. They were, in fact, better at it than dental students. Dentists can hire them to do the simple stuff, and then we (dentists) can do the more complicated stuff.

“We should also restore Medicaid service payments to providers...I accept Medicaid, but I can only accept a certain percentage - the reimbursement rates are so low, I lose money.” Asked how much, Wagner says she loses about $200 an hour.

“I’ve only been a dentist for two years, and I have a $5,000 a month student loan to pay.”

Asked why she became a dentist, Wagner said, “I was always terrified of the dentist, so I developed a passion of how it should be done – and I wanted to serve the community,” she smiled.

Nearby, Rayan Orbom, 21, a student of Eastern Washington University in Spokane, said she works in the dental field, and was also in Olympia in support of affordable dental care.

Several members of the Peace and Justice Action League of Spokane were sporting their new League T-shirts and said they will be speaking with their 4^th Legislative District representatives about their concerns.

Jennifer Calvert, a retired teacher from Spokane, said she is concerned about restoring cost-of-living adjustments, increasing teacher’s salaries, and decreasing class sizes.

A young man, Marcelas Owens, 14, of Seattle, knocked everyone out with his on-stage, pre-march rendition of the Black National Anthem.

Later, walking up to the Capitol, Owens said he’s been working on social justice issues since he was seven years old.

“I started on health care, but now I’m mostly interested in youth involvement.”

For more information about Washington CAN!, go to www.washingtoncan.org, or 220 South River Street #11, Seattle, Washington 98108, (206) 389-0050.

To follow Washington State Legislation, go to www.leg.wa.gov or call the hotline at 1-800-562-6000.

For more about POWER!, go to www.mamapower.org, (360) 352-9716 or toll-free, 1-866-343-9716.