HANCOCK -- Close out your Heikinpäivä midwinter holiday by sliding down to the Copper Island Beach Club in Hancock, bottom of Tezcuco Street, for an old-time Finnish jam and open-mike session from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. TONIGHT, Saturday, Jan. 26.
Musicians, Oren Tikkanen says, "Bring your 'cordean or fiddle, sing some old-time songs (Finnish or otherwise). Maybe we'll sing some old Labor Songs (Finnish, English, or whatever language you got) in commemoration of the 1913 Strike. Let's try to keep it acoustic, or at least semi-, so's the Emäntä (Sweet Mary K.) doesn't throw us out."
And bring your dancing shoes. The Finn Hall Band from MN has agreed to take the first slot from 8 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. Contact Oren Tikkanen at oren.tikkanen@gmail.com if you want to guarantee yourself a time to play.
Saturday, January 26, 2013
Keweenaw Nordic Ski Club to host moonlight ski TONIGHT, Jan. 26
Gromit the snow dog invites everyone to join her for the moonlight ski at Maasto Hiihto Saturday, Jan. 26. Here she is enjoying some new snow on Maasto. (Photos courtesy Arlyn and Sandy Aronson and Gromit's Trail Mutt Reports.)
HANCOCK -- Keweenaw Nordic Ski Club (KNSC) will host a moonlight ski on Saturday, Jan. 26. Meet at Maasto Hiihto's Tomasi Trailhead at 6:30 p.m. and ski out to the "triangle." Bring a head lamp. It is just a short (1.5 miles) ski out. The bonfire will be roaring, brats will be roasting, stories will be told. All are welcome, including furry friends.
"We bumped into our ski friends Mark and Bella," Gromit writes. "This is the spot where we have our moonlight skis. Will we see YOU at the next one, on Saturday January 26th?"
Groomer Arlyn Aronson reported early on Friday, "Maasto and CR (Churning Rapids) trails are looking up with this recent snow. They're still quite rough but we’ll be improving them with subsequent snow."
"I 'helped' while Arly scooped snow into the crevice above the National Guard bridge," Gromit writes on her blog.
For more information email Sandy Aronson at sandy@superiortandems.com or call her at 487-9229 or 370-2911. See more photos on Gromit's blog, The Trail Mutt Reports.
Friday, January 25, 2013
Lac Vieux Desert Youth group to hold spirit walk Jan. 28 in Watersmeet
SECOND UPDATE: Please note: This event has been cancelled. Roads are hazardous.
UPDATED: WATERSMEET -- All are welcome to join the Lac Vieux Desert (LVD) Youth in an Idle No More spirit walk on Monday, Jan. 28. They will be meeting at 4:30 p.m. Central Standard Time (5:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) at the intersection of HWY 2 and HWY 45 and doing a spirit walk to the LVD Rec center (located next to the LVD Tribal offices). Drumming services and guest speakers will follow.
Lac Vieux Desert Youth join the Jan. 11, 2013, Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Idle No More Walk to express solidarity with the global movement for indigenous rights and environmental justice. (Keweenaw Now file photo)
There will be an Indian taco sale at the LVD Rec center. All the proceeds will go to the LVD youth and their future involvement in Idle No More. Please come out and show
your support for the cause and these young leaders.
"Injustice for one is injustice for all."
Everyone is welcome. If you are unable to do the walk just meet the group at the LVD Rec center.
Editor's Note: The round dance that was scheduled for Monday, Jan. 28, in Baraga, by members of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) Idle No More group has been cancelled. KBIC members will be attending this LVD event in Watersmeet instead.
UPDATED: WATERSMEET -- All are welcome to join the Lac Vieux Desert (LVD) Youth in an Idle No More spirit walk on Monday, Jan. 28. They will be meeting at 4:30 p.m. Central Standard Time (5:30 p.m. Eastern Standard Time) at the intersection of HWY 2 and HWY 45 and doing a spirit walk to the LVD Rec center (located next to the LVD Tribal offices). Drumming services and guest speakers will follow.
There will be an Indian taco sale at the LVD Rec center. All the proceeds will go to the LVD youth and their future involvement in Idle No More. Please come out and show
your support for the cause and these young leaders.
"Injustice for one is injustice for all."
Everyone is welcome. If you are unable to do the walk just meet the group at the LVD Rec center.
Editor's Note: The round dance that was scheduled for Monday, Jan. 28, in Baraga, by members of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) Idle No More group has been cancelled. KBIC members will be attending this LVD event in Watersmeet instead.
Thursday, January 24, 2013
"Art from the Kalevala" reception to be Jan. 26 at Community Arts Center
HANCOCK -- "Art from the Kalevala" is a group exhibition on display at the Copper Country Community Arts Center’s Kerredge Gallery through Jan. 26, 2013.
At Tapio's Slope, by Bonnie Loukus. (Photos courtesy Copper Country Community Arts Center)
Thirteen artists are participating with their interpretations of passages from The Kalevala, an important literary work and epic poem of Finland. Its rich imagery provides a hearty topic for visual art and the exhibit coincides with Hancock’s mid-winter festival, Heikinpäivä. An open house reception will be held from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday Jan. 26, during the Heikinpäivä celebrations.
Many people come to Hancock during this time and enjoy the vast array of activities that celebrate Finnish and Finnish-American culture.* Artists in the exhibition include: Barb Summersett, Miriam Pickens, Fredi Taddeucci, Bob Dawson, Constance Stockwell Johnson, K. Carlton Johnson, Edith Marshall, Joyce Koskenmaki, Eric Munch, Clyde Mikkola, Cynthia Coté, Bonnie Loukus, and Daniel Schneider.
The Copper Country Community Arts Center is located at 126 Quincy Street in Hancock. For more information call: 906.482.2333.
* Click here for the Jan. 25-26 Heikinpäivä schedule of events.
Thirteen artists are participating with their interpretations of passages from The Kalevala, an important literary work and epic poem of Finland. Its rich imagery provides a hearty topic for visual art and the exhibit coincides with Hancock’s mid-winter festival, Heikinpäivä. An open house reception will be held from 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturday Jan. 26, during the Heikinpäivä celebrations.
Joukahainen, by Clyde Mikkola.
Many people come to Hancock during this time and enjoy the vast array of activities that celebrate Finnish and Finnish-American culture.* Artists in the exhibition include: Barb Summersett, Miriam Pickens, Fredi Taddeucci, Bob Dawson, Constance Stockwell Johnson, K. Carlton Johnson, Edith Marshall, Joyce Koskenmaki, Eric Munch, Clyde Mikkola, Cynthia Coté, Bonnie Loukus, and Daniel Schneider.
The Copper Country Community Arts Center is located at 126 Quincy Street in Hancock. For more information call: 906.482.2333.
* Click here for the Jan. 25-26 Heikinpäivä schedule of events.
Celebrate mid-winter at Heikinpäivä 2013 Jan. 25, 26
The 2012 Heikinpäivä parade heads down Quincy Street in Hancock on a snowy day with a balmy 23 degrees F. (File photos by Keweenaw Now)
HANCOCK -- Heikinpäivä 2013 is underway to celebrate mid-winter (in case you haven't noticed the weather!) It should be a bit warmer by Saturday for the parade and main events. Unfortunately, the Polar Bear Dive has been cancelled this year for lack of a warming place. Nevertheless Heikinpäivä promises fun for the whole family.
Here is the schedule for Friday and Saturday, with some of our photos from last year:
Friday, January 25
2 p.m. -- Finnish card making class, Finnish American Heritage Center, Hancock. 2 hour class. $15 fee.
6 p.m. -- FinnFest preview night/Heikinpäivä Dance, Brownstone Hall, Atlantic Mine, Mich. $5 cover charge, food for sale, cash bar, silent auction. Proceeds benefit FinnFest USA 2013. Call (906) 370-3110. Various musicians will play from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., and the Minnesota Finn Hall Band will play for dancing at 8 p.m.
Saturday, January 26
10 a.m. - 3 p.m. -- Tori Market, Finnish American Heritage Center and First United Methodist Church.
10 a.m. - 3 p.m. Family Fun Day -- Vipukelkka (Whipsled) reindeer, kicksleds, World's Largest Kicksled, Rakovalkea (log burning), Finlandia's Quincy Green.
Kids enjoy the Vipukelkka (Whipsled) at the 2012 Family Fun Day events.
11 a.m. -- Parade, downtown Hancock. Line up at BRIDGE School at 10:30 a.m. Prizes.
Immediately following parade -- Wife-carrying contest and kicksled races, Finlandia's Quincy Green.
Contestants in the wife-carrying contest make a required stop at the sauna.
Alex Mayer and Suzanne VanDam stop for coffee during the 2012 wife-carrying contest.
Hannu and Lilli from Finland race for the Finish line ...
And Hannu and Lilli are the winners!
3 p.m. -- Open house for "Art from the Kalevala" exhibit, Community Arts Center, Hancock. Call 482-2333.*
6 p.m. -- Seisovapöytä (Finnish buffet), Zion Lutheran Church, Hancock. Tickets $18.
Silent auction during the banquet.
More photos from Heikinpäivä 2012:
Kivajat Dancers and their Moomin float add color to the 2012 Parade. Moomins are favorite characters in Finnish children's literature.
Reindeer walk in the Parade and later join the Family Fun on Finlandia's Quincy Green.
Carol Williams offers her lovely handmade jewelry for sale at the Tori.
For more information about Heikinpäivä, visit their Web site.
* Click here to read about the "Art from the Kalevala" exhibit.
Wednesday, January 23, 2013
Bad River Band concerns with Wisconsin mining legislation continue
ODANAH, WIS. -- On Jan. 22, 2013, a day before the public hearing today on the newly proposed Wisconsin mining law, to be held in Madison, Tribal leaders of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior continued to express their concerns that a proposed mine in the Penokee Range poses serious risks to people’s health and drinking water and is a threat to the rivers, lakes, wetlands, and other natural resources in the Bad River watershed.*
"With a nearly identical companion bill as last session, it is clear that the leadership of the Wisconsin legislature still doesn’t understand that the Penokee Hills cannot be mined without adversely affecting our clean drinking water and our way of life," said Mike Wiggins Jr, Chairman of the Bad River Band. "AB 1 and SB 1 were obviously written by and for an out-of-state mining company and will be rushed through the legislative process without formal meetings with Tribal leaders, adequate public hearings, or meeting the ten principles we set forth in September 2011 for future changes to Wisconsin’s mining laws. As a people and as a sovereign nation, the Bad River Band strongly opposes AB 1 and SB 1 and we ask the Wisconsin Legislature to reject this legislation once and for all."
Mike Wiggins, Jr., Chairman of the Bad River Band, speaks at the Lake Superior Bi-National Forum: "Mining Impacts and Lake Superior: A Basinwide Approach" on March 23, 2012, in Ashland, Wis., shortly after the proposed Gogebic Taconite open-pit iron mining project was abandoned (or put on hold) last year. However, the recently introduced Wisconsin mining legislation could again threaten the Penokee Hills and the Bad River watershed and wild rice. (Photo by Allan Baker for Keweenaw Now) Click here to watch the video of this speech by Steve Zieverink of The Hypha Film Project.
"If enacted as introduced, AB 1 and SB 1 will significantly weaken environmental protections applicable to iron mining," said Glenn Stoddard, an attorney who serves on the legal team representing the Bad River Band on mining issues.
Stoddard outlined some of the major problems with the legislation. Changing the law:
The Penokee Range, extending through 25 miles of Ashland and Iron counties, is significant to the clean water, environment and culture of the Bad River Band and other northern Wisconsin residents. The surface and groundwater originating from the Penokee Range is in the recharge zone of the Copper Falls Aquifer, on which many residents rely for clean drinking water.
Seventy-one miles of rivers and intermittent streams flow through the proposed mining area, emptying into Lake Superior. These waterways are a part of an internationally important migratory corridor; birds and other wildlife depend on area wetlands for survival.
The Kakagon Bad River Sloughs --16,000 acres of wild rice, grasses, sedges, trees, streams, and open water located along the southern shore of Lake Superior -- depend on the surface and ground water that originates in the Penokee Range to sustain the largest and healthiest full-functioning estuarine system remaining in the upper Great Lakes. These wetlands have a cultural significance for the Bad River Band and support the largest natural wild rice bed in the Great Lakes in which members of the Bad River Band have harvested wild rice for generations.
Legislation Serves Out-of-State Mining Interests to Extract Iron Ore from the Penokee Range
"It seems the primary purpose of the proposed mining legislation is to convince Gogebic Taconite to develop an open pit iron ore mine in the heart of the Penokee Range," said Bad River Tribal Council Member Frank Connors Jr. "But despite promises from politicians and mining companies, this mountaintop removal cannot be done without polluting our water. This is our land. This is where we live. We can’t just pack up and move."
The majority of the Range is owned by RGGS Land and Minerals, Ltd. of Houston, Texas, and LaPointe Mining Co. in Minnesota. Together these companies control a 22-mile, 22,000-acre stretch of the Penokee Range from southwest of Hurley to about six miles west of Mellen. The Cline Group, out of Florida, secured an option to obtain the mineral rights held for this property, and created a subsidiary called Gogebic Taconite to propose a 4 1/2 mile long open pit iron ore mine, what the company says is the first phase of an eventual 22-mile strip of open pit mining.
For Gogebic Taconite to get to the iron, a vast amount of overlying rock must be removed, some of which contains heavy metals and sulfides. In the Penokee Range, a recent report from Lawrence University researchers estimate a mine 4 miles east-west and 1000-foot deep would generate at least 434 million cubic yards of waste (over three times the volume of Lake Monona). The overlying rock contains sulfide (sulfur-bearing) minerals (primarily pyrite), which when exposed to air and water create sulfuric acid harming people, fish and plants. The report builds on the considerable work done by geologists in the past, which is documented in the literature at: http://www.lic.wisc.edu/glifwc/penokee/literature.
The Bad River Band opposes the proposed changes to the state’s mining regulations in AB 1 and SB 1. For this or any changes in Wisconsin’s mining regulations, we can agree to ten basic principles for changes that would protect the environment and cultural resources for future generations:
* The public hearing on the mining bill is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the latest on Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013, in Room 411 South of the State Capitol, 2 East Main Street, in Madison. Bad River supporters plan to speak outside the Capitol in a peaceful demonstration. See Idle No More: Silent No More on Facebook for information.
EDITOR'S UPDATE: Click here for a video, "Bad River Band Tribe on Mining the Penokee Hills," voices of members of the Bad River Tribe, presented on YouTube by Midwest Environmental Advocates.
For the Bad River Ojibwe Tribe, clean water is essential for their fisheries and wild rice crop. This photo shows a brook trout from Spring Brook in the Penokees. (File photo © Pete Rasmussen, Moving Water Photography, and courtesy Penokee Hills Education Project. Reprinted with permission.)
"With a nearly identical companion bill as last session, it is clear that the leadership of the Wisconsin legislature still doesn’t understand that the Penokee Hills cannot be mined without adversely affecting our clean drinking water and our way of life," said Mike Wiggins Jr, Chairman of the Bad River Band. "AB 1 and SB 1 were obviously written by and for an out-of-state mining company and will be rushed through the legislative process without formal meetings with Tribal leaders, adequate public hearings, or meeting the ten principles we set forth in September 2011 for future changes to Wisconsin’s mining laws. As a people and as a sovereign nation, the Bad River Band strongly opposes AB 1 and SB 1 and we ask the Wisconsin Legislature to reject this legislation once and for all."
"If enacted as introduced, AB 1 and SB 1 will significantly weaken environmental protections applicable to iron mining," said Glenn Stoddard, an attorney who serves on the legal team representing the Bad River Band on mining issues.
Stoddard outlined some of the major problems with the legislation. Changing the law:
- violates Wisconsin’s Public Trust Doctrine which protects our rights with shared water,
- infringes on federally recognized Chippewa treaty rights,
- reduces meaningful public and scientific input before a permit is issued by the DNR,
- eliminates citizen suits as a means of enforcing a permit after it has been issued by the DNR,
- and creates a more complex and less efficient process for review of a potential iron mine, because Wisconsin will not be able to effectively coordinate its review with federal agencies.
Penokee Range: Geography, Topography and Importance
The Penokee Range, extending through 25 miles of Ashland and Iron counties, is significant to the clean water, environment and culture of the Bad River Band and other northern Wisconsin residents. The surface and groundwater originating from the Penokee Range is in the recharge zone of the Copper Falls Aquifer, on which many residents rely for clean drinking water.
Seventy-one miles of rivers and intermittent streams flow through the proposed mining area, emptying into Lake Superior. These waterways are a part of an internationally important migratory corridor; birds and other wildlife depend on area wetlands for survival.
The Kakagon Bad River Sloughs --16,000 acres of wild rice, grasses, sedges, trees, streams, and open water located along the southern shore of Lake Superior -- depend on the surface and ground water that originates in the Penokee Range to sustain the largest and healthiest full-functioning estuarine system remaining in the upper Great Lakes. These wetlands have a cultural significance for the Bad River Band and support the largest natural wild rice bed in the Great Lakes in which members of the Bad River Band have harvested wild rice for generations.
Legislation Serves Out-of-State Mining Interests to Extract Iron Ore from the Penokee Range
"It seems the primary purpose of the proposed mining legislation is to convince Gogebic Taconite to develop an open pit iron ore mine in the heart of the Penokee Range," said Bad River Tribal Council Member Frank Connors Jr. "But despite promises from politicians and mining companies, this mountaintop removal cannot be done without polluting our water. This is our land. This is where we live. We can’t just pack up and move."
The majority of the Range is owned by RGGS Land and Minerals, Ltd. of Houston, Texas, and LaPointe Mining Co. in Minnesota. Together these companies control a 22-mile, 22,000-acre stretch of the Penokee Range from southwest of Hurley to about six miles west of Mellen. The Cline Group, out of Florida, secured an option to obtain the mineral rights held for this property, and created a subsidiary called Gogebic Taconite to propose a 4 1/2 mile long open pit iron ore mine, what the company says is the first phase of an eventual 22-mile strip of open pit mining.
For Gogebic Taconite to get to the iron, a vast amount of overlying rock must be removed, some of which contains heavy metals and sulfides. In the Penokee Range, a recent report from Lawrence University researchers estimate a mine 4 miles east-west and 1000-foot deep would generate at least 434 million cubic yards of waste (over three times the volume of Lake Monona). The overlying rock contains sulfide (sulfur-bearing) minerals (primarily pyrite), which when exposed to air and water create sulfuric acid harming people, fish and plants. The report builds on the considerable work done by geologists in the past, which is documented in the literature at: http://www.lic.wisc.edu/glifwc/penokee/literature.
10 Principles for Any Changes to Wisconsin’s Mining Regulations
The Bad River Band opposes the proposed changes to the state’s mining regulations in AB 1 and SB 1. For this or any changes in Wisconsin’s mining regulations, we can agree to ten basic principles for changes that would protect the environment and cultural resources for future generations:
- Exclude any project proposal that has the potential to cause acid mine drainage.
- The burden of preparing and submitting a complete application should be entirely on the permit applicant.
- Provide adequate time for the DNR, the public, federal agencies, and affected Indian tribes to fully review and participate in the process.
- Maintain existing wetland protection standards and the federal/state partnership in the environmental review process.
- Correct, don’t weaken, the DNR’s federal Clean Water Act implementation.
- Allow contested case hearings with full participation by citizens, including Indian tribes.
- Mining legislation must not preempt local control.
- Allow citizen suits to make sure permit provisions and legal restrictions on new mines will be enforced.
- Require consultation with Indian tribes by the DNR as part of the permitting process.
- Participation in contested case hearings should be paid for by the permit applicant or state.
* The public hearing on the mining bill is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at the latest on Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013, in Room 411 South of the State Capitol, 2 East Main Street, in Madison. Bad River supporters plan to speak outside the Capitol in a peaceful demonstration. See Idle No More: Silent No More on Facebook for information.
EDITOR'S UPDATE: Click here for a video, "Bad River Band Tribe on Mining the Penokee Hills," voices of members of the Bad River Tribe, presented on YouTube by Midwest Environmental Advocates.
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Fourth Thursday in History: Appreciating Mine Waste
CALUMET -- The Copper Country is home to majestic white pines and crystal clear waters, but more than a century of mining, milling, and smelting has left its mark. Waste rock piles, stamp sand tailings, and slag can be found from Copper Harbor to Carp Lake, next to the highway, along the lakeshore, and deep in the woods. Many consider these wastes unsightly, and blights in the wilderness. Others think of them as a commodity, waiting to be exploited. Is it possible to appreciate them as something more?
Join Sean Gohman as he discusses this question in an illustrated presentation at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 24, at Keweenaw National Historical Park headquarters, located at 25970 Red Jacket Road in Calumet. The event is free and open to the public.
Gohman spent months exploring, cataloging, and photographing over 300 deposits of Copper Country mine waste. A PhD student in the Industrial Archaeology program at Michigan Technological University, he may be familiar to mining history buffs for his recent work at the Cliff Mine site in Keweenaw County. Funding from the Keweenaw National Historical Park Advisory Commission enabled him to locate and document mine wastes across the Keweenaw and reflect on their relative significance in the Keweenaw’s mining heritage.
This program is the first Fourth Thursday in History program of the 2013 season.
The Fourth Thursday in History series arranges public presentations on important aspects of Copper Country and regional history, including techniques for historic preservation. Presentations are scheduled in venues throughout the Keweenaw Peninsula, particularly at historic sites associated with specific topics. They are free and open to the public.
For further information, including specific directions to this event, contact Keweenaw National Historical Park at (906) 337-3168 or check the web at www.nps.gov/kewe.
Join Sean Gohman as he discusses this question in an illustrated presentation at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 24, at Keweenaw National Historical Park headquarters, located at 25970 Red Jacket Road in Calumet. The event is free and open to the public.
Gohman spent months exploring, cataloging, and photographing over 300 deposits of Copper Country mine waste. A PhD student in the Industrial Archaeology program at Michigan Technological University, he may be familiar to mining history buffs for his recent work at the Cliff Mine site in Keweenaw County. Funding from the Keweenaw National Historical Park Advisory Commission enabled him to locate and document mine wastes across the Keweenaw and reflect on their relative significance in the Keweenaw’s mining heritage.
This program is the first Fourth Thursday in History program of the 2013 season.
The Fourth Thursday in History series arranges public presentations on important aspects of Copper Country and regional history, including techniques for historic preservation. Presentations are scheduled in venues throughout the Keweenaw Peninsula, particularly at historic sites associated with specific topics. They are free and open to the public.
For further information, including specific directions to this event, contact Keweenaw National Historical Park at (906) 337-3168 or check the web at www.nps.gov/kewe.
Northern Wisconsin legislators object to plans for only one hearing on Wis. Mining Bill -- in Madison
ASHLAND, WIS. -- Just two days after introducing a new mining bill and promising an open and transparent process, Wisconsin Republican leaders announced last Friday afternoon that the only public hearing on the legislation will be held in Madison on Wednesday, Jan. 23. This announcement came one day after Senator Bob Jauch (D-Poplar) and Representative Janet Bewley (D-Ashland) sent a letter to Mining Committee Chairs Senator Tom Tiffany (R-Hazelhurst) and Representative Mary Williams (R-Medford) requesting a hearing on the bill in Northern Wisconsin.
"During the press conference unveiling the new bill on Wednesday, every speaker went to great lengths to talk about how good this bill was for the citizens of Northern Wisconsin," said Bewley. "We are capable of deciding for ourselves what is good and what isn’t. My constituents deserve the opportunity to speak out, both for and against, this bill."
Senator Tiffany and Representative Williams will impose limits on all public testimony and on the number of questions members of the committee may ask. They plan on starting at 9 a.m. and will shut down at 9 p.m. regardless of how many people have not yet testified.
"This is just another arrogant show of disrespect to the citizens of Northern Wisconsin, who have had to fight to have their voices heard throughout this process, despite the fact that they would be the ones most affected by the proposed mine," said Jauch. "Not only will this hearing be next to impossible for most north woods citizens to attend, those who are able will have their testimony limited. The chairs clearly have their minds made up about the future of the bill, making this a cruel hoax, not a public hearing."
The northern lawmakers called on Tiffany and Williams to reconsider their decision and hold other hearings in other parts of the state. They also ask Tiffany and Williams to consider joining them for a public listening session in Ashland on Saturday, Feb. 9. Jauch and Bewley have reserved space for that day and are willing to host the event.
"Senator Tiffany and Representative Williams represent rural, northern Wisconsin districts," say Jauch and Bewley in a Jan. 21 press release. "They ought to understand that the people of northern Wisconsin feel ignored. Their decision to hold the only hearing on the bill in Madison is an insult to the people who will be most affected if it passes and an insult to our democratic principles. We call on them to reconsider and give the people of Northern Wisconsin the access they deserve."
Editor's Notes:
NEW UPDATE: See the Jan. 22, 2013, Daily Page article, "New Wisconsin iron mining bill will be devastating to the environment," by Al Gedicks and Dave Blouin.
Update: See this Jan. 21, 2013, Wisconsin Citizens Media Cooperative article by Barbara With and Rebecca Kemble: "Secret Mining Meeting in Hurley Draws Criticism."
See this Jan. 2, 2013, In These Times article, "Gold Diggers and Indians," on recent plans for sulfide mining in northern Wisconsin and opposition by Native Americans and other local residents.
See also this Feb. 21, 2012, letter to the editor from Wendy Thiede of Oma, Wis., "Updated: Letter: Scientists offer evidence of sulfides in Penokee mine site."
"During the press conference unveiling the new bill on Wednesday, every speaker went to great lengths to talk about how good this bill was for the citizens of Northern Wisconsin," said Bewley. "We are capable of deciding for ourselves what is good and what isn’t. My constituents deserve the opportunity to speak out, both for and against, this bill."
Senator Tiffany and Representative Williams will impose limits on all public testimony and on the number of questions members of the committee may ask. They plan on starting at 9 a.m. and will shut down at 9 p.m. regardless of how many people have not yet testified.
"This is just another arrogant show of disrespect to the citizens of Northern Wisconsin, who have had to fight to have their voices heard throughout this process, despite the fact that they would be the ones most affected by the proposed mine," said Jauch. "Not only will this hearing be next to impossible for most north woods citizens to attend, those who are able will have their testimony limited. The chairs clearly have their minds made up about the future of the bill, making this a cruel hoax, not a public hearing."
The northern lawmakers called on Tiffany and Williams to reconsider their decision and hold other hearings in other parts of the state. They also ask Tiffany and Williams to consider joining them for a public listening session in Ashland on Saturday, Feb. 9. Jauch and Bewley have reserved space for that day and are willing to host the event.
"Senator Tiffany and Representative Williams represent rural, northern Wisconsin districts," say Jauch and Bewley in a Jan. 21 press release. "They ought to understand that the people of northern Wisconsin feel ignored. Their decision to hold the only hearing on the bill in Madison is an insult to the people who will be most affected if it passes and an insult to our democratic principles. We call on them to reconsider and give the people of Northern Wisconsin the access they deserve."
Editor's Notes:
NEW UPDATE: See the Jan. 22, 2013, Daily Page article, "New Wisconsin iron mining bill will be devastating to the environment," by Al Gedicks and Dave Blouin.
Update: See this Jan. 21, 2013, Wisconsin Citizens Media Cooperative article by Barbara With and Rebecca Kemble: "Secret Mining Meeting in Hurley Draws Criticism."
See this Jan. 2, 2013, In These Times article, "Gold Diggers and Indians," on recent plans for sulfide mining in northern Wisconsin and opposition by Native Americans and other local residents.
See also this Feb. 21, 2012, letter to the editor from Wendy Thiede of Oma, Wis., "Updated: Letter: Scientists offer evidence of sulfides in Penokee mine site."
Melissa Hronkin to teach after-school "Kids Make Art" classes at Community Arts Center
HANCOCK -- Not enough art in your child’s diet? Join Art Educator Melissa Hronkin for an after school art series for K-2nd and 3rd-6th grade students at the Copper Country Community Arts Center (CCCAC) in Hancock. The first three weeks will include a variety of 2-D media such as drawing and painting. The last three weeks will include 3-D media such as clay, cardboard, and wire.
Melissa Hronkin, artist and art educator, demonstrates some of her own art during the Copper Country Community Arts Center Open House in December 2012. (Photo by Keweenaw Now)
Grades K-2nd class session happens on Tuesdays from 4:15 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 5, 12, 19, 26, March 5 and 12. Grades 3rd-6th class session happens on Thursdays from 4:15 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 7, 14, 21, 28, March 7 and 14.
Sign your child up for either six-week class by calling the Copper Country Community Arts Center at 482-2333. Sign up by TODAY, Jan. 22, for a discounted fee. Deadline to register is Feb. 1st. The CCCAC is located at 126 Quincy Street, Hancock.
Grades K-2nd class session happens on Tuesdays from 4:15 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 5, 12, 19, 26, March 5 and 12. Grades 3rd-6th class session happens on Thursdays from 4:15 p.m. - 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 7, 14, 21, 28, March 7 and 14.
Sign your child up for either six-week class by calling the Copper Country Community Arts Center at 482-2333. Sign up by TODAY, Jan. 22, for a discounted fee. Deadline to register is Feb. 1st. The CCCAC is located at 126 Quincy Street, Hancock.
Hilary Virtanen to speak on Heikki Lunta folklore Jan. 24
HANCOCK -- Join Hilary Virtanen, PhD candidate in Folklore at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Finnish American Heritage Center public programming coordinator, as she tells the story of the life and times of Heikki Lunta, the Finnish American Snow God. The event will take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 24, at the Finnish American Heritage Center in Hancock.
Created in 1970 in a song advertising a snowmobile race, Heikki Lunta rapidly became a fixture in regional folklife. With a body of songs, multiple festivals, and in-group communications about the Snow God now in existence, Heikki Lunta means many things to many people.
Virtanen will explore how regional history, Finnish ethnicity and UP interethnicity, and the development of the tourism industry have all contributed to Heikki Lunta and why he holds such a place of begrudging honor in Copper Country public life. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 487-7505.
Created in 1970 in a song advertising a snowmobile race, Heikki Lunta rapidly became a fixture in regional folklife. With a body of songs, multiple festivals, and in-group communications about the Snow God now in existence, Heikki Lunta means many things to many people.
Virtanen will explore how regional history, Finnish ethnicity and UP interethnicity, and the development of the tourism industry have all contributed to Heikki Lunta and why he holds such a place of begrudging honor in Copper Country public life. This event is free and open to the public. For more information, call 487-7505.
Sunday, January 20, 2013
Embracing Change: Annual Martin Luther King Jr. Week slated to celebrate Civil Rights Era
From Tech Today *
HOUGHTON -- Michigan Tech will celebrate the life and contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., during the annual MLK Week event.
The annual celebration consists of four events, which run from Jan. 21-25. This year’s theme focuses events around the changing face of activism.
The 24th annual MLK Banquet will be held Monday, Jan. 21, from 6 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Ballroom. Guest speaker Tricia Rose, Brown University professor, will discuss MLK history and the legacies of the civil rights era.
Gloria Melton, former dean of students, will give the evening’s closing statement; she will speak about her experience attending King’s famed "I Have a Dream" speech.
While tickets for this Banquet were free, unfortunately no more tickets are available.
Also on Monday, Jan. 21, Michigan Tech students and staff will share the message of King’s work with local elementary school children. A group of 20 Tech volunteers will read about the life and work of King to kindergarten through fifth-grade students.
"It’s an exciting event because there’s a really diverse group of Tech students going," said Kellie Raffaelli, assistant director of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion. "In terms of ethnicity and gender, there’s a lot of diversity."
The Rosa Parks Story, a 97-minute film about the civil rights heroine who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white person, will be shown at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 23, in Fisher 135. Admission is free, and concessions will be provided. All are invited to attend.
Throughout the week, a display featuring photos, artifacts and publications from the civil rights era will be on display in the J.R. Van Pelt and Opie Library. Included within the display will be photos from Rosa Parks’s visit to Michigan Tech’s campus in the 1980s.
The week’s events are sponsored by the Black Student Association and the Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI). For more information, contact CDI at 487-2920.
* Editor's Note: This is a slightly updated version of the article by Danny Messinger, Tech Today web editor, that appeared in Tech Today on Jan. 17, 2013.
HOUGHTON -- Michigan Tech will celebrate the life and contributions of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., during the annual MLK Week event.
The annual celebration consists of four events, which run from Jan. 21-25. This year’s theme focuses events around the changing face of activism.
The 24th annual MLK Banquet will be held Monday, Jan. 21, from 6 p.m. - 8:30 p.m. in the Memorial Union Ballroom. Guest speaker Tricia Rose, Brown University professor, will discuss MLK history and the legacies of the civil rights era.
Gloria Melton, former dean of students, will give the evening’s closing statement; she will speak about her experience attending King’s famed "I Have a Dream" speech.
While tickets for this Banquet were free, unfortunately no more tickets are available.
Also on Monday, Jan. 21, Michigan Tech students and staff will share the message of King’s work with local elementary school children. A group of 20 Tech volunteers will read about the life and work of King to kindergarten through fifth-grade students.
"It’s an exciting event because there’s a really diverse group of Tech students going," said Kellie Raffaelli, assistant director of the Center for Diversity and Inclusion. "In terms of ethnicity and gender, there’s a lot of diversity."
The Rosa Parks Story, a 97-minute film about the civil rights heroine who refused to give up her seat on a bus to a white person, will be shown at 7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 23, in Fisher 135. Admission is free, and concessions will be provided. All are invited to attend.
Throughout the week, a display featuring photos, artifacts and publications from the civil rights era will be on display in the J.R. Van Pelt and Opie Library. Included within the display will be photos from Rosa Parks’s visit to Michigan Tech’s campus in the 1980s.
The week’s events are sponsored by the Black Student Association and the Center for Diversity and Inclusion (CDI). For more information, contact CDI at 487-2920.
* Editor's Note: This is a slightly updated version of the article by Danny Messinger, Tech Today web editor, that appeared in Tech Today on Jan. 17, 2013.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
