YOUR VOICE CONTINUED
River County (Cascade Locks) located "smack dab" in the
heart of the Columbia River Gorge should be represented in
the Columbia Gorge News!
I feel like the "Whos" in Dr. Suess's story "Horton Hears A
Who!" shouting out, "We're here, we're here, we're here!"
Kari Goben
Cascade Locks
EDITOR'S NOTE: This year's election coverage did not feature
the Port of Cascade Locks board this year because the races were
uncontested and our resources were temporarily limited with the
loss of our Hood River area editor.
Freedom of religion
A man from The Hood contacted me. He was concerned
that I was suggesting that Americans should not have
“Freedom of Religion.” Of course they should … absolutely.
To exaggerate the point, I would even give my permission
and consent for folks to worship their “smart phone.”
What I am suggesting to one reasonable intelligent person
out there is simple. Once a person decides to worship the
specific g-o-d revealed in the writings of Moshe, the Hebrew
Prophets, the Psalms and the Apostles letters then “freedom
of religious diversity” stops. This is understood by reading
the instruction manual. An arrogant man can simply ignore
the manual and do what he wants. Cain did this. The histori-
cal account of Cain’s mistake is in Genesis 4.
Like any book the foundation principles are in the early
chapters and these principles are carried into the proceed-
ing chapters for correct guidance and accurate knowledge.
The lesson learned from Cain’s actions is simple, there is
only “one way” to approach the Creator, according to the
manual, and it should be obeyed.
Cain and Abel sought reconciliation with the Creator. They
were instructed exactly how to do so. Blood. Blood must be
offered. A life must be taken and given.
This is what their father and mother learned. Adam and
Eve thought fig leaves would “cover up” the situation they
had worked themselves into. Their diverse church practice
was wrong.
Cain arrogantly offered unacceptable vegetables instead
of blood. Cain alienated himself from the Creator perma-
nently for he did not correct his “religious practice” but
killed the obedient humble brother. The Cain “church” was
doomed but they had their “religious diversity.”
Men do not have the right to decide how they will ap-
proach the Creator. The church’s business method of offering
and selling diverse religious practices is not founded on the
humility of Abel but on the arrogance of Cain. The church
businesses continue to reflect the arrogant nasty murdering
attitude of Cain. For this reason millions of people find the
church system insincere “religious freedom.” Truth is not in
church but in the books of the Scripture. Obedient knowl-
edge is “freedom.”
Gary Fischer
The Dalles
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MAY 5 HONORED MISSING AND MURDERED INDIGENOUS PERSONS
‘Bring them home bill’ proposed
Kaufman
■ By For Tammy
Washington Gorge Action Programs
On May 5, Programs for Peaceful
Living and Washington Gorge Action
Programs recognize the National Day of
Awareness to Commemorate Missing
and Murdered Native Women and Girls
to honor the lives of those who have
been abducted, assaulted, trafficked or
had their lives cut short due to violence.
This population endures a murder rate
that is 10 times the national average
on some reservations, according to
the National Indigenous Women’s
Resource Center.
This issue has been champi-
oned locally by Washington State
Representative Gina Mosbrucker
(R-District 14) who has been working as
the lead author on a series of bi-par-
tisan legislation to support this cause.
Two pieces of legislation passed at the
state level to protect Native American
women, and a third bill has dropped for
consideration in the next session.
The first, HB 2951 (2017-2018),
ordered a study to determine how to
increase reporting and the investigation
of missing Native American women.
It directed Washington State Patrol
to work with the governor’s Office of
Indian Affairs to convene meetings
with tribal law enforcement partners,
tribes and urban Indian organizations
to determine the scope of the problem
and create partnerships to increase
reporting and investigation, as well as
to work with the federal department of
justice to increase information sharing
and coordination of resources.
The second, HB 1713 (2019-2020),
established two missing and murdered
Native American women liaison posi-
tions in the Washington State Patrol,
one residing in Western Washington
and the other in Eastern Washington.
Initially this bill also was intended to
set up a legislative task force to monitor
and improve law enforcement response
to missing persons reports for Native
American women, but due to budget
constraints that year the task force pro-
vision was removed from the final bill.
The third, HB 1571 (2021-2022), is
currently under consideration and
will be addressed again next January
when the legislature reconvenes
after Mosbrucker takes time between
sessions to talk with the tribes, families
and stakeholders to refine the specific
needs for this “Bring them home bill”,
which includes all indigenous persons.
WA State Rep. Gina Mosbrucker, R-District 14 (left) works tirelessly on bipartisan legis-
lation in Olympia to help indigenous families, with leadership from tribal members like
Earth-Feather Sovereign (right) a member of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville
Reservation. Photo courtesy of Aaron Barna, Legislative Support Services, Washington
State Legislature.
“I think what still keeps me up at
night and still working on this after six
years now, is the image of the 12 year
old tribal girl holding up a cardboard
sign that asks ‘Am I next?’" Mosbrucker
said during a phone interview imme-
diately following the close of this year’s
legislative session. “I can’t imagine
wondering that.”
Mosbrucker has eight months now to
work with the more than 29 tribes and
tribal urban areas to gather informa-
tion and adjust the bill before it goes
to a vote. She noted that this effort is
being driven by the tribes. “The family
members are telling us what we need to
do, and what is broken,” she said. This
perspective helps her to refine the bill
and she hopes to make it even stronger.
Currently there are five main parts to
the proposed HB 1571. It would:
1. Upon the death of an indigenous
person, direct agencies to immediately
contact family members and tribes pri-
or to the removal of remains and allow
tribal members to pray over the body
before the body is moved from a crime
scene. This would honor and respect
their cultural ways, but may not inter-
fere with the crime scene or jeopardize
a criminal investigation.
2. Require the state jail booking sys-
tem to be checked during investigations
seeking missing indigenous persons.
3. Create a Red Thunder alert to noti-
fy the public of a missing tribal person.
4. Create a symbol and help line
phone number to be shared at locations
where people may be trafficked.
5. Create a pilot program to set up
a receiving center to care for up to 50
indigenous persons who are victims
of human trafficking and offer wrap
around support services to help them
recover.
“The shelter is a heavy lift,”
Mosbrucker said. But she expressed
confidence that since this would be a
pilot program, it could be successful.
“We will look at funding sources, like
the capital budget,” she said. But as
to the specific design of a shelter, she
added, “I want to leave that up to the
people who have the needs to decide
what it looks like.”
Mosbrucker anticipates that there
is still more work to be done. She is
hopeful that others, including her
counterpart Rep. Debra Lekanoff
(D-District 40) who is vice chair of the
State Government & Tribal Relations
committee, will be able to successfully
launch a legislative task force going
forward.
In the end, she said that this all stems
from keeping a promise to the Yakama
Nation to create real change.
May is 'Mental Health Month'
Tarter
■ By For Victoria
Comprehensive Healthcare
community behavioral health providers
in the state joined to form Fourfront —
a behavioral health collective focused
on advocacy and leadership. The
Mental illnesses are common in the
United States, affecting tens of millions group recently advocated during the
of people each year. One in five individ- 2021 Washington legislative session
to address chronically underfunded
uals in the United States will be diag-
nosed with a mental health disorder in community based behavioral health
providers.
their lifetime, and 17 percent of youth
They will continue to do so during the
(six-17 years old) experience a mental
proposed supplemental session slated
health disorder.
to be held later this year as the outcome
Mental illness is also common in
of the last session included only modest
Washington State, where three out of
increases to Medicaid rates which will
every seven people will likely expe-
not sufficiently address concerns with
rience a clinically significant mental
chronic underfunding such as competi-
illness in 2021, with that number ex-
tive salaries for clinicians.
pected to rise in the coming years.
Locally, throughout the month of
The pandemic has impacted the
overall mental health of individuals
May, Comprehensive Healthcare will
across the world, making it even clearer be providing five different community
education classes for local employers,
that our bodies and minds are intrin-
healthcare professionals and com-
sically linked, and mental wellness is
munity members. On May 18 they
essential to living healthy, productive
will be holding a free, virtual Suicide
lives.
Awareness for Everyone (SAFE) train-
There are also direct impacts of the
ing. They are also hosting a free and
COVID-19 virus. A growing body of
research indicates that roughly one in
virtual Cumulative Stress, Self-care and
Resilience training workshop at noon
three COVID-19 survivors experience
psychological and neurological issues. on May 25.
These trainings offer helpful skills
This year, key priorities for
essential to recognizing and respond-
Comprehensive Healthcare during
Mental Health Month include advocacy ing to individuals in crisis, or knowing
how to approach a co-worker, family
to state legislators, general awareness
member or friend about mental health
and community education.
Leaders of four of the largest
concerns. To sign up for these events,
visit comphc.org/events.
On May 20, there will be a Facebook
Live event on the Comprehensive
Healthcare Facebook page called “Ask
Me Anything."
Clinicians and a peer support coun-
selor with lived experiences will discuss
commonly asked questions they receive
about mental health and substance
use and invite viewers to share their
questions. This event is an opportunity
to ask anything about mental health
including therapy, mental health symp-
toms, crisis situations and more.
Community education is an im-
portant opportunity to teach others
the impact of discrimination toward
mental illness, the harmful mislabeling
of individuals who have a mental illness
as violent or “crazy.” “There is a large
stigma associated with schizophrenia,
for example,” said Jodi Daly, president
and CEO of Comprehensive Healthcare.
“This is due to simply misunderstand-
ing the illness and the assumption that
all individuals with such a severe men-
tal illness are violent.” Daly referenced
recent local and national news stories
about violence and mass shootings,
clarifying that the rate of violence
among individuals with a mental health
diagnosis is no different than the gener-
al population.
TRASH TALK
QA
Q. Are Pizza boxes recyclable either at
curbside or the transfer station? Debra, Mosier
A. Debra, Yes and No. Let me explain. The
pizza box bottoms are considered ‘contaminated’.
But the tops are ok. Simply cut or tear the pizza box
in half. Throw away the bottom including paper liner.
And recycle the top with your cardboard.
questions to:
Serving the Columbia River Gorge Since 1997
NEW LOCATION IN THE DALLES!
541-296-0701 The Dalles
541-387-3311 Hood River
5
(541)-506-2636 www.tricountyrecycle.com