NEWS
B Y K E L LY K E N O Y E R
• 350 Eugene is off and running in the
New Year. On Monday, Jan. 9, from 4-5 pm,
activists will meet at the Federal Courthouse,
405 E. 8th Avenue, to protest Trump’s climate
denier cabinet nominees, 350 organizer Betzi
Hitz says. And on Wednesday, Jan. 11 from
6-9 pm at the First United Methodist Church,
1376 Olive, the Winter 350 Eugene Meetup
will combine a potluck, campaign reports
and strategies discussion. “This is the place
and time to plug in,” Hitz says. On Friday,
Jan. 13 from 6-9 pm also at 1376 Olive non-
violent direct action training is offered. “Join
the growing numbers of citizens motivated
to take earth-saving action in these most
uncertain times.” Get more info at world.350.
org/eugene.
PHOTO BY KELLY KENOYER
RELIGIOUS BANNER DOWNTOWN
RAISES IRE
C
hristmas-Jesus: A religious message on a banner
downtown has stirred controversy this holiday
season, with more than 140 comments and re-
plies blowing up a post on outgoing Mayor Kitty
Piercy’s official Facebook page.
The sign in question reads, “CHRISTMAS Attend a
Church of Your Choice” and “JESUS Celebrate His Birth.”
Since the banner is stretched across the public street of 8th
Avenue, some citizens argue that it’s in violation of the
constitutional separation of church and state.
Sally Nunn, a Eugene resident for 53 years, says “it is
seen as a message to people that this is being endorsed by
the city, whether that perception is correct or not.”
“I think they have an obligation to be neutral on politics
and religion,” Nunn adds.
Sam Mitchell, a local musician, says the sign is alienat-
ing and shows that only certain people are welcome in our
town. “I don’t think the city should be allowing or even
making money from religious organizations to display their
messages on the streets,” he says. “I especially don’t think
it’s appropriate since those religious organizations aren’t
paying taxes in the first place.”
Brian Richardson, the public affairs manager of city of
Eugene public works, says, “We generally don’t look at the
messages of those events because of constitutional provi-
sions.” Instead, he says that the banner program only looks
to see when the reservation is, if the applicant completed
the forms and if there was a full payment of fees.
“We don’t want to review these messages because we
don’t want to infringe on freedom of speech,” Richardson
adds.
The controversial sign itself is the remnant of the long
legacy of local resident Al Jagger, who ran a program called
Messengers Of Truth, which aimed to spread the gospel
with lawn signs at Christmas time. He died in October at
the age of 98, but according to his obituary, “more than
70,000 signs have been sold in the 12 years since Jagger
began campaigning for Christ.”
While Jagger’s previous billboards and lawn signs, in-
cluding an Easter banner downtown last year, didn’t stir
much controversy in those 12 years, many in the commu-
nity do not accept the banner across 8th Avenue.
“There absolutely should not be religious banners in
public spaces,” Mitchell says. “It’s inappropriate, it’s divi-
sive and it’s a non-inclusive message to other members of
our community.” ■
IT’S ABOUT TIME
T
he natural world has its regular
rhythms disrupted by natural
disasters like ice storms, much the
way human environments change.
Incense cedar trees have proven
much more susceptible to damage from an
ice load than Douglas fir. The recent ice storm
brought down incense cedar branches in much
greater numbers than Douglas fir. The incense
cedar’s ecological adaptation to the warmer
end of the forest zone allowed them to evolve
into a species with weak branches. They are
not resistant to snow or ice. Key elements to
surviving a disaster seem to be adaptability
and resilience.
• Friends of Jim Cross, a 41-year-old
Eugene resident and University of Oregon
student, who has been missing since Dec. 12,
2016 want Eugene-Springfield residents to
keep an eye out for him, saying “It is possible
that Jim could be in a confused or depressed
state,” friend Jill Brazier says. Cross is 6 feet
tall, with brown hair and a brown beard. A
missing persons report has been filed with
the Eugene Police Department, Case No. 16-
20891. See EW’s blog for a picture of Cross,
and call EPD with any tips at 541-682-5111.
• Community Rights Lane County is
hosting Mari Margil, associate director of the
Community Environmental Legal Defense
Fund (CELDF) on 7 pm Thursday, Jan. 12, at
the Eugene Garden Club, 1645 High Street.
Margil leads CELDF’s global rights of nature
work, which advocates for legal standing
for nature. In 2008, she assisted Ecuador’s
Constituent Assembly to draft “rights of
nature” constitutional provisions, and works
today in Nepal, India, Colombia, Cameroon
and other countries to advance the rights of
nature. She has been a contributing author
for several books including The Bottom Line or
Public Health and Exploring Wild Law.
RUFOUS
HUMMINGBIRD
SELASPHORUS
RUFUS
BY D AV I D WA G N E R
Heron nests were lost in a big cottonwood
stand close to the Willamette River. Only two
are left in a tree that hosted a rookery of seven
or eight nests in the past ten years or so. Three
of the big branches that supported nests are
gone. There are still good nest sites in this
stand of cottonwoods — it will be interesting
to watch how the rookery responds to the
damage.
The harshest part of winter in the southern
Willamette Valley normally comes after
the New Year. Those of us who feed birds in
the summer need to pay attention to our
feathered friends now, when the living can
be tough. Feed in the wild is scarce; many
birds now rely on
the kindness of bird
feeders. Keep seed
feeders full and
hummingbird feeders
available by bringing
them inside on freezing
nights. They need energy
to maintain life functions in
temperatures below 0˚ C.
David Wagner is a botanist in Eugene
teaching moss classes and leading nature
walks. His 2017 Oregon Nature Calendar
is now available at Down to Earth stores in
Eugene or online from his web site: fern-
zenmosses.com.
eugeneweekly.com • January 5, 2017
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