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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (July 20, 2011)
www . THeskaNNer . com J uly 20, 2011 s eaTTle , w asHiNGToN V olume XXXiii, N o . 38 25 ceNTs i nSide secure communities page 1 kucinich page 1 Good Vibe C hallenging P eoPle to S haPe a B etter F uture n ow page 4 New Holly FuN New seattle library New Seattle Library Service Can Help You Plan Ahead By cheih-Hsin (Jessie) lin Of The Skanner News PHOTO BY SuSan Fried T Daimon 5, tries out a hula hoop at the New Holly Family Fun Fest and Health Fair July 16 at the New Holly Gathering Hall. The event included a variety of fun activities for children, health screenings and information, food and entertainment. kucinich eyes washington seat Midwest Democrat likely to lose out in Congressional redistricting By andrew miga The associated Press WaSHingTOn (AP) — Rep. Dennis Kucinich has been shopping around for a new con- gressional district as it appears increasingly likely that he will be drawn out of his Ohio dis- trict. And he may have found a new one — in a state thousands of miles away. The two-time Democratic presidential candidate with a progressive following has visit- ed Washington state for several political events in recent months, including a recent appearance at a Seattle confer- ence for progressive activists where his call to bring home U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan won applause. The eight-term congressman said he hopes to make more vis- its in the coming months, whether Democrats in Washington welcome him or not. “It’s certainly no secret I’ve been out to the Seattle area many times since the beginning indeX News ........................2,4 calendar ....................2 opinion .......................3 Bids/classifieds............3 of the year” Kucinich told The Associated Press.”Each time I’ve gone out there it’s by invi- tation. As long as the invitations keep coming, I’ll do my best to try to accommodate them.” Judith Shattuck, a longtime Kucinich supporter and chair- woman of the Washington State Progressive Caucus, said Kucinich can count on a devot- ed band of supporters across the state. “There is a real solid core of progressives in the state of Washington who support Dennis wholeheartedly” Shattuck said. “If he were to choose to run here, these pro- gressives from across the state would be in that district working for him every day, working hard.” But the state Democratic chairman said Kucinich’s woo- ing of Washington voters is unseemly and could end up costing the state Democratic seats. “It is inappropriate for a sit- ting congressman from See KucinicH on page 4 he Seattle Public Library system will close for a week at the end of August and reopen after Labor Day, respond- ing to a $67 million city budget gap. That’s the bad news. The good news is, a new serv- ice is available to help readers plan ahead. “Your Next Five Books” can save patrons a phone call or trip to the library, according to Jennifer Reichert, assistant managing librarian at the Central Library. Patrons fill out an online form with basic information such as books they enjoy reading, authors they like and reasons why they like them. It usually takes two to seven days, she said, for an experienced librarian to process and send back a recommendation of five books to the requestor via email. “The goal is really just to reach out to our community and let them know we have librarians here who can give excellent read- ing recommendations,” said Reichert. “Because we know they ask us for reading recommendations all the time in person, and this is just a way to offer that online.” Kevin Johnston, 38, a crane operator working evening shift at Seaport Steel, comes to the Central Library every week or two to check on the library’s comics collec- tion before he goes to work. He said he thought the service is great but he still prefers finding books in his own way. “Usually if there is a book I need and they don’t have it, I will (look for it) somewhere else, and eventually I will go buy it,” he said. “For my entertainment, for my enjoy- ment, I love the comics and it’s not some- thing I like to discuss with people.” Although many services are now digital- ized, Johnston said he still prefers to read print. “I feel too young to say that I am old-fash- ioned, but I personally like books,” said Johnston. “I’m not against getting on iPads or computers but as far as the eBooks, I per- See liBrarY on page 2 Homeland security Program Too Harsh? Immigrant advocates say innocent people could be caught up By manuel Valdes The associated Press SeaTTle (AP) — When the governor’s office declined last year to make a unilater- al decision on behalf of all the state’s sher- iffs, it fell to each individually to activate a federal program that uses fingerprint analy- sis to identify illegal immigrants in county jails, the so-called Secure Communities ini- tiative. Now, as more than a dozen of Washington’s 39 counties are participating, the state’s largest immigrant advocacy group and its allies are lobbying against the program statewide. But some involved sheriffs, especially from smaller counties, said the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement program is simply another way to make cer- tain people with criminal records are prop- erly screened. “It’s not uncommon for us to have some- body claim to be someone they’re not,” said Franklin County Sheriff Richard Lathim. “It’s just another layer of security.” The pushback against Secure Communities is nationwide, as the program See immigraTiOn on page 2
