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
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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