Category Archives: Viva!

Noa: Open letter to the wind

If we refuse to recognize each other’s rights and embrace our obligations, if we continue to each cling to his own narrative with contempt and disregard for that of the other, if we again and again choose swords over words, if we sanctify land and not the lives of our children, we shall soon be forced to truly seek a colony on the moon, for our land will be so drenched in blood and so cluttered with tomb stones there will be nothing left for the living.

I wrote these words, and sang them together with my friend Mira Awad. They stand truer than ever today:

“when I cry I cry for both of us,

My pain has no name.

When I cry, I cry to the merciless sky and say:

There must be another way”

Noa, july 22, 2014

via Noa: Open letter to the wind.

Michigan Market Serves Neighborhood with Indoor Market

Local food growers, consumers and entrepreneurs in the Lansing, Michigan area have had good cause to celebrate as of late. Last September, Allen Neighborhood Center, a community development agency that doubles as Mid-Michigan’s nonprofit food hub, opened the doors of a warehouse they’d spent months renovating.

Located directly behind their community center on the city’s northeast side, that building, the Allen Market Place, now serves as an incubator kitchen and indoor market. It’s also linked to an online market called the Exchange, that connects regional farmers and food producers with commercial and institutional buyers in a 75-mile range of Lansing.

via Michigan Market Serves Neighborhood with Indoor Market.

One Hillsboro family, 4 boxers, all Olympic hopefuls: Team Estrada | OregonLive.com

From left, Eric, 17, Diana, 15, Omar, 12, Efrain Jr., 19, Salud, and Efrain — Team Estrada in their driveway workout facility. The Estrada Diaz children in Hillsboro are making their way into the amateur boxing limelight. Efrain Jr., 19, Diana, 15, Eric, 17, and Omar, 12 started boxing as youngsters and now fill glass cases in their living room with championship belts and medals. With their parents as coaches, the sport has truly become a family affair. Benjamin Brink/Staff Photographer

via One Hillsboro family, 4 boxers, all Olympic hopefuls: Team Estrada | OregonLive.com.

Shoni Named WNBA All-Star Game MVP: Scores Record 29 Points

“Showtime Shoni”—garnered more Native pride throughout Indian country on Saturday as she scored 29 points during the WNBA All-Star game.

Atlanta Dream rookie Shoni Schimmel, a tribal citizen of the Confederated Tribes of Umatilla, was named the Most Valuable Player of the WNBA All-Star, scoring an All-Star game record 29 points with eight assists while leading the East to a 125-124 overtime victory over the West.

Schimmel scored 24 of her points during the second half and overtime to break the All-Star game record of 23 points set by Candace Parker last season. She attempted a whopping 16 three-pointers, sinking seven.

via Shoni Named WNBA All-Star Game MVP: Scores Record 29 Points.

Provocative Cleveland gun legislation addresses local firearms violence: editorial | cleveland.com

On Wednesday, Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson answered that question with the introduction of a – let’s be frank – provocative but necessary package of legislation.

The proposed ordinances would:

Require felons who committed crimes with firearms to register with the city Department of Public Safety.

Require the safe and secure storage of firearms away from minors and prohibit the acquisition of more than one firearm within a 90-day period.

Prohibit the possession or use of a firearm while intoxicated.

Prohibit carrying a concealed weapon without a permit.

Prohibit possession of a BB gun, pellet gun, knife, brass knuckles or sword in a public place.

Prohibit the sale or transfer of a firearm without reporting it to the police.

Prohibit destroying the serial number and other identifiers on a weapon.

Prohibit the sale of facsimile firearms.

Prohibit the sale or possession of slingshots and pea shooters.

Prohibit the possession or use of stench bombs.

These common-sense recommendations do not violate the Second Amendment yet they have already triggered a backlash from activists.

via Provocative Cleveland gun legislation addresses local firearms violence: editorial | cleveland.com.

Michelle Obama the Colored Woman: Some Takes on the Brilliant Brown vs Board of Ed. Site Visit Photo — BagNews

If you weren’t completely transfixed yesterday by the shooting down of a commercial jetliner over Ukraine, you might have come across this. Simply put, it’s the best visual to come out of the Administration in months, maybe longer.

via Michelle Obama the Colored Woman: Some Takes on the Brilliant Brown vs Board of Ed. Site Visit Photo — BagNews.

Wow! Indigenous mountain farmers unite on climate change

Farmers from 25 indigenous mountain communities in ten countries have come together to share traditional knowledge that could help them to mitigate climate change and to lobby governments for greater recognition of their unique knowledge.

The International Network of Mountain Indigenous Peoples was formed at a workshop in Bhutan last month (26 May-1 June). It includes communities from Bhutan, China, India, Kyrgyzstan, Papua New Guinea, Peru, the Philippines, Taiwan, Tajikistan and Thailand.

via Indigenous mountain farmers unite on climate change.