Tuesday, March 01, 2011

Funeral for the fallen and veterans issues

24-year-old Shawn Evans died February 15th while serving in Iraq. Jeff Wilkinson (South Carolina's State) reports funeral services were held yesterday at Columbia's First Nazereth Baptist Church and that the family has still not been given any details about Shawn's death. His father, Kevin Green states, "I never imagined that I would lay down my son before me. I ask that the U.S. government tell me what happened to my son."

In other veterans news, Kim Baldonado and Julie Brayton (NBC Los Angeles) report that Iraq War veteran Jake Chadwick is suffering from kidney failure: "No one in his family is a match, so Jacob must endure four hours of dialysis, three times a week while he waits for a donor. Finding a match could take five years." Iraq War veteran Joshua Bleill lost both legs while serving in Iraq. Ed Ballam (Firehouse) reports he spoke about his experiences at Firehouse World Expo in San Diego yesterday. KGTV adds:

"My worst fear was having people look at me [and] my missing legs," Bleill said.
Bleill said what changed his mind was an offer to see his Indianapolis Colts play the Chicago Bears in the Superbowl. Also, Colts owner Jim Irsay told him when he got out of the hospital there would be a job waiting for him.
"That made me head back to the hospital, start rehab and learn to walk," he said.
It took Bleill two years, but with a cane and two prosthetic legs, he is walking. On behalf of the Colts, Bleill works as a motivational speaker, which brought him to the Firehouse Expo in San Diego.

Meanwhile Paul Post (Saratogian) reports US House Rep Chris Gibson is back from Iraq and declaring of the (puppet) government there, "It will not be a Jeffersonian democracy but I do believe it will be representative and stable."

The following community sites -- plus Military Families Speak Out -- updated last night and this morning:


Thomas Friedman is a Great Man
Blog post
6 hours ago




David Bacon's latest book is Illegal People -- How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants (Beacon Press) which won the CLR James Award. He's a journalist and he's an artist. He has an upcoming exhibit.

Beyond Borders:
Immigration Images and Stories
Photographs by David Bacon and Kathya Landeros

Viewpoint Photographic Art Center
2015 J. Street, Suite 101
Sacramento, CA 95811-3124
Phone: 916-441-2341

Exhibit Dates:
Wed, 03/09/2011 - Sat, 04/02/2011
Artist Reception Date:
Fri, 03/11/2011 - 5:30pm - 9:00pm
2nd Saturday Reception:
Sat, 03/12/2011 - 5:30pm - 9:00pm


An exhibition of documentary photographs by David Bacon and Kathya Landeros about immigration to the United States from Mexico and Central America.

An experienced photographer, journalist, and former labor organizer, Bacon's stunning work of photographs and oral history documents the new reality of migrant experience: the creation of transnational communities. He takes us inside these communities and illuminates the ties that bind them together, the influence of their working conditions on their families and health, and their struggle for better lives.

Landeros, herself from a family of immigrants from Central Mexico, proposes that "If one can accept that the history of migratory policy toward Mexico has been complicated as we negotiate between our demands for labor and our need for cultural sovereignty, then we can acknowledge that the migrant communities that have developed in Mexico are a manifestation of these complexities."


Coachella, CA, 2010, David Bacon


Graton, CA, 2004, David Bacon

For more articles and images, see http://dbacon.igc.org

See also Illegal People -- How Globalization Creates Migration and Criminalizes Immigrants (Beacon Press, 2008)
Recipient: C.L.R. James Award, best book of 2007-2008

See also the photodocumentary on indigenous migration to the US
Communities Without Borders (Cornell University/ILR Press, 2006)

See also The Children of NAFTA, Labor Wars on the U.S./Mexico Border (University of California, 2004)



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