January 2, 2024 Dena Jensen
During about 30-35 minutes of January 2, 2024 discussion by Bellingham City Council Members of an ordinance to suspend the City’s Immigration Advisory Board, virtually not one positive thing was said about the current IAB – many of whose members are immigrants – or its volume of work over the last four years. New Council Member Jace Cotton did say he’d like to see the current board continue to meet.
Continue reading
December 30, 2023 Dena Jensen
Remember when Whatcom County officials suddenly shut down the Homeless Strategies Workgroup? The threat of a similar action now looms over the IAB.
Please bear witness to the Bellingham City Council Meeting this coming Tuesday, January 2, 2024 at 3:00 p.m. where Council Members will be discussing the draft of an ordinance “Suspending All Future Meetings of the Immigration Advisory Board (IAB) and Its Subcommittees Until City Council Adopts an Ordinance Rescinding the Suspension.”
Here is a link to the agenda: https://meetings.cob.org/Meetings/ViewMeeting?id=3121&doctype=1
Continue reading
July 9, 2021 Dena Jensen
In May of this year, Whatcom County 2021 candidate filing yielded seven candidates running for a total of four Bellingham City Council seats. There are fourteen candidates vying to fill four County Council seats, along with five Port of Bellingham candidates to potentially fill two seats. Whether running unopposed, or facing challengers, each one of them has potential to generate public conversation and advance solutions for critical community issues.
Continue reading
Screenshot taken from a January 15, 2020, online article published by The Northern Light showing a photo of Satpal Sidhu being sworn in to office on January 11, 2020
June 17, 2020 Sandy Robson
These last few weeks or so have reflected a turbulent period of time in our nation’s history after the unmistakable and terrible scene we witnessed in Minneapolis where George Floyd, a Black man, was killed by a white Minneapolis police officer, Derek Chauvin, who kept his knee on Mr. Floyd’s neck, pinning him on the ground for nearly nine minutes. Continue reading
August 27, 2019 Sandy Robson
Tonight I attended the “Hate Has No Home Here” Ferndale community meeting against hate groups event, hosted by the Riveters Collective, that was held at the Ferndale Library.
Continue reading
August 18. 2019 Sandy Robson
I sent this email letter copied and pasted below to the Ferndale’s city council members and mayor Jon Mutchler today:
Dear Ferndale City Council members and Mayor Mutchler,
It is my understanding that the
Ferndale City Council has proposed a resolution entitled, “Rejecting White Supremacy and Establishing Ferndale as a Welcoming City,” and you are discussing it at the August 19, 2019 City Council meeting.
Screen shot of the 10/25/18 letter from the Public Health Advisory Board to the Whatcom County Health Board proposing the resolution for which PHAB was seeking support from the Whatcom County Council on 11/07/18
Graphics show one postcard front side (top), and multiple reverse/message sides of postcards sent to Bellingham Mayor Kelli Linville by community members in June of 2017
May 23, 2018 Dena Jensen
The following report offers information gained through a public records request I made of the City of Bellingham on January 18, 2018.
Protecting vulnerable members of our community is a shared responsibility that none of us should take lightly. As much as government agencies may strive for and purport transparency, it is generally human nature to not be able to recognize our own flaws and, if others point them out, to do our best to excuse them or deny that this flaw, which another person sees, is really there.
September 11, 2017 Press Release, Seattle Human Rights Commission
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The Seattle Human Rights Commission writes in response to the Seattle Times recent editorial “The Supreme Court must clarify culvert ruling,” and seeks to correct inaccuracies regarding tribal treaty rights and the State’s obligation to not impair them. Washington’s tribal nations have lived and fished throughout our State since time immemorial, and their right to do so is protected by treaty. Continue reading
August 26, 2017 Dena Jensen
What do we think about an elite citizen here in Whatcom County, such as Ted Van Dyk in his August 23, 2017 opinion piece in the online edition of Cascadia Weekly, asserting that the City of Bellingham temporarily taking down the signs at the so-called Pickett Bridge has “fed intolerance?” On social media this last week there was also an August 24, 2017 statement on The Pickett House FB page by past president of the Daughter of the Pioneers, Susan Hess expressing fears “that someone, in ignorance, will assume that Bellingham’s Pickett House Museum is a confederate monument and do it harm.” Continue reading
noisy waters northwest 
You must be logged in to post a comment.