A couple weeks ago, Johana graduated from Provo High School. Along with many of her peers, she had been expecting to attend UVU this fall. Her career of choice: Education. “Right now, I’m hoping to become a teacher,” she says.
Johana came, legally to the U.S., when she was 5 years old. Shortly after, their visas expired and Johana joined the undocumented population. “During high school, many councilors or advisors would say, ‘You can’t get this or that scholarship because you’re illegal,’ and I’m usually scared of cops, but they are supposed represent safety.” When asked if she’s aware of the Arizona law, she replied, “I’ve just stopped thinking about it because sometimes I feel hopeless…because the less you know about it, the less you worry about it. It can bring you down”.
Utah is among 12 other states that will propose a bill similar to Arizona’s. According to Rep. Steve Sandstrom, an Orem republican, he has enough votes to make such legislation pass. On his web site he states, “ Illegal immigration is negatively impacting our society and economy. I am committed to reverse this damaging trend.”
If he’s as diligent as he sounds, it could possibly be enforced as early as February of 2011. Although this seems some distance away, it’s not the kind of solution some think will suffice for a monumental topic such as immigration.
Immigrants across the states protest against unjust racial profiling. Utah immigrants might be next. Courtesy of stock.xchng
UVU adjunct professor Paul Nibley suggests we are not addressing the root of the immigration problem. “You can keep giving people that have smallpox cough medicine, but it’s not going to solve the problem,” which he argues is drugs. Mexican cartels have for long been terrorizing residents on the border using drugs, kidnappings and smuggling people. According to Nibley, “My observation is that if we made it legal to take drugs, we could sell drugs very cheaply.”
If Arizona’s attempt is ill guided, how long will it take before this game of chicken concludes? By giving authorities the power to question people if there is a reasonable suspicion that the person is in the U.S. illegally, we have essentially lost the trust of an entire community.
Many police officers have challenged the law and have spoken against it. In an interview with KSL, Salt Lake City Police Chief, Chris Burbank, opposed the law adding, “Our first job, first and foremost, is to protect our community, and have people feel secure and safe in our community, and to do that without discriminating.”
Discrimination through racial profiling is a dead end. It’s not likely a white person would get questioned – however, I would, as would Johana and many others here in Utah because of my dark skin.
Elisabeth Lutyens was a creative artist for whom compromise was impossible. She believed fervently in the necessity for a professional approach, whether she was writing for the concert hall, the radio or for the film studios. She had an unerring sense of responsibility towards both her historical antecedents and her contemporaries, and every piece she wrote was the result of an unfailing awareness of the importance of a clear premise and purpose. As a teacher, Lutyens was always alive, inventive and understanding. Her generously long lessons were as much of a challenge to her as to her students and the range was wide; apart from detailed technical work on notes and form, she relished analysing great poetry and discussing word-setting and, being fluent in French, she was particularly adept at demonstrating the differences between setting, say, Donne and Verlaine. Few composers today are blessed with Lutyens' blend of success combined with deep humility; she frequently said that it was work itself which stimulated her imagination and this is demonstrated in her large and extremely varied output. Let us hope that her greatest music will always be appreciated by the aware of each generation and that they may derive pleasure and solace from its unique expressive world. (Robert Saxton, 1996)
Daytona Beach and Ormond Beach became the epicenter for racing fanatics who used the hard packed beaches to test new racing machines and pushed them to break several land speed records during the 1900s. Henry Flagler continued his expansion of hotels and land acquisitions down the Atlantic coast from St. Augustine into the area today known as Daytona. One hotel he purchased was the Ormond Hotel located directly a remote section of the beach in the small town of Ormond just north of Daytona. By 1905 the small hotel had expanded to 400 rooms. As usual, Flagler would build first and then figure out how to get tourists to his resorts. One group of visitors to the Ormond Hotel, were the new automobile pioneers of that era. With the encouragement of Henry Flagler; Ransom Olds, Henry Ford, Lewis Chevrolet and others gathered at the garage built at the the Ormond Hotel. Racing soon became a gentleman's sport and Daytona seemed to draw those intent on becoming the next record holder. The first speed record was set by William Vanderbuilt and his Mercedes in 1904 when he reached 92.04 miles per hour. This was where they tested their new machines on the long flat beaches of Daytona. Ormond and Daytona have attracked racing enthusiasts ever since.
At times the racetrack would extended up and down the beach from Ponces Inlet to several miles beyond the pier at Daytona. Records were broken by race cars and motorcycles alike. The actual race track could extend 10 miles or more just so the cars would be able to reach speeds of 300 miles an hour and then stop. It was an era when anything seemed possible and there were many unexplored opportunites to be grasped.
Daytona Beach no longer allows the racing along the beach. Ormond Beach has banned driving along it's beaches. However, the vibrancy and the intensity are still very much a part of their culture. However, the beach is still a hub of activity and Daytona vacation rentals extend for miles up and down the beaches.
The beaches seem to have every new modification of a beach vehicle available. Dune buggies, convertibles, SUVs, 3 wheel pedal bikes, small racing bikes for children constantly parade up and down the beach with their radios blaring. In the background are highrise hotels and condos with swimming pools perched on the sand dunes overlooking the ocean, the perfect Daytona Beach vacation rental where their customers enjoy the view of the motor parade and the breaking of the waves along the shoreline while they sit and enjoy a drink.
Directly to the west of Daytona Beach on the west side of the narrow strip of land that is considered Daytona Beach is the Halifax River and the Intracoastal Waterway. This is the historic section of Downtown Daytona. Where palm trees line the streets with brick sidewalks. Many of the art deco buildings are painted with murals depicting various scenes of Daytona. A stroll through the streets allows for stops at the various restaurants and makes an interesting side excusion.
The IntraCoastal and the Halifax River have numerous restaurants positioned inside marinas that jetty out from the land. The views of the numerous boats and yachts that dock along side of these restaurants make for an enjoyable and relaxing afternoon. Caribbean Jack's is one such restaurant. Recently opened during the last year it boasts a beautiful marina with some of the most beautiful boats and live music playing on the weekends. The bar opens directly onto the IntraCoastal with a jacuzzi and swimming pool available. It is a relaxed atmosphere where the sound of music floats across the breezes off the water.