Anti-Immigration Organization Operating in Nebraska Branded as a 'Hate Group' by National Civil Rights Watchdog
Paul A. Olson
Nebraskans for Peace President
At a February legislative hearing on a bill dealing with immigration, State Senator Bill Avery asked a pointed question of Kris Kobach, the lawyer for the legal affiliate of the ‘Federation for American Immigration Reform’ (FAIR). Did Kobach know, Avery inquired, that the ‘Southern Poverty Law Center’ had classified his umbrella group, FAIR, as a hate group?
Read morePosted in: Civil Rights & Economic Justice
Professor Bruce E. Johansen
Nasty winter, eh? Enough to make some of us question the association between sanity and a Nebraska address. La Vida Buena, anyone? I could use a transfer to the University of Nebraska at Key West.
Read morePosted in: What's HOT in Global Warming
NEBRASKANS FOR PEACE
On February 1, 1970, when Nebraskans for Peace first filed its articles of incorporation with the Nebraska Secretary of State, no one could have predicted that this fledgling anti-war group would one day become the oldest statewide Peace & Justice organization in the entire country.
An even ‘redder’ state then than we are today, set smack in the heart of middle America, Nebraska was the last place anyone would have expected a ‘peace organization’ to emerge and then endure.
Read morePosted in: Announcements
Sascha Krannich
German citizen Sascha Krannich was an exchange student at Hastings College two years ago, and wrote his Master’s thesis about undocumented immigration to Nebraska. Now he is doing research for his PhD. in Mexico. He offers a European perspective on the immigration issues facing our state.
Immigration, both documented and undocumented, is on the rise in Nebraska, one of the New Immigration States in the U.S. It’s an issue and a problem that both Nebraskan citizens and their political representatives will have to continue to confront. Although the state policy has been lenient, it is now trending toward restrictive. How does Nebraska want to be represented in a national perspective: as a pioneer of hospitality, or as a closed door to those seeking opportunity? The impact of the private sector in this political debate is substantial, both through its role in forming public opinion and its lobbying influence in legislative process. In any event, the working conditions of immigrants without the legal status to exercise their rights—and the disruption caused by deportations—demand a review of current policy.
Read morePosted in: Civil Rights & Economic Justice
Nebraskans for Peace
On top of the 300-plus bills that carried over from last year’s legislative session, Nebraska state senators have introduced another 400 bills for 2010. With state tax receipts continuing to fall short of projections however (and another round of budget cuts looming), any of this legislation that requires new money will be pretty much dead on arrival in this short, 60-working-day session of the Unicameral. Given this economic reality, here’s a brief overview of some of the bills NFP will be supporting. This list is by no means comprehensive, but it provides a sampling of the kind of legislative priorities NFP will be advocating for in the next three months.
A dozen new bills dealing with renewable energy were introduced, but two that could dramatically reshape the energy landscape in Nebraska are LB 1048, the Natural Resources Committee’s ‘Big Wind’ bill that grew out of Sen. Ken Haar’s legislation from last year, and Sen. Heath Mello’s LB 1098. The Natural Resources Committee bill would help create the legal and infrastructural conditions necessary for large-scale wind development projects in the state that could ultimately make Nebraska an exporter of clean renewable energy to the rest of the nation. Sen. Mello’s bill, alternatively, would authorize Nebraska municipalities to establish “sustainable energy financing districts” to loan homeowners and local businesses the funds for energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements to their properties. To make this program broadly accessible, the loans would be assessed against the property and paid back in the form of property taxes. The energy savings from the improvements, though, would largely offset the property tax increase, allowing everyone the opportunity to adopt a ‘greener’ lifestyle—and thereby reduce our dependence on foreign oil and domestic coal.
Read morePosted in: Announcements
