Arkansas Times | December 6, 2018

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3

EYE ON ARKANSAS

WEEK THAT WAS

DYS director to new role

Betty Guhman, director of the Arkansas Department of Human Services’ Division of Youth Services, a nnounced she would leave her position to advocate at the legislature on behalf of juvenile justice reforms supported by Governor Hutchinson.

Michael Crump, director of the DHS Office of Compliance and Integrity, will serve as interim director while the department mounts a national search for her replacement. Guhman, a long a ssociate of Hutchinson, took on the DYS role in 2016. It’s been a t umult uous time for the d iv i sion . It u nex p e c t e d ly wa s forced to take over seven of the state’s eight youth lockups after a political stalemate blocked a private vendor’s contract to operate them.

DYS hadn’t operated the facilities in more than two decades and, as the Arkansas Nonprofit News Network has documented, at least t wo of the facilities in Dermott were in deplorable condition for much of 2017. In November, Hutchinson prom ised a number of refor m s, including the closure of facilities in Dermott and Colt (St. Francis County) and that new money would be allocated to community-based treatment.

Student newspaper story stifled

The Quapaw get nod from Jefferson County leaders

A s ex pe c ted , P i ne Blu f f a nd Jef ferson Count y of f icia ls have pi c ke d t h e Q u a p a w T r i b e ’s Downstream Development Authorit y as the count y’s casino operator. The Quapaw Tribe has b e en work i n g w it h P i ne Blu f f of f icia ls for f ive yea rs to g a i n approval of its bid. The state Racing Commission still has to make the official award of the casino license, 4

DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

but it seems unlikely that another applicant will emerge. Issue 4, the constitutional amendment passed by voters in November, requires that applicants have local support and casino experience. Pine Bluff Mayor Shirley Washington and Jefferson County Judge Booker Clemons said in letters to the commission that t hey would exclusively suppor t Downstream as the county’s casino operator.

In late October, the Har-Ber High School Herald published a monthslong investigation into the transfer of five varsity players from Har-Ber to Springdale High School, its archrival within the Springdale School District, during the 2017 school year. The district swiftly responded by requesting that the stories be immediately taken down from the paper’s website, then initially refused to authorize republishing them, Buzzfeed News first reported. District Superintendent Jim Rollins said that the stories could not be published because they were “intentionally negative, demeaning, derogatory, hurtful and potentially harmful to the students addressed in those articles” and “extremely divisive and disruptive to the Springdale School District’s educational community.”

Ha r-Ber H ig h School’s ow n administration followed up by shutting down publication of the Herald until the district could “establish protocols for how these student publications will be published in the future,” including halting the publication of the new edition that was scheduled for later that week. In a memo to Karla Sprague,

the teacher who advises the newspaper, Har-Ber Principal Paul Griep wrote, “Until these protocols are finalized, it is my expectation and the expectation of the district, that no student publications will be printed, posted online, or distributed until they are reviewed by building/district administration.”

Failure to follow that directive, he wrote, would lead to disciplinary action and potentially termination.

Late on Dec. 4, however, the Springda le School District said the articles would be allowed to be republished. “After continued consideration of the legal landscape, t he Spr ingda le School Dist r ict has concluded that the Har-Ber Herald articles may be reposted,” Com municat ions Director R ick Schaeffer wrote. “This matter is complex, challenging and has merited thorough review. The social and emotional well-being of all students has been and continues to be a priority of the district.”

State law offers protections for student publications, mandating that school policies must “recognize that students may exercise their right of expression.” Griep had argued in his reprimand letter that suppressing the Herald stories did not violate the law

OPINION

Race, history, taxes

R

acial prejudice and discrimination seem fair because have long driven Arkansas poli- everyone pays tics and public policy. Arkansas’s them, take a much tax policies have especially perpetuated larger share of the the harm of past racism and done little income of lowto reduce the systemic barriers faced by paid people than RICH people of color today. their wealthier HUDDLESTON Guest Columnist Of course, we can’t and won’t estab- neighbors. lish policies based on race (not anymore, In more recent thankfully). But it’s important to remem- decades, we further cemented this inequiber that much of our tax policy is a legacy table approach. Arkansas voters approved of our state’s historic racial discrimination. Amendment 59 in 1980, giving favorable As a result, nonwhite Arkansans are more tax treatment to owners of timber and likely to live in poverty and face more bar- farm land and shifting the tax burden to riers to economic success. other property owners. The voters later Arkansas was among the Southern approved Amendment 79 of 2000 that states in the years following Reconstruc- protected property owners from large, tion that passed the constitutional limits sudden increases in their assessed propon property taxes that still exist today. The erty values and today gives homeownbiggest barrier to using Arkansas tax policy ers tax relief through a homestead credit to reduce economic barriers faced by peo- of up to $350. Amendment 79, however, ple of color is Amendment 19, passed dur- failed to provide any tax relief for renting the Jim Crow era in 1934. It requires ers who pay property taxes passed on to a three-fourths supermajority vote in the them through higher rents charged by legislature to increase the type of taxes their landlords. that are more equitable, such as personal Arkansas policymakers have been all and corporate income taxes. In contrast, too willing to rely on sales tax growth sales tax increases require a simple major- to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy, such ity vote to pass. Sales taxes, which may as cuts in taxes on capital gains, or the

A decent man

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he beatification of George H.W. Bush, which even the current president signaled was OK, would have surprised the 41st president, who seemed to have accepted the public’s verdict that, although a waffler, he was a decent man who did his best and didn’t do any harm to the people of the country or the world with whose well-being he was entrusted for a time.

That Bush I was generous and forgiving with opponents and critics is reason enough today to sanctify him, one of only 33 people who have lain in state in the U.S. Capitol, and to immortalize the small and decent things he did and said, like the warm letter left on the desk of the man who beat him in 1992 and the 25 years of secret, funny correspondence with a snarky female reporter and later columnist for The New York Times who had devoted so many thousands of words to ridiculing him and his spawn.

It’s reason enough because it’s so unlike someone else we all know and who shall not be named because it would be un-Bushlike.

Although in extremes it can be a problem, humility — George H.W. Bush’s

greatest virtue — needs to be honored on occasion.

Every worthy leader need not be Caesar.

ERNEST Bush knew he DUMAS was human and he always wondered whether he was on the right course, whether he had examined all factors, whether he had gotten enough counsel, although if it came from James Baker, his savvy Texas confidante, he was pretty sure it was right.

It was Baker who went out in 1980 and announced that Bush was no longer running for president when Bush thought he still was. Baker preserved Bush’s chance to be Reagan’s vice president.

By the time he ran for president, Bush had been immersed in business and world affairs so long that he had a good head for both real wisdom and nonsense. Reagan had promoted his supply-side economics theory — big tax cuts, mainly for the wealthy — with the claim that they would produce fabulous growth, a fat treasury and an end to deficits. Bush called it voodoo economics. As a member of the Rea-

elimination of the state estate tax on inher- uity. That said, we simply haven’t done ited wealth over a decade ago. As a result, enough to proactively reverse that legacy.

Arkansas’s tax system fails to provide the In 2013, the legislature eliminated taxes revenue needed to pay for critical invest- on capital gains over $10 million, a tax cut ments in our workforce. It also means low- that likely benefitted mostly rich, white paid families and people of color are more men. In 2017, the so-called low-income likely to bear a disproportionate share of tax cut failed to include a refundable state the tax burden. According to the Institute earned income tax credit that would have on Taxation and Economic Policy, the truly targeted low-paid taxpayers and poorest 20 percent of Arkansas taxpayers, put actual money back into their pockets. those making less than $18,600, pay 11.3 Tax cuts now proposed for the 2019 cents in state and local taxes on every dollar session, which will likely include corpothey earn, compared to 6.9 cents on every rate income tax cuts and a big personal dollar being paid by the top one percent income tax cut that will go mostly to of taxpayers making more than $442,000. wealthy white taxpayers, will do little Arkansas has occasionally passed good to help low-income Arkansans. public policies that have helped people If Arkansas is truly interested in creof color. The state’s response to a 2002 ating economic opportunities for all and mandate by the Arkansas Supreme Court breaking down the historical and sysin the Lake View school funding case led temic barriers people of color still face, to a host of major reforms, including an we need better tax policy. That means increase in K-12 education spending and targeted tax relief for low-paid Arkana $100 million expansion of high-quality sans through a refundable state EITC or a pre-K. We created ARKids First in 1997 renter’s credit. And it means raising new and more recently expanded Medicaid revenue in more fair ways by fully taxing coverage, both of which dramatically cut capital gains and inherited wealth to pay the number of uninsured children and low- for state investments in our workforce income adults. Arkansas voters recently and infrastructure. passed another minimum wage increase that will help 300,000 low-paid workers.

Rich Huddleston is executive director Today’s policymakers are not respon- of Arkansas Advocates for Children and sible for our state’s history of racial ineq- Families.

gan team he went along with the charade, even after he was proved right. The country fell into the deepest recession in modern times and the debt mushroomed.

Reagan and then Bush spent the next 11 years raising taxes to get debt under control. Bill Clinton got all the credit when he also raised taxes a little and the country experienced long prosperity and the only budget surpluses in modern times.

Reagan promised that taxes would be raised “over my dead body,” then raised them and remained popular. Bush said, “Read my lips: no new taxes,” then raised them a little and people called him a liar.

Some want to remember the nastiness of his campaigns — the Willie Horton ads against Michael Dukakis that were, at that time, the low-water mark of campaigning, or the earlier attacks on fellow Republican Bob Dole, who demanded that his fellow war vet quit lying about Dole’s record.

Remember that Bush insisted on passing the Americans With Disabilities Act in spite of the new Republican mantra that doing things for the weak and unfortunate instead of the strong and the provident violated the American way.

Bush I will always be defined by Operation Desert Storm, the first gulf war, which sent his popularity soaring, if only briefly, as wars always do. It was

the essential George Bush — careful, hesitant, thoughtful, malleable, troubled, defiant — but Bush at his best. The big decision he got right. After liberating Kuwait from Saddam Hussein, he declared peace rather than overthrow the crushed ruler and take control of Iraq, as his son would do. History quickly reckoned that Bush I was right and II terribly wrong.

Reagan-Bush had sided with Saddam after he invaded Iran but then cooled on him after Saudi Arabia, our chief oil supplier, worried that Iraq might steal the gulf oil market. When Saddam, his economy foundering in debt and with the emir sucking oil from his fields, moved against Kuwait, Bush went to war and put troops and arms permanently on holy Arabian soil, triggering the great terrorist attacks on America in 1993 and 2001 — the one sad legacy Bush could not escape.

He rallied allies from Europe, the Americas and around the Persian Gulf but still had to be stiffened by Margaret Thatcher when he quailed and wondered if he shouldn’t let Iraq have Kuwait for a while. Thatcher snapped: Don’t go wobbly on us, George.

He stiffened, stayed the course and then settled for peace rather than conquest. A measure of wisdom and humility would still serve us well.

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arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

5

Herd shifts

RODNEY

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ome years ago, I watched a herd plan during the of nine mares stampede across a GOP presidenGENE pasture on a friend’s farm. It was tial debates, he LYONS an impressive spectacle, like that seen tweeted a categorfrom the rail at a racetrack. Because I ical denial in July 2016: “For the record, fed them regularly, I knew them well. I have ZERO investments in Russia.”

As they thundered by, the two youngest Stung by Hillary Clinton’s depiction animals at the rear kept looking back- of him as a Russian puppet, he told an ward and making eye contact as if to say, Oct. 26 campaign rally that “I don’t in horse-speak, “What the hell are we know Putin, have no business whatrunning from?” soever with Russia, have nothing to do About the time the stragglers pulled with Russia.” Even after the election, up, I watched the head mare gallop into Individual 1 told a Feb. 16, 2017, press a run-in shed. Apparently the whole conference that “Russia is a ruse. I have herd was fleeing a big biting fly on her nothing to do with Russia. Haven’t made rump. (Horseflies avoid moving shad- a phone call to Russia in years. Don’t ows.) Anyway, that’s how horses work. speak to people from Russia. I have When one runs, they all run. Until the nothing to do with Russia. To the best ones at the rear no longer sense danger. of my knowledge, no person that I deal Then everybody settles down. with does.”

Humans aren’t so different. The None of these statements was even 19th century Scottish author Charles remotely truthful.

MacKay put it this way in his classic book, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), incom“Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the ing chairman of the House Intelligence Madness of Crowds”: “Men, it has been Committee, put it this way: “At the same well said, think in herds; it will be seen time candidate Trump publicly urged that they go mad in herds, while they only sanctions relief for Russia, he was prirecover their senses slowly, one by one.” vately putting together a business deal in Another way of putting it is that the Moscow that required lifting U.S. sancpolitical figure designated as Individ- tions. Then President Trump and his ual 1 in Michael Cohen’s guilty plea for confederates misled the country about lying to Congress last week has probably it, in a way that left him compromised.” got all the supporters he’s ever going Somebody who wasn’t misled, howto have. By now, smart Republicans ever, was Vladimir Putin, more accuhave got to be catching each other’s eyes. rately described as the boss of an orgaAfter enough quit galloping, the stam- nized crime cartel than the lawful pede will peter out. It’s surely signifi- president of Russia. Cohen, see, was cant that White House spokeswoman negotiating directly with Dmitry PesSarah Huckabee Sanders has switched kov, Putin’s personal assistant. So Putin from saying there was no collusion with had Individual 1 by the short hairs all the Russian government during the 2016 along. All the Russians ever had to do campaign to emphasizing that the presi- was release “Trump Tower” documents dent wasn’t personally involved. Big in their possession to do Individual 1’s difference. campaign grievous political harm.

Meanwhile, Individual 1 has taken And Individual 1 definitely knew it, his customary prevarication to operatic as his obsequiousness to the Russian heights. Following Cohen’s plea bargain dictator has shown. Instead, Putin put for lying to Congress about his scheme the Russian intelligence apparatus to to build a Trump Tower in Moscow, work attacking Democratic nominee he called it common knowledge. “This Hillary Clinton. On June 14, 2016, The deal was a very public deal,” he said last Washington Post and CrowdStrike, an week. “Everybody knows about this deal. investigative firm hired by the DemoI wasn’t trying to hide anything.” cratic National Committee, revealed Oh, really? Both during and after that Russian intelligence operatives the 2016 campaign, while Cohen was had hacked DNC computers. Moscow secretly negotiating with the Putin gov- scuttled the Trump Tower project that ernment on Individual 1’s behalf, he same day. repeatedly denied having any Russian The press first learned of the deal’s business interests whatsoever. existence in August 2018. But Putin still Washington Post reporter Meg Kelly had the president by the short hairs, and has compiled an encyclopedic list. For acts as if he still does. example, although he’d signed a letter And that’s just one of the things Indiof intent to proceed with the Moscow vidual 1 is fleeing from.

Cotton and crime

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he debate over what would be the sole consequential, bipartisan legislation of the first two years of the Trump presidency is underway in the U.S. Senate, and Arkansas’s high-profile junior Sen. Tom Cotton has placed himself at the center of it. The FIRST STEP Act would significantly reform federal criminal sentencing in the country and has a real chance at passage because it pulls together an impressive coalition of left, right and libertarian politicians. But, Cotton, with an eye on a future presidential run, has taken a stand to stymie that progress.

The fascinating prison reform movement coalition has three branches — traditional liberals, libertarians and “woke” conservatives — that make it unique in American politics. The ACLU wing of the movement reiterates its concern, going back nearly five decades, that the War on Drugs has led to overincarceration; since the publication of Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow,” civil rights activists have increased focused energy around the topic, too. Libertarians — with the Koch brothers in the lead — see so many individuals in prison for drug crimes as an attack on freedom in two respects: the personal freedom of those incarcerated and the freedom of individuals and corporations that must pay taxes to fund the prison-industrial complex. Finally, and most interesting, are those more traditional conservatives who have been awakened on the subject, often by their own experiences in the criminal justice system. Prominent among this group is Pat Nolan, the former California Republican legislator, who spent 29 months in federal prison for accepting illegal campaign contributions and came out on a mission to reform the system. Similarly, leading the efforts for the Trump administration in the prison reform debate is Jared Kushner, whose own father spent 14 months in an Alabama federal prison camp for campaign finance violations, tax evasion and witness tampering.

A fairly modest FIRST STEP Act passed the conservative House of Representatives, but has become more expansive through negotiations in the Senate.

At the moment, the legislation would do several things: • It would make retroactive 2010 federal reforms that reduced disparities between crack and powder cocaine.

• It would ease mandatory minimum sentences in a variety of ways.

• It expands “good time credits” for prisoners without disciplinary infractions and makes these credits retroactive.

• Finally, it would allow inmates to also get credits for participation in rehabilitation and educaJAY tion programs BARTH that have proven impacts in reducing recidivism rates.

The legislation would have an immediate impact on thousands of prisoners in the system and promises to lessen incarceration rates even more moving forward. As conservative Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) puts it: “This bill would make the American people safer. This bill would focus our criminal justice and prosecutorial resources where they need to be.”

Importantly, the law would affect only those prisoners held in the federal system (just under 200,000 total), but it would provide additional momentum for even more consequential reforms touching the nearly 2 million incarcerated individuals at the state and locals levels in the United States.

In recent weeks, Cotton (who, in 2016, said, “If anything, we have an under-incarceration problem”) has made himself the voice of opposition to the legislation that must sneak through the Senate quickly if there is any hope of it becoming law this year. His goal is make it politically painful for his fellow Republicans to vote for the “criminal leniency bill” in its current form. In a National Review piece last week, Cotton argues that the list of programs that would provide inmates credits toward early release is too broad and that sentences for many dangerous crimes are not excluded (in his tweets, Cotton has focused on the hot-button issue of sexrelated crimes), that mandatory minimum sentences for trafficking of fentanyl are reduced too much, and that Obama-appointed judges would be given too much discretion in sentencing.

With an ambition for the White House in the post-Trump era, Cotton is not a politician who naturally inspires passion. But, he is smart and knows that attaching himself to emotion-laden issues will help fill that void in his own personal demeanor. One of those issues, of course, is the debate over immigration reform, to which Cotton has dedicated significant energies and which is a topic naturally invigorating for Trump voters. Now, he is attempting to add being tough on criminals as a second punch as he imagines the Iowa stump speech of his 2020 or 2024 campaign.

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Hope for Hogs

F

or as achingly far off the pace as ascent to lottery pick, the Arkansas Razorback football the former needs to program seems to be — and I’ll continue to morph even argue that the potential incoming into a complementransfer of onetime Clemson quarter- tary post presence, back Kelly Bryant does little to con- especially because BEAU vince me that major strides are about the Hogs’ other inte- WILCOX to be made — I find myself shocked that rior players (Reggie this Hog basketball team could end up Chaney, Jordan Phillips and Ethan Henbeing pretty good despite a tumultuous derson) are all very raw, if unquestionoffseason in which virtually everyone ably talented. aside from Daniel Gafford left town.

The player who may well determine The hardwood Hogs are a healthy how far this team is able to advance in 5-1 and that lone loss, the overtime 2018-19, though, is freshman shooting opener to Texas where the coaching guard Isaiah Joe. The rangy, high-flying staff mysteriously allowed Kerwin Fort Smith product is already showing Roach to loft a game-tying three at uncommon stamina for a player of his the end of regulation when a hard foul tender age, putting in just shy of 30 mindenying him a shot would have been utes per game and delivering nicely on advisable. Since that defeat, Arkansas that court time. Joe had a career-best has been really solid for the most part, 34 points, including 10 threes, against and Mike Anderson may have inadver- a Florida International team that was tently gotten a huge benefit from the 7-1 before it got thoroughly trounced surprise transfers of C.J. Jones and Saturday night in Bud Walton Arena.

Darious Hall because their scholar- Joe’s soft touch was on display all night ships were freed up for others. And to and he has been shockingly consistent be clear, Jones and Hall, though tal- for a teenager who relies so heavily on ented, were largely erratic and clearly the long ball, scoring in double digits not committed to the program for one in every game so far and even on his reason or another. colder-shooting nights finding ways to Accordingly, while Gafford (19.8 impact the game any way. Against Monpoints per game on 73 percent floor tana State, for instance, Joe struggled shooting, along with 8.7 rebounds and mightily to find his shooting touch, but 2.3 blocks per outing) has been predict- offset his modest 10-point game with ably excellent at both ends of the floor five assists and five steals. and has worked on fine-tuning his crafts, Joe is a fearless, confident bomber the supporting cast that arrived with from beyond the arc, and you likely very little aggregate floor experience won’t see his swagger wane once conhas been a revelation. Lightly recruited ference play begins. Even in what is guard Mason Jones has poured in 14 expected to be a deep and rigorous points per game and contributed some SEC, what with Tennessee, Auburn, big moments, but perhaps most impres- Kentucky and Mississippi State comsively has been a steady rebounder and fortably nestled in the Top 25, this is floor leader for a team bereft of back- still a conference where the also-rans court experience. Point guard Jalen simply aren’t that good, and Arkansas Harris, who transferred from New Mex- could easily find itself winning 10 to ico, is not much of a perimeter threat, 12 games in league play if the cadre of but he hits his free throws and is sport- young players keeps progressing. ing a terrific 5-to-1 assist/turnover ratio.

Anderson seems to have a safer, Maybe the biggest strides have been tighter grasp on control of the team made by junior forward Adrio Bailey. in the early going. Whereas last seaHardly an offensive-minded player his son, it appeared that there was a bit of first two years on campus, the 6-6 junior a disconnect between the experience is putting up 11 points per game and hit- of Jaylen Barford and Daryl Macon ting 68 percent of his field goal attempts. when contrasted with the less-thanHe’s developing a well-rounded floor tested on-court compatriots, this year game, too, with a respectable amount there appears a stronger bond already of rebounds, steals and blocks given the among the players involved. And while somewhat limited minutes he’s been Anderson’s experience as the lead Hog playing. Bailey and Gafford are the only has been a mercurial one, his best teams players on the team with extensive in- have always been those with the intangame experience against SEC competi- gible chemistry necessary to thrive in tion, so as the latter continues his rapid big games.

THE OBSERVER NOTES ON THE PASSING SCENE

Phillips

A

fter many years of faithful service, it seems as if the transmission in Black Phillip — our trusty 2006 Honda CRV — is in the process of giving up the ghost. We’re steeling ourself up for a full diagnosis at Foster’s Garage at some point, but judging from the noises we’re hearing every time we pull away from a stop sign, we fear the prognosis our coveralled automotive physician will deliver will not be good. Given what a transmission replacement costs, this may be curtains for ol’ Phillip, which already sports 190,000 miles, assorted squeaks and rattles, a hole in the floor mat where The Observer’s heel rests when driving, and at least one tire that’s as bald as Donald Trump would be had he not had a golden marmoset pelt shoddily grafted to his head at some point.

Black Phillip has been with us quite a while now, purchased to replace Green Phillip, then known as just Phillip, which was yet another Honda CRV we owned for a little over a year. Green Phillip’s catlike reflexes managed to save Spouse’s life some years back when, as Spouse was returning late one night from The Observer’s aunt’s house way out in the wilds of Pulaski County, she was nearly struck head on by a driver so drunk he couldn’t even stand up to take the Breathalyzer test when the cops arrived to shuffle him off to the hoosegow. Spouse saw the headlights weren’t veering at the last possible moment to swerve, and instead of performing an impromptu physics experiment in which the drunken idiot in the other vehicle attempted to make six tons of steel and glass come to a sudden and bloody stop at 50 miles per hour, the potted dumbass hit Green Phillip at an angle, gouging the driver’s side into modern art, exploding nearly every window in the car, and ripping the rear axle out and sending it skittering across the pavement in a shower of sparks and mechanical clatter that surely woke every dog and little old lady for miles around.

Green Phillip, his life given for Spouse’s continued existence and her Old Man’s continued happiness, went where the good cars go. The Observer and Spouse, meanwhile, soon found

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They’ve got the magic in them.

The Observer has always been a sap about cars, as you know if you’ve ever read this space. Born with 30-weight motor oil in our veins, automobiles have long been more than just modes of transportation to Yours Truly. We name them all, and mourn them when they’re gone.

Our primary mode of transpo right now is Abilene, a midnight-blue Honda CRV of more recent vintage, named for where we found her, on a pre-owned lot of a vast Texas car dealership. We’ve since rolled over 75 thou on her odometer, with no more trouble than the Phillips ever gave.

No matter what diagnosis we get from the world’s last honest mechanics at Foster’s in the next few weeks, we’ll always have a soft spot for the Phillips, Black and Green, which were the first truly reliable cars Spouse and Her Loving Man owned after a series of wired-together jalopies that were always in need of some kind of work. With the Phillips, we could just get in and drive without worrying about getting there. That’s a kind of freedom one can’t imagine until you’ve experienced it.

And so, for now, we prepare for the bad news. We pull away from stop signs gingerly, and recall the good times. We hope for the best for our four-wheeled friend, and ponder over what our next car will be. Whatever the case, Black Phillip is surely due a long rest after years of carrying us through.

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arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

9

Arkansas Reporter ‘Meant to be’ at Lucie’s Place

BRIAN CHILSON

THE

Rev. Johnette Fitzjohn succeeds founder Penelope Poppers as executive director.

BY REBEKAH HALL

R

ev. Johnette Fitzjohn, a native of Liberia with decades of experience in pastoral ministry and social service work, is the new executive director of Lucie’s Place, the Little Rock nonprofit outreach program for homeless LGBTQ young adults. Fitzjohn succeeds Penelope Poppers, who incorporated Lucie’s Place in 2012.

Fitzjohn is an ordained minister and elder in the United Methodist Church, and in addition to over 20 years of working with the church in Liberia and the United States, she also spent eight years in women’s outreach work through the ecumenical World Student Christian FederationAfrica Region and the National Student Christian Council of Liberia. She most recently served as the clinical supervisor for Project Hospitality, an interfaith nonprofit in Staten Island, N.Y., that provides housing services to homeless families and individuals.

She also worked with Project Hospitality as assistant director of its emergency program for survivors of Hurricane Sandy.

Poppers will soon begin a new job as associate director of development for Planned Parenthood Great Plains, which serves Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri and Oklahoma. She’ll work out of the Little Rock office of the reproductive health care nonprofit.

10

DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

Poppers said she is able to move on because Lucie’s Place — “my baby,” she called it — is now a stable organization. She also said it was NEW LEADER: Rev. Johnette Fitzjohn is the new executive director of Lucie’s Place, a nonprofit outreach important to hand over program for homeless LGBTQ young adults. the reins so that it’s no longer so closely bound up with her.

“When a lot of people think about Lucie’s Place, they just think about me,” Pop- successfully transitioned away two a refugee gave her perspective and pers said. “Or when they think about years ago,” she said. understanding for the work that Lucme, they just think about Lucie’s Lucie’s Place’s new leader moved ie’s Place does and the people they Place, and it’s not really fair either to Little Rock in January 2018 to be serve. way. … When people associate only closer to her daughter and grandchil“My country went through war, so me with Lucie’s Place, they’re eras- dren. The move ultimately led her to I know not just not having a permaing all our volunteers, our staff, all Lucie’s Place, which she said is her nent home, but [also] not having a these other people that actually make “dream job.” She’d left full-time min- country,” Fitzjohn said. “That’s hard. it happen.” istry in 2012, and felt called to work … Through it all, I look back at my life, It took Poppers three years to directly with people. Leaving the min- and that prepared me to be the perraise enough money to open drop- istry meant, she said, “I could do more son I am today. That prepared me to in services at the nonprofit, named outside of the church, because I felt realize that you don’t judge people; for Lucie Marie Hamilton, a Little kind of restricted in a sense. And I you’ve got to know their story, you’ve Rock transgender woman who died haven’t looked back since.” got to know their circumstance, you in 2009; Lucie’s opened its shelter Fitzjohn knows what it is like to can’t take things as they come.” in 2016. Poppers is proud of the work be temporarily homeless. With help “I feel [Lucie’s Place] is where I she put in to bring the nonprofit to the from the World Student Christian need to be, where I was meant to be,” stable organization it is today, which Federation, she fled civil-war-torn Fitzjohn said. In her work with the has allowed her to move on from a Liberia in 1994. She was first a refu- homeless and as a minister, she’s seen leadership position in the organiza- gee in Sierra Leone, West Africa, and “the pain. I see the struggles. I hear tion. “I don’t pat myself on the back then moved to Nairobi, Kenya, where and I see how people are intentionally too much, but I can at least acknowl- she worked for a year before return- blinded to [the struggles of LGBTQ edge that I worked to get it to this ing home to Liberia. youth], and [people are] closing their point, and I don’t think I could have Fitzjohn said her experience as ears and not listening. It breaks my

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heart. And I’ve got loved ones who are in this same category. My passion has always been women and children and young people, so coming here is just where I’m meant to be.”

Poppers said the love for fundraising she developed at Lucie’s Place will serve her well at Planned Parenthood. “Without Lucie’s Place, I probably wouldn’t have been qualified for this job at Planned Parenthood, but through trial and fire and all sorts of different things over the past eight years, I’ve really developed these strong skills in development and fundraising,” she said.

“That’s a very tangible thing I’m taking away, a new career and a new career path. I love development, and I love raising money. I wouldn’t have said that eight years ago when I started Lucie’s Place. It was really not the thing I thought about at all, but now that’s what I love, and Lucie’s Place showed me and taught me that love.”

Fitzjohn will also have to do some fundraising: She wants to expand Lucie’s Place temporary housing from its eight beds. She also said she wants to work on serving more people in the community and alerting them to the help that Lucie’s Place offers. “There are some people who may not be physically homeless, but they’re not connected with where they’re living,” she said. “They could be living in a really bad situation, so that’s talking about finding a place that you can connect, finding a place that you feel safe, [and] just [encouraging] people to come make use of this wonderful drop-in center we have here … and helping people get to the place where they can be self-supported, and have their own space, and feel safe and feel loved.”

As Fitzjohn transitions into her new role, she said she looks forward to welcoming the LGBTQ community into the acceptance and compassion that can be found at Lucie’s Place. “[The] first thing I said when I met this staff was, ‘We’re a family,’” she said. “Lucie’s Place is a family. So we just need to continue to reach out to our lost family members out there and bring them home. That’s how I see it, bring them home.”

THE

BIG PICTURE

Inconsequential News Quiz:

Burning hole revisited edition

Play at home while eating a delicious Morningside Bagel!

1) Maumelle’s Morningside Bagels reopened this week after being closed since last April.

Why did it close in the first place?

A) The Trump administration slapped a 45 percent tariff on imported bagel holes.

B) Failure of an extensive effort to educate Arkansans on why bagels aren’t covered in delicious glaze.

C) Traffic on Maumelle Boulevard moves much too fast to read the signs on businesses.

D) Police said the former proprietor, in an attempt to make sure his estranged wife and co-owner couldn’t profit from running or selling the business after their divorce, allegedly destroyed much of the shop’s equipment and furnishings before rigging their former home with gasoline bombs hooked to timers and going on the lam. Arrested soon after, he now faces federal charges.

2) A recent study found that the number of uninsured children in Arkansas has risen for the first time since 1997, with 3,000 more kids uninsured this year than last year.

According to the authors of the study, what was one factor in why the number of insured children fell?

A) Failed double dog dares.

B) Dropped coverage after repeated crack-stepping-

3) Investigators believe they have found the source of a mysterious, 8-foot-tall flame that reportedly blazed for over 40 minutes from a hole in the ground in the tiny Baxter County town of Midway on Sept. 17. What, according to investigators, was the cause of the fire?

A) Burrito Thursday in Hell’s cafeteria.

B) Meth-addicted subterranean mole people trying to

C) The state legislature voted to increase the height of the “You Must Be This Tall To Have Health Insurance” sign.

C) Lightning strike touched off a massive cache of

related maternal back injuries.

D) The Trump administration slashed the Affordable Care Act’s sign-up period, outreach budget and enrollment grants, which the study’s authors said has decreased the likelihood that families would apply for health insurance coverage nationwide.

whip up a new batch.

ammo buried and forgotten back in 2009, when Obamey wuz cummin fer our gunz any day now!!!!

D) A prank, with soil samples taken from the hole

testing positive for toluene and xylene, flammable solvents found in ordinary paint thinner.

4) A Missouri company recently sued over the loss of a $712,290 Cessna aircraft that crashed in April 2015 at the Municipal Airport in Piggott (Clay County). According to the lawsuit, what was the cause of the crash?

A) Delta Airlines’ new “Fly Strapped to the Wing And Save!” program.

B) The pilot was a flat-earther, and chose to ditch rather than fly off the edge of the planet.

C) Yokels shot down the plane as Indiana Jones attempted to escape with their sacred painting of Johnny Cash on black velvet.

D) A tiny, 3/8-inch long section of drill bit that was found broken off inside one of the airplane’s crucial engine components.

5) Somebody reset the “Days Since Sen. Jason Rapert Has Been A National Embarrassment” sign back to zero after a Nov. 30 Facebook post by Rapert drew fire from civil rights groups and former Arkansas U.S. House candidate Chintan Desai, who took to Twitter to call Rapert “a fucking disgrace” over the post. What was the Bully of Bigelow carrying on about?

A) Dudes in Speedos: The Sexiest Menace.

B) His lobbying efforts to get the Vatican to add “Thou Shalt Not Question Jason Rapert” to the Ten Commandments while booting that crap about bearing false witness.

C) His proposed “Life Begins At Ejaculation” law.

D) The record number of Muslims elected to office Nov. 6, with Rapert posting a link to a story listing successful Islamic candidates along with the bigoted foghorn: “Do you want them ruling everything in America?”

Answers: D, D, D, D, D

LISTEN UP

arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

11

The 2018 Arkansas

Visionaries

Do you see what they see?

Inspired men and women who are making great things happen.

BENITO LUBAZIBWA Working for economic mobility.

12

DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

BRIAN CHILSON

B

enito Lubazibwa wants to do more than encourage AfricanAmerican entrepreneurship, though that is the primary focus of his own startup, Remix Ideas. “Integrating capital with humanity” is what the native of Tanzania and University of Central Arkansas alumnus says is the ultimate goal: to make Little Rock a more connected, integrated place to live, to break down barriers not just to capital — an entrepreneur’s biggest challenge — but between people.

That’s what Remix’s Night Market in the Bernice Garden has been able to achieve on a small scale. The Night Market’s slogan is “One City, One Love,” and serves as both a platform for startups — 40 vendors were at the September event — and a place to mingle, listen to music, dine and dance. Nearly all the vendors were women, a fact that pleased Lubazibwa mightily, and established businesses on Main Street indirectly benefited. The event, which Lubazibwa and chief creative officer Angel Burt organized, featured not just African-American women starting out in business, but food trucks featuring the cuisine of many nationalities: Venezuelan, Mexican, Colombian and African.

It also had a broader mission than to help create business: It also created jobs. The men setting up and taking down the market were hired intentionally from the ranks of SoMa’s homeless population, and Lubazibwa said they were eager, excellent employees who not only showed up on time, but early. They were paid $15 an hour and given T-shirts identifying them with the Night Market. “I told people, the people you have been serving, dancing with, those are the people you call homeless. I call them freedom fighters — they have to fight against whatever is holding them back,” Lubazibwa said.

Remix has been in business for a year, working with financing partner Communities Unlimited Inc., which provides microloans, and Innovate Arkansas, an initiative of Winrock International. It hosts the “Remix Pitch Challenge,” awarding $1,000 to the winning startup pitch, and will hold a “Celebration of Startups” networking and pitch challenge party from 5-10 p.m.

Dec. 14 at the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub, 201 E. Broadway in North Little Rock. (Tickets are $10.)

Remix seeks to inspire would-be entrepreneurs with its radio show “Remix Ideas.” Creative officer Burt interviews business people on the halfhour show on KABF-FM, 88.3, which airs at 11:30 a.m. Wednesdays.

Remix has also worked out discounts for use of co-working spaces at the Little Rock Technology Park and the Innovation Hub. Remix clients will be able to use space at the tech park, at 417 Main St., for $50 a month, and at the Hub for $40 a month.

Remix has several workshops and events lined up for 2019, including a 12-week Startups Business Academy, beginning in February, for people who have the ideas, but not the know-how, on running a business. “Eighty percent of startups fail,” Lubazibwa said.

The business academy will be practical, showing people how to test their ideas.

“You don’t buy a car without driving it,” he said. “You test drive.”

Remix will also hold three pitch challenges and the Ideas Weekend festival July 25-27.

Lubazibwa is also working to introduce the Impactor card, which for $10 will give card holders discounts at participating businesses. It’s similar to the Partners Card that the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences issues to support cancer research, but instead of two weeks, the Impactor Card will be good for a year. Several businesses have signed on to the idea already, including Remix Ideas’ most high-profile success story, Kontiki African Restaurant; and Pyramid Art Books and Custom Framing. Garbo Hearne, who owns Pyramid, said she was impressed with Lubazibwa’s energy and his ideas for Little Rock. Lubazibwa said the card would be a “win-win” for customers, giving them a break, and businesses, who would see more customers.

Lubazibwa said he worked in Africa after graduating from UCA in 2001, but realized that Arkansas was as much in need of the same “ecosystem” — a favorite word of startup promoters — to address similar barriers to economic success as were the places in Africa he worked.

It was his parents who instilled in him the notion that the important thing in life was to help others. “They believe that you are judged not by your harvest, but by the seed you are planting. … That’s been in my life since the beginning.”

The next movement among people of color will be an economic movement, Lubazibwa believes. “Martin Luther King did an excellent job on civil rights.

Now it’s time for this generation to fight for economic mobility,” not just for African Americans, but “women, Latinos, everybody.” He believes Remix is part of that movement.

For information on Remix workshops and events, go to remixideas.com.

— Leslie Newell Peacock

BRANDON MARKIN A curious and roving eye.

B

randon Markin’s approach to photography and life are the same: “You get one go-round and so you might as well try it all and put yourself into situations that make you uncomfortable and just deal with that. … I look at photography as an extension of who I am as a person and a way to document my learning experience as I go through life.”

That deep curiosity shines through in a scan of his online portfolios on Instagram (@ bnikram) and brandonmarkin.com. There you’ll find a tender black-and-white portrait of a ciate motion, he said. “When most people young black man holding a diaper-clad do digital photography, that obsession baby who regards the camera with a blank with perfection means, if they’re shooting wonder, while her father, eyes downcast something with low light, they’ll try to and with the hint of a grin, plays with stop the motion. But if you’re doing it with her impossibly small baby fingers. It’s film, that motion turns into a beautiful captioned “From a front porch in Hel- thing, with waves and streaks and such.” ena. Talking boxing with TJ.” Another He’s part of noted photographer Rita black-and-white image from January is Henry’s Blue-Eyed Knockers collective in all light and shadow, a big band of men Little Rock. The group gets together regin cowboy hats on a stage, with beams of ularly at Henry’s Stifft Station studio to light emanating from spotlights out into hang out and process film. Through that a sparse crowd on the dance floor, dark group and under his own initiative, he’s shapes huddled tight. It’s titled “Quincea- done a number of projects: pics of politiñera de Juliana.” cal protest, of the dilapidated Hotel Pines Like everyone else’s Instagram page, in Pine Bluff, of the Kanis Bash, where Markin also includes pictures of his fam- skateboarders and punk and hardcore ily. His wife and frequent muse, Mariella, bands gather at the Kanis Park skate bowl. is a student at the Clinton School of Public Markin makes a living as a photograService. The family traveled to Bocas del pher, which means he shoots products, Toro, an island chain province of Panama, events and magazine portraits with a over the summer while Mariella did her digital camera. But he’s committed to required service project, so you’ll also continuing his art photography. He has find pictures such as one Markin cap- a solo retrospective coming in November tioned “Girl in Bahia Honda, Panama 2019 at the William F. Laman Library in with her dolls. Life is sweet and fleeting.” North Little Rock. He dreams of traveling It’s of a small girl in a white dress stand- through Central and South America on a ing in front of a giant window, looking photo project (Mariella is from Ecuador, warily outside the frame and clutching so he’s traveled to South America before). her dolls tightly to her chest.

He met Adger Cowans, the famed fine art Markin, 43, of North Little Rock, photographer, at a talk at Hearne Fine prefers analog film photography. “I’ve Art earlier this year and asked him for always been drawn to that process,” he advice. “He said, ‘Do what you do and said, though he didn’t start young. “It don’t worry about where the money is wasn’t until I was well into adulthood going to come from. If you’re true to your [that] I had the resources to pursue that.” spirit and vision, it may take a while, but Why film? “Part of it is nostalgia. We’re the money will come.’ ” For now, Markin nostalgic creatures. Photography is the is content to keep on keeping on. “Any day nostalgic medium. What you’re doing, in that I can be walking around with the a way, is stopping time. You’re capturing camera taking photographs and doing light from a moment that will never be what I love, that’s a win for me.” repeated again.” You also learn to appre—Lindsey Millar arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

13

BRIAN CHILSON

JARED HENDERSON

Clintonesque gift for making policy relatable, he has the look of a star prospect for Arkansas Democrats.

So what’s next? He hasn’t charted a path yet, but says he plans to “stay engaged in politics.” He won’t run against U.S. Sen. Tom Cotton or U.S. Rep. French Hill, not because he doesn’t think they’re beatable in two years, but because he’s got a young family and isn’t ready to spend 60 percent of his time in Washington, D.C. After getting two advanced degrees from Harvard, in Lost the battle, but sees hope business administration and public administration, Henderfor Democrats in the longer son worked for NASA and for McKinsey & Co., the worldpolitical struggle. wide consulting firm. He returned to Arkansas to lead the state branch of Teach for America, with a plan to eventuirst, a bit of news for the politicos for whom it’s already ally get into politics. “But I was perpetually six or 10 years time to begin worrying over elections in 2020: Count away until Donald Trump got elected,” he said. “When that Jared Henderson of Little Rock out as a candidate happened, especially as a new father, I said, ‘We’ve got to for the U.S. Senate or Congress. But don’t take that as a get a good, competent, compassionate, inclusive party back sign that his political fire is dwindling. Yes, as the Demo- in the state,’ and the fastest way is just to get in and do it. cratic nominee for governor, he got walloped by Governor And, yeah, we may continue to get thumped for a while, but Hutchinson in November. (Henderson got 31.7 percent of there’s not a faster way to make progress.” the vote, while Hutchinson secured 65.4 percent.) That’s a Why make the political leap into a race for the highest big gap, but Hutchinson was a popular incumbent; no one statewide office? Why not start in city hall or in the state gave Henderson much of a shot to defeat him, particularly legislature? “Whether it’s right or wrong, in politics, as considering Henderson had little to no name recognition. long as you’re a credible and competent candidate, voters After 10 months of hard campaigning, meeting and greet- fit you into the box in which you’re introduced. … In politics, ing and stump-speaking across the state, Henderson may I think you have to take risks,” Henderson said. be beat up a bit, but at 40, with a decorated resume and a He concedes that he made some first-time-candidate

F

14

DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

mistakes. “I didn’t really start to understand and build an operation that could raise significant amounts of money until June or July, but once we did, I actually started raising significant amounts of money, especially since I was going against someone that no one thought was beatable. If I had been able to start that a year earlier, we would’ve had enough money to introduce myself to the rest of the state. Would that have won it for us? Probably not. But would that have gotten me another 10 points?

Very plausible.”

For Democrats to succeed down the road, the party must invest in infrastructure and continue to improve on candidate recruitment, he said.

“My campaign built a field organization that really reached pretty far, but could’ve gone so much farther. We’re rebuilding data systems as a party, so we know which doors to knock on and which voters to engage. As we rebuild that over the next 10 years, you could imagine that compressing some of the margins even more. It’s going to take more money than we had.

It’s going to take a party infrastructure that brings more people in. It’s going to take contesting every race.”

If Democrats can make improvements, Republicans might help their cause, Henderson said, noting as markers Oklahoma, which recently elected a Democratic congressman, and Kansas, which elected a Democratic governor.

“I don’t want the economy to teeter for anyone’s political fortune,” Henderson said. “But sooner or later it’ll turn. I was running this year because I wanted to win and I believed there was a hell of a good argument to win. And I lost.

Let the Republicans go do what they say they’re going to do in the next few years.

Let them cut another $180 million in taxes.

Let them ignore that we have the sixthhighest prison population in the world.

Let them kick the can on highway funding. We’ll see if they follow through with this raise on teachers, but even if they do, it’s not going to be enough. This profession is bleeding.”

Henderson would like to continue to advocate for issues on which he campaigned. “Education, teenage pregnancy and rural economic development — those are things I’m passionate about and things I believe are really fundamental for building a better future for the whole state, and they’re areas that are way under-resourced. You can also speak to them in conservative values. I can talk to my conservative family members on why these things matter and I can get them to nod their heads.”

— Lindsey Millar

LORENZO LEWIS BRIAN CHILSON

Mental health care advocate.

L

orenzo Lewis says his narrow escape from the school-to-prison pipeline was a testament to the importance of equipping marginalized men of color with coping skills and resources to manage their mental health. That’s why in 2016 Lewis founded the Confess Project; its mission is to bring mental health and emotional awareness education to men and boys of color.

Lewis was born while his mother was incarcerated.

He said behavior and anxiety issues in his early childhood led to his two-month stay at a juvenile facility in Pulaski County at age 10. He wasn’t encouraged to talk about his feelings or trauma and almost re-entered the juvenile system at age 17.

“Emotionally, I wasn’t validated as a young man,” Lewis said. He was told that God heals everything, “but [that’s] not practically looking at what helps and digging into the issue.” The Confess Project advocates for psychological therapy and medication management. “Some of these different tools that you need to understand, through the process of healing and growing, [are] really important to getting on the right track. And I think those were not the things that were pushed in front of me.”

The Confess Project offers monthly empowering sessions, community forums on social and emotional issues; 90-minute workshops for marginalized men and boys ages 10-40 on character education, academic improvement and life skills; and the Confess College Tour, which travels to different campuses with a curriculum focused on mental health education, prevention techniques and open dialogue.

The Confess Project also travels to barbershops in the South and Midwest as part of its “Beyond the Shop” series to meet men and boys where they are.

Lewis said the “Beyond the Shop” model is intended to initiate conversations that spread further into the communities the nonprofit serves.

“The model of ‘Beyond the Shop’ is really meant to let this conversation start here, but blossom into our communities, into our homes, into our families, to help our children, to better our relationships,” Lewis said. “So that’s why it’s called ‘Beyond the Shop,’ to say that it starts here but it revolutionizes throughout the places we live, work and play in.”

Confess Project facilitators provide pamphlets on counseling services at the “Beyond the Shop” meetings. Lewis said that these efforts come full circle when he learns of someone who attended a session and went on to begin counseling, or quit smoking, or otherwise take better care of themselves.

“That is why we do what we do. … I think it’s the ultimate feeling as a founder of this organization,” he said. “You intend for that to happen, but you don’t always see it happen as rapidly, so when you see that happen, it really gives you a lot of satisfaction. At that point, you know that they have a larger chance of transforming their life, more than what they had before.”

The Confess Project also trains barbers to become mental health advocates. Lewis said it intends to train 700 barbers next year through webinars, online video training and follow-ups.

Healing is at the root of what the Confess Project does. The curriculum guides men and boys through

three archetypes of masculinity: provider, protector and priest. Lewis said once men and boys are able to identify the harmful constraints and pressures of these archetypes, they’re able to gain perspective on the unhealthy behaviors they engender.

“Once you get men to understand that, I think they will begin to live a better quality of life,” Lewis said. “We also ask, what is the speed of healing? But we let them know that time to heal and grow is different. …

“A lot of the conversation is about manhood. It’s mental health, but it’s also about manhood. We have to dig deep into identity, and social skills, and building relationships. A lot of stuff comes up about divorce, and girls, and domestic violence, and child support. You’re really dealing with men from the things that affect men.”

According to Lewis, the Confess Project is built on the testimony and storytelling of facilitators with stories like his — stories like those of the men and boys in the barbershops and college campuses and community spaces they visit. Lewis said the resonance is crucial to the fulfillment of the organization’s mission.

“I think it’s important, because it allows them to really see the bigger picture,” he said. “It allows them to see accelerated growth, and it’s also just transparent, because it’s someone who looks like them and comes from the same neighborhood, or went to the same high school as them, may have had failing grades just like them. … Our facilitators and staff with the Confess Project all harness stories of power. … It’s a mixture of guys from different walks of life and professions who can relate to our key mission that helps us develop a bigger narrative.”

— Rebekah Hall arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

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PROJECT REACH BRIAN CHILSON

How a team of Arkansans hopes to change the criminal justice system.

ZALLER: Says there needs to be cultural shift surrounding criminal justice.

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r. Nickolas Zaller, Dr. Femina Varghese and Ben Udochi were recently awarded a threeyear, $350,000 fellowship through the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Interdisciplinary Research Leaders program. The fellowship will allow the team to conduct a telehealth pilot study that provides behavioral health counseling in the West Memphis area for people on probation or parole.

Zaller, an associate professor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences’ Fay W. Boozman College of Public Health, said the project came to fruition after discussions with Varghese and Udochi, the assistant director of substance use treatment with Arkansas Community Correction, about the capacity of telehealth medicine to reach people in isolated areas.

“We hear all the time that we live in a rural state, [that] we have all these access issues in terms of health care in general,” Zaller said. “I feel that we underutilize the potential with things we have, like telehealth and telemedicine, to reach more people in rural areas.”

According to Zaller, the pilot study will take place at the local office of Arkansas Community Correction, which oversees parolees and probationers, who are required to report there. If they fail to show up for a meeting with their probation or parole officer, a warrant is issued for their arrest.

“The idea was that is an opportunity,” Zaller said.

“They’re already in the office. We’ve identified individuals who are struggling. Can we then provide some additional services while they’re there?”

According to an analysis by the Pew Research Center and the Laura and John Arnold Foundation of data from a 2016 federal Bureau of Justice Statistics survey, one in 44 Arkansans is under some form of correctional supervision, one of the highest rates in the nation. Zaller said this high rate could in part be attributed to the fact that Arkansas lacks adequate treatment capacity for folks with mental health or substance use issues.

“We haven’t invested, it’s just plain and simple,” Zaller said. “We have not invested in that capacity.

We haven’t prioritized it, we haven’t invested, and this is the consequence.”

Zaller and Udochi said the team decided on West Memphis for the pilot study because of its proximity to more rural areas of the state, as the RWJF fellowship focuses specifically on health care in rural America. Udochi said individuals on parole or probation living in rural areas face unique challenges to accessing necessary services.

“Some of the rural areas, they don’t have the necessary services rightly available in their location,” Udochi said. “Second to that is the transportation issue. So they have to travel a long distance to get the services they need. The hope is that with telehealth services, we can see how beneficial those services

can be in alleviating some of those problems in those areas.”

Varghese, an associate professor of counseling psychology at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, will supervise her Ph.D. students who will provide the telehealth counseling. Zaller said he, Varghese and Udochi intentionally designed the pilot study to involve students in hopes of generating future interest in the criminal justice field.

“We wanted to do something where we could help these parolees in critical areas and provide our students with some wonderful training, as they’re interested in this area, and when they graduate they could continue the work in this area, whether it’s part of their practice or pro bono,” Varghese said. “It would be sustainable to two different roles.”

According to the research team, the pilot study will compare two different groups. Each group will receive a six-session intervention.

One group will receive only the treatment that the Community Correction department assigns to it based on its assessment and no telehealth counseling. The other group will also get the Community Correction treatment assigned to it, but that will be augmented by the telehealth counseling conducted by Varghese and her students.

Zaller, Varghese and Udochi will follow the progress of participants over a period of about six months to observe “overall substance use behaviors,” Zaller said. The team will then compare the outcomes of the two groups using standardized assessment tools, such as the Addiction Severity Index, and by conducting pre- and post-study interviews with both the Community Correction officers and the individuals who received treatment.

Zaller, Varghese and Udochi said the pilot study would be considered successful if participants respond well to the telehealth counseling and the ACC decides to expand the study to collect more information from different Community Correction locations in the state. But expanding the study would require funding from the state, and Zaller said such funding could be difficult to come by because of attitudes about criminal justice and punishment. According to Zaller, a main emphasis of the fellowship is also to change the cultural narrative surrounding criminal justice and incarceration by becoming public health leaders in the community.

“A lot of it is a cultural shift,” Zaller said.

“What do we see as the big picture? What sort of society do we want to live in? Right now, we’ve chosen a society totally dominated by fear. … And unless we change that narrative, and unless people understand that there are a lot of structural factors that relate to crime, including violent crime, we have to understand that it’s not all the same. We have to really start thinking carefully about what it is that we’re punishing people for.”

—Rebekah Hall

STEVE ARRISON The Hot Springs promoter wants to see hordes in hot water.

H

ere’s what Steve Arrison envisions: lots of peo- build bike trails. Hot Springs already attracts the cycling ple pouring into Hot Springs, biking in, hauling public with several bike trails, both rugged and easy. kayaks in, driving in for the World’s Shortest St. After a visit to Bentonville, where the Walton Family Patrick’s Day Parade. Bunking in the new hotels, soaking Foundation has invested $74 million on mountain bike up the craft suds, enjoying the thermal waters. And he trails and the bike trail system that connects Bentonville wants an improved quality of life for the residents of the to Bella Vista and Fayetteville, Arrison made a pitch for Spa City. Thanks to the internet, Arrison said, “people can Walton money for the Northwoods trail. He was successful: live anywhere.” Why not Hot Springs?

The Walton Family Foundation matched Visit Hot Springs’ Arrison, 62, has worked as the CEO of Visit Hot Springs, contribution of $680,000 and phase one was launched. the city’s convention and visitor’s bureau, for 20 years. In that The city dedicated the trail’s first 14 miles in November; time, he’s seen gaming join the racetrack at Oaklawn Park, eventually, Northwoods will have 44 miles of mountain the reopening of once-struggling Magic Springs Theme and bike trail, complete with angled berms, dirt ramps and Water Park in 2000 thanks to a local bond issue, the expan- tricky turns. Arrison wants to see the lakes become kaysion of the convention center and the opening of the Embassy aker destinations.

Suites Hotel. He was part of the group that worked on the Arrison is also looking forward to the day when the Hot Springs Historic Baseball Trail. The latest big thing that Southwest Bike Trail from Pulaski County to Garland has Hot Springs promoters licking their chops: Oaklawn’s County becomes a reality, but that will be many years $100 million expansion that will bring a high-rise hotel from now. He’s not going anywhere, however: “I hope to with 200 rooms, an event center and a bigger gaming area. be in this job six or seven years from now. I love what I do.”

Arrison is quick to say he wasn’t alone, or even the Next on Arrison’s plate is the development of the prime mover, in bringing such new investments to Hot city’s five acres at Park and Central avenues, where the Springs. He’s part of a team, and he was reluctant to have Majestic Hotel once stood. The University of Arkansas’s the Arkansas Times single him out.

Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design and Kansas But he would take credit for the Northwoods project, the State University are in charge of the “visioning process” multimillion-dollar bike-trail development taking place on for the site. Arrison’s vision involves Hot Springs’ reason 2,000 hilly Ouachita Mountain acres just west of downtown. for being: the thermal waters. He’d like to see outdoor The property was made off-limits to the public after 9/11 thermal pools, where people could relax in the toasty because its four lakes supplied drinking water to the city. 143-degree F. (on average) water.

The city opened the land after it discontinued use of three The Majestic property is a “real pivotal piece” to Hot of the lakes, and in 2016 Arrison — who said he didn’t even Springs’ development, so it’s important to “get it right.” know the property existed — visited. He was struck by its He thinks a public-private partnership is likely. beauty and had the notion that it would be a good place to —Leslie Newell Peacock arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

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STACEY MCADOO Transformative teacher.

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ong before Stacey McAdoo was a communications teacher at Little Rock’s Central High School — let alone the 2019 Arkansas Teacher of the Year — she was a poet. In the mid’90s, having just graduated from Hall High School, she and her future husband, Leron, began self-publishing a magazine intended to serve as a platform for fellow creatives, especially people of color. They put out a call for submissions, cut-andpasted together their book by hand and were soon running off copies at a 24-hour Kinkos. They dubbed it “The Writeous.”

“When you talk about underrepresented people, one of the things we are underrepresented in is media, and the ability to tell our story,” McAdoo said. “A lot of poets wanted to have a place to share their voice, and we filled that niche.”

“Fast forward: When I became an educator, I took that same concept and brought it to the classroom,” she said. “So I am now the founder and sponsor of the Writeous Poetry Club … and the Writeous has transformed from a magazine to a youth-oriented poetry collective.”

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BRIAN CHILSON

Since McAdoo started the club middle-class white person’s perspecin 2002 — her first year at Central tive, and we assume everyone’s expeand her first year teaching — at least rience matches that,” she said.

50 students have participated each As Teacher of the Year, McAdoo year, writing and performing origi- will receive a $14,000 award sponnal material at open mics, concerts sored by the Walton Family Foundaand on “The Writeous Hour,” a radio tion. Beginning in July 2019, she’ll show she co-produces on local station spend a sabbatical year of service travKWCP-FM, 98.9. Kids learn new skills, eling the state and the nation, speakbuild creative projects of their own ing with teachers and doing profesand travel to other cities. “We also sional development. McAdoo will also do workshops around Arkansas and have a nonvoting seat on the state the country, teaching other people, Board of Education — the body that other youth, how to use and find their took over the Little Rock School Disvoice,” she said. (Leron, who’s better trict in 2015 and has controlled it for known around town as the multital- the last four years. ented performer, writer and artist McAdoo said she “has a lot of Ron Mc, remains an integral part of thoughts” about education policy “The Writeous.”) and the LRSD, but she’s not yet sure The state’s teacher of the year is how she’ll leverage her newfound staa product of the Little Rock School tus. “I’m just looking and trying to see District. McAdoo grew up in South- where my place is,” she said. Was she west Little Rock, where she attended surprised to be selected for the honor?

Baseline Elementary and Cloverdale McAdoo laughed. “In light of who I Elementary, then went on to Hender- am, and in light of today’s climate — son Middle School and Hall. McAdoo yeah, it’s real interesting!” she said. received a B.A. in professional and In general, McAdoo isn’t shy about technical writing from the University expressing her views. Sixteen years of Arkansas at Little Rock. ago, as a newly minted teacher, she Though she always knew she was skeptical of the emphasis placed wanted to be a teacher, she brushed on standardized testing by No Child those thoughts aside after graduat- Left Behind, the federal education ing. The teaching profession was los- law. She recalls saying as much to ing the esteem it had once enjoyed in Rousseau during her first interview. society, McAdoo said; the message Today, she said, “I still think stanshe received from her peers and com- dardized testing is — the word I want munity was that the classroom wasn’t to use is ‘wack.’ … Because there’s no the place for her. Instead, she found a standard child. The whole premise comfortable job at Alltel as an admin- of testing students to whatever this istrative assistant and started a family. norm is, it’s ridiculous.” In her classThen, her brother died in a car acci- room, she said, “I close my door and dent, “and I realized then that life I’ve done what I thought was best for was too short for me to not do what I the children. I teach pretty much the felt I was supposed to do,” McAdoo way I wish I had been taught — and/ said. “I quit my job, cut my hair off, or the way that I think my biological and enrolled in … a master’s program children need.” (She and Ron have a [at UA Monticello].” As a first-year daughter who’s now a senior at Centeacher, she said, she saw a drop in tral and a son who attends Tennessee both pay and health benefits com- State University; her daughter is an pared to her secretarial job at Alltel. accomplished poet in her own right.)

McAdoo arrived at Central the Though she’s proud of her work same year as its principal, Nancy in the classroom, McAdoo considers Rousseau. She’s been teaching com- the Writeous Poetry Club her “most munications at the school ever since. valuable contribution … to society” She’s also taught AVID, or Advance- because it takes a group of kids and ment Via Individual Determination, “helps validate them as thinkers.” a college-readiness program for stu“My platform as Teacher of the Year dents who are typically the first in is using passion and poetry to close their families to go to college since the opportunity gap,” she said. “You 2007. “I’m their teacher 9th-12th have a core group of students, for the grade,” she said. The purpose of AVID most part from inner-city Little Rock is to equip students with the “soft … spending their time sitting around skills” they need to navigate adult writing and re-writing and practiclife and “discover the hidden curricu- ing. That’s how you transform not lum” in college and beyond. “We, as just education, but a city.” in society, basically operate from a — Benjamin Hardy

CONGRATULATIONS TO

Stacey McAdoo

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Big Brothers Big Sisters has always seen incredible potential in every child.

Everyone in our community, from parents and guardians to prospective volunteers to donors and supporters, can help defend the potential inherent in Arkansas’s youth and help them achieve their biggest possible futures.

The need in our community is more urgent than ever.

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CHRISSY CHATHAM Defender of potential.

W

hen Chrissy Chatham took the helm as CEO of Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Arkansas in 2015, she didn’t exactly know what she was getting into. The secondhand store Savers, which provided a significant amount of funding for the nonprofit, closed both its locations in Little Rock and North Little Rock in 2017, a major setback to the operations of BBBSCA. But Chatham said her vision of growth for the organization has remained the same since she became CEO. “I’ve been hopeful the entire three years,” she said. “My tendency is to be more resilient and optimistic. We’ve had several blows over the three years that could have caused some serious changes, but at the end of the day, it’s an opportunity to grow, it’s an opportunity to build and make this organization true to what it is and get down to the basics.

So many nonprofits end up doing more than they’re supposed to do, and when you don’t have that ability to do more, you get really good at what you’re supposed to do.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters’ mission is to provide at-risk children oneon-one relationships with adults. According to Chatham, the Central Arkansas chapter has 89 children matched with mentors. But there is a disparity in the number of boys waiting for adult mentors — 127 boys are in the process of becoming Little Brothers; 50 are waiting for mentors. At the moment, there are only 19 men going through the

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necessary background checks and interviews required to be a Big Brother. The reverse is true for girls: There are 42 girls in the process of becoming Little Sisters, and 60 women in the process of becoming Big Sisters. The organization needs more male volunteers and more young girls.

Chatham said the continued investment in the matches is an investment in the future.

“I think mentors are valuable and incredibly undervalued in our community,” she said.

“Every single person has had somebody, whether they realize it or not, to help them through a situation, or a period, or their entire life. … This is one solution to help our community get better. We’ve got a lot of crime and we’ve got a lot of problems with the school system, and we can point to all kinds of things that are wrong. But we have to invest in our youngest populations and set them up for success for that long-term goal of having a successful community.”

Big Brothers Big Sisters of America handed down new brand positioning in October, complete with a new logo. Chatham said the new branding is an effort to expand the organization’s impact and to “defend the potential” of every child. The new logo of BBBS America features a lowercase “b” in white, which the organization’s website said represents Littles and their families. The logo is completed by a green curve that creates an uppercase “B,” which represents the Bigs who strengthen the relationships among themselves, their Littles and their families.

A new video for the organization says, “We are not saviors. We are allies.” It’s a sentiment that Chatham said she’s inspired by.

“I love the idea that we’re not saviors, we’re defenders,” she said. “And it’s true, we’re not saviors. … [These are] kids who just have an opportunity and have a chance, we just need to open the door for them.”

Opening that door isn’t nearly as much of a time commitment as people think, according to Chatham. The community-based mentorship program requires Bigs to spend time with their Littles for a minimum of two hours, at least twice a month — just 48 hours per year.

Chatham said another common misunderstanding about the organization is what the definition of a good mentor is.

“You don’t have to be perfect, you just have to be present,” she said. “And, in fact, people who have less than perfect backgrounds are generally going to be fantastic mentors.”

When Bigs draw on their own life experiences to help shape the futures of the Littles they mentor, this helps the Littles realize they can do and be more, Chatham said.

“It’s not the mentor’s role or job to create potential,” Chatham said. “It’s there. It’s our job to defend it, and to make sure it’s able to grow, and to light that fire within the kids.”

— Rebekah Hall

KIM LANE Empowering entrepreneurs.

BRIAN CHILSON

T

hose who think that studying poetry in high school is a waste of time for those whose future is in business should meet Kim Lane.

Lane, 27, who speaks (and thinks) nearly as fast as the speed of sound, rattled off the Edgar Lee Masters poem that inspired her in her teenage years to make her own happiness and success in the working world, part of which is “Ambition called to me, but I dreaded the chances. … Life without meaning is torture.”

Did this reporter know, Lane asked during an interview at a coffee shop in Conway, where she is the CEO of startup promoter The Conductor, that “85 percent of people hate their jobs?” She was determined that would not be her fate.

Lane’s path to The Conductor was a complicated one, a route that took the Hendrix College writing major to work as an advertising writer, then a freelance writer of listicals for a national online publication, then an editor for a local online publication about business (she was also an intern at the Arkansas Times). After a visit to the first Arkansas Challenge startup contest in Northwest Arkansas, she “fell in love with the whole entrepreneurial thing.” On she went to the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub, where she oversaw its One Million Cups entrepreneur meetups created by the Ewing Marian Kauffman Foundation. She was so successful that Kauffman asked her to be a regional organizer.

She became an organizer for the Global Entrepreneurship Network after she brought Global Entrepreneurship Week to Arkansas. For the network, she’s traveled to places as far-flung as Africa and Istanbul to help create community among entrepreneurs.

People have been starting businesses for eons, so why the need for The Conductor’s mentorships, guidance and access to funding? Because the economy has changed. She cited Kauffman vice president Victor Hwang’s comparison of the industrial age economy to today’s: It was once the case that the entrepreneur created a widget and the factory that turned it out. Lane likened it to row crop farming, with one plant dominating and weeds — new ideas — being removed.

In today’s technological world, she said, there is more opportunity for entrepreneurs to act on their own, “and by the way, weeds are good now.” Today’s job creation is “more about embracing the beauty of everybody’s ideas,” Lane said.

Some of those ideas are coming from students. The Conductor, which Lane and “Chief Catalyst” Jeff Standridge got up and running with help from partner Startup Junkie Consulting of Fayetteville, partners with the University of Central Arkansas. UCA offers the free Makerspace, complete with 3D printers and other fabrication tools, on its campus, and Lane said it’s always full. The space will grow — and continue to be free — when the Conway Corp. utility creates the Arnold Innovation Center in what is now City Hall at 1201 W. Oak St. “It’s going to be groundbreaking,” Lane said, and credited the collaboration of the Conway Chamber of Commerce, City Hall, Acxiom, Conway Corp. and other sponsors for “moving the needle” of entrepreneurship in Conway and Faulkner County and reducing barriers to business ideas from minorities and women.

Lane said she works “at the intersection of life coaching and entrepreneurship,” helping people see that they can act on their dreams, and “see their life a different way.” She advises not just people who have ideas but people who only know they want a job that will make them happy.

— Leslie Newell Peacock

Congratulations!

Dr. Yupo Chan, Professor of Systems Engineering Thank you for your visionary teaching and research GEORGE W. DONAGHEY COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

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BRIAN CHILSON

DRS. YU-PO CHAN, EDMUND WILSON AND PO-HAO ADAM HUANG Spaceflight cubed.

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CUBESAT TEAM: UA Little Rock’s Dr. Yu-Po Chan (above), UA Fayetteville’s Dr. Po-Hao Adam Huang (above, page 23) and Harding University’s Dr. Edmund Wilson (below, page 23).

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old your hands in front of you and form a pair of square brackets with your fingers and thumbs, your palms a few inches apart. That’s about the size and shape of the device that will be Arkansas’s first satellite. If all goes well, a tiny cube packed with scientific instruments soon will be gathering atmospheric data as competently as satellites thousands of times larger and more costly, according to Dr. Yu-Po Chan of UA Little Rock.

“We are planning in the long run to have a constellation of these satellites … flying in formation,” Chan said. “This would be Arkansas’s very first with our name on it. Many other states bigger than us have already launched, so we are catching up, basically.”

Chan, the chair of UA Little Rock’s systems engineering department, is among a trio of Arkansas researchers working to design CubeSats, a class of miniaturized, low-cost “nanosatellites.” His collaborators are Dr. Po-Hao Adam Huang, an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at UA Fayetteville, and Dr. Edmund Wilson, a chemistry professor at Harding University in Searcy. Their first CubeSat model, ArkSat-1, is being designed by Huang. It should be delivered to NASA by the end of 2019 and launched in early 2020.

CubeSats aren’t novel in themselves — NASA’s most recent mission to Mars experimentally deployed a pair of the devices near the red planet — but the Arkansas team has a number of original research goals and design innovations. Many nanosatellites don’t have a propulsion system. The ones that do typically use a pressurized aerosol propellant, such as freon. But Huang came up with a different fuel: water.

“Our technique is basically using small, micro-channels to contain the water,” Huang said. “We open those valves, and it will evaporate. … It becomes a gas, and we use it as a propellant.”

In October, Chan received a $24,900 grant from NASA to develop a different CubeSat project. Called SAMSAT (“solar and atmospheric measuring satellite”), it will eventually map the presence of water vapor, methane, carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases in the atmosphere above Arkansas. Chan will then compare that information to data collected by the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, or GOES-16, which is one of two weather orbiters operated by NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

GOES weighs in at over 3 tons, according to NASA’s website — about the weight of a Hummer H2. SAMSAT will probably weigh around 3 pounds.

“We are using the big satellite’s data to validate that what we see is accurate,” Chan said. “We’re talking about billions of dollars in the big satellite, thousands of dollars in these small satellites.” The team hopes to prove a CubeSat “can do the same job at monitoring the atmosphere as the big, big bird,” he said.

The team also hopes SAMSAT can do a better job at collecting data than some of its cousins because it will be more nimble. That’s where Huang’s propulsion system comes in.

“CubeSats generally don’t have a way to maneuver,” Huang said. Because

they can reorient themselves only a few sion,” he said. In addition to demonstratdegrees per second, it’s difficult for their ing the utility of their technological innoinstruments to gather data on a small patch vations, the team hopes to gather unique of atmosphere as the craft zips through low data on the atmosphere above Arkansas, earth orbit at thousands of miles per hour. establishing a baseline that could be of use “With our design, we can rotate 90 degrees for climate science in the future. on the order of five to 10 seconds. … That The long-term goal, Chan said, is to may be kind of slow on Earth, compared deliver a proof of concept that could yield to a car, but it’s really fast for a spacecraft.” funding for further research. “We’re tryThe job of measuring the atmosphere’s ing to catch a big fish — a multiyear, much composition falls to the team’s third mem- larger grant,” he said. “It could be benefiber, Wilson. Scientists determine the com- cial for industry, including manufacturing.” position of a gas by examining the behavior And beyond. Wilson and Huang said of light that has passed through it, a tech- they have hopes that their innovations nique called spectroscopy. But most spec- could have application to NASA as it trometers are too large to fit comfortably contemplates exploring the moons of inside a CubeSat, Wilson said.

Jupiter and Saturn in the coming decades.

“I’ve been able to find a spectrometer that “Our overall goal is to be able to have a is about the size of a joint in your finger. It’s mission to some other solar system body, about 1 inch by a half inch by a half inch … so like Titan,” Wilson said. it may be exactly what we need for our mis— Benjamin Hardy

Congratulations!

Dr. Brian Keith Mitchell, Assistant Professor of History Thank you for your visionary teaching and research COLLEGE OF ARTS, LETTERS, AND SCIENCES

S

et in Truvy’s beauty salon in Chinquapin, Louisiana, where all the ladies who are “anybody” come to have their hair done, centered around six women, filled with hilarious repartee and not a few acerbic but humorously revealing verbal collisions, the play moves toward tragedy. The sudden realization of their mortality affects the others, but also draws on the underlying strength and love which makes the characters truly touching, funny and marvelously amiable company in good times and bad.

NOV. 30, DEC. 1, 7, 8, 9, 13, 14, 15, 16 2018 DIRECTED BY: DUANE JACKSON

$16 ADULTS • $12 FOR STUDENTS/SENIORS/MILITARY FRIDAY AND SATURDAY NIGHT CURTAIN TIME IS 7:30 PM. SUNDAY AFTERNOON CURTAIN TIME IS 2:30 PM. Please arrive promptly. There will be no late admission. The House opens 30 minutes prior to curtain. Box office opens one hour before curtain time.

For more information contact us at 501.374.3761 or www.weekendtheater.org

CentralArkansasTickets.com to purchase tickets and flex passes.

1001 W. 7th St. • Little Rock, AR 72201 • 501-374-3761 arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

23

BRIAN CHILSON

BRIAN MITCHELL History detective.

A

s the 100th anniversary of the massacre of African Americans at Elaine approaches, first-year graduate students in Dr. Brian Mitchell’s public history class at UA Little Rock are filling in gaps in the story of what was one of the most deadly race riots in America.

In September 1919, after one of several meetings black farmers held with representatives of the Progressive Farmers and Household Union, a white deputy spying on the meeting was fatally shot. Acting at the urging of the Phillips County sheriff, a mob of whites roamed the county, killing hundreds — some estimates are as high as 800 — of black residents. Five whites were killed, but only African Americans were arrested and jailed.

Twelve black men were quickly found guilty of murder by an all-white jury and sentenced to death. They were impris-

24

DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

oned while their appeals in two famous cases traveled to the state and U.S. supreme courts. Their convictions were overturned, and they were sentenced to time served and released.

But fearing they’d be lynched, all 12 fled the state, along with hundreds of other African Americans from Elaine who feared for their lives.

Mitchell has guided his public history students in the search to find out what happened to those 12 men. He did the legwork over the summer to provide them with public records — census records, city directories, vital records and newspaper accounts. They’ve been able to track down six of the 12 so far, and locate most of the graves of those six.

As part of the class, the students will write biographies of the men for the Butler Center for Arkansas Studies’ Encyclopedia of Arkansas. They are also raising funds to place markers on

their graves, a project UA Little Rock is doing in collaboration with the National Park Service and other agencies and with the help of private individuals.

Mitchell said that one of the “more interesting aspects” of the class’ work on Elaine is to “reassess the role of black World War I veterans.” One of the hundreds of men killed by the posse was a veteran who’d been home in Arkansas for just a few months. Returning veteran farmers were “looking for fair compensation, and rather than deal with them fairly, it was easier to kill them,” Mitchell said.

UA Little Rock’s drama department will use Mitchell’s class’ research to write and produce a play. “There are such rich characters” in the Elaine story, Mitchell said. “There was one guy who became a gangster in Illinois,” Mitchell said.

A previous class worked to transcribe the death certificates of African Americans killed in the race massacre and created a database. The database has been provided to the Arkansas State Archives for public use.

Future projects for Mitchell’s first-year grad students include research into West Rock, the African-American community once situated at the base of Cantrell Hill, as a way to learn about redlining, the real estate practice of segregating blacks in certain neighborhoods. He’s interested, too, in more study of the tragedy at the Wrightsville boys’ so-called “industrial school,” which was in fact a prison, where 21 boys locked in a dorm perished in a fire in 1959. He has turned over to the Butler Center records he has on what so-called offenses the boys committed to be sent to Wrightsville.

Mitchell, 50, a Louisiana native who came to Arkansas after the Hurricane Katrina disaster in New Orleans, has been a professor at UA Little Rock for four years (he was an adjunct earlier in his move to Little Rock, and later an investigator with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Metroplan researcher). Mitchell wants to give his students the opportunity to collaborate more with the community, doing joint projects with state and federal agencies and other history-minded groups “to open up an avenue of employment” for those who choose not to pursue doctoral degrees. He said the public history program’s success in finding jobs for its graduates, including archival work and museum exhibition, is nearly 100 percent. In fact, the program doesn’t accept more students than it thinks will be able to find jobs. The program has “given a level of visibility to the school,” Mitchell said. “When I say it’s an excellent program, I mean it’s an excellent program.”

—Leslie Newell Peacock

AARON BREWER

JEN GERBER Multifaceted creative.

J

en Gerber’s first time on a film set was for a small acting role in a country music video in Nashville, Tenn. Gerber, who goes by Jen, said being on the set that day changed her life. “I realized in that moment it was everything I wanted out of theater, which was storytelling [and] a collaborative creation process, but I really didn’t want to be an actor,” she said.

She’s been busy since. She earned an master’s of fine arts degree in writing and directing at Columbia University in New York and served as the creative director at The School of Creative and Performing Arts in Los Angeles and New York for six years. She previously worked as an assistant professor at the University of Central Arkansas in Con-

way and now teaches a film production class at the Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts.

In her spare time, she’s directed a film — “The Revival” — that has been screened in Los Angeles and abroad.

Now the accomplished writer, director and professor is the executive director of the Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival, a job that keeps her busy yearround. This year’s festival, in October, screened 127 films — up from the 2017 festival’s 84 films — and its audiences are growing as well. Gerber said she plans to continue the festival’s growth by adding more education and outreach opportunities, such this year’s inaugural Emerging Voices Filmmaking Retreat for new voices in

nonfiction filmmaking and the Emerging Filmmakers workshops for middle and high school students.

These outreach programs, as well as events such as a guided walking tour of Hot Springs given by Matt Green, the subject of the documentary “The World Before Your Feet” and a “walker” who’s walking every street and path in New York City, help audiences connect with the documentaries in a larger way, Gerber said.

“I want to do much, much more of that next year to create more of an interactive experience,” she said. “Because what’s the difference between watching the film at home and watching it at the festival? It’s that you get that extra connection to enhance the experience.”

With the rising popularity of documentaries such as box-office hits “Won’t You Be My Neighbor?” and “RBG,” Gerber said she’s excited about the future of the genre and her involvement in it.

“I think I’ve become the director of this festival at the right time for the genre because documentary is becoming so mainstream,” she said. “It’s always been around, it’s not in any way new, but I feel right now people are hungry for the truth. … It’s been a new time for documentaries in terms of the audience desire for them and also just creatively.

They’ve become very well told stories. And they always have been, but I think right now we’re really seeing different ways that documentary filmmakers are elevating the storytelling within their films.”

Though she hasn’t made a documentary film, Gerber said she’s inspired by the intensive research conducted by documentarians on the subjects of their films. She’s now writing a script for a new project: “Crash Reel,” about a female demolition derby driver.

“You get to walk in someone else’s shoes,” Gerber said. “I don’t anticipate that I’ll ever drive in a derby, but through film, your curiosity can lead you anywhere. I was at a derby and had this idea, and it’s started a path now for me of asking questions, getting to know a world, and daydreaming my own ideas into that world.”

Gerber is also working on a more autobiographical project titled “Pretty Near Perfect” that’s loosely based on her time as a teenage beauty queen living in Hot Springs. For other female filmmakers and storytellers who are looking to break into the industry, Gerber encourages them to find a great mentor and support system, a role she happily served for her former UCA students, some of whom go on to be hired on Gerber’s own projects.

“I want to support them, I want to help them grow their resume, and they’re really good at what they do,” she said. “I’ve watched them grow beyond what I taught them, so when it comes to any project that I do, I start by hiring this group of young women that I worked with here in Arkansas.”

—Rebekah Hall

Not-Quite-Holiday Film Fest 6:30 p.m. • $5 • Ron Robinson Theater Library Square • 100 Rock St.

Trading Places (R) Tuesday • Dec. 11 Love Actually (R) Thursday Dec. 13 Die Hard (R) Tuesday • Dec. 18 Gremlins (PG-13) Thursday • Dec. 20 The Not-Quite-Holiday Film Fest is sponsored by 106.7 The Ride and The Point 94.1.

Quinto Poder (Q5P)

Friday • Dec. 14 • 8 p.m. • Free Enjoy a mix of new original songs and fresh takes on holiday favorites.

CALS.ORG

MORE THAN MORE PRINT. THAN PRINT. ARKTIMES.COM arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

25

JERRMY GAWTHROP AND BRYAN AND BERNICE HEMBREE T

They form the engine that makes the Fayetteville Roots Festival go.

his is a story about three friends with complementary talents who started a music and food festival that’s grown into an event that has no rival in Arkansas — but still, its founders insist, remains humble.

More than a decade ago, Fayetteville’s Bryan and Bernice Hembree, the husband-and-wife musical duo who perform as Smokey & The Mirror, befriended Fayetteville restaurateur Jerrmy Gawthrop. Gawthrop, in turn, regularly asked them to play at his restaurant Greenhouse Grille. (At the time, the Hembrees were performing as part of a trio called 3 Penny Acre. Gawthrop and his business partner, Clayton Suttle, sold

Greenhouse Grille to the Arsaga family earlier this year; they still own two Wood Stone Pizza restaurants).

In 2010, the Hembrees were asked by three musical groups they’d met on the road for help booking a show in Fayetteville on the same weekend. That was the impetus for getting with Gawthrop to put on a one-day Fayetteville Roots Festival at Greenhouse Grille on a Sunday — brunch paired with 10 bands. About 160 people showed up. There was a morning slate of music and an hour break, which was to be followed by an afternoon lineup. During that hour, a water main near Greenhouse Grille ruptured. “During that geyser that was happening, we had musicians putting sandbags in front of Greenhouse Grille,” Bryan Hembree remembered. Luckily, George’s Majestic Lounge was free that day and welcomed the waterlogged fest.

Near-catastrophe aside, the trio realized they had a winning concept on their hands. Thanks to some underwriting support from a fan from the first event, the Roots Festival was able to book Texas singer/songwriter legend Guy Clark and,

‘IT’S A BEAUTIFUL THING’: That’s what Jerrmy Gawthrop (left) says of the Roots Festival, which he founded with Bryan and Bernice Hembree (above) and which has terrific community buy-in.

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DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

in turn, secure the Walton Arts Center as a venue. From there, the festival, held annually in August, has grown exponentially.

This year’s event featured the likes of Mavis Staples, Booker T. Jones (of Booker T & the M.G.’s), Gillian Welch, the Del McCoury Band and John Moreland. In addition to the main stage at the Fayetteville Town Center, the festival extended to the Fayetteville Public Library and Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and the Brightwater Culinary School in Bentonville. Food had always been a major component of the festival, but the Hembrees said this year it reached equal footing with the addition of a special Saturday Roots, Food & Spirit event with dozens of guest chefs from around the region and country. Among both free and ticketed events, organizers estimated 7,500 people attended the five-day festival this year.

Tickets now regularly sell out before the music lineup is announced (early-bird tickets for the fest, scheduled for Aug. 22-25, 2019, went on sale Dec. 5).

Community buy-in came early on in the festival’s run, Gawthrop said.

“We started doing things and people jumped on board, like, ‘How can we help? I wanna volunteer.’ ” This year, upward of 100 sponsors supported the fest and some 200 volunteers helped out.

The festival now has a year-round headquarters and an administrative assistant, but Gawthrop and the Hembrees continue to run it amid all their other commitments: In addition to two restaurants, Gawthrop and his wife have three kids with another one on the way. Bryan does ACT-prep work for the University of Arkansas and Bernice works in music education; they also stay busy recording and touring as Smokey & The Mirror and are part of a collaborative album project with Danish folk-rockers The Sentimentals. So, how do they swing it all?

“The three of us have a really good working relationship,” Bryan Hembree said.

“Like now, it’s hot and heavy on my shoulders for the booking. Other times Jerrmy is busy with procurement of food and chefs. Or Bernice is working on the educational outreach. It’s a true kind of partnership tag team.”

Gawthrop added, “It can be a lot.

Being able to ask for help and organizing your people are key. Thankfully, we’ve got a great community where people really want to help — sponsors, local bars, chefs. They want this thing to be here.

They’re proud of it. People refer to this as ‘our festival.’ It’s a beautiful thing.”

— Lindsey Millar

John

Neal

FRIDAY DEC. 7 9PM John Neal, one of the most talented singer/songwriters of the Arkansas music scene, is back at South on Main and ready to get you on your feet and dancing to his country, gospel and blues.

Concert begins at 9 pm. Purchase tickets in advance for $8 or pay a $10 cover at the door. Tickets do not guarantee you a seat. To reserve a table, please call (501) 244-9660.

1304 MAIN STREET LITTLE ROCK, AR 72202 501-244-9660

GET TICKETS AT CENTRALARKANSASTICKETS.COM

M A G A Z I N E

A Healthier Life STARTS HERE! Take the first step. Learn how a WellCare Medicare Advantage plan can help you be a better you.

CALL NOW! 1-877-285-8132 | TTY 711

WellCareforAR.com 8 a.m. - 8 p.m. | Monday - Friday WellCare Health Plans, Inc., is an HMO, PPO, PFFS plan with a Medicare contract. Enrollment in our plans depends on contract renewal. You may enroll in the plan only during specific times of the year unless you qualify for a Special Election Period (SEP) or Initial Coverage Election Period (ICEP). WellCare complies with applicable Federal civil rights laws and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, or sex.

ATTENTION: If you speak a language other than English, language assistance services, free of charge, are available to you. Call 1-877-374-4056 (TTY: 711).

ATENCIÓN: si habla español, tiene a su disposición servicios gratuitos de asistencia lingüística. Llame al 1-877-374-4056 (TTY: 711). 注意：如果您使用繁 體中文，您可以免費獲得語言援助服務。請致電 1-877-374-4056 (TTY:711)。 Y0070_WCM_15746E CMS Accepted 07232018 NA8WCMADV20111E_WC

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11/26/2018 10:47:43 AM arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

27

GO VOTE NOW

CULINARY ARTS AND HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT INSTITUTE

GO VOTE NOW

VOTE NOW THRU DEC.11 at ARKTIMES.COM/FOOD

2019

Arkansas Times will present the 38th edition of our Readers Choice Restaurants awards in our January 31, 2019 issue.

February 5th is our awards celebration party for the statewide winners, presented by our hosts and sponsors UA Pulaski Tech Culinary Institute, Ben E. Keith Foods, Southern Glazer’s Wine and Spirits and Glazer’s Beer and Beverage.

Food, drink, interesting people and Ted Ludwig Jazz Trio will provide the entertainment.

For more information contact phyllis@arktimes.com

ARKTIMES.COM/FOOD 28

DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

THE

Neighborhood Dining Guide 2018 ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT www.arktimes.com

DECEMBER 6, 2018

arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

29 29

Neighborhood Dining Guide When we’re trying to dream up where to eat, often

we start with a neighborhood first. Just the mention of Hillcrest and all sorts of restaurants come to mind! The same holds true for Riverdale, the Heights, West End, Argenta and Downtown. ■ So here’s a tidy listing of neighborhoods and the restaurants that define them. ■ Remember, voting is still taking place for the 2019 Arkansas Times Restaurant Reader’s Choice contest! We encourage restaurants to remind their customers to vote at arktimes.com/ food. The Arkansas Times Restaurant Reader’s Choice Awards was the first restaurant contest – and it’s frequently imitated, but never duplicated. Winners will celebrate at our party Feb. 5 at Pulaski Tech Culinary & Hospitability Management Institute. The event is sponsored by Ben E. Keith Foods and Constellation Wines.

DOWNTOWN

Order a painting of your family

42 BAR AND TABLE 42 Bar And Table offers a presidential experience for every guest. Located inside the Clinton Presidential Center, our awardwinning restaurant features a delicious menu full of local favorites and internationallyinspired cuisine. Enjoy happy hour at the bar or on the patio next to a cozy fire pit while the lights dance across the bridge.

Complimentary valet service is available at the front door. 1200 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. (501) 537-0042.

CACHE Cache Restaurant is a one-of-a-kind fine dining venue set in the heart of downtown Little Rock. Cache’s the perfect location

for your next corporate event, private romantic dinner, or for anyone who loves to have memorable meals. Our downtown restaurant has a welcoming environment from the savory menu and an outdoor patio to upstairs dining with a view. Also, be sure to check out our daily lunch specials. Work downtown? Let us pick you up for lunch with our Cache Cart! Cache restaurant is the place to be in Little Rock. 425 President Clinton Ave., Little Rock. (501) 850-0265.

VINO’S Vino’s, Arkansas’s oldest brewery, is located in downtown Little Rock serving award winning beers and food since 1990. Winners of the GABF Gold medal in 2008 and the Bronze medal in 2006. Owner Henry Lee has

About The Cover Artist

CAROLE KATCHEN by artist Carole Katchen ckatchen@earthlink.net (501) 617-4494 30 30DECEMBER 6, 6, 2018 DECEMBER 2018ARKANSAS TIMES ARKANSAS TIMES

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Artist Carole Katchen lives in Arkansas, but has painted and exhibited her art in much of the world. She sketched nomads in Nigeria, singers in the Taiwanese Opera and children along the Amazon River. Her work has been featured in exhibits in Shanghai, Bogota and Telluride, and many cities in between. Her prints of chefs and wine stewards have sold in 30 countries.

Collectors as far away as South Africa have commissioned her large paintings of family groups and her small portraits

of dogs and cats. Fourteen of her books about art have been published by Watson-Guptill and North Light. She has written numerous magazine articles and illustrated four children’s books for Scholastic and Atheneum.

Her illustrations for“Menopause the Musical” have been seen on buses and billboards around the country.

She regularly shows her paintings at Legacy Gallery in Hot Springs. For more information about the artist and her work, visit carolekatchen.com.

Internationally inspired cuisine.

Dramatic views of the river and bridge lights.

Free valet parking at the front door.

Lunch • Happy Hour • Dinner Located in the Clinton Center 42barandtable.org

Cache kept the winning formula largely the same for 28 years: Pizzas and Calzones, reliably delicious beer and live music. Open seven days a week and located on the corner of 7th and Chester, Little Rock. (501) 375-8466.

HILLCREST

LA TERRAZA RUM & LOUNGE Recently seen on The Food Network, this cultural experience nestled in Hillcrest, boasting a Venezuelan/Spanish fusion with

influences of Italian and French cuisine has one of the best patios in town. The cocktail menu does not disappoint, with over 30 rum varieties and the best mojito in town!

A monthly Ladies Night and seasonal Rum Dinners keep patrons entertained. Offers private dining, on-site event planning, catering and more. Call today to inquire on their “experience packages” and follow their events on Facebook. 3000 Kavanaugh Blvd., Little Rock. (501) 251-8261.

bar and table

@42barandtable

Now offering catering!

CANDLELIT. CAND CAN N D LEELIT. E L IT A ARTSY. RTT R NEIGHBORLY. Book B Boo Bo ook okk your you yo our ur holiday hol ho holi lida lid iiddday ayy party paar p arty toda arty today! tod y

PRIVATE PARTY ROOM M AVAILABLE • 7811 Cantrell Rd #6 • Little Rock (501) 224-9079

A holiday Favorite!

Check out our new location at 9801 W. MARKHAM, LITTLE ROCK

or find a location near you www.andys-restaurant.com

VOTE FOR THE READERS CHOICE RESTAURANT AWARDS

ARKTIMES.COM/FOOD

arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018 ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT www.arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 201831 31

Neighborhood Dining Guide ■ 2018

MIDTOWN

36 year-old jewel has an authentic New Orleansinspired menu that never disappoints. Not only do they serve up Cajun and creole staples, but their steaks and soak salads are legendar y. There is something for everyone!

And be sure to check out their Facebook page for regular contests. 1619 Rebsamen Park Rd., Little Rock. (501) 663-9734.

ANDY’S RESTAURANT Andy’s Restaurants are much more than just a place to get an amazing, always fresh, never frozen Angus beef burger. Try a delicious healthy breakfast from Andy ’s for a per fectly satisfying start to your day, or have a salad or baked potato from our stunning and delicious Specialty Items menu. Like the taste of slow-smoked, tender and delicious barbecue? Try Andy’s pulled pork barbecue sandwich, or a hot and delicious slab (or two!) of our baby back ribs! 9801 West Markham St., Little Rock.

(501) 224-2444.

WEST LITTLE ROCK

42 Bar And Table GRAFFITI’S ITALIAN RESTAURANT A Little Rock institution, serving Italian Food with American flair for over 34 years. Graffiti’s menu items tantalize the taste buds with daily specials to complement a diverse palate. Generations of patrons have called Graffiti’s home.

Open Monday-Saturday from 5-9 and 9:30 on weekends.

Offering on-site party planning, catering, and private dining. Call today to inquire for private dining “experience packages”. Graffiti’s Italian Restaurant, the perfect place to spend your holidays. 7811 Cantrell Rd., Little Rock.

(501) 224-9079.

RIVERDALE

LOCA LUNA One of Arkansas’s most celebrated restaurants and chef, Mark Abernathy. This bistro bold is plating grilled fare, seafood & wood-fired pizza with a Southern bent every

day of the week. 3519 Old Cantrell Rd., Little Rock. (501) 663-4666.

RED DOOR RESTAURANT Red Door is the place in Arkansas for modern southern cuisine. It’s a cool, casual, fun, and relaxing atmosphere.

Red Door features a menu offering a delicious mixture of grilled meat, and steaks, the freshest seafood, hearty soups, creative salads, along with fabulous appetizers and desserts, all at moderate prices. Come visit our bar with its four 42-inch LCD TVs, a great place to watch sports.

Red Door features a full bar and a great Wine Selection.

Bar is open late on weekends. 3701 Cantrell Rd., Little Rock (501) 666-8482.

THE FADED ROSE As Little Rock’s most award-winning restaurant, this

ARTHUR’S PRIME STEAKHOUSE A r t h u r ’s i s a p r e m i e r steakhouse of the south offering only the best grade of beef in the world. Their selection ranges from dry aged prime natural beef, australian wagyu, and world class authentic Japanese Kobe. All beef is dry aged on premise then cut in-house by the most experienced butchers. Their seafood is of the highest quality and is delivered directly three times a week. They also serve top tier lamb, free range chicken, premium pork, and creative vegetarian entrees. Visit their new location at 16100 Chenal Pkwy., Little Rock. (501) 821-1838.

BUFFALO WILD WINGS The holidays can be stressful and Buffalo Wild Wings is here to help. They’ve created a party menu to help you make sure your guests don’t go hungry. And if you’re just looking to skip the cooking, let them take care of the food and grab some takeout. Buffalo Wild Wings have 21 sauces and seasonings. With holiday gift cards, they’ve

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Neighborhood Dining Guide ■ 2018

in the Argenta Arts District. Recently voted best bar, best bar food, and Bloody Mary in the Arkansas Times, they offer great BBQ food options like a Pulled Pork Hash or the “Porkaletta”, and also have one of the best burgers around. Brunch kicks off Sunday at noon, and the kitchen is open until 1:30am every night. A nice craft beer selection is on tap, with many rarities often available.

(Ask about the secret tap!) Live music starts around 10 pm on the weekends. 415 Main St., North Little Rock. www.fourquarterbar.com.

got you covered for Secret Santa. Buffalo Wild Wings. Wings. Beer. Sports. 14800 Cantrell Rd. www.buffalowildwings.com.

OCEAN’S Ocean’s is one of the finest seafood restaurants in West little rock. Go visit their new location on Chenal Parkway! Ocean’s specializes in the best Sushi in town, featuring Alex Guzman, a well-established and highly respected Sushi Chef. Chef Alex will have the Kobe of seafood awaiting you. Ocean’s is open for lunch with great Vino’s house made burgers and sandwiches and a traditional menu from Southern Fried Chicken and Catfish to hand-pounded Chicken Fried Steak. They also offer a magnificent Sunday Brunch, with everything from made to order Omelets, Prime Rib, Shrimp, a Pasta Bar and more. The Brunch is in a large buffet with all that you can imagine and decadent desserts.

Open for private events and caterings with advanced reservations. 16100 Chenal Pkwy., Little Rock. (501) 821-1828.

or a specialty cocktail. 2 Riverfront Place, North Little Rock. (501) 374-8081.

FOUR QUARTER BAR Four Quarter Bar is quickly becoming the late night staple

ARGENTA

BENIHANA At Benihana you’ll find a dining experience unlike any other! Guests are seated at communal hibachi grill tables in groups, where your personal chef will perform the ancient art of Teppanyaki. Watch as the chef slices and dices, preparing a meal that will dazzle your eyes as well as taste buds, whether you choose mouth-watering steak, tender chicken or succulent seafood. You can also enjoy sushi and sashimi prepared by a talented sushi chef and indulge in a famous, award-winning signature hot sake

RIVERFRONT STEAKHOUSE The staff of the Riverfront Steakhouse prides themselves in serving prime steaks prepared using a special process which results in a distinctive flavor. Customers agree our steak is the best they have ever tasted. The atmosphere at the Riverfront Steakhouse is elegant and relaxed and the service is second to none. The Riverfront Steakhouse is an excellent choice for parties, entertaining business associates or a romantic dinner for two. 2 Riverfront Place, North Little Rock. (501) 375-7825.

CONWAY

WUNDERHAUS Food truck turned brick-and-mor tar, WunderHaus serves Eastern European style dishes, specializing in traditional Germanic Cuisine with an Arkan-centric heart. “Our intent is to contribute to the local economy by utilizing meat and produce from local farms. Our hope is to cooperate with local communities and the families that make them up - the bakers, farmers and canners that make the Arkansas Food Scene unique and beautiful.”

900 Locust St., Conway. (501) 358-6806. ■

Loca Luna

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Arts Entertainment AND

MAKING THE ABSTRACT COME ALIVE

IN THE STUDIO: Lopez at work on a new piece, “Pink and Yellow Dust.

Furry.”

UA instructor and ceramicist Linda Lopez didn’t visit an art museum until college.

Now she’s in demand across the country.

BY KATY HENRIKSEN PHOTOGRAPHY BY NOVO STUDIO

A

self-described late bloomer, ceramicist Linda Lopez creates inanimate objects that teem with personality and whimsy, most notably in her many “Dust Furries,” which are blobby faceless and limbless sculptures meticulously formed through hundreds of dripping scales.

Her signature style for playfully animating inanimate objects can be traced back to her 1980s childhood on a farm in the Central Valley of California. She lived in a home where English was a second language, her parents both being immigrants. Her mom, a Vietnamese refugee, would explain in broken English, “Don’t eat on the couch, the breadcrumbs will

make it sick,” she recalled.

“That fueled the idea of inanimate objects being animate to me,” Lopez explained. She often entertained herself by feeding everyday objects, like a loose edge of the living room carpet, which she’d ply with little strips of paper.

“Anything I could try and care for, I would,” she said. “Oftentimes it was just me left to the devices of nature and me figuring out what I could do with these things.”

Now based in Fayetteville, where she is an instructor in art and ceramics at the University of Arkansas’s J. William Fulbright College of Arts & Sciences, Lopez’s career as a ceramicist is flourishing. She participates in

This feature comes from our sister publication Arkansas Made, on newsstands soon and at arkansas-made.com.

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DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

group shows nationwide and has gallery representation in Miami, where she will make an appearance at the Pulse contemporary art fair of the prestigious Art Basel trade show.

The art website artsy.com named her one of seven contemporary ceramicists to collect. She was also one of only 20 artists in Northwest Arkansas recently selected through Artists360, an initiative of the MidAmerica Art Alliance and funded by the Walton Family Foundation. She received the $7,500 grant to collaborate with four women Michelin star chefs to design ceramic dishes for meals that rethink the dining experience. The 12 pieces she designs will also stand on their own as sculptures.

Despite all these accomplishments, Lopez hadn’t even stepped foot into an art museum when she enrolled in community college.

After receiving an associate degree, she hungered for more learning. An aptitude test resulted in the

counselor telling her she’d be good at farming.

Though she grew up in an agricultural community — she helped raise a dozen goats and two cows — farming wasn’t an inspiring career path.

Because Lopez enjoyed a recent art history survey, the counselor recommended she enroll as an art major, telling her she could always change her mind later.

“It was the most horrifying semester of my life,” she said. She was enrolled in beginning sculpture, beginning ceramics, beginning printmaking and an art history class. She wasn’t ready for the rigor, the critiques or to be in the studio all the time. Despite working diligently, she received a paltry B in ceramics.

“That’s what got me into ceramics,” she said. “That was basically a failing grade to me. The challenge of feeling like I did everything I was supposed to, that mystery of, ‘What is lacking that I’m not understanding?’ For me

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it was that moment, and after that I fell in love with the material.”

After two years in community college, followed by five at a state university, she continued study in ceramics with an M.F.A. from the University of Colorado at Boulder. Then came a stint as a resident ceramicist in Philadelphia for two years before moving to Fayetteville in 2012 with her nowhusband, Matthew McConnell, who was offered a visiting assistant professorship in a state neither of them had ever visited before.

“I moved here on a deal. I was like, ‘I’ll move to Arkansas if you marry me because I’m not going to move out there and be stuck,’ ” she said. She also requested a goat so she could live a country life that felt like home in the central valley of California.

McConnell is the interim dean in the School of Art. He and Lopez are parents to a 2-year-old daughter.

“Juggling teaching, a studio practice and a kid has been crazy, but also not as crazy as living in the city,” Lopez said, adding she’s seen an explosion in the arts with the opening of Crystal Bridges, “and ever since I’ve moved here it has been a push forward. I feel so lucky to have landed when I did.”

Lopez said the pace of life in Northwest Arkansas reminds her of home. “I think it’s a really great hub for emerging artists,” she said.

The easier pace of life and lower cost of living compared to big-city living means the luxury of full days in the studio to work on projects like a 5-foot tall Dust Furry or collaborations with Oaxacan weavers in Mexico for a foray into ceramics melded with weaving.

This luxury found in her new home allows Lopez to focus on her passion. Her eyes light up when she describes what she loves about her chosen medium.

“You can make anything out of clay.

You can make things that look fat, things that look hard, you can make things look like the real thing,” she said of her love for ceramics. “You can make it totally abstract, and I think the malleability of it, and the permanence of the object, is really interesting.”

Christmas Eve riots in small town Arkansas circa 1983 are the source material for “The Dolls,” a limited series in development for HBO. The series comes from Jaywalker Pictures, a film production company spearheaded by Emmy-winning actor Laura Dern and producer Jayme Lemons, a native of Waldron. Issa Rae, creator of HBO’s heralded “Insecure” and author of New York Times bestseller “The Misadventures of Awkward Black Girl,” will star alongside Dern. Rae will co-write the project with Laura Kittrell and Amy Aniobi, Rae’s co-writers on “Insecure,” just greenlighted for a fourth season.

The so-called “Cabbage Patch Riots” were sparked when holiday shoppers clamoring to buy Cabbage Patch Dolls clashed in retail stores across the country. The dolls were under tremendous demand and in short supply that winter. Against that backdrop, Variety reports, the series “explores class, race, privilege and what it takes to be a ‘good mother.’ ” Jaywalker Pictures is also in development with another Arkansas-connected project: “The Dog of the South,” a film adaptation of the Charles Portis novel, screenwritten by Graham Gordy and Jay Jennings.

“The Legend of Boggy Creek,” Texarkana resident Charles B. Pierce’s 1972 docudrama about the storied Fouke Monster, is set for a 4K restoration, the Texarkana Gazette reports. The film will premiere June 14, 2019, at Texarkana’s Perot Theatre, with the original oil-oncanvas poster art that, the Facebook event notes, “is the later inspiration for Star Wars’ Chewbacca.” Pierce’s daughter, Pamula Pierce Barcelou, who owns the film rights and collected supplementary archival negatives and prints from a Technicolor office in Burbank, Calif., collaborated with New York’s George Eastman Museum on the restoration.

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35

THE

TO-DO

LIST

BY STEPHANIE SMITTLE

THURSDAY 12/6

Jenny Lin, Aaron Diehl and Maki some are very Debussy and some even Namekawa, three of the world’s fin- Scarlatti-like. They’re all really differest working pianists, are sharing a bill ent, but of course, the language is Philip at Crystal Bridges in Bentonville this Glass.” (Side note: Check out Arkansas weekend, where they’ll shine light on Times contributor Katy Henriksen’s the legacy of revered minimalist pio- conversation with Lin at kuaf.com, neer Philip Glass. Glass wouldn’t de- recorded in preview of this concert.) scribe his music as minimal, and if any And, while Aaron Diehl — who visited of his lush “Piano Etudes” are on the Little Rock in 2015 as part of the Oxford program for this concert, it’ll become American’s jazz concert series — might clear why he eschewed the descriptor. not seem an obvious match for Glass’ Namekawa’s delicate, cinematic 2014 repertoire, a quick listen to Etudes No. REPETITIVE STRUCTURES: Pianists Maki Namekawa, Aaron Diehl and Jenny interpretation of the set leapt to the top 9 or No. 10 should reveal exactly why a Lin join forces for a tribute to Philip Glass at Crystal Bridges Museum. of the 2014 classical charts, and Lin, an- jazz virtuoso belongs on a program of other collaborator of Glass’, recorded Glass’ works for solo piano. Namekawa, the same etudes in 2017, about which Diehl and Lin perform in the museum’s she said: “Some of them are very much Great Hall as guests of the Van Cliburn like Chopin etudes, some are Lisztian Concert Series. See crystalbridges.org with a lot of octaves and big chords, or call 479-657-2335 for tickets.

THURSDAY 12/6

SATURDAY 12/8

THE YARN: VOICES FROM THE FIELD

HER SINS BURLESQUE & CABARET: HOLIDAY AT HOGWARTS

7 p.m. Cranford & Co. (512 Main St.) $15-$20.

Even if it weren’t, say, a year in which soybean futures propriately, is on the menu, prepared by The Root Cafe, and hog farm permits had routinely made the headlines, alongside a donations-based bar. “There are so many difwe’d still have plenty of reasons to stop what we’re doing ferent angles to agriculture in Arkansas,” The Yarn’s Sara and listen to the farmers that feed us. The Yarn does ex- Brown said, “from vegetables and livestock to row crops. actly that in “Voices from the Field,” a collaboration with All play an important role in our food systems. Food has Heifer International presenting, a press release states, an always been a gathering place for people. We look forward evening of “tales that define the innovation, tradition, his- to the community joining us and sharing delicious local tory and science involved in making Arkansas’s biggest food and the power of story.” Visit theyarnstorytelling. economic engine run in the 21st century.” Local food, ap- com/shows for details and tickets.

GO, MARTIN: In celebration of the 20th anniversary of Def Comedy Jam, Martin Lawrence lands at Verizon Arena Friday night for “Lit AF,” a comedy showcase featuring sets from DeRay Davis, Rickey Smiley, Michael Blackson, Jay Pharoah, Deon Cole, Bruce Bruce, Adele Givens, Clayton Thomas and Benji Brown, 7:30 p.m., $40-$120.

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ARKANSAS TIMES

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Midnight. Discovery Nightclub. $10-$25.

Surely you didn’t suffer under the delusion that a “Granger/ Lovegood 2020” tee or a Potterthemed cruise around England marked the point of highest retail saturation for the J.K. Rowling empire? There’s plenty of Harry Potter turf left to shake a phoenix feather at — namely, late-night cabaret. In this tour from variety show troupe Her Sins, the Wizarding World gets a saucy tribute by way of “a starstudded cast of burlesquers, interactive routines, comedy, drag performances, live singing, large props and sideshow acts,” ticketing sites portend. Potter Trivia, raffle prizes, photo opportunities, games and, of course, a costume contest are part of the festivities, too, giving you a rare post-Halloween chance to recycle that Hermione look. Diehard Potterheads: See latenightdisco. com for reserved seating options, $15-$25. And, if this midnight show at Disco is past your bedtime, catch the Holiday at Hogwart’s added stop at Maxine’s in Hot Springs, 7 p.m. Sunday, $15 ($35 VIP).

ANDREAS H. BITESNICH, JOHN ABBOTT AND LIZ LINDER

PHILIP GLASS: WORKS FOR PIANO

7 p.m. Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, Bentonville. $50.

John IN BRIEF, CONT. Neal THURSDAY 12/6

FRIDAY 12/7, SUNDAY 12/9

‘AMAHL AND THE NIGHT VISITORS’ 7:30 p.m. Fri., 3 p.m. Sun. Wildwood Park for the Arts. $10-$20.

From seasoned vocal ensemble Praeclara comes “Amahl and the Night Visitors,” the first opera ever commissioned for television, and composer Gian Carlo Menotti’s placeholder in the world of holiday Christmas programming. Based on Hieronymus Bosch’s 16th century triptych “The Adoration of the Magi,” Menotti accompanied the original cast recording booklet with a personal note about its origins: “This is an opera for children because it tries to recapture my own childhood. You see, when I was a child I lived in Italy, and in Italy we have no Santa Claus. I suppose that Santa Claus is much too busy with American children to be able to handle Italian children as well. Our gifts were brought to us by the Three Kings, instead.” Menotti went on to say that his move to America had erased much of his memories of the Three Kings until, under deadline and experiencing writer’s block, he happened upon Bosch’s painting in the Metropolitan Museum, where he says he “heard again, coming from the distant blue hills, the weird song of the Three Kings. I then realized they had come back to me and had brought me a gift.” Menotti’s opera is the centerpiece of Wildwood’s Winter Festival, 6:30-9:30 p.m. Friday; 2-5 p.m.

Sunday, which bookends the performance with the singing of Christmas carols, mulled wine, hot cocoa and refreshments in Wildwood’s South Lobby.

FRIDAY 12/7-SUNDAY 12/9

BALLET ARKANSAS ‘NUTCRACKER’ SPECTACULAR

7 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 2 p.m. Sat.-Sun. Robinson Performance Hall. $20-$99.

The collaboration that keeps many of the town’s professional musicians humming “The Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy” until New Year’s Eve turns 40 years old this year. Accompanied by the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra, Ballet Arkansas joins nearly 200 local children and adults for a perennial performance of Tchaikovsky’s ballet “The Nutcracker.” Choreography for the two-act ballet’s tableaux has been updated for the anniversary, and it’s the one glorious time of year the tinkling gossamer sounds of the celesta get center stage, sonically speaking. See balletarkansas.org for tickets.

Comedian Tracy Smith goes for laughs at The Loony Bin, 7:30 p.m.

Thu.-Fri., 10 p.m. Fri., 7 p.m. and 9 p.m. Sat., $8-$12. “Whiskey & Whitley” is your country antidote to an onslaught of holiday music with a concert from Josh Ward, 8 p.m., Stickyz Rock ’n’ Roll Chicken Shack, $12-$15. Mayday by Midnight returns to Cajun’s Wharf, 9 p.m., $5, or come early and hear the Memphis Yahoos, 5:30 p.m., free. Booker T. Washington Elementary School and Dunbar Middle School choirs sing cherubic tunes for the Bernice Garden Tree Lighting, 5-7 p.m., free.

The Museum of Discovery hosts “A Very Merry Science After Dark: Jingle Booze,” 6 p.m., $10. Red Octopus Theater continues its bawdy (and adult-only) holiday sketch comedy show, “Pagans on Bobsleds XXVII: Pre-Existing Tradition,” 8 p.m.

Thu.-Sat., Public Theatre (616 Center St.), $10. Little Rock Winds perform a program of holiday music with pianist Janine Reeves Tiner, tenor Matthew Newman, the McCafferty Academy of Irish Dancers and other guests, 7:30 p.m., UA Pulaski Technical College’s Center for the Humanities and Arts, $12-$15. An opening reception ushers in “Decadent Chemistry: Heroines and Abstracts,” an exhibition of small artworks by 38 artists, at Stage Eighteen (18 E. Center St.) in Fayetteville, 6 p.m. In Jonesboro, a cappella ensemble M-Pact performs holiday tunes at Arkansas State University’s Fowler Center, 7:30 p.m., $25-$35.

Lana Violette takes center stage for a burlesque and variety show with Lewd Awakening Revue, 9 p.m., Maxine’s, Hot Springs, $10.

FRIDAY DEC. 14 9PM Dazz & Brie is a rock ‘n soul woman-fronted duo & band that combines acid rock instrumentation with funky and soulful melodies. Heart Society, the Jackson-based husband-and-wife duo, are bringing their powerhouse soul and rock ’n roll to open the show.

Show beings at 9 pm. Purchase advance tickets for $8 or pay $10 at the door.

Tickets do not guarantee you a seat. Please call (501) 244-9660 to reserve a table.

1304 MAIN STREET LITTLE ROCK, AR 72202 501-244-9660

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FA R A ND AWAY THE

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FRIDAY 12/7 Crooner/guitarist John Neal brings his soul-infused rock to the stage at South on Main, 9 p.m., $8-$10. String band Arkansauce charms at Maxine’s, 9 p.m. Tribute/party purveyors “Kick: The INXS Experience” land at the Rev Room, 8:30 p.m., $15. Percussion provocateur Mike Dillon returns to Four Quarter Bar with a solo set, with Pope, 10 p.m., $8. Josh Hoyer & Soul Colossal take the stage at Kings Live Music in Conway, with Amber Wilcox, 8:30 p.m., $5. Gene Reid gives a concert at Hibernia Irish Tavern, 8 p.m. Songwriter Kris Allen’s “Somethin’ About Christmas Tour” makes a stop at CALS Ron Robinson Theater, 7 p.m., $29-$82. Weakness for Blondes jams at the White Water Tavern, 9 p.m. Artistic Director John Erwin conducts the Arkansas Chamber Singers in three free performances, featuring traditional carols and both sacred and secular texts, 7 p.m. Fri.-Sat., 3 p.m. Sun., Old State House Museum. Andy Tanas plays a

W I N N E R ! BR O A DWA Y. C O M ’ S A U D I E N C E C H O I C E AWA R D F O R BE S T M U S I C A L Welcomed By

DECEMBER 22-23 •ROBINSON PER FOR M ANCE HALL 501.244.8800 • 800.982. A RTS (2787) • TICK ETM A STER .COM GROUPS OF 10 + SAV E ! C A LL 501.492. 331 2

CONTINUED ON PAGE 39 Follow Rock Candy on Twitter: @RockCandies

arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

37

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TO-DO

BY STEPHANIE SMITTLE

MICHAEL WILSON

SATURDAY 12/8

LIST

SUNDAY 12/9

WILLIAM CLARK GREEN

RAMBLIN’ JACK ELLIOTT

9 p.m. Rev Room. $12-$15.

6 p.m. White Water Tavern. $30.

Some folks’ country music tastes lean toward dance hall anthems. Some skew toward the writerly, Bluebird Cafe types. You could say William Clark Green straddles the fence. The biting lyricism of “Poor,” a tune from Green’s August 2018 release “Hebert Island,” is perfectly suited to a quiet acoustic stage, with its origin story (an isolated shipping container on Green’s family’s land in a swampier corner of Texas) providing perfect fodder for introspection and exposition. Conversely, his band’s raucous 2016 live recording at the ancient Gruene Hall translates as an assembly of late-night troublemakers in a giant sing-along session, no doubt lent grit and atmosphere by its hallowed setting: “The building is wood, shiplap floors and they creak and move — the whole building shakes,” Green told Rolling Stone that year. “There’s no AC. Beer and wine only. It’s the Texas music mecca, a 700- to 800-capacity room, standing room, and picnic tables.” It’s that latter vibe I imagine will hold sway at Rev Room this Saturday during Green’s rock-country hybrid set, though presumably the floors will hold their ground and you’ll still be able to order a gin and tonic if it pleases you.

When news that one of folk music’s forefathers — the man Bob Dylan called “King of the Folksingers” — was coming to town, the show sold out so quickly a subsequent night was added. Now 87 and living in California, Ramblin’ Jack Elliott’s got a National Medal of the Arts and more than one Grammy to his name, but maybe even more impressive are the lasting connections he’s formed with his mentors and pupils alike — Leadbelly, Big Bill Broonzy, Odetta (whose mother bestowed Elliott with his nickname), Guy Clark and longtime collaborator Woody Guthrie, at whose bedside Elliott met Dylan. To hear Elliott in the same venue frequented by the president who named him a National Medal of the Arts recipient — on the same stage that’s held up Billy Bragg and Adia Victoria and John Moreland alike — is to hear American folk music straight from the headwaters. See the “tickets” link at lastchancerecords.us for tickets.

STRAIGHT FROM THE SOURCE: The legendary Ramblin’ Jack Elliott plays two nights at the White Water Tavern this weekend.

SUNDAY 12/9

WINTER MARKET

Noon-8 p.m. Corner of Locust and Oak Streets, downtown Conway. Free.

Open-air Christmas markets are a staple in European station so your gift recipients never get hip to the surprises in towns like Strasbourg and Brussels during the winter months, store, which might come from any of the following vendors and Conway’s flagship Eastern European restaurant Wunder- on site: Zeteo Coffee, Fiercely Created Cross Stitching, Farm haus is leading the charge on its own Faulkner County ver- Girl Meats, a honeybee farm called Rural Route, YoYo Origision, to feature music from Lark in the Morning, Conway High nals skincare and makeup, Bell Urban Farms, Baxter’s Apiary, School’s Crunk Crew, the Conway Institute of Music and, at American Jane Vintage, Lemon + Puf’s organic cotton candy, 5 p.m., the trombone ensemble from the Conway Symphony Ohm Made Meditation Creations, MBR Woodworks, IndepenOrchestra. A “Wunderkind” kids corner is from noon to dusk dent Living Services, Streetside Creperie and more. Plus, if you for photos with Santa; story time with Mrs. Claus; life-sized haven’t yet tried the beloved Wunderhaus fare, the restaurant tic-tac-toe, checkers, and jenga; a craft booth for making home- will be in the mix with handmade pretzels, currywurst, bratmade journals; and an interactive drum circle led by The UCA wurst, Belgian yeast waffles, soups and holiday beverages. See Community Institute of Music. There’s a free gift-wrapping conwaywintermarket.org for details.

WEDNESDAY 12/12

PSALM 150

8 p.m. South on Main. $8-$10.

’Tis the season for sacred repertoire, and the voices of Psalm 150 are making good on that tradition at this week’s “Sessions” concert, curated this month by pianist/composer John Willis. The ensemble’s namesake scripture invokes a joyful noise — “Praise him with the clash of cymbals, praise him with resounding cymbals, Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!” — and video footage of Psalm 150 in worship services reveals no shortage of breath nor resounding cymbals. Vocalists Karliss Chapple, Valarie Foster, Rhianna Williams, Heather Newburn, Arvye Pettus and Brent Foster II join founder Christopher Watkins and the backing band — Dionte Watkins, Andre Robertson and Read Admire — for a holiday gospel concert at South on Main. Call 501-244-9660 to reserve a table.

LET ALL THAT HAVE LIFE AND BREATH: Psalm 150 gives a holiday gospel concert at South on Main as part of the “Sessions” series.

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DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

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IN BRIEF, CONT. set at Markham Street Grill and Pub, 8:30 p.m., free. The Brent Frazier Band performs at Oaklawn Racing & Gaming’s Silks Bar & Grill, 10:30 p.m.

Fri.-Sat., free. Memphis Yahoos kicks off the weekend at Cajun’s, 9 p.m., $5, and earlier, Raising Grey plays the happy hour set, 5:30 p.m., free.

SATURDAY 12/8

LITTLE CRAFT SHOW

Noon. Lost Forty Brewing.

Look, you are no doubt being bombarded with gift ideas from every corner of the internet, but if your shopping plan doesn’t involve a pint of Ice Day Arkansas Winter IPA brewed with caramel malts, are you even doing it right? This Saturday, dozens of Arkansas makers convene at Lost Forty’s taproom (and ground zero for Sorghum + Black Pepper Pecans) for the Little Craft Show, an indie market with pieces that range from adorable (a la Loblolly Creamery’s oversized marshmallow cubes) to creepy (a la Memphis-based Babycreep’s eyeless, gold-lipped incense burners) to so-adorable-it’s-creepy (a la Sulac Art Stuff’s “acid reflux” stickers and baby shark magnets.) The collective’s been facilitating the sale of handmade art since 2011, and it will gather in Little Rock for a few hours this Saturday afternoon, with goods from the aforementioned creatives, chocolate from Kyya Chocolate in Elm Springs and Markham & Fitz Chocolate from Bentonville; drag-inspired jewelry from Myriad of Mischief’s Myriam Saavedra; Fouke Monster tees from ArkieStyle; fuzzy knit hats from Quiet Life Knitwear; vivid print clutches from Eden’s Wake; a hand-drawn “Backyard Hens” calendar from Azul Home; clay art from Beach Pots; eco-friendly soy candles from Untamed Supply; and more. See thelittlecraftshow.com/little-rock-winter-makers for a full list of vendors on-site this weekend.

BAZAAR AT LOST FORTY: The Little Craft Show includes metalworks by Berkshire Creations (below) and surrealist art by Sulac (left).

SATURDAY 12/8 Tim Anthony & Afrodesia entertain for Arkansas Public Policy Panel’s Holiday Party at Mosaic Templars Cultural Center, with food and drinks by Lost Forty Brewing, The Root, The Pantry, Trio’s and Dunny’s Mobile Bartending, 6 p.m., $3o ($25o sponsor). Blues rocker Shannon Boshears performs at Cajun’s Wharf, 9 p.m., $5., or come before dinner and catch Brian Nahlen and Nick Devlin, 5:30 p.m., free.

At South on Main, The Rodney Block Collective, Bijoux and DJ Hy-C take the stage for “A Holiday Soiree & Social,” 9:30 p.m., $15$20. Southern drag artists Makenna Michaels, Stormey Weather and Lady Partz face off in the third round of Club Sway’s “Fresh Fish” drag competition, 9 p.m. Ronnie Heart takes his signature croon and slick dance moves to Maxine’s, with Landrest and Mah Kee Oh, 9 p.m.

Songwriter Barrett Baber plays a solo set at Kings in Conway, with Dave Almond, 8:30 p.m., $5. The Top of the Rock Chorus presents a free barbershop concert at UA Pulaski Technical College’s CHARTS, 4 p.m., donations.

SUNDAY 12/9 Comedians Jay Jackson and Karr host the roast battle “You Look Like: A Comedy Show” at Hibernia Irish Tavern, 7:30 p.m., $5 advance, $10 at the door. Handel lovers, rejoice greatly: The Cathedral Choir at Trinity Episcopal hosts a “Messiah Sing-Along,” bring your score or use one of the scores provided to the first 50 people in the door, 4 p.m., free. Ever-acerbic songwriter Todd Snider takes the stage at George’s Majestic Lounge in Fayetteville, 8:30 p.m., $25-$30.

TUESDAY 12/11 Pianist Julie Cheek and violinist Andrew Irvin duet for “Sing Noel,” part of the Festival of the Senses series at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in North Little Rock, 7 p.m., free.

Saxophonist Marquis Hunt and his outfit Mood take the stage at South on Main, 8 p.m., $10. Central Arkansas Library System screens “Trading Places” at the Ron Robinson Theater as part of its Not Quite Holiday Film Fest, 6:30 p.m., $5.

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39

Dining WHAT’S COOKIN’

MorningSide Bagels, which has an almost cult following that’s gone loxless since the eatery was shuttered earlier this year, is open again in its original store at 10848 Maumelle Blvd. Robyn Edwards, who was in marketing for 20 years at Baptist Health and wanted a change, bought the business from Roxane Tackett. (Tackett closed the restaurant after her estranged husband broke in and trashed the place.) Edwards is offering “all the old favorites”: 16 kinds of bagels, including the time-honored bagel with lox, onions and capers and a shmear, and the bagel dog. She is planning to add egg salad and chicken salad to the menu, and a sandwich she calls the “Nae Nae” (named after her son Nathaniel and not the dance), made up of Canadian bacon, turkey, ham, provolone cheese, a fried egg and an “ever so slight slice of Granny Smith apple.” She’s also given the interior a new look she described as having an “industrial farmhouse feel.” Edwards learned how to make bagels — which is not as easy as you might think, she said — from Tackett and said most of her old crew came back to work, making the opening smooth.

Monday’s opening did the second best business for a Monday ever, Edwards said. Hours are 6 a.m.-1 p.m. weekdays and 7 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturdays.

The latest new thing coming to the East Village is a coffee shop (as yet unnamed) in the former Rocktown Distillery building at 1216 E. Sixth St., where Rock Dental Brands is relocating. The coffee shop will face Shall Avenue, across from Cathead’s Diner, and will include a roasting area that will be visible behind big glass windows. A patio on the corner that will connect to the coffee shop when a vintage garage door is rolled up.

The eatery goes with the “new vibe we have here in the village,” said architect Hrand DuValian, who is with Cromwell Architects Engineers, which remodeled the Sterling paint factory for its offices.

DuValian said the shop should be open “April-ish,” so look for it in June.

The Arkansas Arts Center’s latest opening is its new restaurant, Watercolor in the Park. The Keet family of restaurateurs (Taziki’s Mediterranean Cafe, Petit & Keet) is now running the show.

Watercolor’s Facebook page exhibits images of its offerings, including its Hot Pimento Cheese Skillet, prosciutto deviled eggs and Wagyu corned beef sandwich. Also on the menu: hummus to share, vegan tomato basil soup and fancier fare, like charred salmon and gulf shrimp. Fittingly, the restaurant is decked out in paintings by members of the Mid-Southern Watercolorists.

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ARKANSAS TIMES

THE STAR OF THE SHOW: It’s a tough contest between the mac and cheese and the pork sandwich at Delta Q in Forrest City.

S’OK? Slaw right!

Forrest City’s Delta Q offers a new take on barbecue.

F

ORREST CITY — The stereotypical Southern U.S. barbecue joint, especially in the Delta, is in a rundown shack with a decades-old provenance. Perhaps some of us take quiet delight at the gasps on newcomers’ faces when they see some of the more dilapidated versions out there.

But bad news for those looking to shock visiting relatives from states with stricter building codes: Forrest City’s Delta Q is tidy outside, clean inside, and came of age during President Obama’s second term.

Fittingly, the Delta Q menu has such nods to modernity as an onion ring tower ($5.99), a grilled chicken wrap ($5.99), and BBQ tacos and BBQ egg rolls, each available either with chicken ($6.99) or pulled pork ($5.99). There are also soups, salads, chicken salad, wings, fried pickles ($4.99) and even a sausage and cheese

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plate ($7.99) on the Q’s wide-ranging menu. For us, the biggest surprise on the menu, however, was the Delta Q Flatbread. It’s flatbread layered with pork ($6.99) or chicken ($7.99) with chopped green onions and mozzarella, all topped with Delta Q’s house sauce. “Forget about pizza!” the menu admonished.

As we looked the menu over, the waitress showed us this place knows what to do with the rest of the hog. A small tin bucket with gratis fried pork skins was placed before us. Manna from the hogs, as it were. Nice touch, and the pork skins went great with our afternoon beer.

While the architectural rules of barbecue restaurants may vary, it is pretty standard that a barbecue place is first judged on its barbecue sandwich. In Arkansas, it will be pulled pork. Delta Q also does brisket and ribs and smokes chicken, but this res-

taurant’s tagline is “fine Southern swine.” And that’s where we found Delta Q — in addition to everything else it does— has a different take on pork ’cue. The regular pulled pork sandwich ($4.99; a jumbo version is $6.99) comes with sauce and slaw already applied, which is anathema to some BBQ meat pedants. We were a little freaked out at the prospect ourselves, so we asked for the slaw on the side.

We should have just let Delta Q do its thing. After a tentative forkful or two, we gave in and put it on the bun, and it really made the sandwich sing. This remarkable housemade chopped cabbage is a barely creamy, very peppery version of coleslaw with no sweetness whatsoever.

Instead of taking anything away, it added a wonderful counterbalancing crunch to the soft, smoky and tender shards of pork. Those cloyingly sweet,

BELLY UP

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Delta Q

1112 N. Washington St. Forrest City 870-633-1234

Quick bite gloppy wet slaws out there must have their fans, since versions are found at nearly every fish fry and funeral in every county in the state. But if this Delta Q slaw started finding its way into more dishes and onto more plates, Arkansawyers would soon find themselves standing a little straighter, walking a little taller, and laughing a little louder. We have but anecdotal evidence thus far.

Likewise, the included barbecue sauce complemented subtly with tang and spice rather than the usual distracting sweetness. Sadly, the bun didn’t come toasted as promised, which might have edged this distinct barbecue sandwich into perfection.

But the slaw made up for this small misstep.

Delta Q’s insanely creamy mac and cheese provided a serious threat to the pulled pork in becoming the star of the plate. Most of the “regular” sides — hush puppies, potato salad, okra, baked beans, green beans and that unique take on slaw (all $1.99) — are made in-house, the waitress confirmed, but the fries and rings ($2.99) are frozen.

Our dining buddy’s catfish looked pretty good, too: small fillets fried to a gold tone. (It wasn’t his first visit,

Note to the tall: The booths here are kind of tight; there was a lot of kneebumping in ours.

Hours

11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sunday through Thursday; 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

Other info

Beer and wine served. Delta Q also has a drive-up window for pickup orders and takes its food truck out for special events.

serving better than bar food all night long December

so his was an optional BBQ rumspringa.) The small order of catfish was four pieces, more than sufficient even for his long and lanky self. Our buddy found Delta Q’s crispy catfish tasty and — like his french fries — not over-salted. (The “Mississippi Delta”origin catfish fillets were advertised on the menu as “market price,” which was a new one on us for that dish.)

Our bill was presented in a cute tin bucket, similar to the pork rinds. Forrest City’s upstart Delta Q is presenting a style in barbecue and beyond all its own; we like that. Long may it run, until it has a lengthy history and a rustic patina all its own.

A ’CUE NEWCOMER WORTH SEEKING OUT: Delta Q earns its tagline: “fine Southern swine.”

7 - Mike Dillon w/ POPE 8 - Angie Clements 8th AnnualToys for Tots Xmas Party w/ CosmOcean 14 - The Busty Petites 15 - Deep Sequence 22 - Lagunitas and Rebel Kettle sponsored Winter In-Formal w/ Good Foot 23 - Chris DeClerk (8pm - free) 31 - NYE Party w/ OpalAgafia and the Sweet Nothings ($15 Pre-sale @

Centralarkansastickets.com) Check-out the bands at Fourquarterbar.com

Open until 2am every night!

415 Main St North Little Rock • (501) 313-4704 • fourquarterbar.com

Get tickets at centralarkansastickets.com

arktimes.com DECEMBER 6, 2018

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These local shops have you covered for the holiday season!

Lunii: My Fabulous Storyteller tells audio stories to kids from 3 to 8 years old! With 48 stories already in the box and hundreds more available to download from the Luniistore, this is a great gift for your kids that will help develop their imagination and their vocabulary while they’re having fun!

Get yours at Rhea Drug. Rhea Drug Store, 2801 Kavanaugh Blvd., 663.4131.

Start your kids reading early with these books from WordsWorth Books & Company!

Giraffe Problems by Jory John… how to deal with a neck that just won’t stop!

Princesses Save the World by Savannah Guthrie and Allison Oppenheim.

With Tails by Matthew Van Fleet, children get to touch and feel the animal’s tails in this book of tales.

Babies learn about gravity in the Baby Loves Gravity book by Ruth Spiro.

Elbow Grease by John Cena: your toddler will get down and dirty in this wonderful book about a monster truck!

Available at WordsWorth Books & Co., 5920 R St., 663.9198, wordsworthbookstore.com.

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—Bill Clinton, 42nd President of the United States. Available at WordsWorth Books & Co., 5920 R St., 663.9198, wordsworthbookstore.com.

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The weather outside is frightful but this coat is so delightful!

Stay warm in a Patagonia Micro Puff Jacket, $249 at Ozark Outdoor Supply. Ozark Outdoor Supply, 5514 Kavanaugh Blvd., 664.4832.

Not your typical beers: check these out for the beer connoisseur in your life!

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DECEMBER 6, 2018

ARKANSAS TIMES

ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT

Jameson Irish Whiskey (1.75 Liter), regularly $44.99, is on sale for $37.99 and Patron Silver Tequila (750 ml), regularly $41.99, is only $34.99 at Warehouse Liquor. Warehouse Liquor, 1007 Main St., 374.0410.

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Go to cals.org before December 22 and take our community survey. It only takes a few minutes and will help us better understand the needs of our patrons.

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ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT arktimes.com arktimes.com DECEMBER DECEMBER 6, 6, 2018 2018 45

TV REVIEW

PASTRY AND PANACHE: The bake-off series manages to be soothing without being boring, readymade for bingewatching on Netflix this holiday season.

The sponge also rises ‘The Great British Baking Show’ is both competition and confection.

BY SAM EIFLING

“T

he Great British Baking Show” is that rare entertainment that sounds like a novelty, but in fact lives up to every word of its name. You could call it reality TV, perhaps, but it is more precisely a cooking gameshow that pulls together a dozen amateur bakers from around Britain to compete in a series of challenges that take place under a huge tent on the idyllic grounds of an English manor.

Each show, the weakest baker is cut; in the season finale, the finest of three remaining bakers wins a very pretty glass plate. The stakes along the way, then, are all about who can create the most delicious art.

The most recent season of the show, now complete and available on Netflix for binging, might be one of the most soothing things to grace a screen in the age of … well, all the other shit happening in the world right now. There are no politics in “The Great British

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Baking Show,” no newsworthy events, no acknowledgement that the rest of the world is doing anything but waiting in the parlor waiting for tea and biscuits. If you want to reduce your concerns of the day down to whether the orange zest in someone’s sponge cake overpowered the ginger flavors, well, have I got a competitive baking show for you.

The BBC has been airing the show in some form since 2010; across the Atlantic it’s “The Great British Bake Off,” but because even inside of five little words something gets lost in translation between the Queen’s and your English, it had to become even more literal for Americans. Without having seen the inevitable spinoff on ABC, “The Great American Baking Show,” I urge you not to watch until you’ve dipped yourself into the British version. It’s got a strange mix of pluck and aloofness that cuts across the various ages, genders and races

on the show. You’ll hear judge Paul Hollywood describe the interior of a donut as “stodgy.” You’ll hear one of the standout bakers, an India-born university student, describe himself in a single word as “depressing.” The joy all seems muted; the disappointments get stiff-upper-lipped; and even when bakers are inevitably dismissed, they cry tears of joy for having gotten the chance to make friends and to botch, say, a nonyeasted garlic naan on international TV. A few episodes into the ninth season (Season 6 on Netflix), you’ll wonder how the producers managed to scrounge up the last people in the world for a reality-style show who remain oblivious to any of the tropes of the format. There’s no drama here, no preening; perhaps, again, the stakes are low enough not to attract your usual gallery of dirtbags. Instead you get bakers like Kim-Joy Hewlett, who wears sparkles on her face behind square-framed glasses and designs little cats on her cakes. Or Terry Hartill, a retired flight attendant who has a bit of a twirl to his moustache and fails spectacularly to design a scalemodel of the Eiffel Tower in chocolate.

The hosts, comedians Sandi Toksvig and Noel Fielding, wander around gently ribbing the contestants and keeping time. Meanwhile the judges — the aforementioned Mr. Hollywood, a baker’s son turned celebrity chef,

and Prue Leith, a stately Renaissance woman in media and food — visit each baker’s station to take a temperature, so to speak, on how things are looking.

They are kind and encouraging. The banter is light and witty. Then, it’s back to kneading and mixing.

How a show can be at once so calming and wholly not boring comes down to a deceptively tight bit of packaging.

The colors are saturated just to the brink of surreality, almost like foodporn Instagram. (The surest measure here is that Hollywood’s blue eyes practically glow like those of a “Game of Thrones” white walker.) The personal narratives are so concise and clipped, there is not a spare second to grow tired of any one baker. And the whole thing is edited to within an inch of its very life, a density and precision of cuts that will recall a mid-2000s hip-hop video. You zip around this magical kitchen, hovering over boiling blueberries and the flub-thub of huge mixers and the Easter egg splashes of food dye and worried looks inside ovens to pray a pan of sweet rolls into yeasty ascension.

So often, the winner is the one who manages his time the best. You could do worse with your next hour than to watch the judges cut open a series of pistachio cakes and critique the firmness and uniformity of the layers. To watch is mesmerizing, and a caloriefree comfort food of its own.

UPCOMING EVENTS DEC

6

DEC

6-9, 13-16 DEC

Cranford Co. The Yarn Storytelling Voices from the Field The Studio Theatre A Christmas Story - The Musical

7-9, 13-15

The Weekend Theater Steel Magnolias

DEC

South on Main John Neal

7

DEC

South on Main Rodney Block Christmas Show

DEC

South on Main Psalm 150 Christmas Gospel Concert

DEC

13

South on Main Trey Johnson

DEC

The Joint Mo Alexander’s Holly Jolly Comedy Show

8

12

13

DEC

14

South on Main Dazz & Brie with Heart Society

DEC

19

South on Main Bijoux

DEC

South on Main The Wildflower Revue presents a Hard Candy Christmas

DEC

Old Chicago - Conway Winter Brewers Dinner

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Go to CentralArkansasTickets.com to purchase these tickets and more!

MECHANIC CDL – A OR B Apply online: www.cityofsherwood.net EOE

ARKANSAS TIMES MARKETPLACE 4

TO ADVERTISE IN THIS SECTION, CALL LUIS AT 501.492.3974 OR EMAIL LUIS@ARKTIMES.COM

ATLAS BAR is hiring for opening in January!

Kitchen and front of house.

Some bilingual knowledge preferable.

Call Tony at 501-773-5919 or email at: Tony@atlassoma.com

Pulaski Heights Christian Church

JOIN US!

Special Jazz Service on Sun, Dec 16 at 3:00 p.m.

4724 Hillcrest Avenue, LR, AR 72205 www.phcc-lr.org • Phone: 501-663-8149 Find us on facebook

All are welcome.

“This church defends no doctrine but Christ, preaches no gospel but love, and has no purpose but to serve.” *There will be no morning service on 12/16.

TO: LLOYD GONZALEZ LITTLE ROCK ARKANSAS

By Order of the Court for Service by Publication dated 29th day of October, 2018 RAYMOND ADAM VAN DALEY, filed a lawsuit against you for termination of parental rights and Petition for Step-Parent Adoption of CRISTINA LIANI NELSON, a minor child. You are required to file with the Clerk of Superior Court at P.O. Box 1661 Darien Ga 31305 and to Serve upon Petitioners Attorney Andrew H. Lakin, 3596 Darien Hwy Ste#2 Brunswick Georgia 31525 an Answer in writing within thirty days of the last day of publication of this Notice and meet the requirements of O. C. G. A. § 19-8-12.

B

MORE THAN PRINT.

Arkansas Times local ticketing site! If you’re a non-profit, freestanding venue or business selling tickets thru eventbrite or another national seller – call us 501.492.3994 – we’re local, independent and offer a marketing package!

LOCAL TICKETS, ONE PLACE

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2019 MUSICIAN SHOWCASE Submission Deadline:

January 1st, 2019 PREVIOUS WINNERS INCLUDE: DAZZ & BRIE JAMIE LOU & THE HULLABALLOO HO-HUM THE UH HUHS TYRANNOSAURUS CHICKEN AND SO MANY MORE!!!

To Enter: Send streaming Facebook, ReverbNation, Bandcamp or Soundcloud links to showcase@arktimes.com and include the following: 1. Band Name 2. Hometown 3. Date Band was Formed 4. Age Range of Members (All ages welcome) 5. Contact Person 6. Phone 7. Email All musical styles are welcome.

Acts must be able to perform minium of 30 minutes of original material with live instrumentation.

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