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Crisis Behind Closed Doors: How the Pandemic Has Impacted Children’s Mental Health and What it Could Mean for our Future Story by Chris Bowling
Photo by Mike Machian
JOBS: the Future of Work DISH: Dining Past, Present, and Future BUZZ: Adapting nightlife FILM: The Show Will (Not) Go On (Maybe) REVIEW: ‘Lucky Grandma’ ART: Rules of Engagement In Memoriam: Kyle Tonniges and Bill Heaston MUSIC: Solitude Isn’t Bliss Crosswords & comics: 2 Puzzles 3 Comics HEARTLAND HEALING: The Hundred BB Theory Updated OVER THE EDGE: Fashion in Disguise
402.496.0220 402.496.0220 402.496.0220 www.huberchevy.com www.huberchevy.com “Your “Your Way! Way!Under Underthe theExpressway!” Expressway!” 11102 West Dodge Rd. • Omaha, NE 68154 “Your Way!Dodge UnderRd. the Expressway!” 11102 West • Omaha, NE 68154 11102 West Dodge Rd. • Omaha, NE 68154
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STATMENT: From the Publisher
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publisher/editor........... John Heaston john@thereader.com graphic designers........... Ken Guthrie Sebastian Molina news..........................Robyn Murray copy@thereader.com lead reporter............... Chris Bowling chris@thereader.com associate publisher.... Karlha Velasquez karlha@el-perico.com creative coordinator...... Lynn Sanchez lynn@pioneermedia.me
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
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DISH: Dining Past, Present, and Future
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FILM: The Show Will (Not) Go On (Maybe) | Grandma Got Ran Over By a Gang War
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ART: Rules of Engagement
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MUSIC: Solitude Isn’t Bliss
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THE BUZZ: Best St. Patty’s Spots in Omaha
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CROSSWORDS & COMICS: 2 Puzzles, 3 Comics. Enjoy!
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IN MEMORIAM: Remembering Kyle Tonniges and Bill Heaston
La Incertidumbre De La Decisión Sobre DACA // DACA Uncertainty
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HEARTLAND HEALING: The Hundred BB Theory Updated
Salud Mental Juvenil // Youth Mental Health
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healing...............Michael Braunstein info@heartlandhealing.com arts/visual.................... Mike Krainak mixedmedia@thereader.com eat.................................. Sara Locke crumbs@thereader.com film.................................Ryan Syrek cuttingroom@thereader.com hoodoo................. B.J. Huchtemann bjhuchtemann@gmail.com music..................... Houston Wiltsey backbeat@thereader.com over the edge..............Tim McMahan tim.mcmahan@gmail.com theater.................... Beaufield Berry coldcream@thereader.com
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OVER THE EDGE: Fashion in Disguise
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Fotos Sociales // Social Photos
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El Giro 180, De La Ropa A Las Máscaras // From clothing to masks
OUR DIGITAL MARKETING SERVICES
Proud to be Carbon Neutral
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No More Coasting Omaha!
7 Ideas to Save Our Future Staying in Our Lanes But Swinging for the Fences by John Heaston
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small pandemic pushed this column off our March issue, but as we’ve navigated this together over months, the urgency in this message has only grown. I know we don’t coast here. We have that Midwestern work ethic and the mid-sized metropolitan “chip on our shoulder” to prove something, but if these last few months have taught us anything, it’s not to waste any more time and move quickly and deliberately into our future. One we choose and set. After almost 30 years of covering this community, there’s been the makings of a real sea change in how city leadership looks to our future. Between Blueprint Nebraska, the Chamber and Aksarben’s new focus on diversity and culture, granted all in the name of workforce development, it seems like we’re finally waking
up. Only took a few decades for the brain drain to really sink in. That still leaves one glaring gap that will make all the difference — engaged, grassroots activism from every corner of our community. This column is for all those folks trying to build that base and who have looked to us to cover their issues when few would. Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
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Carbon Negativity: This one idea supersedes all others — a commitment and plan to be the world’s first carbon negative metropolis. Carbon footprints are future kryptonite for tomorrow’s leading thinkers and most folks under 40-years-old interested in moving here. Just look at the cities we’d aim to beat with their carbon neutral goals at the Carbon Neutral Cities Alliance — from Minneapolis to Boulder, CO, Copenhagen to Portland, OR. We
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can’t let the gophers and buffalo beat us and, approaching 100% renewable energy, Iowa has already shown the way. Do this for our Big 10 standing, alone! We have a few not-so-secret ingredients, starting with a lot of land, a lot of sun, and the 6th windiest state in the country. We have the Johnny Appleseed of nonprofits, the Arbor Day Foundation, to help sequester carbon out of the atmosphere with carbon credits for reforestation programs. That’s how we’re a carbon neutral operation (though, that’s not enough anymore). And if we really want to go big, maybe Bill Gates can work with TerraPower and OPPD to bring a low-grade advanced nuclear reactor to recycle the fuel at Fort Calhoun and Nebraska City. Since Warren gave the largest portion of his wealth to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, maybe some of that could come back
here? Controversial, but an abundance of cheap energy will drive the advanced manufacturing of the future in a logistics hub, not to mention the tie-ins with nuclear medicine at the Med Center. They’re already showing how radiation (low-level) can destroy COVID-19.
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Electoral Innovation. Again, we have deep roots here. The only state with a Unicameral for a state legislature and the only state with all public power. Nebraska is one of two states that splits its electoral vote by congressional district (we say “the good life,” they say “the way life should be,” our’s is better) and the birthplace of an institution in voting tabulation — Election Systems & Software. A lot can be done here, from automatic voter registrations (drivers licenses, state school IDs or even library cards) to ranked choice voting or combining our local and federal elections (Omaha
You can see their work everyday when we took the weekly Reed Moore email newsletter daily. Reed wants you to read more. Sign-up at TheReader.com.
You’ll notice some new features in this issue. With cultural coverage f a newspaper can be monthly, that’s us. We’ve always been the alter- reduced for now, we’re returning to some of our newspaper roots by native here. Thank you to our readers and clients for letting us thrive bringing back crosswords and funnies and adding announcements and in these challenging times. in memoriams. We hope you enjoy settling in on the couch to puzzle On that same note, there’s some changes we’ve been implementing away and hope Doonesbury, Jen Sorenson and Ted Rall bring a wry we hope are meeting with your approval. First, we’ve exploded our on- smile to your lips.
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going news coverage and curation with the help of lead reporter Chris Bowling and associate publisher Karlha Velasquez. When stay-at-home orders started, they ramped up their reporting to tackle COVID. We’re extremely proud of what they’ve started and we’re very excited to see their progress as they warm up.
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Finally, we’ve added a new membership program and we’re very excited at the folks stepping up to support their locally-owned newspaper. We invite you to become a member, gift a membership or to add to your holiday wish list. As local media navigate a new environment, your support is critical.
P ub li sh er / Edito r runs on odd years and it’s not cheap to run an election). Make election day a state holiday, build grassroots engagement by giving everyone a voice, not just those with leisure time to exercise it.
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Open Public Data. The home of WinZip and wide range of massive data processors — FDR, DTN, CSG — not to mention some of the senior leadership team that built Microsoft and one of the four most important data aggregators in the country with Infogroup, we should be capable of investing in making public data open and readily available. Invite developers and build curriculum in schools to work with this data to improve all aspects of our city, county and state management. You can’t be a Smart City if you don’t have access to the data.
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High Speed Affordable Internet: We’re one of the hubs for major data centers in the world because we sit at the intersection of some of the largest internet pipes. Think railroad
tracks and how easy it is to use those easements to put down fiber optic cable. It’s the reason Offutt became Strategic Command. Telecommunications is a regulated industry here, which means we can work very closely with all the internet providers to open the market and to drive down costs. 5G (it’s okay) and more advanced networking protocols might already be going a long way to achieveing this goal, but let’s lead, not follow.
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21st Century Education. Educational processes haven’t changed that much since the Industrial Revolution. We can pay our teachers really well, give them additional, welltrained staffing support and seriously control the size of our classrooms. We can also track kids by types of intelligence, giving suburban kids an equal chance at a high-demand, blue-collar and very well-paying jobs. Yearround school, throwing out agetracked, bell-curved grades for
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real skill-based meaurements and building the curriculum of tomorrow would substantially increase family in-migration. I know it’s not “how we learned,” but look around, how well has that really served us? Are we really that better off than our grandparents (except for those mini-computers in our pockets)? Is this the information age or the industrial one?
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Mastering Development: We have a city master plan, but the variances and exceptions likely outweigh the actual implementation. We can’t have integrated transit — another must for in-migration and efficient delivery of city services — without affordable housing and some serious infill master planning. Be the new urbanism.
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Build up Our Cultural Gems with Real Love: Sorry, not the same venues every other city has, but I’m talking about homegrown institutions that really make us unique, from our restaurant scene (why aren’t
we working with them to fight hunger in this pandemic?) to the Malcolm X Birthsite, Omaha Star, and Loves Jazz Museum and El Museo Latino, to name a few. Bringing in the same talent that plays everywhere is great, but building homegrown cultural, political and social leadership is how we define our civic identity. Look at the Joslyn and Kent Bellows program, the Bemis and Kaneko and Sokol and The Slowdown. Our asethetic is genuine, from Kathy Huges and Symone Sanders to Saddle Creek and Alexander Payne. Preserve our authentic stories to celebrate who we are and never forgetting how we got here, from our Progressive roots fighting the monopolies in the late 1800s to today’s tech innovators, we are authentic mavericks. You don’t become the world’s greatest investor by following the herd. It’s 2020. Let’s start looking clearly at the work ahead.
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How the Pandemic Will Shape the Future of Work by Chris Bowling
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atricia Meglich, like everyone else, has heard all kinds of theories for how the economy will rise from the rollercoaster-like drop it’s endured the last few months. The associate professor of management at the University of Nebraska at Omaha said she’s read it will look like a “V.” Then someone said it might be more of a “W.” Recently, the Wall Street Journal said it could look more like a hockey stick or Nike Swoosh. “We’re going through the whole alphabet and now different logos to get us to what might fashion as an outlook for the economic recovery.” But, despite the unknown, Meglich, who studies topics such as human resources, talent development and staffing, is certain of one thing: The nature of work will probably change dramatically after the pandemic subsides. As of this writing, more than 120,000 Nebraskans have applied for unemployment benefits, with many applications coming from low-income, hourly workers, such as cosmetology, food service and retail employees. Meglich said those workers who were first to go will likely be the last to return as the state slowly reopens — the second round of directed health measures allows concert venues, bars and others to open on June 1. “You can’t bring all those entry level, front line workers back
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that fast, because you just can’t have that many people in workplaces,” she said. “So it will push that timeline of pain and unemployment a little longer than just flipping a switch and saying, ‘Businesses can restart, everything is reset to March 1.’ That’s delusional.” How long it will take to restore the state to full employment is anyone’s guess, she said. However, there’s a good chance many workers won’t be able to return to the same job. In the last 35 years, the United States has tended to recover economic output long before employment due in large part to automation, according to a National Bureau of Economic Research study. By replacing more routine jobs with machines, or opting for products that are less labor intensive, the U.S. economy’s series of economic downturns and recoveries has also created job polarization, concentrating people into very high or very low income brackets.
viral spread in places like meatpacking plants, she said the U.S. could see more companies invest in automation to create safer working environments and maintain output. “Some of the infrastructure, some of the design, the engineering, the thinking was already underway,” Meglich said. “So now we just have a different reason why that may be the case.”
“...being a nimble and being a lifelong learner may be a mentality we all have to adopt.”
Even before the pandemic, Meglich said automation was on the minds of many companies that depend on warehouse or manufacturing work to move and create products. Now, especially seeing the dangers of
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The best way to adapt, Meglich said, is to learn a new skill that’s marketable in our changing economy.
At Do Space on 72nd and Dodge streets, Omahans have long taken classes on coding, 3-D printing, digital literacy and other high-demand skills. During the pandemic, the community center started holding free online classes (dospace.org/calendar/)as well as posting webinars, blogs, live streams and other content on its website and Youtube. But Meglich said not everyone needs to be a coder. There’s still a demand for workers in childcare, health
care, trades and other areas. But maybe more important than investing in schools teaching these kinds of skills is investing in more apprenticeship or co-op programs that connect students with experience and jobs after they graduate. The U.S. increased the number of apprenticeships by 54% from 2013 to 2018, reaching more than 585,000 people across 23, 441 programs. The Nebraska Department of Labor is developing some of those programs as well as continuing to provide unemployment help through its website neworks.nebraska.gov, even as it cuts through a backlog of unemployment claims thousands deep. From March 1 to May 20, the department helped 700 Nebraskans find work, according to Grace Johnson, public information officer at the Nebraska Department of Labor. But even for middle class and white-collar workers, there are bound to be changes in how people work — whether that’s at an office or at home — as well as job titles and responsibilities. Meglich’s best advice to everyone is to be adaptable. “They say necessity is the mother of invention, so those who are able and willing will learn how to code, learn how to do the other jobs that will be needed in the future,” Meglich said. “This idea of being a nimble and being a lifelong learner may be a mentality we all have to adopt.”
APPLICATION DEVELOPER �L24� Multiple Positions - as team member develop business & customer facing software solutions. Responsible for delivering solutions across application life cycle in Lean environment using established best patterns & practices, including test driven development & unit testing. Design, develop, & ensure quality by following/adapting existing patterns & using service-based, multi-tier, object oriented architectures. Extend/adapt designs for changes to mission critical business systems. Analyze existing code bases, software systems, & integrated processes to correct, enhance, or replace. Solve problems by reviewing objectives & scope, gathering facts, analyzing data, performing independent research & making recommendations. Create new documents & diagrams modeled after existing ones. Collaborate to understand desired systems & identify & discover system needs. Review stories & augment/enhance/suggest new stories. Produce software solutions supporting testing at multiple levels, including decomposition of functions, interface based design, dependency injection, unit testing, test driven design, service level testing, & supporting user interface automation testing. Modify existing code thru application of design patterns. Create test cases to ensure boundary & adverse condition scenarios appropriately handled. Modify & create code to submit units of development to source code repository. Enable successful automated builds, deployment & testing & continuous integration & frequent, reliable releases. Monitor system performance. Provide on-going production support. Minimum Requirements: Bachelor’s degree or equiv in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, MIS or a closely related field with 3 yrs exp developing Windows multi-tier, Intranet/Internet & web-based and/or mobile platform technologies & prior experience creating multi-tier, web-based applications using Visual Studio & related Microsoft .NET Technologies; with web technologies & frameworks (HTML5, CSS, Angular, REST API, &/or JavaScript), SQL Server or sim relational database concepts, unit testing frameworks (NUnit), structured analysis & programming techniques, continuous integration/delivery, & website scripting & technologies using Responsive design patterns; creating & maintaining complex/integrated applications; configuring IIS to host web sites & services; & creating Web API and/or REST Services. Please send resumes to Caylee Messersmith, Farm Credit Services of America, FLCA, 5015 S. 118th Street, Omaha, NE 68137.
ProKarma
Software Engineer #296987 We have multiple openings for Software Engineer
APPLICATION DEVELOPER (L25) Multiple Positions - as team member develop business & customer facing software solutions. Responsible for delivering solutions across application life cycle in a Lean environment using established best patterns & practices, including test driven development & unit testing. Facilitate design, development, & quality by adapting existing patterns. Identify & champion new patterns, practices and technologies to augment/establish projects using service-based, multi-tier, object oriented architectures. Establish new designs for changes to mission critical business systems. Analyze existing code bases, software systems, & integrated processes to correct, enhance, or replace. Solve problems by reviewing the objectives & scope, gathering facts, analyzing data, performing independent research, preparing alternatives, & making recommendations. Create new documents & diagrams modeled after existing ones. Collaborate to understand desired changes & identify & discover system needs & potential. Serve as an advocate for sustainable, reliable systems. Produce software solutions that support testing at multiple levels, including decomposition of functions, interface based design, dependency injection, unit testing, test driven design, service level testing, & supporting user interface automation testing. Modify existing code thru application of design patterns. Create test cases to ensure boundary & adverse condition scenarios appropriately handled. Introduce/extend testing approaches to developing systems. Modify & create code to submit units of development to a source code repository. Enable successful automated builds, deployment & testing & continuous integration & frequent, reliable releases. Monitor system performance. Mentor & guide team members; assess analysis of team & build consensus. Provide on-going production support. Minimum Requirements: Bachelor’s degree or equiv in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, MIS or a closely related field with 5 yrs exp developing Windows multi-tier, Intranet/Internet & web-based and/or mobile platform technologies & prior experience creating multi-tier, web-based applications using Visual Studio and related Microsoft .NET Technologies; with web technologies and frameworks (HTML5, CSS, Angular, REST API, and/or JavaScript), SQL Server or similar relational database concepts, unit testing frameworks (NUnit), structured analysis & programming techniques, continuous integration/delivery, & website scripting & technologies using Responsive design patterns; creating & maintaining complex/integrated applications; configuring IIS to host web sites and services; & creating Web API and/or REST Services. Please send resumes to Caylee Messersmith, Farm Credit Services of America, FLCA, 5015 S. 118th Street, Omaha, NE 68137.
ProKarma, Inc.
Software Engineer #255372
Comp-related position.
ProKarma, Inc. has mult. openings for Software Engineer in Omaha, NE; travel and/or relocation to various unanticipated locations throughout the U.S. is required. Resp. for designing, programming, coding, and analyzing new computer programs and data structures in accordance with specifications and user needs. Perform or direct revision, repair, or expansion of existing programs to increase operating efficiency or adapt new reqs. Req. Masters’s in Comp Sci, Engg (any), IT, or rel. tech/ analytical field, + one (1) yr exp in an IT/ Comp-related position
To apply, email Resumes via email to postings@prokarma.com with Job Ref#296987 in subject line.
To apply, email Resumes via email to postings@prokarma.com with Job Ref# 255372 in subject line.
in Omaha, NE; travel and/or relocation to various unanticipated locations throughout the U.S. is required. Responsible for designing, programming, coding, and analyzing new computer algorithms and data structures in accordance with specifications and user needs. Write, update, and maintain computer programs or software packages to handle specific jobs such as tracking inventory, storing or retrieving data, or controlling other equipment. Req. a Bachelor’s degree in Comp Sci, Engg (any), or related tech/ analytical field, plus five (5) yrs of exp in an IT/
JUNE 2020
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ProKarma, Inc.
Software Developer #255085
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ProKarma, Inc.
Software Engineer #255181
ProKarma, Inc. has mult. openings for Software Developer in Omaha, NE; travel and/or relocation to various unanticipated locations throughout the U.S. is required. Resp. for modifying existing software to correct errors, allow it to adapt to new hardware, or to improve its performance. Design, program, code, and analyze new computer programs and data structures in accordance with specifications and user needs. Req. Bachelor’s in Comp Sci, Engg (any), IT, or rel. tech/analytical field, + five (5) yrs exp in an IT/Comp-related position.
ProKarma, Inc. has mult. openings for Software Engineer in Omaha, NE; travel and/or relocation to various unanticipated locations throughout the U.S. is required. Resp. for designing, programming, and analyzing new computer programs and data structures in accordance with specifications and user needs; design system and obtain information on project limitations and capabilities, performance requirements, and interfaces. Req. Masters’s in Comp Sci, Engg (any), IT, or rel. tech/analytical field, + two (2) yr exp in an IT/Comp-related position.
To apply, email Resumes via email to postings@prokarma.com with Job Ref# 255085 in subject line.
To apply, email Resumes via email to postings@prokarma.com with Job Ref# 255181 in subject line.
JUNE 2020
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Crisis Behind Closed Doors: How the Pandemic Has Impacted Children’s Mental Health and What it Could Mean for our Future by CHRIS BOWLING
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hate the coronavirus.
Truer words could not define the country and world’s feelings at this moment; however, they rarely appear so succinct and blunt. But that’s exactly what Bonnie Sarton Mierau hears during weekly counseling sessions with kids at the Attachment and Trauma Center of Nebraska in West Omaha. They say it. Cry it. Whine it. “I hate the coronavirus.” “Summer is going to suck.” “I miss my friends.” As the country grapples with economic implosion and halted social activity, calls to national services such as the helpline for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration have increased fivefold, according to a report by NPR, causing officials to worry how an already-lacking mental health care system will address pandemic-spurred needs, the severity of which they can’t yet predict. And while everyone’s feeling added pressure from the coronavirus, mental health officials say children, especially those in unstable homes or with existing mental health issues, might be most at risk. “I think we’re all unsure of what’s going to happen next,” Sarton Mierau said. “I’m concerned there’s going to be a greater need than can be met, which is why we need to figure out other ways to help each other.” Unable to see their friends, go to school or participate in normal summer activities, safe-
ty nets, routines and expectations for many children were swiftly uprooted, isolating kids at home where mental health crises can more easily go unseen. Nationally, minors made up more than half of calls to a national sexual assault hotline for the first time ever in April, according to the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). NBC News reported instances of flagged child pornography online more than doubled in March compared to the same time last year. Locally, the Omaha Police Department responded to 18% percent fewer child abuse and neglect reports in March after directed health measures were instituted compared to the same period in 2019, according to the department’s crime data. That gap has since closed to just 5%, but officials say they believe there’s more out there as families face increased financial and other types of stress. They’re also missing out on referrals that would typically come from schools. “If things don’t change and we stay in this high level of social distancing, my belief is that there will be more abuse and neglect,” said Gene Klein, executive director of Project Harmony, which serves abused and neglected kids in the metro area. “Kids won’t get what they need if family stress continues to be high. We will see more injuries and cases like this.” Some organizations, such as the Charles Drew Health Center in North Omaha, say they are advertising more, while representatives from Boys Town’s office in South Omaha say they have gone to food
banks to hand deliver their information to families in need. But there’s still only so much they can do. “It is a scary situation, because you want to make sure all kids are safe and that they’re able to go to day care or school or the YMCA if they don’t have an adult keeping an eye on them,” said Regina Costello, director of community support services at Boys Town and the head of its South Omaha office. “The best we can do is keep an eye on the kids we’re working with,” she said. “It’s really a hard situation.” The fears of what this might lead to — decreased performance in school and more behavioral health issues — apply doubly to areas where resources were already scarce and more families struggle with poverty. They’re the same areas where minorities are catching the virus at disproportionate rates, in some cases multitudes higher than their share of the population. But Larry Duncan, senior director of behavioral health services at Charles Drew, doesn’t see the pandemic changing his approach. Trauma from poverty and historic discrimination have plagued North Omaha for decades. A pandemic is just another layer, he said. The tools he will employ are simple and time-tested: Most
Photo by Mike Machian
importantly, show interest in the life of a child close to you and keep them connected to their community. “Our focus from the mental health field is to identify what those resiliency factors are and promote that consistently,” Duncan said. “Because that’s not going to change based on the current situation. A problem is a problem no matter what it is.”
What We Don’t See Without kids in schools, day cares, youth groups or any other community hubs, it’s hard to see the effects of the pandemic on kids. Organizations such as Project Harmony, which works with law enforcement to respond to some of the most desperate cases, hope summer months and reopenings will start to reveal what’s been going on behind closed doors, but up until now staff members have felt mostly in the dark.
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C o v e r “Everything has been on pause for many of us,” Klein said. “And we are worried about any slippage that we’ve had in the fight against neglect and getting kids access to mental health care.” It’s a reality, heightened by the fact Nebraskans of all ages have long struggled to access mental health care in the state. In 2016, per capita rates of psychiatrists in Nebraska were about nine per 100,000 people compared to about 15 for the same population nationally. By 2030, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services estimates demand for services will overwhelm the supply of most providers. The strain is felt most acutely in rural Nebraska where rates of psychiatrists are less than a fifth the national average in 2016 and where many counties have no providers at all. Rates are still below average in cities like Omaha and Lincoln, and additional problems include diverse representation. Coupled with a rise in anxiety disorders and depression in kids in recent years, the issues stemming from this pandemic will probably strain an already-lacking mental health care system, said Howard Liu, chair of psychiatry at the University of Nebraska Medical Center. “It wasn’t enough before, and I don’t think it’ll be enough after,” he said. Over the past decade, the solution to these issues has been collaboration between mental health organizations, schools, local government and a swath of other partners. Many of those efforts were led by the Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska (BHECN) founded in 2009. From 2010 to 2018, the state added more than 300 people to its mental health workforce. There’s also been an increase of mental health staff in schools as well as deeper training for teachers and community members on
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how to identify and respond to a child who’s experiencing mental health issues. The greatest challenge lately has been understanding how the pandemic is affecting kids. From what he’s seen and heard, Liu said he can break it down into three categories. The kids who were already in crisis may be sliding deeper into crisis. The kids who have stable home lives and involved parents are probably doing OK. Then there’s the kids who vary day by day, where sometimes the little things — not seeing their friends, not knowing whether they can attend college in the fall — seem trivial and other days seem catastrophic. Predicting how that will progress into the future is largely dependent on whether normal routines return, most notably school. Many districts may be able to reopen on their scheduled calendar days, said Nebraska Education Commissioner Matt Blomstedt earlier this month. But others bought more laptops and tablets for kids to use at home. The state also released Launch Nebraska, an online resource to assist at-home learning and provide schools with procedures and guidelines for reopening. The longer kids are away from school and normal routines, the more some worry about the effects of sustained stress and anxiety. After natural disasters, terrorist attacks and other traumatizing events, professionals deploy to help the community cope before the emotions fester into traumatic memories. The difference with the pandemic is that it’s everywhere, and it’s been happening for months. That troubles Sarton Mierau, because it may be too late for many to get in front of what could be traumatic effects.
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S t o r y “I don’t know how to implement that in this situation, because it’s not over,” she said. “9/11, after a couple weeks, we knew it was over. This is different, it’s ongoing, but there has to be a way that it’s similar.” Amy Mart, director of professional learning at the Buffett Early Childhood Institute, sees the pandemic differently. It’s affecting adults and kids in less severe ways than other traumatic events, such as chronic violence or natural disasters, she said. But its effects will be prolonged and require officials to approach mental health in a more nuanced and patient way. “This is a marathon, not a sprint,” Mart said. There may even be some positive effects. Though they’re juggling more responsibilities, some family relationships might be strengthening with more time inside. Sarton Mierau said many of her younger clients are actually improving with the increased attention they’re receiving now. The switch to telehealth has also been more seamless than expected for many providers. At Charles Drew, Duncan’s staff saw a slight dip as they transitioned to doing more telehealth. He said they went from about 950 visits in February to 650 in March. However, that increased to around 800 in April, and he expects it to continue to rise as people return for help or new calls come in to set up services. For Duncan, the challenges brought on by the pandemic are marginal in comparison to the overarching needs of North Omaha. The federally qualified health center, one of two in Omaha, along with OneWorld in South Omaha, that receive government funding to provide care to underserved communities, has a patient base of which nearly 77% were in pov-
erty and more than half were uninsured in 2018. Food insecurity and bleak unemployment might be making headlines now, but they’ve been typical for decades here. They’re reinforced by historic trauma, Duncan said, hopelessness backed by years of racism, redlining and violence that sequestered many African Americans to North Omaha without viable options to seek gainful employment, upward mobility or civic representation. In short, many in this community have always been on the ropes. There’s no reason to start changing tactics now. “We don’t need a pandemic to move into gear and now start doing things,” Duncan said. “That’s a different population. That’s not this population. This population already has significant needs.”
The Road Ahead In the last decade, mental health in Nebraska has seen big improvements, increasing awareness and, in some cases, availability of mental health services as well as connectivity between providers and community gathering places, such as schools. But there’s still an uphill battle to fight. “I don’t think anyone believes all the demand is being met,” Mart said. “I think, especially in this current context, that there’s certainly more need than there is ability to serve.” Charles Drew has set up clinics inside four schools where any student or their siblings can get treated for everything from a sore throat to mental health crisis. In November, the facility also inked a contract to continue providing Community Health Centers to detained kids at the Douglas County Youth Center after a pilot program that was a partnership between Charles Drew, Creigh-
C o v e r ton University, CHI Health and UNMC. “As much as they’ll have us, our goal is already to be available and provide service,” Duncan said. At Project Harmony, their Connections program has 80 partnerships across the community through schools and medical workers that sync kids with needed mental health care. Training’s also an important factor in preparing for what may come post-pandemic. Each year, Project Harmony does about 400 training workshops and seminars to help educators and community members spot child abuse, and these have now been moved online. Klein wasn’t sure how receptive people would be to taking the online courses, but so far numbers have been fairly consistent with 700 people utilizing the training in April. At the Buffett Childhood Institute, Mart said training they’re working on for teachers will have increased focuses on mental health and educating kids dealing with poverty. “Like we’re seeing with the rise in unemployment,” Mart said, “We’re going to see more economic challenges. There are going to be schools that are going to have to get more serious about this than they have been in the past.” In addition to reaching teachers, these types of training seminars reach community partners such as Costello and her staff at Boys Town’s South Omaha office. Costello said they’re making even more use of those learning opportunities now that their caseloads have lessened slightly to prepare for what might come in the next few months. That willingness to get ahead of the issue was voiced overwhelmingly by those who planned to attend the annual School Mental Health Summit, said Dan Schnoes, chief exec-
utive officer at the Educational Service Unit #3, one of many state agencies that oversee and support the long-term goals of several school districts in a particular region. The conference, started by BHECN in 2017, connects mental health professionals, educators and others from across the state to network and share ideas. Schnoes, who’s co-hosting the conference this year with the Kim Foundation, said organizers considered cancelling the event. But those who signed up said they needed this now more than ever. “We heard a resounding yes,” he said, “you really need to keep it.” So far, about 400 people have signed up for the virtual event, which will feature three keynote speakers and 35 breakout panels. That’s lower than what he expected before the pandemic, but all things considered it’s a good sign. But despite all the training and networking they can do, officials say the best way to curb mental health issues still lies with the adults around the people impacted. Sarton Mierau said the most important thing a parent can do is to take care of their own mental health so they don’t pass stress on to their child or risk creating an unhealthy living environment. That means reaching out when you need help, taking time to stop reading the news, breathing deeper, going outside and focusing on what you can control right now. “What kids need to be OK is to see that their attachment figures, their parents, their caregivers, are OK,” she said. “And when they’re OK, [kids] can deal with it.” If you’re an adult, maybe a neighbor, family member, coach or teacher, who’s forged a relationship with a kid you’re
S t o r y worried about, check in on them. “That’s all it really takes,” Klein said, “to have one trusted adult they can count on, and their resiliency around a traumatic event like this is pretty powerful.” And whether you’re a parent or role model, it’s important to know how to talk about the pandemic. Sarton Mierau tells her clients to be honest, but focus on what you know and limit how much information you give them. Younger kids especially are at a stage in brain development where it’s harder to compartmentalize information and discern fact from opinion or immediate dangers from hypothetical ones, she said. Most important is to know help is available for anyone who needs it. Many insurance providers have waived fees for telehealth services through the pandemic, and even those who aren’t insured can work with facilities such as Charles Drew or OneWorld, which offer sliding-scale payment options that round off costs to meet your income level. For those who need immediate help, there are national, state and local hotlines where you can talk through what’s going on and be connected with resources. Nebraska Child Abuse/ Neglect Hotline: (800) 652-1999 National Suicide Prevention Hotline: (800) 273-TALK / (800) 273-8255 Nebraska Family Helpline: (888) 866-8660 National Sexual Assault Hotline: 800-656-4673
Hope and Resiliency The long-term effects of this pandemic on children and their futures are unpredictable.
But the experts we talked to hope this crisis casts a stark spotlight on the importance of investing attention and dollars to treating mental health. They also hope some sense of routine and normalcy returns to kids’ lives this summer and fall. But getting there will take individual actions. Taking precautions by wearing a face mask, washing your hands and avoiding large crowds will be vital as the weather warms up and the state reopens many facets of public life. But taking care of our mental health should be just as critical. Reaching out to someone and asking, “How are you really doing?” Taking care of yourself. Watching out for the people, especially children, who might be struggling. Sarton Mierau hopes that can happen, but wonders how well we can build bridges when even the pandemic has been politicized. “This really is about focusing more on: How can we help each other learn how to take care of ourselves?” she said. “And I don’t know if that’s a possibility right now.” Others are optimistic this shared experience will help bring us together. Klein said it’s uplifting to see mental health professionals rally together. They’re taking training workshops, attending conferences, asking questions and getting involved. In some ways, it’s predictable of an industry that’s always relied on tenacity and resourcefulness to chip away at a problem they’ve never had enough people to solve. “We remain hopeful we’re going to make it through this,” Klein said, “and that our community is going to be resilient and that we’re going to look back on this period and never forget probably, but it’s not going to define us in any way.”
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Dining Past, Present, & Future These aren’t spirits of something dead – The Omaha dining scene is alive and well and waiting for you by AUTHOR
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maha’s ancient dining history consisted of a smattering of fast food spots and a small handful of mom and pop ethnic shops. Usually owned by first-or-second-generation immigrants, your only hope of experiencing this worldly cuisine was to happen to have been raised near enough to the right neighborhoods. Some of these family-owned spots are still serving today, as no fine cuisine can ever replace the nostalgia or tradition of Grandma’s table. It wasn’t until about a generation ago that Omaha saw its first chains treating us as a worthy enough destination to drop so much as an Applebee’s our way. Little could we have guessed that those children being raised on chicken fingers and fries were gearing up to change the local dining scene for the better, and for good. New ideas began to sprout, and chef-driven menus begat a new dining industry.
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Omaha chefs have done more studying, traveling, and risk-taking in the last decade than any time in our history. The result has been a seismic shift in how we view not just eating, but the entire culture behind how we experience food. And when a new and unprecedented virus closed the doors on all we’ve known, these chefs had no intention of taking it lying down.
Go to the Source Not only in Omaha, but worldwide, restaurants have always worked within razor-thin margins. But when COVID-19 hit the packing plants that provided most of the Midwest’s meat supply, the financial implications were devastating. Stella’s Bar and Grill owner Stephanie Francois has found herself asking “Where’s the beef?” after
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her supplier was unable to source meat for their clients. Down the road, Sinful Burger struggled with the decision to temporarily raise prices when their costs went up to more than $4 per pound. Others have found new ways to cope. While some are turning to local farmers for beef and processing, others are adjusting their menus to feature more poultry, fish, and meatless options.
The Other Ingredient While every Omaha establishment has done impressive work to think on their feet and adjusts to the changes, that isn’t an option for everyone. For many, it was more than imported goods and an extensive knowledge of technique that made their work great, it was you. Dave Utterback has done more than create a signa-
ture sushi style at Yoshitomo, he has developed an atmosphere and an experience for his clients. “I’d always approached our process from the perspective of someone who’s coming in for the first time. Who do you talk to, will your seat be the best we have, what are you doing and seeing while you sit? We didn’t worry about someone waiting because we knew the experience we had created meant they were still enjoying themselves. There was a sense that every night was an event, and you were invited.” When paying my bill at Yoshitomo, I knew I wasn’t paying for the imported fish, the artisan vinegars, or even the rental on the barstool where I sat. I was paying to watch the masters at work. I was paying for Utterback’s twelve years of experience in corporate establishments, and his travels to become an authority on the craft of sushi.
D I S H “We were really riding this peak, having a Golden Age of Dining in Omaha. We were seeing this shift in the habits of Omaha diners. And we knew we were in for a crash… 2019 was a really hard year. We lost so many restaurants and there were so many still on that bubble. We thought we had ridden out the hard part, but nobody saw something like this coming.” And while Utterback is doing all he can to continue offering to-go service, he’s missing the human element that made the work worth it for him. “Talking and interacting with guests is what I enjoyed most. It was hard to find the time to do that on a busy night, but it’s why I was there. Working behind the bar and watching people enjoy what you’ve created for them. That’s what I’m missing right now. But if people keep placing their orders, not just with me but with all local, chef-driven places, hopefully we are able to give you something to come back to very soon. And hopefully what we come back to is something like the places we worked so hard to bring you and had to leave behind.” You can place your Yoshitomo Curb-side pickup order by calling (402) 916-5872
The Kids Are Alright Chef Kane Adkisson knows that you don’t have
to own a building to lose your business. Having solidified his place in the Omaha culinary scene without a brick and mortar, Kano Popups were often sold out before they were officially announced. With his biggest month sprawling before him, March came in like a lion and went out like a light. “We had three dinners planned out of state, and three in town. It was going to be our best month since the launch of the concept. We also had a lease drawn up on a place for Kano. March 13, we were ready to sign.” But then COVID-19 hit and all of Kano’s future plans were put on pause. “We tried to just keep a good attitude about it, take the break and take a breath. Things had been so hectic and crazy, so it was kind of nice at first!” But the young entrepreneur was already not well known for his ability to take things slowly, and had just bought a new house. “I had responsibilities, and I do not like asking for help. We started brainstorming how we could still offer people fine dining options. Most of my ideas ended with just realizing we couldn’t make it work. I
had t h i s pasta extruder and started making and delivering meal kits. Housemade pasta, sauce, a salad, my mother’s rolls, and a dessert.” But the cost of running his meal kit delivery service didn’t sit well, and Adkisson wanted a more accessible option for those who were also feeling the financial strain of the shutdown. “My brother Collin and I have a passion for woodfired pizza. He has this little wood fired pizza oven we bought a few months ago and we thought... what if we get just a really excellent recipe together?” This was the birth of Mootz, a childhood nickname of Collin’s and a way for the brothers to work together offering recipes only
they could have thought of. Initially serving their neighbors and friends, the brothers soon had a new Curbside Pop-uppertunity at Nite Owl. “With everywhere I’ve been, I feel lucky to be in Omaha during all of this. People here have bigger hearts than anywhere else I’ve ever lived. People who are strapped are still finding a way to support small restaurants. That’s special. You don’t find that in a lot of places.” You can reserve your Mootz experience through Tock by heading to www. exploretock.com/kano. And while we wait, we support the creators who gave Omaha a voice in the National dining conversation.
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Rules of Engagement Like other small businesses, indie art galleries, centers struggle with how/when to go public by Mike Krainak
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mall business is no stranger to soft openings and landings as they cycle through the vagaries of even the best of economies. But leave it to an unforeseen and unprepared-for pandemic to be a game changer. Positive vaccine news and another potential Federal stimulus may point to a brighter fall and 2021, but first you have to survive summer in the city. To do that, every state in the union is slowly re-opening for small businesses. In Nebraska, Governor Pete Ricketts calls his re-entry plan “phased openings” allowing small businesses—which one can argue have been hurt the most in this economy—to slowly land on their feet and open doors to patrons under certain heath and social restrictions. While this applies mostly to the “three R’s”, restaurants, retail and recreation, other fields of social engagement and recreation face an equally uncertain summer. This includes Metro’s art market, especially small galleries, non-profit or private, that depend heavily on donations, grants, memberships and sales to make ends meet, to put art on their walls and pay the rent for the walls as well, month after month. Larger and/or more established venues such as Joslyn Art Museum, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, Kaneko and El Museo Latino may fall
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ments as well as donations and grants.
end there is no substitute for a real opening.
For June, only three of the Smaller art venues can benefit from some above smaller galleries, RBR of the above also, G, The Little Gallery and Maydepending on sales, flower Mobile Gallery (MaMO) donations or a possi- are planning, cautiously, to ble non-profit status. re-open to the public with an But galleries such as exhibit. John Rogers, founder Petshop, The Little of RBR G, which had the first Gallery and Maple St. soft re-opening in May, is planConstruct in Benson, ning a second in June titled Generator Space, RBR “Fine Art Prints” featuring work G and Project Project by John Thein, Keith Buswell, on Vinton Street and Shawn Ballarin and others. two key community Rogers will take the necservice art centers, essary precautions of masks, Shawn Ballarin: “Heavy Sun,” Amplify Arts and The spacing, sanitization and Woodcut Relief Etching Union for Contempo- even gloves because he notback on their investments and rary Art face one addi- ed during the May show that endowments, the deep pock- tional challenge. They need to “some did the health safety ets of their board of governors be “open” to meet their misthings, and some did not. I was or donations and grants to sion and be sustainable. The surprised to see that several sustain them through difficult turnover for small businesses wanted to shake hands.” economic downturns. They, of all kinds is not fake news. The Little Gallery will host too, face serious financial chalVirtually all small art galler- a soft opening in June during lenges in order to meet their ies rallied in the beginning of Benson’s First Friday with its goals but are able to further COVID 19 by opening virtu- exhibit, Silent Spring, new adjust budgets by furloughing ally or digitally, if only to get work by Joe Addison, Alex Jostaff, canceling exhibitions and their bearings. Now, a few are chim, Caitlin Little and Trudy closing their doors to the pubtransitioning to the next stage Swanson. Gallery owner Telic until further notice, which of “re-opening” to the pub- resa Gleason says she too will all have done. lic and enabling Larger private and non-prof- artists, cautiousit galleries such as Gallery ly. Real openings 1516, Modern Arts Midtown sell art and by all and Anderson O’Brien are also accounts, art sales closed for the summer to meet from digital exbudget challenges of their hibits have been own. MAM and AOB, mean- very, very low. To while are still able to profit a gallery big or from sales and commissions small, job one is from the stables of their artists, to serve its artists, and the non-profit G1516 may to help them crebe sustained by its member- ate and sell their Alex Jochim: “Here I am, Omaha, NE ship, its own board and invest- work, and to that 2020,” digital scan from a 35mm slide
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at other venues can be found in Reader’s art picks/previews online and in print written by Janet Farber. In addition, Petshop Gallery and Amplify Arts hope to “go public” later this summer.
Trudy Swanson, “DEITY” from the “UNDER CONSTRUCTION SERIES” require face masks and limit numbers entering at the door adding, “No public restroom, so go before you come.” Also in Benson during a June artist walk, MaMO will exhibit an installation from artist Travis Apel, the mobile venue’s first artist-in-residence. The exhibition is called Makes Know Since, riffing on the Apel’s numerous collection of sculptures created from a myriad of found objects. Attendance rules will mimic those of The Little Gallery. Further details for these shows and virtual openings
Eddith Buis, “Carson’s Daughter–N.D. Herself,” Screen Print
“Our plan is to move forward with an opening during July First Friday with artist Evan Stoler,” said Petshop owner and artist Alex Jochim who also will require masks for everyone and limit the number of patrons in the gallery at any time.
Peter Fankhauser, program director for Amplify Arts said that while the center’s programming for its Generator Space on Vinton Street will remain virtual in June, “We’re tentatively planning to have people in space again for our July opening… contingent on whether or not we see a dip in (virus) cases by then.” Amplify Arts too will limit mask-only patrons in place, disinfect surfaces and provide hand sanitizer. Despite these precautions, some venues express doubts about “opening too soon”, if at all in 2020, and look beyond this summer before they will re-open. Ross Miller, co-founder of Maple Street Construct in Benson, says COVID-19 presents a logistical nightmare. “As of right now, we are planning to continue our digital exhibitions through at least August,” Miller said. “We may not have any physical exhibitions for the rest of 2020. We had to reschedule our first 2020 residents in April to 2021.” In addition, MSC’s second resident from Los Angeles may also have to reschedule to 2021. For The Union for Contemporary Art, COVID-19 exposes
Travis Apel, “Chaos”, installation FROM his MaMo exhibit a logistical as well as ethical problem of its own that has shifted the center’s current focus according to communication director Patrick Mainelli who said, “We are not making any concrete plans to gather in person at the moment.” “Understanding that our North Omaha community is already being hit harder by the health and economic effects of the pandemic, we know that meeting our mission demands we do all we can to alleviate the suffering caused by the crisis,” Mainelli added. “We’re calling this new initiative Radical HeARTS which incorporates both direct physical action (Dedicated Hands) and new virtual programming (Connected Minds).” Details of both can be found at https:// www.u-ca.org. Project Project co-founder and artist Josh Powell said he and partner Joel Damon are “unsure when we’ll decide it’s responsible enough to be open to the public. At the moment we don’t plan to do a soft opening.” But they too have another concern. “Artists work very hard to create work and prepare for an exhibition,” Powell said, “so I don’t think it’s fair to them to
host their opening and only have a few people show up.” What will it take to give all art venues more confidence to open up and as Miller put it, “look forward to the day where we can have physical exhibits and engage with our supporters”? Mainelli says whatever the “new normal” is, “it needs to bring us to a point where the risk of person-to-person infection has dropped significantly in Omaha.” Fankhauser agrees saying “More data based on testing and contract tracing in Nebraska could definitely help guide decision-making.” That, and one thing more, Gleason, Rodgers and Powell said: A vaccine for COVID-19. That may not happen before 2021, but all vendors remain optimistic about the future. Powell pretty well sums up for all. “We take a lot for granted, but where you’d think the current situation would bring the worst out in people, all I’ve seen is generosity and care for one another. Maybe I have rose-colored glasses, but I hope that’s true.”
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Solitude Isn’t Bliss:
How Omaha’s Music Venues are Coping During the Pandemic The Metro’s music venues remain empty, here’s what the people who work there are saying about the dearth of live music Story by H. Wiltsey
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ummer has a way of magnifying the significance of a lost day. Canceled trips and plans hurt more when the weather is beautiful and the sunshine stretches late into the evening. It’s for this reason that the COVID-19 pandemic is hitting especially hard as everyone’s favorite season returns.
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Though there have been flickers of returning to normal life with some restaurants and bars reopening — albeit at a diminished capacity — the majority of Omaha’s music venues remain idle. This is understandable. Large crowds, compact seating, and pits where fans are packed in elbow-to-elbow pose a high
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risk not only to everyone who attends the shows but to the people those fans come in contact with afterward. With the summer concert season all but scrapped, employees at a number of the Metro’s major venues and labels are looking for ways to adapt and pondering what concerts might look like once they can reopen.
“We’ve had to cancel or postpone dozens of events, resulting in millions of dollars in losses,” said Kristyna Engdahl, director of communications at the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority (MECA), the group responsible for booking acts at CHI Health Center. The virus has led to the cancellation
M U S I C of several high-profile concerts by artists including the Lumineers, Dan + Shay, and Billie Eilish, most of which have yet to be rescheduled. “At this time, we’re relying on reserves to keep our limited, daily operations moving forward,” she said. “This will be sustainable for several months, but not forever.” Currently, Engdahl said the venue is planning on a July 31 reopening with a performance from ventriloquist Jeff Dunham. Others are not as optimistic. Maha Festival decided to cancel in early April due to concerns over the virus. Unlike most major music festivals, Maha is run by a nonprofit organization that relies on a mix of sponsorships, donors, community grant programs, and ticket sales to keep things running, all of which have been hit incredibly hard over the past three months. “If we stayed the course and were forced to cancel later on, the financial impact on the organization would likely be something we wouldn’t be able to bounce back from,” said Rachel Grace, the festival’s marketing and communications manager. “Canceling now helps ensure Maha Festival can come back in 2021, and come back strong.” “We suspect it will be some time before we re-open – but we will,” said Omaha Performing Arts President Joan Squires. “We’re continuing to receive support from
the community which is critically important, now more than ever.” Squires said that while OPA waits to reopen its venues, the organization is looking for ways to deliver fun and engaging content. “We have now shifted our focus during this time of social distancing to live streams and educational opportunities on Facebook and YouTube so we can continue to connect our audiences with artists and the arts,” she said. “We’re pleased to have been able to hire numerous local artists to perform as part of O-pa Live on the Stream series.” According to Jeff Taffola, Saddle Creek Records’ director of licensing, it’s the smaller labels and venues that need that kind of spotlight and support. “There’s a lot of people stuck at home and a lot of people on unemployment,” he said regarding the label’s roster of artists. “We’ve had to cancel tours for a number of our artists — including those that were supporting new records,” he continued, citing Frances Quinlan and Land of Talk as examples. Even when things start to return to normal, Taffola fears that the musical landscape could be completely different, especially when it comes to getting the word out on the label’s artists. “When we start pitching hard on a record, we might find out that some of our contacts are no longer working at the publications that we
normally target,” he said. “We’re big into promoting on college radio and that might not even be a thing in the fall. Overall, there are just a lot of unknowns right now.”
ness loans and the Payroll Protection Program, tax relief, continued unemployment insurance, and mortgage and rent forbearance.
What everyone is certain about is how fans can help the artists they love.
Despite the difficulties, everyone remained optimistic that they’ll be able to weather the storm.
“Purchasing albums directly from artists online and donating to assistance funds is essential,” said Grace. “Maha will even be highlighting local artists on our social media for several weeks this spring.”
“We’ve got a pretty small staff, relatively low overhead, and we had a lighter year on releases so we’re in a pretty good position,” said Taffola. “It’s an adjustment but we’re doing alright for the time being.”
Taffola echoed that sentiment and said that people can also purchase music and merchandise through the online retail and streaming site Bandcamp. Not only does the site allow artists and labels to control the price of their music but since the pandemic started, it has also held designated days in which it has waived its revenue cut. Over two days in March and May, people spent a combined $11.4 million — all of which went to the artists. The site is planning to continue waiving its revenue share on the first Friday of June and July.
“We’re already looking forward to the day when we can welcome 10,000 plus screaming fans back to our arena,” said Engdahl.
Another way to help out the industry, according to Taffola, is to support the Save Our Stages campaign run by the National Independent Venue Association, or NIVA. The association, which is made up of over 1,300 independent venues in all 50 states, is asking Washington for targeted legislation to help its venues. This includes modifications to small busi-
As for what concerts will look like upon their return, nobody seems to have any idea. Everyone associated with the venues said the pandemic will necessitate higher standards of hygiene that will include scrubbing seats, requiring employees to wear gloves and masks, and making sure that ill employees stay at home. Once everything is in place, though, they hope that fans will return. “When we are all able to safely attend concerts and events again — making an extra effort to support the music and arts community then will make a huge difference,” said Grace. “Buy a ticket, show up, invite your friends. Every little bit will help.”
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The Show Will (Not) Go On (Maybe) The future of movie theaters is genuinely in doubt by Ryan Syrek
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am gonna be the downer-est Debbie to ever Debbie Downer for the next few hundred words. Please remember that I can name more movies that I legitimately love than actual human beings that I feel the same way about. An irresponsible amount of my best memories are tied to theaters. I want to be wrong about so much of this. This is not what I want to have happen. But we do have to talk about what I think is going to happen with movie theaters.
What’s Happening Now. Mister Rogers told us to “look for the helpers” in a crisis. That’s nice, right? I would also suggest we look towards the published scientific evidence. A study out of Wuhan found that poor ventilation and close proximity in a closed environment caused a major spread of coronavirus. Although the facts are somewhat less clear, the “super spreader” event that happened with a choir also backs up the idea that being in a room with a bunch of people for a long period of time is “hella bad.” The CDC did not use the term “hella bad,” but maybe more people would wear masks if they did. Let’s set aside the fact that contagion mechanisms have somehow become a partisan issue. Nobody—and I mean nobody— thinks that gathering a bunch of us mouth-breathing yahoos in a sealed area for several hours is a good plan. It is, as the CDC also does not say, “stinking thinking” to attempt such a thing. The length of time from March 6 until you read this is the longest I have ever gone without setting foot in a theater since I was a child. Movie theaters are nothing but sealed areas where mouth breathers sit for several hours. Would masks help? Sure. But movie theaters make most of their money on concessions, which you cannot eat with a mask on,
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the last time I checked. Would cutting down on occupancy help? Sure. But that Wuhan study I mentioned featured a situation that would be better than the most ideal of circumstances for any theater. Theaters are closed until there’s a vaccine. Nobody is saying this, but it is the truth. I hate it. But it is what has to happen so that the places I love most in this world do not become tiny boxes of death. One asymptomatic infected person in a movie theater can cause literally every other person in that theater to become ill. Again, I’m not a scientist, I just read them.
What Happens Next? In the short term, unlike Leonardo DiCaprio in ice cold water, local theaters are doing everything they reasonably can to stay afloat. Film Streams and Alamo Drafthouse have both launched streaming portals where you can rent films, with some of the proceeds going to the theaters. If anything tells you how dire the situation is, it’s that a phrase like “some of the proceeds” is being used to describe the best-case scenario. Aksarben Cinema and Marcus Theaters have done—and will hopefully keep doing—periodic sales of their theater popcorn. I believe the majority of the caloric intake in my lifetime is owed to butter and salt. Without them, I will turn to dust faster than a Thanos snap. Can I get a “honk honk,” because at least cars are safe! Twin Creek Cinema has started offering drive-in, parking lot movies. Douglas County will get another drive-in theater this summer; the Quasar Drive-In Theater will be located at Highway 36 and 300th Street, near US Highway 275 between Fremont and Valley. Falconwood Park is starting up a drive-in movie series again too. Does this scratch the same itch as actually
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sharing a film with an audience in a theater? Nah. But it helps. It helps keep the struggling theaters in some small way. It helps simulate partaking in a communal artistic experience. It helps get us safely out of the house, at least. I never thought being in a car in Omaha would represent safety, but here we are.
What Happens Later? If you didn’t see the verbal slapfight between AMC Theaters and Universal Studios, welcome to the even more hellish part of this breakdown because now I have to talk about Trolls World Tour. Allegedly, the decision to release the animated sequel on home video was profitable. This prompted some execs to say “Hey, maybe we don’t need theaters!” This prompted theaters to say “Oh yeah, maybe we don’t need movies!” This is profoundly stupid on both sides. Weirdly, movies need to have movie theaters in order to make the most money, while movie theaters need to have movies in order to avoid becoming just “theaters,” which would confuse drama majors. And you do not want to further confuse a drama major. This hyperbolic ticklefest between Universal and AMC is silly, but also incredibly important for local chains. If you don’t know, the major Hollywood studios take just an insane cut of the first weekend profits for every blockbuster. A thimble of soda costs eleven billion dollars because that’s the only way some theaters can make it. The only way for movie venues to stay profitable is mass turnout, which is not exactly pandemic friendly. That has to change. If it doesn’t, vaccine or not, theaters are dead. It is a not unreal possibility that gives me the piss jitters, which is also not a CDC-approved
diagnosis. In an ideal world, this is an opportunity for renegotiation and repurposing, for studios and theaters to realize their symbiosis. So, basically, all we need is for billionaire-owned companies to agree to take less money. Yeah, I see how that reads now. We’re screwed. You cannot say I didn’t warn you we were going to get to this point. It was literally the first thing I said. You’ve been Debbie Downed! I have some hope. I do. A little, but it’s there. I hope that movie theaters get bailed out by the government. That is just a phrase I never thought I’d say, but again, here we are. If they can be buoyed long enough, we will all return once it is safe. I would bet everything that the moment we are truly not at risk, those theaters are gonna be so full, I will immediately go back to being angry at disrespectful audience members. I am downright excited to judge people who take their shoes off in recliner seats again! Locally, I hope we don’t lose a single theater. Not one. I don’t know if that’s reasonable. I just know that if there’s a way for us to prevent that, by God, I will help fight against it. That’s maybe all we can do right now, you and I, we movie lovers. We can rent movies through Film Streams and Alamo. We can buy popcorn from Aksarben and Marcus. We can hit up drive-ins. But we can also voice our support. This isn’t silly or superfluous. Movies are the dominant art form in America. I don’t want to lose the way we share them together. I hope you don’t either. Share this article. Share any ways we can help support our local theaters. Share your desire to bring theaters back, once it is safe, likely a year or more from now. I don’t like waiting either. But I will. I cannot wait to watch a movie with y’all again.
F I L M
Grandma Got Ran Over By a Gang War
YOU ARE NOT ALONE... WE’RE ALL IN
THIS
Lucky Grandma
Gambles and Wins Big by Ryan Syrek
With an opening that evokes a somehow unproblematic Quentin Tarantino or more humble Edgar Wright, writer/director Sasie Sealy’s Lucky Grandma is immediately “on.” Quiet visual cues shout character qualities like a megaphone pressed to an eardrum. With her slouched posture and cigarette always seemingly about to leap to its death from the corner of her mouth, Grandma (Tsai Chin) is a curmudgeonly force of nature. If we lived in a better world, this film would launch a franchise, starting with “Lucky Grandma 2: Go Luck Yourself.”
To be fair, Tsai Chin’s performance is something of a unicorn, insofar as it is wholly unique and downright magical. Grandma is flat-out unlikable in most regards. So why is she also somehow completely lovable? She grumps and grouses, lies and manipulates, selfishly putting her grandson and new friends on the wrong end of gangsters’ guns. But you cannot help but want more of her, to root for her, and to marvel at the actress behind her.
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exciting ways. Lucky Grandma isn’t some revolutionary concept or innovative storytelling. Honestly, that kind of Christopher Nolan-ish inventive blockbuster bullshit that is packed with a bible-length backstory can be just exhausting, right? The number of films centered entirely around a complex elderly woman made each year is closer to 0 than any other number. Finding cinema that centers nearly exclusively on an older Asian woman is like playing “pin the tail on the literal unicorn.”
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Some of the best original films are not woven from new fabrics but fashioned from familiar patches of cliches, sewn together in new and
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Do you want to see Grandma hire a gigantic bodyguard named Big Pong (Hsiao-Yuan Ha) to protect her from the gangster known as Little Handsome (Michael Tow)? You do. You really do. Do you want to see Grandma negotiate with Sister Fong (Yan Xi), a sleek criminal mastermind, while they get steamed in a sauna? Of course, don’t be silly. Do you want to see Grandma hobble her way through a full-on warehouse shootout? In what world would anyone not want to see this?
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As the CDC would recommend, Sealy and cowriter Angela Cheng give Grandma plenty of room to breathe. The entirety of the plot is really one sentence: After losing all her money at a casino, Grandma takes a bag filled with money from a dude who died of a heart attack next to her on the bus, sparking a gang war to get the cash back. Instead of plot contrivances, Sealy and Cheng load the flick up with delightful encounters.
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If Sealy and Chin want to get together to make a trilogy, “Lucky Grandma 3: The Luck Stops Here” will likely be every bit as delightful. At a time when everything feels so heavy and hard, Lucky Grandma is a breezy, brief treat.
Grade = A JUNE 2020
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T h e
B u z z
Adapting Nightlife in a Pandemic
W
by Salvador S. Robles
hen talking about nightlife in Omaha, to say there has not been a lot going on during the last few months would be an understatement. You’d have to have been living under a rock not to notice your favorite neighborhood bar has had a “Temporarily Closed” sign hung up on the window. Maybe you had plans to enjoy the spring weather on a patio bar somewhere or had tickets to a live show and were looking forward to having a couple of drinks with friends. iI’s the beginning of spring and most of us would usually have a calendar full of these kinds of events around our city. Unfortunately we have found most if not all of these scenarios canceled or postponed due to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Rewind to my January 2020 article and my anticipation of spring events and outings; I never thought, I or better yet we would be in this position. A lot of bars and restaurants have closed around the metro since the middle of March or have been operating according to the state’s rules on how to maintain and serve loyal customers during quarantine. Adaptability has been key for our local businesses and it’s been nice to see Omahans pull together and support them. I myself have gotten “To-Go” margaritas, growlers and cocktails from a number of establishments that I had planned
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to frequent this spring. It has been an experience to shake, stir and slurp those libations at home, all the while making sure my go-to local hideouts stay in business. Scriptown Brewing Company, nestled in the heart of the Blackstone District right off 40th and Farnam, is just one of the many local bars around the city forcedto switch gears and figure out how to survive in the time of “LA CORONA.” When the state ordinance to close all bars became mandatory, Scriptown created an online menu to keep serving their customers. “It’s been tough,” a spokesperson for the bar said, “we essentially had to lay off our staff and rely solely on our loyal customer base for online orders on growlers, mule and alcohol packages.” Community efforts and loans from the government have helped to restart the economy and pay staff at local bars and small restaurants around the city. Come June 1st though, the state of Nebraska will allow bars to reopen and things to return to normalcy, “somewhat.” So what does that look like? According to the Department of Health and Human Services of Nebraska: *Bars will be allowed to operate at a maximum 50% occupancy at any given time. Take for example our friends at
JUNE 2020
Scriptown; Their main taproom which usually holds 129 people will allow 25 people, their back patio will allow 12 people and they are opening up their Kaufmann Room which will allow additional seating for up to 36. *Six feet of separation between seating for different parties as well as a maximum of six individuals per party (groups larger than six will need to split into multiple tables). Bars will also prohibit bar seating and will only allow table seating. Scriptown must rearrage and get rid of tables in order to open. The brewing company will allow people toorder at the bar just as long as patrons don’t hang out there. “The guidelines of the health mandates are all new of course, and we are working hard to make sure we are all ready to go with them,” the Scriptown rep said. “The most important part of this, though, is the safety of our customers and staff.” June will definitely be a learning curve for Omahans who are looking to get out of the house and return to a normal routine. I, for one, am excited for things to start feeling normal again, but I am hesitant as well. As much as I would love to rewind to the carefree days when I didn’t have to worry about being close to someone at a concert, handshaking or hugging a loved one when I run into them the reality is we still need to be cautious and
exercise awareness and safety. Luckily, most bars like Scriptown will still be pushing online ordering and grab ‘n’ go sales, allowing those who may not yet feel comfortable to venture out for a night on the town. Our summer plans may have changed, but look for some normalcy coming to a bar near you, folks. There areplenty of ways to have fun this month even if going out is not for you. Remember to have fun, drink responsibly, tip your bartenders and stay healthy. Instagram @thebuzz_thereader for live updates and info on drink and bar specials. Message us your favorite bar suggestions, which could be featured in The Buzz.
c r o s s w o r d
Answer in next next month’s issue or online at TheReader.com
Puzzle Title “Curves” by S.E. Wilkinson
Across
27. Half-____ (coffee order)
1. Lesley of “60 Minutes”
28. One of 17 Monopoly properties: Abbr.
6. Only U.S. senator to vote against the confirmations of both Thurgood Marshall and Clarence Thomas
29. “Science Guy” Bill 31. Dirties 35. $100 bill, in slang 37. Off-road rides, for short
10. “Yo -- check this out!”
38. Searcher’s cry
14. Jazz singer Carmen
39. Discarded computer parts and such
15. “Everything Is Illuminated” author Jonathan Safran ____
40. Pres. advisory group 41. Brynner of “The King and I”
16. Company whose bathroom sinks are named for Swedish bodies of water
42. Suffix with ranch 44. Rapper with the 1991 hit “Rico Suave”
17. They were exercised by many after the coronavirus outbreak 20. Scheme in which three of four lines rhyme 21. One-named Brazilian soccer star with 25+ million Twitter followers
45. Star of the shortlived reality show “I Pity the Fool” 46. Dunderhead 37. 777s, e.g. 40. Dmitri’s denials 43. Go smoothly
22. Flirt’s quality
44. “Today” rival, briefly
25. Coors container
47. “____ says ...”
30. Digs up
49. Dye workers
32. Org. with the motto “Not for self but for country”
52. Seal, as a deal
33. Holder of peas 34. Fair-hiring agcy. 36. Cost for a radio or TV commercial
navirus outbreak that’s represented by this grid’s circled letters 65. Helper 66. Dunham of “Girls” 67. Words following bright or clear 68. Illuminating gas
54. Chaperones
69. Sp. mujeres
55. Romeo’s last words
70. Give a buzz
57. Prefix with byte 58. Term popularized during the coro-
8. Change, as the margins
48. Alpine shouts
9. Des Moines sch.
51. “Take your time!”
2. Lone Star State sch.
10. Mine, e.g.
53. San Fran gridder
11. Hit the slopes
3. In formation
56. Volcano in Sicily
12. “Hold on a ____!”
4. Cuba’s capital
58. Devotee
13. Prof’s helpers
5. Jerry who wrote lyrics for many Elvis Presley songs
59. Whopper
18. More like space 19. ____ salad
60. “Without further ____ ...”
22. Trophy
61. X
23. Yoko from Tokyo
62. Owns
24. Volume setting
63. Moving day vehicle
Down 1. Texting format, for short
6. Graphic designer’s deg. 7. Egg-centric edible?
26. Boxer’s three-min. periods
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50. Glacial mass
64. Check out
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C R O S S W O R D
Puzzle Title
Answer in next next month’s issue or online at TheReader.com
“Found in Translation” by Rob Gonsalves and Jennifer Lim, edited by Wyna Liu Across
28. Made by humans / Hecho por humanos
1. Mischief makers 5. Bits of wisdom
29. Advanced degree?
11. “Nature” airer
30. Half-___ (latte option)
14. Cheer (for) or dig (for)
32. Nation of Afr.
15. Catch off base
33. Neckwear for Scooby-Doo’s pal Fred
16. Like sashimi 17. Always together / Siempre unidos
34. Something that can be done on the fly?
19. I, at times 20. Word with wool or worker
35. Scot’s topper 37. Amtrak listing, briefly
21. People click on it a lot
38. Swenson of “Benson”
23. Petting zoo handful
41. ___ machine
26. It might be tall
43. How many like their bowties
27. Panamanian currency
46. Lavish bash
29. Constant complainer
47. Place to find follicles
30. Apple center
48. Holi reveler
31. Words before dime or diet
49. Move stealthily 50. It helps open doors
33. “It’s about time!” 36. Uninvited picnic guest 37. Either of the two languages used in 17- and 59-Across and 11- and 28Down 39. Subject of the 2015 biopic “Straight Outta Compton” 40. Full of spirit 42. Vitamin and supplement company 43. Member of the first family 44. State with keys: Abbr.
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45. Lose fizz 47. Home of the Browns and the Reds 49. Had an ace up the sleeve, say 52. Posh Spice’s first name 54. Plug-in car maker 58. Founder of Righteous Babe Records DiFranco 59. Warmly nostalgic / C·lidamente nost·lgico
JUNE 2020
62. Iron amount, say: Abbr.
for their portrayal of the title character
63. It’s found on the map
2. ___ Blanc
64. Wee one
3. Prepare for a selfie
65. Brynner of “Westworld” and “Futureworld”
4. High point of church?
66. Command from a gift giver 67. Parted partners
Down 1. 2001 biopic that earned Judi and Kate Oscar nods
5. School support gp.
10. Some French honorees: Abbr. 11. State-sponsored lies / Mentiras difundidas por el estado
51. Gobbled up 53. ___ City Hall, where the Peace Prize is awarded 55. Source of Achilles’ strength
12. Ho-hum
56. Canoeing spot
13. Greta Garbo, for one
57. Draft picks
6. Muff site
18. Commoner
8. Bender, for example
25. Superboy’s sweetheart
9. Whoppers
27. Skeleton part
7. Peak performance, 22. And others, briefly informally 24. Bananas
60. Magician’s name ender 61. Summer hrs. in the Rockies
C O M I C S Doonesbury by Garry Trudeau
which deaths matter? by Jen Sorensen
TED RALL
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M E M O R I A M the city for god knows what reason, and the day Kyle talked to him, he’d been out hunting and had bagged a giant-ass buck and was fired up over it. In my hazy recollection, Kyle said the first thing the Nuge said to him was, breathlessly, “Dude, you are going to get a good interview today, man.”
Kyle Tonniges
Sep. 26, 1970 - May 21, 2020 He was a good friend of mine for 20ish years, and a friend of this paper for longer. He was a blazing and exacting critic of music, food, and books, and also a cancer survivor until he wasn’t. He was 49 when he died, had beaten brain cancer, and then was pounced on by an aggressive lung cancer. Barely three weeks went by between the diagnosis and his death.
gent interview, because the guy was such a clown. The Nuge was going to be playing a show in town and was supposed to get a key to
He reviewed god knows how many books and records for The Reader and, back in the day, The Omaha Weekly. He interviewed everyone from Ted Nugent to Lemme from Motörhead to David Sedaris. He was cracking up after the Nu-
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June 2020
When I started working at Publishers Weekly as a book review editor in 2005, I brought on Kyle as a reviewer. He was a voracious reader, never missed a deadline, and the copy he turned in barely needed to be touched. Kyle loved a good meal and a good drink, and reviewed tons of cookbooks and cocktail guides. Along the way he did Q&As with Anthony Bourdain, film villain turned taco restaurateur Danny Trejo, Serious Eats kitchen wizard J. Kenji Lopez-Alt, and tons of others. Anyone who knew him would tell you he was the funniest person they’ve ever known. One of the great pleasures of my life was being in the room, invariably
late in the evening, when Kyle’d worked up a full head of steam and would free associate and rant and gripe about the very many things that pissed him off. It would scorch your eyeballs and make Larry David proud. Let’s celebrate his life. Some notes: • A long time ago he worked in a porno shop. There were stories. Many stories. • He loved a proper drink, and would build a martini (gin, very dry, olives) every day after work. I have god knows how many dozens of emails from him about some weird new ingredient he’d discovered (Zergut syrup, anyone?) or recipe he’d found that I had to try. He was rarely wrong. He also made sure you were never without a drink in your hand if you were at his house. • Man, he knew good music. He liked no bullshit rock and roll. Rocket from the Crypt, Supersuckers,
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June 2020
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the Bronx. (Even the mariachi Bronx variant.) I can’t quote it exactly, but he had a great line about the Supersuckers in a review of one of their records, something like, “They do the same record over and over, but it’s a good record.” One-hundred percent true. • I spoke with his wife a few days ago and so have it on good authority that he was not a fan of Dave Matthews, pretentious motherfuckers, Harvard assholes who couldn’t help but mention at any possible opportunity that they went to Harvard, or Dick Cheney. • However, he did dig a good cream sauce and this chalkboard he kept on the front porch of his house that he would write weird quotes on. He would agonize over, say, which Tom Waits line to put on there. That chalkboard was a highlight of his mailman’s day. His wife and mom luckily had the chance to say their goodbyes to Kyle. The rest of us didn’t. We mourned the way people do these days: alone, over texts and Facetime calls. Or in hastily written pieces for The Reader. I think Kyle would approve, even if he’d hate the fuss. Goodbye, dear friend.
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William Patrick Heaston
May 2, 1943 - Feb. 24, 2020 [Excerpted from his memorial service reading by youngest son Ben with edits from siblings John, Rita and Eileen] My dad was the oldest of 8 . . . but I think he always saw himself as the squad leader of an unruly bunch — whether it was his siblings, his own family, the teams he coached or the colleagues he worked with. He was active -- from yard work and skiing to playing sports, including baseball, golf, football and tennis. He was a man of deep faith his entire life.
in vans. “I will pull this car over” or “don’t make me come back there” weren’t empty threats, and trying to play the jump from the front of the van to the back to the front will only get you into more trouble. Lots of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on the side of the road, fast food was a luxury then. Countless distant relatives and colleagues would put us up for a night. There were many ski trips, especially every spring break from Omaha to Colorado.
From what I understand, though, his life really started on the day he met my mother in Vietnam. They lived in California, Germany, New York, Alaska, Kansas, Virginia, Omaha, Colorado and South Dakota, and traveled the world together. They raised 4 wonderful children who never gave them any grief. Ever.
[Bill Heaston] had a great sense of humor. I remember once he carved “nothing” into a piece of wood. I asked him what it was for and he told me that grandpa, his father, said he wanted nothing for his birthday, so that’s what he was getting.
He was a true road warrior. Endless hours spent
June 2020
Dad loved his grandchildren. He took them on vacations, he took them out to eat and to ice cream, he
took them to practices and games, he rarely missed an opportunity to spend time with them, often driving hours from Sioux Falls. He let them live with him, he let them dress him up and put silly jewelry on him. He was large and largerthan-life, whip smart, engaging and truly modeled leadership as service to others. Those Jesuits really got to him. His love and support for his family, his friends, and seemingly anyone who needed it was unending. Anyone who knew him knew that he was just the sort of guy you could count on to be there. He also had an optimism rooted in his faith that he would be going to a better and more peaceful place where he could watch over all of us all the time. Now if we could get a screaming baby or two going in this crowd I think he’d really be smiling down on us.
H E A R T L A N D
H E A L I N G
The Hundred BB Theory Updated by Michael Braunstein
H
ave you ever wondered about the roles that certain people have in your life? Perhaps you’ve met that woman or man to whom you have been explosively attracted; someone who has touched your soul like no one else. Or the person who’s done you wrong and you resent. Or perhaps you met a particular person who led you to a life-changing career. Or early on you made a lifelong pal who sometimes annoys the heck out of you but is your best friend. Or you meet someone and discover later how many amazing connections you had but didn’t realize? Or maybe there is someone you violently detest, a villain in your life who undeniably deserves your wrath for deceit, betrayal and conscious harm. Why do certain people become part of our lives and affect us so much… or so little? Perhaps you dismiss it as just a coincidence with a flippant, “Ah, such is life.” Yes, connections to the people in our lives could be the result of mere coincidence. But that leaves the lingering question unanswered: Why? I have an answer. I’ll explain from the very beginning. I got high. Sitting around stoned in our college apartment playing with a candle. Blow it out. Touch a match to the rising column of smoke from inches away and the flame crosses the gap, magically floating down to reignite the wick. The candle is alive once again. As long as too much time doesn’t transpire and the smoke particles do not dissipate too far, the candle can reignite. Honestly though, the story begins even before my college daze, at a time when I was nine years old and read a book titled, Our Friend the Atom, by Walt Disney and Heinz Haber (1957). That book taught me that everything in the universe is made of atoms and those atoms are made entirely of energy. That knowledge colored my perception of the world in an unalterable way. And I learned a lasting respect for scientific fact right then and there. Having learned the human body simply represents an energy field, it was years later that anoth-
er book, The Chakras written by C.W. Leadbeater in 1927, taught me that theosophists had a word for the individual energy globules that make up the body and its consciousness: orgone. I connected the concepts one day in my living room in Burbank, Calif. What if this described the mechanism of what we call a “near death experience”? (And I wasn’t even high.) When the life force leaves the body, what if that life force lingers just long enough to re-animate that body, much like a flame hovering over an extinguished candle can reignite the wick as long as the smoke molecules do not dissipate too far. What if the life force reassembles the energy globules that make up a human existence before they dissipate into the universe? Is that what happens when a person has a near death experience? The human is restored to his or her previous condition though often feeling changed or reporting a new perception of reality. The concept also explains why certain relationships during a lifetime have certain significance. Time for the metaphor. Imagine that a human life, a human body, is “assembled” out of tiny energy globules as quantum physics and theosophy both describe. It doesn’t take much imagination since that’s a fact. The body is indeed assembled of tiny energy globules known as atoms, okay? For the sake of simplicity and our metaphor, let’s say each human is made of 100 steel BB-like spheres. You know BBs; those little balls that are used as ammo in kids’ toy guns. So we have 100 steel BBs that represent both the physical body and the consciousness of the human. The BBs are held together in the shape of a body by an unseen magnet and as long as that magnetic force is uninterrupted, the BBs won’t go anywhere and continue as a body and consciousness. So when a human life begins, an Unseen Magnet descends into a pool of BBs. The magnetic force pulls the 100 BBs out of the pool into existence, like one of those arcade games with a claw locks onto a stuffed toy or the more contem-
porary example of a 3-D printer. The assembled human wanders around this plane for a few solar orbits and then it’s time for the magnetic force to move on and the BBs are released, tumbling back into the pool of billions of available BBs. A human’s life is, for want of another term, “demagnetized.” Now it’s time to use your imagination. Pretend that the pool of BBs spread across the floor of a boxcar that is hitched to dozens of other boxcars in a railroad train rambling along on the track of time. Down to Earth example. A man named Joe is born in 1920. He wears his 100 BBs well for a good stay on planet Earth and meets many people in his time. He meets “Tom” who saves Joe’s life in World War II. He falls in love and marries Anna. A man named Bernie steals Joe’s car and kills his dog in 1950. Another, named Bill becomes his best friend. Over his lifetime, Joe meets hundreds of people made from thousands of BBs. They all represent an interaction that Joe has feelings about. They create what you might call “his story” or history. So eventually Joe’s time here, along with Anna’s, Tom’s, Bernie’s and everyone Joe has ever met, expires and they become “de-magnetized” at varying times. Joe’s 100 BBs tumble to the boxcar floor along with those he’s met and millions he hasn’t. The train bounces along and the BBs in that particular boxcar mix and roll around. When it is time for another human to come into existence, that Unseen Magnet descends to the floor of the boxcar and picks up 100 BBs to incarnate a new human. Let’s name him, “Jim.” Now let’s explore where Jim’s “new” 100 BBs have been. Since Jim is coming along so soon after Joe and his friends departed, what if the magnet picks up 100 BBs and the conglomerate “Jim” is made up of 25 BBs from Joe? And what if at the same time, 10 of Jim’s BBs come from what used to be “Anna”? And 5 come from Tom, 2 from Bernie and so on. The new human, “Jim” has energy globules from a lot of people including maybe some from long ago, from
a neighboring boxcar even, maybe King Arthur or Lady Godiva. Within a short time, the magnet descends again to create another human. We’ll call her “Jan.” For Jan, the magnet picks up 100 BBs and guess what? Some of Jan’s “new” BBs are actually recycled BBs that used to be part of the departed Joe… and Tom and even Anna’s and Bernie and others. The new human, Jan, has some of the same BBs the departed Joe used to have. Jan and Jim share some of the same BBs from the same person and persons from before. They don’t consciously realize it… yet. And the magnet comes down again and creates Seth. Seth has BBs from the group, too. Especially a whole lot from that guy who stole Joe’s car back in 1950. Seth, Jim and Jan and a bunch of new humans wander around planet Earth for years. Finally one day Jim and Jan bump into each other at a yoga class. They are wildly attracted to each other and you can guess the rest. Why? Because they share so many of the same BBs. And atoms and energy have memory. We struggle to be cognizant of it because it is on such a subtle atomic level. But it’s there. Then along comes Seth. You can imagine that the feeling for Seth is pretty strong with Jim. Same reason, different result. They share BBs from the past but not so great. All the connections we face in life have significance because we can never be separated from the energy that persists as we travel the train of time. The people we meet, we meet and connect with because we share BBs with them, some a lot of BBs and some not so many. Some BBs are from experiences, energies that we branded pleasant and some that we branded unpleasant. Now you know where the BBs come from. Now you know why the people showed up. What has not been explained is how to keep from branding the experiences. Just light a candle and it will come to you.
JUNE 2020
Be well.
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Fashion in Disguise
Face masks are the hottest new look for summer by Tim McMahan May 19, 2020 — When this COVID-19 thing first started, the notion of wearing a mask in public seemed weird, like something only a paranoid or a hypochondriac would do. In fact, if I remember correctly, the people in charge originally told us to NOT wear masks because healthcare professionals needed them and unless the masks were of the professional-grade N95 variety, they weren’t stopping the virus anyway. I saw my first mask in public sometime around the tail end of February while shopping at Baker’s; this was the very early days of the pandemic when people were still allowed to go to work, to rock shows, to restaurants. As I walked into the grocery store, out came a guy in his early 20s wearing your run-of-the-mill, pale-green surgical mask, which was quite a contrast with his black Pantera concert T-shirt and jeans. I went home and told my wife, “Welp, saw my first mask at the grocery store today,” and we both laughed at the paranoid rube. These days we make fun of people who DON’T wear face masks in public. Or at least we mentally shame them, passing judgment on their recklessness, their lack of respect for those working the front lines during the pandemic, or — more likely than not — their desire to make a political statement, like every time we see Trump in front of a masked press corps with his unadorned, pumpkin orange kisser. With Trump, though, it’s probably not so much political, as he simply doesn’t think he looks good wearing a mask. Vanity, thy name is Trump. But as the pandemic continues to ride us through the summer months and into the fall, wearing a mask won’t be a political statement as much as a fashion state-
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ment. Fashion has always been about individual choice, and there has never been a more in-yourface fashion statement than the mask you choose to wear. Could face masks become the next hot fashion trend seen on the runways of New York, Paris and Milan? Maybe eventually, said Denise Ervin, but not quite yet.
culture fashion mag Complex lists Omaha’s own Artifact Bags’ super-cool cloth face mask among its favorites.
made 12,000 face masks, which were donated to a variety of local organizations such as nursing homes and shelters.
Way back in January, long before anyone was thinking about pandemics, recording star and fashionista Billie Eilish wore a green-and-black Gucci outfit to the Grammy Awards, complete with a Gucci face mask. “With this new reality, it’s going to become more prevalent for designers to include masks with their (fashion) lines,” Ervin said, but they still have to be functional. “Eilish’s mask was worthless as far as being protective. It was made of chiffon.”
“When we did our mask project, people were making us masks with flowers and butterflies,” Ervin said. “No guy is going to want to wear those.”
Ervin has been involved in fashion since she was in high school, starting as a costumer at the Omaha Playhouse where she worked for 20 years, eventually becoming the head designer before getting her degree in fashion design from the prestigious FashDenise Ervin ion Institute of Ervin said she’s Design and Merchandising in Los been noticing masks people wear Angeles. For the past two years when she goes into stores. “Some she’s been the “worker manager” are really well made and I wonder at the Fashion Institute Midwest, where they got them,” she said. a nonprofit located in downtown “It’s not like we’re all buying those Omaha committed to nurturing cheapie ones at the doctor’s office. aspiring designer talent and sup- People are definitely looking at fit, porting the Midwest fashion eco- style, quality and function. Go system. onto Etsy and see how many people are making and selling masks. So yeah, Ervin knows a thing There are all kinds of crazy, wild or two about fashion. I asked her if designs.” she thought face masks could become the next big fashion accesWhen I’m out I notice women sory. She said it depends on how wearing the fun colors, whereas guys are skulking around in long we have to wear them. gators — those masks that look “Right now, everyone is wearlike neckerchiefs that you pull ing whatever mask they can find,” over your nose bandit-style — or she said, “but if this goes on, peoold-fashioned makeshift bandanas ple will find a way to individualize tied around their heads. That is if masks, and they will become more they’re wearing masks at all. Let’s of a fashion statement.” face it, dudes are more vain than She said luxury brands already women. have begun designing face masks. “My brothers all want me to Vogue, GQ and Elle have pubmake them Nebraska (Cornhusklished extensive lists of designer er) masks,” Ervin said. She and masks, with prices that range from her team at the Fashion Institute $8 to $100 and beyond. Youth helped organize volunteers who
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Dudes are more apt to wear solid-color masks or maybe something in a macho camo pattern, “as opposed to what women are wearing. Women’s wear always has been a lot more colorful in that sense.” Yeah, but what about masks for those formal occasions? Ervin says I’m getting ahead of myself. “Right now that can’t happen because we can’t gather in a group in a formal setting,” she said. “But once things open up again and we have these larger gatherings, women are going to wonder, ‘What mask goes well with this dress?’” When I go out into the world, I usually wear a pink gator emblazoned with my company’s logo that I was given years ago for taking part in a breast cancer event. I also have a black face mask that looks like I’m wearing a pair of women’s panties on my face. But my favorite face mask is the wonky green-and-orange floral-print number my sister-in-law made me that looks like I’m wearing a sofa cushion, with straps that cut into my ears. It’s the only one I’ll keep. I look forward to looking fondly at it years from now and remembering that time when we all wore masks to Baker’s. Over The Edge is a monthly column by Reader senior contributing writer Tim McMahan focused on culture, society, music, the media and the arts. Email Tim at tim.mcmahan@gmail.com
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THE FATE OF DREAMERS IS IN JEOPARDY due to uncertainty over DACA BY KARLHA VEL ASQUEZ RIVAS nor does it change their legal status in the country, so it’s a sort of limbo. In an interview from November 2019, lawyer Alexis Steele, from the Immigrant Legal Center (ILC), who has studied the cases of Dreamers in Omaha, considers that if the program is eradicated, it would completely devastate the community. “They would lose their job permits. This wouldn’t happen immediately since they would still be valid until their expiration date,” she said.
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he situation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is on the table. The Supreme Court has the power to eradicate or keep the program alive, a program that, since being created back in 2012, has benefited over 800,000 immigrants with the opportunity of getting a job. The uncertainty of Dreamers and lawyers, who are on high alert for any news, can be felt in the air. Since the moment that President Donald Trump’s administration announced the end of DACA in 2017, protests and speculation on the fate of Dreamers was showcased in the media. Trump had said it was an illegal program. At the time, an opinion poll by Morning Consult and Politico in April 2017 showed that “78% of voters in the U.S. supported giving Dreamers the possibility of permanently remaining in the country, including 73% of Trump voters.” Trump had promised to eliminate the program, with no solution given to those that had grown up in this country. If the program is canceled and Dreamers are not allowed to remain here, that would cost Nebraska over $150,2 million a year in the gross domestic
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product (GDP), and $460,3 billion for the country. Add the thousands of canceled work permits, and the massive rounds of deportations that would follow. But there could also be an extension of the DACA – perhaps due to the current pandemic – and a renewal of work permits without a way of adjusting a person’s legal status. The last potential scenario, and the most promising one, has Dreamers becoming residents in hopes of obtaining citizenship.
What is DACA? The DACA program gives unauthorized immigrants who arrived in the U.S. before turning 16 years old (called Dreamers) the opportunity to remain in the country under specific circumstances, such as going to school and having no criminal record. Those who meet the requirements can have access to a work permit and be protected from deportation for two years, a benefit that must be renewed before the period has ended. The program is not a path towards obtaining citizenship,
ARTICULO DESTACADO // FEATURE ARTICLE
Under this hypothetical scenario, she hopes that a new path is created to allow those who have been in this country and see it as their own can update their legal status since they don’t know any other place. “People who have DACA don’t have any other alternative to remain in the country and have a life. Nobody wanted to choose DACA, but it was the only option,” said the jurist. She explained that not all Dreamers are in the DACA program and that some could not register for the program in time before Trump decided to stop all new applications in 2017. By then, there were 800,000 young individuals who had applied for the program and who had been approved, but the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) only registered 689,800 active individuals. According to the most recent stats (November 2017) from USCIS, Nebraska has 3,070 active Dreamers, out of which 1,500 are located in Omaha and Council Bluffs. There are 688,860 active Dreamers in the country. This means that the new number is lower because some have had a chance in their immigration status, or they
simply have not renewed their protection.
A program that is not new at all Steel explained that DACA is not a new program, because, for years, undocumented immigrants have been placed in this sort of limbo. “When an undocumented person living in the country is the victim of a crime, they can apply for a T visa or a U visa, but those are limited for each year. So when you don’t know where to place someone, or there’s no time for searching for the right legal status, the deferred action can be used so that they’re not removed or deported from the country,” she mentioned. Deferred action has existed since 1975. Under this legal branch of Immigration Law, President Ronald Reagan created the Family Fairness program in 1987, which was extended under the administration of George Bush Sr. in 1990. The program’s objective was to “not separate eligible families of immigrants” because of the immigration reform (IRCA) of 1986. In that year, an immigrant who had consecutively been in the country since January 1st, 1982, that is, who had remained in the country for four years without leaving, could be eligible for permanent residency. However, they had to select a single family member, be that a spouse or a son, under certain conditions, to be in the U.S., possibly under a “wait-in-line” status, and this did not mean said person could not be deported. This paradox was cause for discussion, and the catholic church and Latino groups
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intervened to argue that 30% of the 3 million who applied to bring their families together would be separated under the aforementioned circumstances. On June 15, 2012, Obama announced DACA during a speech at the White House and said: “Now, let’s be clear -- this is not amnesty, this is not immunity. This is not a path to citizenship. It’s not a permanent fix. This is a temporary stopgap measure that lets us focus our resources wisely while giving a degree of relief and hope to talented, driven, patriotic young people (…) this is what we have to do because it’s something temporary,” published The Washington Post. This program, under the Dream Act, allows some undocumented immigrants, who were brought to the country since 2007 while being under 16 years of age, and who have lived in the country ever since, to obtain work permits, health coverage, and a driver’s license, as well as keeping them from being deported, and granting the possibility of applying for a social security number, which was not guaranteed. All this as long as they met the requirements for the program and did not have a criminal record. The program did not provide a path towards citizenship for those who applied. Also, another program was announced on November 20, 2013, under President Obama’s administration, the Differed Action for Parents of Americans (DAPA), which was compared with the Family Fairness program. This granted an opportunity for immigrant parents of U.S. citizens or legal residents to be protected from deportation, as long as they had consecutively been in the country since 2010. The program was lost to the wind since it did not go into effect. And in 2017, President Trump’s administration decided to remove it from the list of priorities that could have solved the legal status of many undocumented parents in the country. The Trump administration argued that it was “clandestine
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amnesty” and declared that Obama overstepped his authority by protecting a specific type of immigrants who live illegally in the country, said aldíadallas.
was that the government did not like DACA. But the U.S. Solicitor General remained firm in his stance that the decision to end DACA remains with the government.
The November hearing
Every case has its own peculiarity.
While some want to cut the program, others want to extend it. On November 12 of last year, the United States Supreme Court heard oral arguments on three cases on DACA. Arguments were heard in a packed room for roughly 80 minutes on cases from California, the District of Columbia, and New York, with representatives arguing that Trump’s decision to end DACA “violated the Administrative Procedure Act.”
The way a DACA beneficiary entered the country will definite the paperwork it must fill out, that is, if said person entered with a visa or without one, and they can apply for some changes to their legal status that the ILC will help them solve, said Steele.
U.S. Solicitor General Noel Francisco asked the argued for the government, arguing to the Justices to stay out of the fray because the government’s decision was not a matter subject to judicial review.
Those who entered with a visa and got married to a U.S. citizen won’t need to leave the country, which is not the same for those who entered without a visa. This last example was the case of Luceli Pacheco, from Mexico, who, in an interview with El Perico, said she had arrived in the country when she was
four years old. “I was brought here by my parents and have been here ever since. We first were in California, but when I was around eight years old, we moved to Nebraska, and have lived here ever since,” said the now 30-year-old Dreamer. Before DACA, Pacheco was studying to obtain her Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design and Communication Studies. However, she didn’t have a work permit to practice her profession. When the program was announced, she didn’t think twice and applied, and she’s had a work permit ever since, which she has renewed every two years by paying a $500 renewal fee. And just like her, there are around 700,000 Dreamers who are also hard-working, waiting for the decisions that Donald Trump’s administration will take. We must not forget that these Dreamers have contributed to the country’s economy by being part of its workforce. A new day will soon be upon us.
Theodore Olson, who argued on behalf of DACA recipients and civil rights groups, told the Justices that they should start with a “strong presumption” that a federal agency’s actions are reviewable. But the Justices refuted by asking Olson under which criteria he made that suggestion. Meanwhile, “Olson and Michael Mongan, California’s Solicitor General, agreed that the case should be sent back. Olson emphasized that the Trump administration was required to provide an ‘accurate, reasoned, rational, and legally sound explanation’ for its decision to end DACA but ‘utterly failed to do so’ because it did not want to take responsibility for the decision, preferring to blame it on Congress and the courts,” published the Scoutusblog.
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The discussion centered on legality and illegality, if it should or should not be sent back, but what was made clear at Court
ARTICULO DESTACADO // FEATURE ARTICLE
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EL DESTINO DE LOS DREAMERS está en juego bajo la incertidumbre de la decisión sobre DACA POR KARLHA VEL ASQUEZ RIVAS
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l tema sobre la Acción Diferida para los llegados en la Infancia (DACA) está puesta sobre la mesa. La Corte Suprema tiene el poder de erradicar o continuar con el programa que ha beneficiado con oportunidad de empleo a más de 800.000 inmigrantes desde su creación en 2012. El sentimiento de incertidumbre se siente y abogados y Dreamers están a la expectativas sobre los posibles escenarios. Desde que la administración del presidente Donald Trump anunció en 2017 la terminación de DACA, las protestas y especulaciones sobre el destinos de los Dreamers se presentaban en los medios. Trump había dicho que se trataba de un programa ilegal.
de permisos de trabajo sin ninguna vía de ajuste de estatus legal. Y por último, la decisión prometedora de que los Dreamers pasen a ser residentes en aras de conseguir la ciudadanía.
¿Qué es DACA? El programa DACA permite que los inmigrantes no autorizados que llegaron a los EE. UU. Antes de los 16 años (llamados Dreamers o
tiene la opción de estatus legal en el país, es como estar en el limbo. En una entrevista realizada en noviembre de 2019 a la abogada Alexis Steele, del Centro Legal para Inmigrantes (ILC), quien lleva estudiando los casos de los Dreamers en Omaha, piensa que de ser erradicado el programa devastaría por completo a la comunidad. “perderían sus permisos de trabajo. Pero esto no se haría de inmediato, estarían vigentes hasta que expiren”, dijo.
Para ese entonces, un estudio de opinión realizado por Morning Consult and Politico en abril 2017 encontró “que 78% de los votantes estadounidenses apoyaban dar a los Dreamers posibilidad de permanecer permanentemente en Estados Unidos, incluido el 73% de los votantes de Trump”. Ahora bien, también se veía cumplida la promesa de Trump de erradicarla sin llegar a ninguna otra solución para los que han crecido en este país. En el supuesto negado de que pase, esto le costaría a Nebraska más de $150,2 millones de pérdidas anuales del Producto Interno Bruto (PIB), y para el país $460,3 billones. Sumado a la pérdida de miles de permiso de trabajo y en consecuencia a masivas deportaciones. Pero también se podría presentar la extensión de Daca - quizás ahora por las razones de la pandemia - y llegar a una renovación constante
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algunos no pudieron inscribirse en el programa en el tiempo en que Trump decidió cortar con las nuevas solicitudes en 2017. Para ese entonces se conoció que aproximadamente 800.000 jóvenes aplicaron al programa y habían sido aprobados pero el Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de los Estados Unidos (USCIS) registró 689.800 activos. De acuerdo con las estadísticas recientes (noviembre 2017) del USCIS Nebraska tiene ahora 3.070 Dreamers activos de los cuales 1.500 se ubican entre Omaha y Council Bluffs. Y hay activos en todo el país 688.860 soñadores. Lo que quiere decir que ha habido una baja debido a que algunos han ajustado de alguna manera su estatus migratorio o simplemente no han renovado su protección.
Programa nada nuevo
soñadores) la oportunidad de permanecer en el país bajo ciertas condiciones como estudiar en una escuela del país y no tener récords criminales. Las personas que cumplan con los requisitos para se les piden podrán tener un permiso de trabajo y una protección de deportación por dos años, beneficio que debe ser renovado terminado ese periodo. De ahí, nada más, el programa no es un puente ni
ARTICULO DESTACADO // FEATURE ARTICLE
Ante este hipotético escenario espera que se cree un nuevo camino para darle un estatus a quienes por años han visto este país como suyo, y no conocen a otro. “Las personas que tienen Daca es porque no tienen otra alternativa para poder quedarse en el país y formarse. Nadie quería escoger Daca, pero era la única opción”, señala la jurista. Explicó que no todos los Dreamers están dentro del programa Daca por lo que
La abogada Steel explicó que DACA no es un programa nuevo, ya que desde hace años se viene llevando a cabo esta práctica de ubicar a los inmigrantes indocumentados en un estatus de limbo. “Cuando una persona indocumentada viviendo en el país es víctima de algún crimen puede aplicar para una visa T o visa U, pero estas son limitadas por año. Entonces cuando no se sabe dónde ubicar a esta persona o no hay tiempo para buscarle un estatus, entonces dispone de la acción diferida para que no sean removidos ni deportados del país”, comentó. La Acción Diferida existe desde 1975. Bajo esta rama
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legal de la ley de inmigración el presidente Ronald Reegan había creado en 1987 el programa de Equidad Familiar (Family Fairness) el cual fue extendida bajo la administración de George Bush padre en 1990. La idea del programa era “no separar a las familias de inmigrantes elegibles” por la reforma migratoria (IRCA) de 1986.
seguro de salud y licencia de conducir, además de no ser deportados y la posibilidad por aplicar a un número de seguridad social, que tampoco estaba garantizado. Esto siempre y cuando cumplan con los requisitos establecidos y principalmente no tener récord criminal. Programa que no proporciona un camino a la ciudadanía para los destinatarios.
En ese año, el inmigrante que había estado en el país de forma consecutiva desde el primero de enero de 1982, es decir por cuatro años sin haber salido del territorio estadounidense, podía ser elegible para tener una residencia. Sin embargo, tenía que escoger a un solo miembro de la familia, cónyuge o hijo, bajo ciertas condiciones para que pueda estar en EE.UU. y posiblemente bajo un estatus de “wait-in-line” (en cola), y no libraba de una deportación.
Finalmente, también bajo la administración de Obama se anunció el 20 de noviembre de 2014 el Programa de Acción Diferida para Padres de Estadounidenses (DAPA) comparado con el Family Fairness. En esa oportunidad se protegía de la deportación a los inmigrantes que fueran padres de ciudadanos estadounidenses o residentes legales, y que hayan estado en el país de forma consecutiva desde 2010.
Esta paradoja ocasionó ruido y discusiones en donde la iglesia católica y grupos hispanos intervinieron alegando que 30% de los 3 millones que aplicaron para unir a sus familias iban a ser separados de estas por las condiciones antes mencionadas.
El programa se quedó en el viento pues no entró en vigor. Y en 2017 la administración de Trump decidió removerlo de la lista de prioridades que pudo haber resuelto la situación de padres indocumentados en el país.
El 15 de junio de 2012, Obama anunció DACA en una alocución desde la Casa Blanca, dijo: “para estar claros, este no es una amnistía, no es una inmunidad, esto no es un paso para la ciudadanía, no es una solución permanente, es solo una medida provisional temporal, que nos permite estar enfocados en recursos que nos da un poco de alivio que da esperanza a los talentosos, luchadores y los jóvenes patriotas (…) esto es lo que debemos hacer porque es algo temporal”, publicó The Washington Post.
La administración de Trump alegó que se trataba de una “amnistía clandestina” y denunciaron que Obama sobrepasó su autoridad al proteger a un tipo específico de inmigrantes que vive ilegalmente en el país, refiere aldíadallas.
Este programa, bajo el amparo de la Ley Dream, permite que algunas personas con presencia de indocumentados, que hayan sido traídas al país desde 2007 siendo menores de 16 años y estén viviendo en el territorio estadounidense desde entonces, puedan tener un permiso de trabajo,
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La querella de noviembre Mientras uno quiere cortarlo otros quieren extenderlo. El 12 de noviembre del año pasado la corte suprema de Estados Unidos escuchó los argumentos orales sobre tres casos consolidados de DACA. En una sala repleta se debatieron juntos por aproximadamente 80 minutos los sumarios archivados en California, el Distrito de Columbia y Nueva York, cuyos representantes alegaron que la decisión de Trump de terminar DACA, se
“violó la Ley de Procedimiento Administrativo”. La querella fue presentada por el Procurador General de los Estados Unidos, Noel Francisco, instó a los jueces a mantenerse al margen de las discusiones porque se trataba de un asunto del Gobierno Federal y no de los tribunales. Por su parte Theodore Olson, quien argumentó en nombre de los beneficiarios de DACA y los grupos de derechos civiles, les dijo a los jueces que deberían comenzar con una “fuerte presunción” de que las acciones de una agencia federal son revisables. Pero los jueces le refutaron preguntándole a Olson bajo qué criterios hace tal sugerencia. Entretanto, “Olson y Michael Mongan, el procurador general de California, acordaron que el caso debería ser devuelto. Olson enfatizó que la administración Trump debía proporcionar una ‘explicación precisa, razonada, racional y legalmente sólida” para su decisión de terminar con DACA, pero “no lo hizo por completo’ porque no quería asumir la responsabilidad de la decisión, prefiriendo echarle la culpa al Congreso y a los tribunales”, publicó el portal Scoutusblog. En resumen se discutió sobre la legalidad e ilegalidad, si debe devolverse o no, pero lo que sí quedó claro fue que Tribunal fue contundente al manifestar que no le gustaba Daca. Pero los defensores mantienen firme su palabra de que la decisión final la tiene el Gobierno.
Cada caso tiene su particularidad La manera en el que el beneficiado de DACA haya entrado al país definirá el papeleo que debe llenar a la hora de ajustar su estatus, esto
quiere decir que si entró con visa o sin ella pueden aplicar ciertos cambios y formularios que en el ILC podrán resolver, explica también Steele. Los que hayan entrado con visa y hayan contraído matrimonio con ciudadanos estadounidenses no tendrán necesidad de salir del país, caso contrario para los que entraron sin visa.
Este último ejemplo fue el caso de Luceli Pacheco, procedente de México, quien en una entrevista para El Perico, contó que había llegado al país a la edad de 4 años. “Me trajeron mis padres y desde entonces he estado aquí. Primero estuvimos en California y luego cuando tuve 8 años nos mudamos a Nebraska, y he vivido desde entonces”, dijo la ahora Dreamer de 30 años. Antes del DACA, Pacheco solo estudiaba hasta conseguir su título de licenciada en diseño gráfico y comunicación. Sin embargo, no tenía permiso de trabajo para ejercer su profesión. Cuando se anunció el programa la joven no lo pensó dos veces para aplicar y ahora tiene su permiso de trabajo desde entonces, el cual ha ido renovando cada dos años, pagando casi $500 por renovarlo. Así como ella, unos 700.000 dreamers, a los cuales también son luchadores, están a la expectativa de las decisiones que se tomen en la administración de Donald Trump. Y lo que no se debe olvidar es que desde ese limbo esos luchadores también han contribuido a la economía y emprendimiento del país, al ser parte de la fuerza laboral. Amanecerá y veremos.
ARTICULO DESTACADO // FEATURE ARTICLE
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CRISIS A PUERTAS CERRADAS: Cómo la pandemia ha impactado la salud mental de niñas y niños y lo que podría significar para nuestro futuro POR CHRIS BOWLING
Odio el coronavirus. No hay otra forma de definir en este momento el sentimiento del país y del mundo entero. Sin embargo, es algo que rara vez se menciona de forma tan directa. Pero eso es exactamente lo que Bonnie Sarton Mierau escucha durante las sesiones semanales de orientación con niñas y niños en el Attachment and Trauma Center of Nebraska en el Oeste de Omaha. Lo dicen, lloran por ello, se quejan de ello. “Odio el coronavirus”. “El verano va a apestar”. “Extraño a mis amigos”. Mientras que el país lucha con la implosión económica y la interrupción de las actividades sociales, las llamadas a servicios como la línea de ayuda para Servicios de Salud Mental y Abuso de
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Substancias han incrementado considerablemente, esto según un reporte de NPR, lo cual ha llevado a que muchos oficiales se preocupen por cómo un ya golpeado sistema de cuidados en salud mental podrá hacer frente al aumento de necesidades ocasionado por la pandemia, cuya severidad no puede predecirse. Aunque todos sienten una presión adicional por el coronavirus, los oficiales en salud mental dicen que los niños, en especial de aquellos en hogares inestables o ya con problemas de salud mental, podrían estar bajo un mayor riesgo. “Considero que todavía no sabemos qué va a pasar”, dijo Sarton Mierau. “Me preocupa que habrá una mayor necesidad de la que podemos cubrir, por lo que debemos encontrar otras formas de ayudarnos unos a otros”. Al no poder ver a sus amigos, ir a la escuela o participar en actividades normales durante el
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verano, las redes de protección, rutinas y expectativas para muchos niños fueron removidas, aislando a los niños en sus casas en donde las crisis mentales pueden pasar inadvertidas. A nivel nacional, por primera vez, durante abril los menores realizaron más de la mitad de las llamadas a línea nacional de ayuda por agresión sexual, ello de conformidad con lo informado por la Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN). NBC News reportó que las instancias de pornografía infantil marcada llegó a ser más del doble en marzo en comparación con la misma época durante el año anterior. A nivel local, el Departamento de Policía de Omaha atendió a 18% menos reporte de maltrato infantil y abandono en marzo después de que se establecieron medidas de salud directas en comparación con el mismo periodo de 2019, de conformidad con los datos sobre crímenes del departamento.
Esa brecha ha disminuido desde entonces a solamente un 5%, pero los oficiales comentan que consideran que hay más casos pues las familias se enfrentan a un mayor estrés financiero, así como a otros tipos de estrés. Además, no están recibiendo las referencias que usualmente llegan de las escuelas. “Si las cosas no cambian y permanecemos en este alto nivel de distanciamiento social, yo considero que habrá más abuso y abandono”, dijo Gene Klein, Director Ejecutivo de Project Harmony, quien auxilia a los niños abusados y abandonados en el área metropolitana. “Los niños no siempre obtienen lo que necesitan si el nivel de estrés familiar continúa siendo alto. Veremos más lesiones y casos como este”. Algunas organizaciones, tales como el Charles Drew Health Center en el Norte de Omaha, comentan que están lanzando más anuncios, mientras que
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los representantes de la oficina de Boys Town en el Sur de Omaha comentan que han visitado bancos de alimentos para entregar información directamente a las familias en necesidad. Pero todavía hay mucho por hacer. “Es una situación aterradora, pues quieres asegurarte de que todos los niños estén seguros y que puedan ir a la guardería o a la escuela o al YMCA si no tienen un adulto que les esté cuidando”, dijo Regina Costello, Directora de Servicios de Apoyo Comunitario en Boys Town en la oficina del Sur de Omaha. “Lo mejor que podemos hacer es estar al tanto de los niños con los que estamos trabajando”, nos dijo. “Es una situación muy difícil”. El miedo de aquello a lo que puede llevar esto – un peor desempeño en la escuela y más problemas de salud del comportamiento – aplica al doble para las áreas en las que los recursos ya eran escasos y en las que más familias luchan contra la pobreza. Son las mismas áreas en las que las minorías están siendo contagiadas por el virus a tasas desproporcionadas, en algunos casos muchas veces más altas que su parte de la población. Pero Larry Duncan, Director de Servicios de Salud del Comportamiento en Charles Drew, no considerar que la pandemia cambie su enfoque. El trauma de la pobreza y la discriminación histórica es algo que ha afectado al Norte de Omaha por décadas. Una pandemia es solamente una capa más. Las herramientas que usará son simples y de eficacia probada: Lo más importante es mostrar un interés en la vida de un niño cercano a usted y mantenerle conectado con su comunidad. “Nuestro enfoque en el campo de la salud mental es identificar cuáles son esos factores de resiliencia y promoverlos de forma constante”, dijo Duncan. “Pues eso no va a cambiar en base a la situación actual. El
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problema es un problema sin importar qué es”.
Lo que no vemos
trabaja con las fuerzas del orden público para responder a algunos de los casos más desesperados, espera que los meses del verano y la reapertura comience a revelar qué ha estado pasando tras puertas cerradas, pero hasta ahora los miembros del equipo de trabajo no saben que está pasando.
Sin niños en las escuelas, guarderías, grupos de jóvenes o en alguna otra área comunitaria, es difícil poder apreciar los “Todo ha sido pausado para efectos de la pandemia sobre muchos de nosotros”, dijo Klein. los niños. Organizaciones “Y estamos preocupados sobe como Project Harmony, que cualquier retraso que podamos
tener en la pelea contra el abandono y en brindar a los niños acceso a cuidados de salud mental”. Es una realidad, intensificada por el hecho de que los habitantes de Nebraska de todas las edades han sufrido para tener acceso a cuidados de salud mental en el Estado. En el 2016, la tasa per cápita de psiquiatras en Nebraska era de nueve por cada 100,000 personas en comparación con continuada en la página 7 y
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alrededor de 15 para la misma población a nivel nacional. Para el 2030, el Departamento de Salud y Servicios Humanos de los EE.UU. estima que la demanda para los servicios superará la oferta de la mayoría de los proveedores. La presión se siente a mayor nivel en las áreas rurales de Nebraska en donde la tasa del número de psiquiatras es menor a una quinta parte del promedio nacional en el 2016 en el que muchos condados ni siquiera cuentan con proveedores. Las tasas todavía están por debajo del promedio en ciudades como Omaha y Lincoln, aunado a problemas adicionales, incluyendo la representación de la diversidad. Aunado a un aumento en la ansiedad y depresión en los niños durante los últimos años, los problemas que surgen de la pandemia probablemente afectarán al ya insuficiente sistema de cuidados en salud mental, dijo Howard Liu, presidente de psiquiatría en el University of Nebraska Medical Center. “No era suficiente antes y no creo que vaya a ser suficiente después”, nos dijo. Durante la última década, la solución a estos problemas ha sido la colaboración entre las organizaciones de salud mental, las escuelas, el gobierno local y un gran grupo de socios. Estos esfuerzos fueron liderados en gran parte por el Behavioral Health Education Center of Nebraska (BHECN), fundado en el 2009. Del 2010 al 2018, el Estado agregó a más de 300 personas a su fuerza laboral en salud mental. También ha habido un incremento en el personal en salud mental en
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las escuelas, además de una capacitación más a fondo para maestros y miembros de la comunidad sobre cómo identificar y responder a un niño que está experimentando problemas de salud mental. Últimamente el reto más grande ha sido comprender cómo la pandemia está afectando a los niños. En
base a lo que ha observado y escuchado, Liu comentó que puede separar las cosas en tres categorías. Los niños que ya estaban en crisis o enfrentándose a la pobreza, a malas relaciones con sus padres o a otros problemas, podrían estar cayendo en una crisis aún más profunda. Los niños que tienen vidas estables en el hogar y padres que participan con ellos probablemente están mejor. Y luego tenemos a niños que varían de día a día, con momentos en los que algunas cosas, como no ver a sus amigos o no saber si podrán ir a la escuela en el otoño, puede parecer trivial unos días y ser catastrófico en otros días. Predecir cómo progresará eso en el futuro depende en gran parte sobre si regresan las rutinas normales, en especial las escuelas. Muchos distritos podrían abrir en los días agendados, dijo Matt Blomstedt, Comisionado de Educación en Nebraska, a principios de mes. Pero otros, tales como Omaha Public Schools, han aludido
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a planes para clases virtuales este otoño, comprando más laptops y tablets para que los niños las usen en casa. El Estado también lanzó Launch Nebraska, un recurso en línea para ayudar con el aprendizaje en casa y brindar a las escuelas procedimientos y pautas para reabrir. Mientras más largo sea el periodo en que los niños no están en la escuela y en sus rutinas normales, más se preocupan algunos sobre los efectos del constante estrés y la ansiedad. Después de los desastres naturales, ataques terroristas y otros eventos tr aumatizantes, los profesionales actúan para ayudar a la comunidad a hacer frente a todo antes de que las emociones se conviertan en memorias traumáticas. La diferencia con la pandemia es que está en todos lados y ha estado pasando por meses. Eso preocupa a Sarton Mierau, pues podría ser demasiado tarde para que muchos actúen ante lo que podrían ser efectos traumáticos. “No sé cómo implementar eso en esta situación, pues no ha acabado”, nos dijo. “El 9/11, después de unas semanas sabíamos que había terminado. Esto es diferente. Es algo continuo, pero debe haber una forma que sea similar”. Amy Mart, Directora de Aprendizaje Profesional en el Buffett Early Childhood Institute, ve la pandemia de forma diferente. Está afectando a adultos y niños en formas menos severas que otros eventos traumáticos, tales como la violencia crónica o los desastres naturales. Pero sus efectos serán prolongados y requerirán que los oficiales se enfoquen en la salud mental
de una forma más paciente y dedicado. “Este es un maratón, no una carrera corta”, dijo Mart. Podría haber algunos efectos positivos. Aunque estamos haciendo malabares con más responsabilidades, algunas relaciones de familia podrían estar fortaleciéndose con el tiempo adicional en casa. Sarton Mierau dijo que muchos de sus clientes jóvenes están mejorando gracias al aumento en atención que están recibiendo ahora. El cambio a telesalud ha sido también ha sido más sencillo de lo esperado para muchos proveedores. En Charles Drew, el personal de Duncan apreció una pequeña caída tras la transición a más telemedicina. Nos dijo que pasaron de 950 visitas en febrero a 650 visitas en marzo. Sin embargo, eso aumento a alrededor de 800 para abril y espera que continúe aumentando al regresar las personas por ayuda o que lleguen nuevas llamadas para establecer servicios. Para Duncan, los retos que trae la pandemia son marginales en comparación con las necesidades en el Norte de Omaha. El centro de salud federalmente calificado, uno de dos en Omaha, junto con OneWorld en el Sur de Omaha, que recibió fondos del gobierno para brindar cuidado a las comunidades desatendidas, tiene una base de pacientes de la cual casi un 77% estaba en pobreza y más de la mitad no tenía cobertura médica en el 2018. El no tener que comer y el desempleo son cosas que están hoy en día en los titulares, pero es algo que ha sido típico aquí durante décadas. Esto es reforzado por el trauma histórico, dijo Duncan, la desesperanza aunada a años de racismo, exclusión y violencia que secuestró a muchos afroamericanos en el Norte de Omaha sin opciones viables para buscar un empleo, un ascenso social o representación ciudadana.
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Esta comunidad siempre ha sufrido. No hay razón alguna para comenzar a cambiar las tácticas ahora. “No necesitamos de una pandemia para comenzar a hacer las cosas”, dijo Duncan. “Esa es una población diferente. No es esta población. Esta población ya tiene grandes necesidades”.
El camino por delante Durante la última década, la salud mental en Nebraska ha tenido grandes mejoras, una mayor concienciación y, en algunos casos, mayor disponibilidad de servicios de salud mental, además de una conectividad entre proveedores y los lugares en que se reúne la comunidad, tales como las escuelas. Pero todavía hay una difícil batalla por delante.
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“No creo que nadie piense que toda la demanda ha sido cumplida”, dijo Mart. “Creo que especialmente en este contexto actual, ciertamente hay más necesidad de la que se puede servir”. Charles Drew ha establecido clínicas dentro de cuatro escuelas en las que cualquier estudiante o sus hermanas o hermanos puede recibir tratamiento para todo, desde un dolor de garganta hasta una crisis de salud mental. En noviembre, la instalación también firmó un contrato para continuar brindando tratamiento de salud mental a los chicos detenidos en el Douglas County Youth Center después de un programa piloto por una alianza entre Charles Drew, Creighton University, CHI Health y UNMC. “Nuestra meta ya es estar disponibles y brindar un servicio”, dijo Duncan. En Project Harmony, su programa Connections tiene
80 alianzas en la comunidad a través de escuelas y trabajadores médicos que conectan a los niños con el cuidado de salud mental que necesitan”. La capacitación también es un factor importante para preparase para lo que vendrá después de la pandemia. Cada año, Project Harmony lleva a cabo 400 talleres y seminarios de capacitación para ayudar a los educadores y miembros de la comunidad a poder detectar el abuso de niños y ahora están trabajando en línea. Klein no estaba seguro de qué tan dispuestas estarían las personas a tomar los cursos en línea, pero hasta ahora los números han sido uniformes con 700 personas usando la capacitación en abril. En el Buffett Childhood Institute, Mart dijo que la capacitación en la que están trabajando para maestros ayudará a incrementar el enfoque en la salud mental y
en educar a los niños que se enfrentan a la pobreza. “Así como estamos apreciando un aumento en el desempleo”, comenta Mart, “veremos más retos económicos. Habrá escuelas que tendrán que trabajar más a fondo sobre esto de lo que lo han hecho en el pasado”. Además de contactar con maestros, estos tipos de seminarios de capacitación llegan a socios en la comunidad, tales como Costello y su personal en la oficina de Boys Town en el Sur de Omaha. Costello dijo que están usando estas oportunidades de aprendizaje ahora que su carga de casos se ha reducido un poco para poder prepararse para lo que llegará en unos cuantos meses. Esa disposición para prepararse para los problemas fue algo en que coincidieron todos los que planeaban asistir a la School Mental continuada en la página 9 y
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Health Summit anual, dijo Dan Schnoes, Director Ejecutivo en Educational Service Unit #3, una de las muchas agencias estatales que supervisan y apoyan las metas a largo plazo de diversas escuelas en el distrito en una región en particular. La conferencia, iniciada por BHECN en el 2017, conecta a los educadores y profesionales en salud mental del Estado para que compartan ideas. Schnoes, quien es coanfitrión de la conferencia este año con la Kim Foundation, mencionó que los organizadores consideraron cancelar el evento. Pero quienes se registraron dijeron que lo necesitaban ahora más que nunca. “Escuchamos un gran sí”, comenta, “para que el evento siguiera en pie”. Hasta ahora más de 400 personas se han registrado para el evento virtual, el cual contará con tres conferencistas y 35 paneles. Eso es menor a lo que esperaba antes de la pandemia, pero considerando la situación actual, es una buena señal.
de leer las noticias, respirar profundamente, salir y enfocarse en lo que pueden controlar. “Lo que niñas y niños necesitan para estar bien es ver que sus figuras de apego, sus padres, sus proveedores de cuidados, están bien”, nos comenta. “Y cuando están bien, entonces los pequeños pueden enfrentar las cosas”. Si usted es un adulto, tal vez un vecino, miembro de familia, entrenador o maestro, que ha forjado una relación con un niño que le preocupa, vea como está. “Eso es todo lo que se necesita”, dijo Klein, “tener un adulto de confianza en quien puedan apoyarse y su resistencia a un evento traumático como este es muy poderoso”. Y si usted es un padre o un modelo a seguir, es importante saber cómo hablar sobre la pandemia. Sarton Mierau menciona a sus clientes que hay que ser honestos, pero enforcarse en lo que sabe y limitar cuánta información les
Pero a pesar de toda la capacitación y colaboración que pueden llegar a cabo, los oficiales comentan que la mejor forma de reducir los problemas de salud mental está en las personas adultas que rodean a las personas impactadas. Sarton Mierau dijo que lo más importante que puede hacer un padre o madre es cuidar su propia salud mental para que no pasen el estrés a sus hijos o no correr el riesgo de crear un entorno de vida poco sano. Eso significa que las personas deben de pedir ayuda cuando lo necesitan, dejar
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da. Los niños más pequeños están en una etapa de desarrollo del cerebro en la que es más difícil compartimentar la información y separar los hechos de las opiniones o los peligros inmediatos de los hipotéticos, nos dijo. Lo más importante es saber que hay ayuda disponible para todo el que la necesite. Muchos proveedores de cobertura médica han suspendido las cuotas para servicios de telemedicina durante la pandemia e incluso quienes no cuentan con seguro médico pueden trabajar con instalaciones como Charles Drew o OneWorld, que ofrecen opciones de escala de pagos que redondean los costos para poder llegar a su nivel de ingresos. Para quienes necesitan de ayuda inmediata, existen líneas de ayuda locales, estatales y nacionales a las que pueden llamar para hablar sobre lo que está pasando y para ser conectados con recursos disponibles. Línea de Ayuda por Abuso/ Abandono Infantil - (800) 6521999 Línea de Ayuda Nacional para la Prevención del Suicidio - (800) 273-TALK / (800) 273-8255 Línea de Ayuda Familiar de Nebraska - (888) 866-8660 Línea de Ayuda Nacional por Abuso Sexual 800-656-4673 *** Los efectos a largo plazo de esta pandemia sobre los niños y sus futuros son impredecibles. Pero los expertos con quienes hablamos
esperan que esta crisis resalte la importancia de invertir dinero y atención en el tratar la salud mental. Esperan que algún tipo de rutina y normalidad regrese a la vida de los niños este verano y otoño. Pero llegar ahí requerirá de acciones individuales. Tomar precauciones como usar una mascarilla, lavarse las manos y evitar las grandes aglomeraciones de personas será vital mientras el clima se vuelve más cálido y el Estado vuelva a abrir las diversas facetas de la vida pública. Pero cuidar nuestra salud mental debe ser igual de importante. Contactar a alguien y preguntar “¿Cómo estás?”. Cuidarse a sí mismo. Estar al pendiente de los demás, en especial de los niños, que pueden estar teniendo problemas con esto. Sarton Mierau espera que eso pueda pasar, pero se pregunta qué tan bien podemos construir estas conexiones cuando incluso la pandemia ha sido politizada. “Esto en verdad es sobre enfocarse más en: ¿cómo puedo ayudar a que las personas aprendan a cuidarse los unos de los otros?”, nos dijo. “Y no se si ahora esa es una posibilidad”. Otros son optimistas, pensando que esta experiencia compartida nos unirá. Klein dijo que es alentador ver que los profesionales en salud mental se unan. Están tomando talleres de capacitación, asistiendo a conferencias, haciendo preguntas y participando. De alguna forma, es predecible que una industria que siempre ha confiado en la tenacidad y el ingenio trabaje sorbe el problema para el que nunca han podido contar con suficientes personas para poder resolverlo. “Mantenemos la esperanza de que podremos superar esto”, comenta Klein, “y que nuestra comunidad podrá resistir y que bajos a recordar este periodo y nunca olvidarlo, pero eso no nos va a definir de ninguna forma”.
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FOTOS COMUNITARIAS
COMMUNITY PHOTOS
ELITE STUDIO PHOTOGRAPHY
JOSEFINA SÁNCHEZ, bailarina y danzante regional en Omaha, celebra un año más de vida esperando que pronto retomen presentaciones, controlándose el COVID-19.
ANDREA SKOLKIN, Directora Ejecutiva de One World, agradece a los donadores que hicieron posible recaudar más de $70,000 durante el evento Omaha Gives!
SAMANTHA y SAHIL MULLICK celebran la dicha de estar embarazados de su primogénito. En hora buena.
BCYCLE presentó falla en 17 estaciones debido a un problema de software. El Perico le sugiere revisar la aplicación BCYCLE antes de viajar.
Para ayudar a limitar la propagación de COVID-19, Metro continúa pidiendo a los pasajeros que aborden desde las puertas traseras y usen una máscara médica o de tela para cubrirse la boca y la nariz.
El torneo de béisbol COLLEGE WORLD SERIES reafirma que la cancelación de los juegos es definitiva. Aun que se llegue a levantar las restricciones en este mes de junio, la temporada reanudará hasta el 2021.
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MUD sigue trabajando para beneficiar a más de 232,000 clientes/ propietarios de la región, asegurando calidad en el agua que se consume.
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COMMUNITY PHOTOS
ELITE STUDIO PHOTOGRAPHY Supermercado nuestra familia, en sus tres tiendas, según el grupo de negocios locales para pedir a la comunidad latina que mantengan las normas de seguridad establecidas para controlar el COVID-19.
LEAH MORENO, directora de la Academia de Danza de Nebraska, celebra su primer aniversario de bodas con MILTON SHNEIDER, agente inmobiliario.
RAFAEL FRANCO, presidente y fundador del torneo de futbol Liga Latina, analiza la posibilidad de torneos relámpagos, para compensar la cancelación de la temporada 2020, por COVID-19.
La ciudad de Omaha mantiene a marchas forzadas la reparación de calles y banquetas, previendo la próxima temporada invernal.
Club Pura Vida sigue con puertas cerradas y transmitiendo sus clases en línea, al igual que muchos de los negocios deportivos de la región.
RITA RODRÍGUEZ y GONZALO RAMÍREZ comparten la dicha del próximo nacimiento de su segundo hijo, al cual llamarán BASTIAN.
KARLA ÁLVAREZ, agente de bienes inmuebles para Better Homes, tiene buenos augurios en el negocio inmobiliario, pese al coronavirus, motivando a tener casa propia, en lugar de seguir pagando renta.
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From clothing to masks: Latina seamstresses join the fight and make masks for CHI Health BY KARLHA VEL ASQUEZ RIVAS
T
he pandemic has brought many issues. While some can’t work, others have found a way to earn a living during the crisis that rushed in like an avalanche… and are making masks.
“One of the most important and encouraging things about the project is that a company and a private health entity searched for a way to collaborate directly with the community, and it’s thanks to this that many women were able to get back to work,” said Velez over email.
Facemasks have become one of the ways to avoid the spread of the novel Covid-19 virus, which is why many companies have changed their focus to making masks.
During the quarantine, Diaz, along with two other women, had made facemasks to donate them to the Fashion Institute Midwest, but this is certainly a bigger challenge. Because of this, four women started to work again at Yolanda’s workshop to set things into motion.
After nine years of making clothes for girls that are sold online by way of her Little Miss Fashion company, Yolanda Díaz is now making facemasks that are distributed by CHI Health. The initiative didn’t just materialize out of thin air, since Bergman Incentives (who is in charge of creating Point of Purchase – POP – material to promote companies) had a megaproject to offer 100,000 facemasks to CHI Health, one of its clients, which is why it got in touch with the Latino Center of the Midlands to find a microcompany with expertise in fabric cutting and sewing operations. Silvia Velez, Operations Manager for the Latino Center of the Midlands (LC M), got in touch with Diaz to set up the deal. Since sales for Little Miss Fashion had come to
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The gears
a complete halt due to the measures set in place to reduce the spread of COVID-18, Diaz didn’t think twice and jumped at the opportunity of making 75,000 facemasks, sealing the deal with Bergman Incentives (BI) and LCM.
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All of the canvas material is delivered by BI to the LCM, who then delivers it to Diaz’s company. Once the product has been completed, LCM picks it up and delivers it to BI. The deal established that Yolanda would provide the labor and the thread. “I order the thread from Los Angeles. I had enough thread in stock, so using it for this project was not an issue,” said Diaz to El Perico over the phone. On May 1st, the LCM delivered the first batch of
materials for the two facemask models and patterns. There are two types of facemasks: ones with pleats, and the duck one – yes, that’s the name of the model! What needs to be done now is cutting, folding, matching, and sewing the facemasks. Each facemask also has the CHI Health logo, which is carefully embroidered with the skill and expertise of professional seamstresses. “The shape of each facemask is already set with its embroidery. What we do is cut around the pattern and make sure that the pleats match. We get the canvas to work on them, and sew along the right pattern,” she added.
A new job We must remember that during April, over 16,000 unemployment claims were made in Nebraska, and many of the people who did not have a job tried to find work in other companies and search for new options. Yolanda’s company is one of them. With four women hard at work on the sewing, deliveries were being made on time, but it wouldn’t be enough to reach the goal of 75,000 facemasks as quickly and efficiently as possible. Several women that lost their jobs during the quarantine that worked at restaurants or cleaning hotels - or who could not make ends meet from the
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¿Tiene pay of their other jobs – joined the project after being invited by Diaz to bring their sewing expertise to the table. Thanks to this, the project now has ten women working every day non-stop to deliver as many facemasks as possible, all while being paid for their hard work. Diaz has flexible work hours for them since they also have to take care of their homes and allows them to carry on working from home to speed things up here and there. “I know many of them have kids or are taking care of someone else. For them, it’s very easy to take some of the workload home and continue to be productive. I’m happy with the result because they have taken on this project and helped to make all deliveries on time, despite some setbacks along the way,” said Díaz. Not everyone earns the same pay because those that complete more facemasks earn more money. It all comes down to their equipment. “Some can make at least 300 facemasks a day, but others can make up to 500. This is because some of them have regular sewing machines, while others have industrial sewing machines,” said Diaz. This healthy competition has led some to dream about owning an industrial sewing machine. “I support their dream. It’s not easy, but it can be done. Many of them are working hard to get there,” she said.
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Searching online to learn more about the cost of this equipment, you can find a wide range of products, from inexpensive pocket sewing kits for $3 to larger modes at roughly $160. On the other hand, industrial sewing machines go for at least $700.
On their way to 12 mil Facemasks are not available to the public since they’re destined for the healthcare sector and supermarkets, as explained by way of email by BI’s President Mike Battershell. “There are many distribution points for these facemasks, but they’re not up for sale,” he said. At the time of going to press, Diaz mentioned that 12,000 facemasks had been completed and delivered and that the whole distribution and payments chain has worked out as stated in the contract. “We haven’t had a single delay and have come through,” said the entrepreneur and seamstress with great satisfaction. Along with making facemasks, and working on her company’s growth, she also makes blankets and other products for many companies, on top of the dresses for girls that can be bought online. She hasn’t been asked to make medical gowns, but “if they asked us to, we’d be ready. What we want to do is continue to work,” she added.
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ARTICULO DESTACADO // FEATURE ARTICLE
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El giro 180, de la ropa a las máscaras: Costureras latinas se suman a la fabricación de máscaras para CHI Health POR KARLHA VEL ASQUEZ RIVAS
E
l tema de la pandemia ha traído muchas controversias. Mientras algunos están de paro, otros se las han ingeniado para sobrevivir ante la crisis que llegó como una avalancha, y es haciendo máscaras. El uso del cubreboca ha sido uno de los requisitos para evitar la propagación del Covid-19 de una persona a otra por lo que está muy en boga que varias empresas giren la mirada hacia la fabricación de estas. De sus 9 años confeccionando ropa para niñas que se vende online, con su empresa Little Miss Fashion, Yolanda Díaz ahora confecciona cubrebocas que se distribuyen en el CHI Health. La iniciativa no llegó por arte de magia, pues la empresa Bergman Incentives (encargada de crear material P.O.P (Point of Purchase )para promocionar compañías) tenía un mega proyecto de ofrecer 100.000 mascarillas al CHI Healh, uno de sus clientes, por lo que contactó al Latino Center of the Midlands para dar con alguna microempresa experta en el área de corte y costura. La directora de operaciones del Latino Center of the Midlands (LCM), Silvia Vélez, contactó a Díaz para finiquitar el negocio. Como las ventas de Little Miss Fashion se habían congelado por completo a raíz de las medidas tomadas para evitar la propagación del coronavirus Díaz no lo pensó mucho para montarse
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en el barco de realizar 75.000 mascarillas y cerrar el trato con Bergman Incentives (BI) y LCM. “Una de las cosas interesantes y alentadoras de este proyecto es que una empresa y una entidad privadas de salud buscó colaborar y apoyar a la comunidad directamente y gracias a esto se ha podido dar trabajo a madres de familia”, dijo Vélez en un correo electrónico. Durante la cuarentena, Díaz había hecho cubrebocas para donar al Fashion Institute Midwest, junto con dos mujeres más pero ahora el reto era mayor. Así que prácticamente comenzaron 4 mujeres volver a poner a funcionar las máquinas del taller de Yolanda.
El engranaje Todo el material en lienzo lo entrega BI al LCM que se lo distribuye a la empresa de Díaz.
ARTICULO DESTACADO // FEATURE ARTICLE
Al tener el producto hecho, LCM los busca y se lo entrega a BI. El trato era que lo único que la señora Yolanda a este proyecto era su valiosa mano de obra y el hilo. “El hilo lo traigo de Los Ángeles. Yo tenía suficiente hilo así que para mí no era un problema usarlo para este trabajo”, comentó Díaz a El Perico desde el otro lado de la línea telefónica.
alrededor y cuidar donde están marcado los pliegues. Nos mandan el lienzo para cortar y todas cosemos siguiendo la línea”, agregó.
Un nuevo puesto de trabajo
El primero de mayo el LCM le entregó el primer lote de material para los dos modelos de cubrebocas con sus ligas y patrones incluidos Hay dos tipos: el de pliegue y el de pato(así le llaman).
Vale recordar que Nebraska recibió el pasado mes de abril más de 16.000 reclamos por desempleo, y muchos de los que estaban de paro apostaron por rebuscarse la vida en otras compañías y explorando nuevas alternativas. La empresa de Yolanda era una de esas.
Lo único que deben hacer es recortar, doblar, empatar y cocer. Pero cada cubreboca cuyo bordado tiene el logo de CHI Health es elaborado con los detalles y destrezas propios de las costureras profesionales.
Con cuatro mujeres en las máquinas de coser las entregas pautadas se hacían a tiempo. Sin embargo, no era suficiente para conseguir la meta de 75.000 mascarillas lo más rápido y eficiente posible.
“Las formas de las máscaras ya están hechas con su bordado. Lo que hacemos es cortarlo
Mujeres que habían perdido sus empleos durante el tiempo de confinamiento en
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restaurantes y limpieza de hoteles o bien el sueldo de su trabajo no era suficiente y tenían conocimiento sobre la costura se sumaron al proyecto por invitación de Díaz. Ahora este proyecto cuenta con 10 mujeres quienes día a día hilan sin parar para entregar la mayor cantidad de mascarillas posible y recibir un beneficio económico.
el sector salud y tiendas de supermercados, así lo explicó en un correo electrónico Mike Battershell, presidente de BI. “Hay muchos puntos de distribución de estos cubrebocas, pero no son para ser comprados”, dijo.
Para el cierre de esta edición, Díaz comentó que se han elaborado y entregado Se le suma el oficio del hogar. 12.000 cubrebocas y toda la Es por ello que Díaz flexibiliza cadena de pago y distribución las horas de trabajo en el taller ha sido como se negoció. y permite que las costureras “No hemos tenido retraso en puedan adelantar la tarea nada, hemos cumplido”, dijo desde sus hogares. con satisfacción la costurera y empresaria. “Sé que muchas de ellas tienen niños o están cuidando A la par de los cubrebocas, algunos otros. Para ellas sería y el crecimiento de su más sencillo que se llevaran el empresa, la emprendedora trabajo a sus casas y sigan siendo también confecciona cobijas productivas. De verdad estoy y otros productos para otras muy contenta con el resultado compañías, además de sus porque han respondido muy vestidos para niñas que se bien y se ha logrado hace las pueden conseguir en línea. entregas a tiempo con todo y Aun no les han pedido hacer los percances que a veces se batas médicas, pero “si nos los puedan presentar”, dijo Díaz. pidieran estamos a la orden. Lo que queremos es que nos den Pero no todas gana por el trabajo”, acotó. igual, las que más hacen más beneficiadas están. Y esto se debe a la maquinaria que tiene cada una. “Todas hacen al menos 300 mascarillas por día, pero hay otras que pueden hacer hasta 500. Esto se debe a que algunas cuentan con máquinas de coser caseras y otras industriales”, comentó Díaz. Este tipo de sana competencia laboral ha llevado a que algunas sueñen con tener su máquina industrial. “Yo las apoyo en su sueño. No es fácil, pero se puede hacer. Y muchas están trabajando duro para conseguirlo”, dijo. En una búsqueda por internet para tener una referencia del costo de estos artefactos, se puede encontrar desde las de bolsillo por $3 hasta las familiares por $160. En cambio, las industriales no bajan de $700 dólares.
Ya van por 12 mil Los cubrebocas no están disponibles para el público ya que están destinados para
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