Galesburg, Michigan. A small town roughly twenty minutes from Kalamazoo. There’s not much to do in this town nestled right on the Kalamazoo River, a few restaurants, antique stores, and several parks in the area. One of these parks, Galesburg Community Park, is the topic of controversy. On Thursday, November 8, I met up with Andrew Cannon, a personal friend of mine. He is the owner of the Koffee Klutch, a coffee shop in Galesburg. Andrew is also a member of the Galesburg Area Business and Community Association and a city-appointed board member of the Downtown Development Authority. He really cares about his town. As we headed toward city hall, he told me about a controversy that occurred a couple years ago. The same company wanted to drill on a park called Scotts Mill Park, which is a few miles away from Galesburg. The people protested so the city rejected the offer. Unfortunately, the people who owned the land right next to Scotts Mill Park sold the rights to their land, and drilling occurred anyway. As we pulled up to city hall, Andrew told me he had never seen such an abundance of cars in the parking lot. It seemed that this meeting was going to be very big. And big it was. When we walked in, the room was full. The background is this: Savoy Energy wishes to obtain a lease to conduct 3D Seismic testing on 22 acres of land at Galesburg Community Park.
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| Park property outlined in pink |
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| Galesburg Community Park |
This lease would also give them rights to any oil and gas beneath roads, lakes, and rivers adjacent to the park. Needless to say, the citizens at this
Public Comment meeting were very vehemently against the proposition. There was a representative from the Savoy Energy present, to answer any questions, but he did not have answers to the questions that a lot of the citizens had, such as specific terminology of details in the lease. More than 50 people were at this meeting, and in total, 22 citizens stood and shared their concerns. At one point, a discussion on what would happen if the city was damaged or polluted. Would Savoy pay for the damages? The representative assured the room that, yes, they would, but several citizens stood up and said that they are aware of other cities where the oil company didn’t pay for the damage without a long, arduous legal battle. “Oil companies never leave the town as good as they found it,” said one citizen as he was voicing his concerns about the ordeal. Overall, the meeting started to get very heated. Most of the citizens in attendance were the type of people who probably haven’t done any sort of research or studying since they graduated high school, but nearly everyone had notebooks and folders filled with information about this specific type of oil drilling process. Back in 2010, the biggest inland oil spill occurred on the Kalamazoo River. Many of the people who live in this area own land along the river and are
still dealing with the effects of the oil spill nearly a decade later. The people of Galesburg are very passionate about their land. They love the land, the river, the woods, the animals. They are well aware of the dangers that oil drilling can bring, and some are even dealing with the effects of the drilling being done at Scott’s Mill Park. If drilling occurs anyway, it will not end well for the city’s government.
While reading this book (and all the other materials in the class), I was astonished by all the struggles refugees must face in their journey to find a new home. It’s not an easy journey by any means, and I bet a lot of people have nightmares about being in that same situation. Homeless, nearly penniless, in a foreign country hundreds of miles away from home with nowhere to really to go, and a country seemingly filled with people who despise you. Relief came for Saeed and Nadia towards the end, when they went through a door that took them to the United States. There, they met with a religious group dedicated to helping the new refugees settle down. This had me wondering what groups exist in real life that helps refugees. So, I decided to do some research on the matter.
First, there’s an organization called Sunrise-USA. Founded in 2011 by a group of Syrian-America professionals, they have contributed more than $15 million in aid to suffering Syrians both in Syria and in neighboring countries. Besides sending 31 containers of supplies to Syria, they have set up multiple healthcare facilities, temporary schools, and refugee camps. On their website, in a board message that they have written to the public, they have a quote that reminds me of Exit West. “Let us join hands and be the ray of hope that will help pull our brothers and sisters out of the darkness and into a bright and prosperous future.” Another great organization that helps refugees is called the Karam Foundation. Karam is the Arabic word for generosity. This organization started in Chicago in 2007. Their first course of action was a food drive in Chicago. Now, a decade later, they develop Innovative Education systems for the Syrian youth and distribute Smart Aid to Syrian families. They also help fund sustainable development in Syria. Their impact expands across Syria, Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan. These are just two examples of non-profit organizations that exist in the world to help with the refugee crisis. Luckily, there are a lot more of them, like the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society. Here is a link to their website. They are one of the oldest organizations in the United States as they were founded in 1881. Today they continue their help and play a large role in resettling refugees. This organization is one that is very similar to the organization that helped Saeed and Nadia when they arrived in the United States. Knowing that there are so many organizations out there has made me feel better about the current state of the world. On the news today, we are bombarded with negative fact after negative fact.
