Poweshiek CARES meeting: November 19, 2013

Joyce Otto, President of Poweshiek CARES, began the meeting by distributing copies of the orange factsheet and customized Poweshiek CARES flyswatters to the members.

She reflected on her experiences with Poweshiek CARES and on our role in helping her overcome her feelings of isolation and powerlessness in the face of the corporate behemoth. She has now realized that the control of corporations over every aspect of our lives is undemocratic and unfair, and has taken it as a personal goal to work for the restoration of democracy.

She thanked and congratulated Elizabeth Hays, who is moving to California, for her efforts and perseverance on behalf of the group, and Marilyn Barnes, Sandy Moffett, Jean Perri, and Jon Andelson added their thanks. Elizabeth acknowledged the compliments and expressed her indebtedness to the group, which, she said, had inspired her.

The Iowa Farmers Union held their annual conference on November 16. Joyce attended and reported enthusiastically that the IFU is “just right with us.” They work on legislative actions, support sustainable farming, and are capable of standing up to the Farm Bureau. The attendees were asked to choose the issues that would be highest priorities at the next session, and selected water quality and taxing CAFOs as industries rather than farms. Poweshiek CARES received the IFU's Family Farm Advocacy Award, along with Bill Stowe and Ralph Rosenberg. Donna delivered a tribute to Joyce's abilities as an advocate and organizer.

Laforest Sherman reported that one of the events that IFU organized in connection with this meeting was a workshop for young farmers. Jordan Scheibel attended that workshop.

Joyce circulated a petition on water quality from Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement. About fifty ICCI members met with the state Environmental Protection Committee this morning, pointing out some egregious violations of the Environmental Protection Agency's directives by hog factories, including a million-gallon manure spill. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources had given the offenders a clean bill of health after the EPA's directive came out, and had refused to cite the offenders for their violations since then. The ICCI members submitted this petition, with five thousand signatures, to the EPC, who got the message that the DNR was not doing its job. The EPC is not interested in doing anything about it. However, Jim reported that we have them on the defensive. He can recall a time when members of oversight boards were stewards of the environments; now they are “stakeholders.”

Val Vetter, speaking as our treasurer, reported that we have collected $5055, spend about $2000 on incorporation, about $1000 on photocopying, plastic pig snouts, etc. Our current balance is $2014. Three of our members make monthly deposits.

It would cost about seven hundred dollars to become a member of the Iowa Farmers Union (seven dollars per member, for the institutional membership). Individual voting memberships cost fifty dollars a year, two years for eighty dollars, four years for a hundred and fifty. Presumably we'd benefit from the activities of the lobbyists who work for the IFU.

Jon moved that Poweshiek CARES put $100 towards an institutional membership in the IFU, and that we send out a special fund-raising appeal to our members to raise the remaining $600. We join if we can raise it, we hold off if we cannot. Laforest seconded the motion. We approved the proposal unanimously.

Charlene Doyle, the co-chair of the Democratic Party here in Poweshiek County, asked for ten minutes to speak. Three local races are coming up in 2014: two county supervisors and the state representative. The caucuses will be held in fewer than nine weeks. Charlene appealed for candidates to come forward to run as Democrats—or, if Republican, to run in primaries against the incumbents.

We have had an offer to bring Thomas Linzey here in collaboration with the Center for Prairie Studies. Linzey is a national speaker, a lawyer and spokesman for communities undermined by corporations. He conducts a two-day workshop called “Democracy School.” Jon, Val, Joyce, and Vincent Kelley are trying to bring him to Grinnell. He argues the legal position that non-human entities should have rights—a principle that has not yet been accepted. Linzey argues for a broad approach, incorporating many issues. We agreed to watch what Jefferson County Farmers and Neighbors does, send some of our members to his workshop if possible, and try to meet for an hour or two with him during his visit in January.

Joyce reported that the Response, Action, and Mobilization Committee has been interested in developing signs, and a logo appears to be a prerequisite for this. Jeremy Chen has prepared some sample logos, and Jean Perri has a relative who has a friend who has been a graphic designed for twenty-five years. The friend has volunteered to do a logo for us for $300–$500. Jean passed around samples of his profes