Shining A Light

Shine the light on the story, not yourself

I consider myself an aggressive reporter.  When at the scene of a fire or riot, if I don't get yelled at by police, then I'm doing something wrong.  But whether covering a chaotic outdoor disturbance or a boring indoor zoning board hearing, I always try to stay out of the way.

When using public documents to uncover truths for a story, I try to let the documents speak for themselves.  The hard part is knowing such documents exist and who it is you need to hit with a public documents request.

The events unfolding in Ferguson are -- as Commander Spock would say -- "fascinating".     For many reasons.

As usual, folks are quick to jump to conclusions based on their built up biases.  I'm a BIG fan of public safety (admitting my bias for those of you who may be first timers to this blog)  but an even bigger fan of journalism.

I will, however, never suppress or ignore the truth to protect either of them.  

There's no question Ferguson police could use a refresher course on respecting constitutional rights, and just plain old public relations.  The images of Darth Vader like squads of police armed for Armageddon is not the kind of thing you want presented on the nightly news ... or even that newfangled thing, the Internet.

Reporters want to report, it's kinda their job.  And it's really hard to do that when police keep you corralled up far from the scene of the action.

Police, conversely, want to quell the very action reporters need to report, and it can sometimes be difficult to do when reporters get in the way.  Or worse, their presence serves to incite an already amped-up crowd.

 

UMPD firing pellets into the crowd (burning sugar) 10/31/13

At all the disturbances I've covered involving rowdy students both on and off the UMass campus, I have never yet seen a TV news camera not cause a volatile reaction from the crowd.  And yes, when police don their riot gear, that too incites the crowd.

So what we now have in Ferguson is the worst combination of the two.

If police had been more forthcoming with the facts from the very beginning, the cycle of violence would never have gotten out of hand.  Mainstream media also took too long to awaken to the story, but now it's become a circus where reporters outnumber protesters.

"Sunlight is said to be  the best of disinfectants."  Perhaps why all the mayhem seems to occur after dark.

Recovering

 AFD Ladder 1 pouring water on Southpoint Building #97

Town Manager John Musante told the Select Board this evening that through a coordinated effort of the town, Red Cross and a variety of social service agencies, all the tenants displaced by the Southpoint Apartment fire last week have found housing either elsewhere in the Southpoint complex or in other off site housing. 

Building #97 will require extensive repairs from the direct damage of fire and indirect water and smoke damage.  Two of the other three buildings were habitable on Friday. 

New Sheriff In Town

Trevor Baptiste (new Regional School Committee Chair), Kathleen Traphagan (new Vice Chair)

After garnering only 3 votes for Amherst Pelham Regional School Committee temporary Chair at the contentious 6/24 meeting, losing out to Lawrence O'Brien who received twice that, Trevor Baptiste bounced back in a BIG way at the follow up (official) meeting last week winning five votes, to O'Brien's three.

Two members who had voted for O'Brien over Baptiste at the 6/24 meeting -- Kathleen Traphagan (Amherst rep) and Steve Sullivan (Shutesbury rep) -- had changed their minds, and this time voted for Baptiste (Pelham rep).

And Sarah Dolven (Leverett rep) also had supported O'Brien for temporary Chair but at the meeting last week nominated and voted for Dan Robb (Pelham rep),  who only received that one vote.

At the the 6/24 meeting Trevor Baptiste was nominated for Chair by Amilcar Shabazz but only after Rick Hood had turned down Mr. Shabazz's attempted nomination, saying two years in that position was more than enough.

In both the 6/24 and most recent 8/14 election Mr. Hood supported Lawrence O'Brien for Chair.

While making the nomination this time around Shabazz pointed out that elevating the only other black member of the Regional School Committee to Chair would send a message to the community about the importance of diversity on such an important committee. 

Fair enough.  Symbols are important things.

After the first few days of escalating civil unrest in the embattled town of Ferguson, Missouri the Governor placed in command Ron Johnson, a black state police captain, and it seemed to calm hostilities ... ever so briefly.

Amherst Regional Public Schools start in two short weeks.  It's going to take a lot more than feel good symbolism to counter the past year of simmering discontent.

 

As Vice Chair, Trevor Baptiste called the "illegal" 7/15 meeting to countermand a memo sharply critical of Amilcar Shabazz (on far left)

Ferguson Comes To Amherst

Amilcar Shabazz (center rear)

Organized by nationally known race relations guru Amilcar Shabazz and the local branch of the NAACP, the Amherst edition of the "National Day of Solidarity Actions: Justice for Mike Brown" attracted 75-100 demonstrators of every age, color, and gender to the heart of downtown Amherst. 

The protest was of course peaceful

To Sprinkle Or Not To Sprinkle?

Engine 2 (the quint) on scene Southpoint fire 5:15ish

Unlike the tragic Rolling Green fire (1/21/13) that took the life of Jake Hoffman, a 21-year-old UMass senior, the rebuilding of Southpoint Apartments is a tad more complicated when it comes to the sprinkler system requirement.

 Rolling Green fatal fire (photo by Stephanie Jernigan

Since Southpoint was originally built way back in 1968 they are "grandfathered," but new codes will now come to bear with the relevant three being: "Would otherwise require sprinklers" (Yes); "Sufficient water pressure available in the area" (Yes); and "Work area exceeds 50% of the building" (No).

 Connecting walls are not considered "true fire walls"

And it takes only one "No" to nix the requirement for lifesaving sprinklers.

Southpoint designates the four contiguous structures as separate buildings:  Building #99, #97, #95 and #93 -- but the walls they share are not considered "true fire walls," therefore all four buildings are considered just one really BIG building.

 

Fire started in kitchen (pot left on stove)

Thus the work on #97 where the fire started, even though it's the entirety of the building, is only 25% of the total square footage.

 A jigsaw of four buildings, but considered one

State law, however, gives extraordinary authority to a fire chief, so Chief Nelson can simply order them to install sprinklers as part of the renovation, as he did with Rolling Green Apartments (and they were self insured so it cost them a few bucks).

According to Chief Nelson, "Before we decide we'll have to see what the owners plan to do with the damaged property.  As a general statement, with few exceptions, we always lean toward sprinkler use in occupancies."

Southpoint building #97 5:35 PM

Interestingly the building owners could appeal that to the state (who usually sides with a Chief), but the State Fire Marshal does not even have to convene a hearing for such an appeal. 

Considering how understaffed AFD is, every bit of built-in fire protection installed in occupied major structures is a plus.  And sprinklers are a HUGE plus.

Making the nightly news

Attacking Distrust With A Retreat

Amherst, Pelham, Regional School Committees

About the only thing missing from this afternoon's multi-School Committees "retreat" was a group hug to start off the proceedings.

The Amherst and Pelham School Committees and the members who make up the 4 town Regional School Committee started off by placing dots on a poster board beside statements they deemed the most important.

Click to enlarge/read

"What has gone well and what needs improvement?" was the clear winner.

Most members thought the budget process went well this year but the evaluation of the Superintendent Maria Geryk not so well.  And of course topping the list for outright bad things, all the drama associated with the racial incidents and the factions that were formed within the Committees that carried over to the community.

 Fancy fixings at the meeting which was held in Valentine Hall, Amherst College

Amherst School Committee Chair Katherine Appy admitted, "Trust has been a big problem," adding "factions do drive us apart."  Pelham School Committee Chair Darius Modesto agreed saying, "The School Committee needs to change its tone, it's affecting the students."

Communication was constantly cited, as in, the Committees need to do a better job communicating with each other, School administrators and the general public.

Obviously the public becomes (greatly) concerned because public schools account for the lion's share of annual tax expenditures, and good schools help to maintain high property values.

Also discussed was the role of the School Committee.   Should they act as cheerleaders for administrators, or be more critical and "call them out" in the hopes of micromanaging them into better performing schools?

 Mike Morris Assistant Superintendent, Maria Geryk Superintendent

The former certainly has not worked all that well the past few years ...

 

A good crowd 2 or 3 times larger than the combined committees attended

Email from one of the "factions" drumming up support

Amherst Is No Ferguson

Police in riot gear disperse crowd at the gateway to UMass

Ever since the start of summer I've been anxiously anticipating the release of the Ed Davis study otherwise known as the Blarney Blowout Report -- not that I think taxpayers will get their $160,000 worth.

But now in the wake of the Ferguson, Missouri troubles, I'm hoping it doesn't come out for a while, at least until things settle down in that troubled town.

Other than the image of police clad in riot gear there's no real comparison between what is going on now and what happened in Amherst on March 8.  Although I'm sure clueless critics will try to make that association.

First off,  our police were outnumbered 50-1, as opposed to Ferguson where police seem to outnumber protesters. And at the Blarney Blowout, fueled by copious amounts of alcohol, police came under direct attack from the unruly mob via rocks, bottles and chunks of ice.

The effervescent event was covered by local media in real time and the national media quickly picked up those dispatches.  But no reporters were hassled by police, much less arrested. 

Amherst police do not use rubber bullets, military grade smoke bombs, or tear gas grenades, or patrol in heavily armored vehicles.

And they do not shoot unarmed citizens.

Ever.

Amherst and UMass police made 58 arrests at the Blarney Blowout