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This is the WFHB Local News for Thursday, January 20th, 2022.
Later in the program, WFHB Correspondent Sade Ajishegiri reports on a MLK Day event hosted by the Monroe County Library earlier this week. Also coming up in the next half hour, WFHB Correspondent Nathaniel Weinzapfel reports on a bill in the statehouse that deals with fireworks regulation.
Fireworks Regulation Bill Making Its Way through the Statehouse
Nathaniel Weinzapfel
While many Hoosiers may have rang in the New Year with the sounds and sights of fireworks in the night sky, many Hoosier veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder suffered through the holiday. A new bill in the Indiana State House is seeking to address the concerns of veteran groups by shrinking the time that fireworks are legally permitted during the year, from twelve days down to four days.
House Bill 1053 was introduced by Republican Representative Donna Schaibley of Carmel, Indiana and she has indicated that the bill is in response to her constituents who complain about the negative effects the fireworks have on them and their pets. Schaibley stated in an article for The Times of Northwest Indiana that “I like fireworks. I appreciate the beauty and tradition. But these are not small pyrotechnics. They are large and loud.”
This is likely in response to the uptick in firework purchases and the new types of fireworks that have been developed in recent years. NPR reported during the Fourth of July of 2020 that firework purchases increased by 300% with many people opting to create their own firework displays instead of attending massive public firework shows. Cities around the country have also reported an uptick in police reports concerning the illegal usage of fireworks. For example, the city of Boston, Massachusetts saw calls about fireworks complaints up 2,300% in 2020. Similarly, fireworks have become more deadly over time. In 2020, fireworks caused the deaths of eighteen people in the United States, a jump from twelve people the year prior. According to the New York Times, the amount of people admitted to hospitals around the country due to fireworks has also increased by 56%, jumping from 10,000 injured in 2019 to 15,000 injured in 2020.
Representative Schaibley is also concerned for Hoosier veterans and pets who suffer through the holidays of the Fourth of July and New Years Eve. Many veterans suffering from PTSD can be triggered by the fireworks, which have the potential to bring them back to the battlefield due to the exploding sounds. This is especially frequent when fireworks are lit at unusual hours of the morning, specifically during the times when people would be sleeping. Veterans are particularly susceptible to the trauma inducing noises when they are startled out of slumber.
Pets also suffer through fireworks. The booming noises and lights in the sky can cause pets to become frightened of the environment around them, and even become wary of their owners. This has led to many pets fleeing their homes during the firework holidays and ending up lost on the street. Owners often spend these holidays worried for their pets.
It is likely for these reasons that Representative Schaibley wants to limit the legally state permitted days that fireworks can be set off. At the current moment, localities around the state are allowed to set their own laws for fireworks except on the days legally allowed by the state, which are five days before and after the Fourth of July and the night and morning of New Years. The bill would limit state-wide permitted firework times to between certain times on July 3rd to 5th and between 10 am on New Years Eve and 1 am on January 1st. This will limit the legal time to set off fireworks to only a total of 27 hours a year.
Supporters of the bill believe that this gives power back to the local communities to set their own timeframe for fireworks depending on the needs of the community. They also believe that 12 days is too much. Opponents, including workers in the fireworks industry, have predicted that they will suffer heavy economic losses due to the bill, and that it is unheard of for the government to limit the usage of a legal consumer product to only 27 hours. There are also many people, including some members of the Indiana Fireworks Association, who are indifferent to the bill, as they believe that some Indiana residents will still choose to light off fireworks whenever they please.
At the current moment, the bill is making its way through the statehouse.
Monroe County Citizens Live Out MLK’s Dream at the Library on Monday
Sade Ajishegiri
Dozens of Bloomington residents attended Martin Luther King Jr. Day events at the Monroe County Public Library throughout the day.
The library hosted a variety of activities for all ages, including storytimes, a performance from the Bloomington Peace Choir, and various arts and
crafts.
Jenny Hosler, a children’s librarian who led the reading and singing session, described what MLK Day means to her.
“To me, it’s just a point in time that we can kind of revitalize our commitment to talking about race,” said Hosler, “especially white parents. I think they sometimes think that it’s taboo to talk about race, and I don’t want that to happen.”
She said this awareness really started to hit her in high school.
“Of course, in the past few years with a lot of the things happening with George Floyd with other black members of the community, it just kind of created an urgency for me, and I think that’s when I really started paying attention and wanting to do something about it at a local level,” she said.
Tewana Smith, a local resident who served on the MLK committee at Second Baptist Church, brought her son to the library to make learning about civil rights more fun.
“I was on the MLK committee at the Second Baptist Church, so I just really wanted to get the education and information handed over to my seven year old son in a different, fun way,” said Smith.
She was pleasantly surprised by the amount of activities the library had to offer in honor of Dr. King.
“Just seeing that they’re trying to put more information out in positive ways,” said Smith, “to see that they’re, step up a little bit – that makes me happy.”
She wants her son to know that people who look like him have the power to change the world.
“As young as he, he’s still seen racial inequality so I want him to know there were so many good black people that did great, big things. He was a leader so he would have an image to look up to,” said Smith.
She thinks that Dr. King would be proud to see the way the community came together to celebrate positive social change.
“We did something fun where we put 100 Ziploc baggies together and rolled up quotes from MLK, and we added a Hershey Kiss and a peppermint to signify the unity of like black and white and to also be fun,” said Smith.
Susie Sullivan, a member of the Bloomington Peace Choir, said that MLK Day is a holiday that encourages the humanitarian spirit.
“I think it definitely has much more of a service component that you don’t get with other holidays particularly,” said Sullivan.
She said performing with the choir has brought the significance of MLK Day closer to home for her.
“We’ve been here at the Library several years in a row, and I think that really has helped bring the message to me,” she said.
The Library will continue to be a central resource for the community in civil rights education and events, especially as we move into February and Black History Month.
Feature Reports:
On Monday, the City of Bloomington hosted the annual Martin Luther King, Jr. Day celebration at the Buskirk Chumley Theater. Before the event, Bring It On! Hosts Clarence Boone and William Hosea interviewed keynote speaker, Dr. Eddie Cole, an associate professor of higher education and organizational change at UCLA. He has published and presented on a variety of topics, primarily college presidents during the Black freedom movement and their responses to racial incidents.
Joining the conversation is Dr. Charlie Nelms, a native of the Arkansas Delta, who has devoted his life to equalizing opportunities for disenfranchised peoples. Dr. Nelms is currently a senior scholar at the American Association of State Colleges and Universities and a senior consultant for the Association of Governing Boards.
Bring It On airs each Monday at 6 p.m. on WFHB. The program is available online and wherever you listen to your podcasts.
Up next, WFHB’s Youth Radio took to the streets of Bloomington to ask residents how all the rain last December affected them, affected the climate and what can be done to help. We turn to Producer Wilder Mouton for more.
Credits:
You’ve been listening to the WFHB Local News,
Today’s headlines were written by Nathaniel Weinzapfel, in partnership with Cats – Community Access Television Services.
Our feature was produced by Sade Ajishegiri.
Our theme music is provided by Mark Bingham and the Social Climbers.
Engineer and Executive producer is Kade Young.
Anchors are Benedict Jones and Lucinda Larnach.
