Postville

From the home page for the city of Postville, Iowa:

The City of Postville is a diverse community rich in industry and culture. As we look towards future goals and visions, we strive to make Postville the best town it can possibly be for the residents and business community who live and work here, but also for future generations and businesses.

Our mission, for the City of Postville is to maintain and improve the quality of life for all citizens in our community and to provide superior services and public facilities for the community.

The City of Postville is committed to meeting and improving the needs of the community by providing for essential services such as law enforcement, public utilities, streets, parks and recreation for today and for the future.

We strive to make Postville a "Hometown to the World" where people of all walks of life can call Postville home.

Sounds like a good place to live.

a year without a Guatamalan? might be more appropriate

We're approaching an anniversary that we need to discuss and we will do that here. Mother Jones has a good story about a year without a Mexican but that may be too narrow.

It all began with the whir and flicker of helicopters on May 12, 2008, an incongruous sound in a tiny Iowa town tucked amid cornfields. All over Postville, people craned their necks from orderly lawns, phones rang, and gossip flew. Reverend Stephen Brackett, the town's Lutheran pastor, was on his day off and didn't hear the helicopters at first, but when his church secretary called to tell him something unusual was happening, he at once suspected what it was. For years, there were rumors that the Agriprocessors meatpacking plant at the edge of town was under scrutiny by immigration authorities. Later that morning, Brackett's wife called with confirmation: She'd spotted two helicopters and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in jackets and flak vests down by the slaughterhouse.

What happened in Postville is larger than that. We'll be discussing it between now and the May 12, 2009 one-year anniversary.

Postville, Iowa and undocumented workers

progressive iowa . . .

UUA President Celebrates Iowa Marriage Ruling

April 3, 2009

The following statement was issued by Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) President Rev. William Sinkford.

I rejoice at the Supreme Court’s unanimous decision to affirm the rights of same-sex couples to marry. This ruling, based on the equal protection guarantee in the Iowa constitution, recognizes the necessity for equal treatment under the law of all citizens. This decision will strengthen committed same-sex couples and their families in Iowa, and bring us one step closer to full legal equality for all Americans. A few days ago Sweden became the fifth European country to recognize the rights of same-sex couples to marry, and Americans can take pride that we continue our climb toward the same goal.

There's more . . .