The Notebook (Issue 12)
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The week of June 21, 2021
WE CANNOT HAVE HONESTY WITHOUT TRUTH TELLING, and there is a great assault on truth telling in our state today with the dangerous proposed bills coming out of our state legislature to ban truth telling in our classrooms. These bills vary slightly, but they all attempt to manipulate and erase African American and Black history education in America. We have nothing as a society if we do not have the ability to learn from our history and have healthy dialogue in our classrooms around various perspectives and ways of understanding the world. Here are two recent op-eds on the matter from Sadiqa Reynolds and Ricky Jones. Each of us, along the entire political spectrum, has a role to play in being a part of this conversation and stopping these bullying attempts in Frankfort.

JUNE 19TH - "JUNETEENTH" - is known as “Freedom Day” or “Emancipation Day” and marks the final end of slavery in the United States in 1865. It’s also an occasion to remember the ongoing fight for social justice. We are so proud of and inspired by our local Arts community who have taken this opportunity to feature the work of Black artists and their interpretation of this day. On Juneteenth, the Louisville Opera released their one-act opera and workshop called "This Little Light of Mine," about Fannie Lou Hamer, a Black woman whose fight for equal rights helped implement the Voting Rights Act of 1965. We would love for you to join us in viewing this brilliant work for free online at youtube.com/user/KentuckyOpera. 

The first installment of the “(Un)known Project” public art series was celebrated on Juneteenth, with the unveiling of two symbolically designed benches, commissioned by local artist Ed Hamilton, along the banks of the Ohio River between 9th and 10th streets. This project, dreamt up by local poet and activist Hannah Drake, will tell the lost stories of enslaved Louisvillians.

We’re thrilled to see this project featured in The New York Times! Saturday’s celebrations were dotted with performances by the Simmons College marching band, local musicians, Louisville ballet members, and many more. 

Photo by Alton Strupp at the Courier Journal. 
CSA - Community Supported Agriculture - is a season long commitment of weekly shares of organic veggies from Rootbound Farm, a family-run certified organic farm in Oldham County, Kentucky. When you buy a CSA share, you are buying a share of the farm harvest and each week you receive a collection of produce, directly from Rootbound Farm. Click here to sign up for a CSA share. Rootbound Farm also has a webstore which offers weekly pickups in the Louisville and Crestwood areas - click here for more information.
THURSDAY JULY 1 - 5:30 - 7pm Wastewater Team will be at Big 4 Bridge: Waterfront Park to share information about UofL's sewer monitoring for COVID-19 virus. In May 2021, the wastewater team was the first to identify the variant in Louisville - keep an eye on their dashboard for more information. 
KENTUCKY'S VACCINE DISTRIBUTION is now open to everyone above age 12. Here is a listing of the various providers and locations for vaccine availability. We have found this tool, Vaccine Spotter, helpful for consolidating providers and showing availability. 



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