Alaska House Judiciary Committee Hearing on Alaska DOC Holding ICE Detainees

Overview

Purpose of meeting:  Status of Immigration Detainees in custody of Department of Corrections through a contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement By Department of Corrections;  Witnesses:  Nicolas Olano,  Immigration Attorney, Nations Law Group; Cindy Woods, Alaska Civil Liberties Union; Civil Division, Department of Law; Sean Quirk, Kellogg Hansen Judiciary Committee members present:  Andrew Gray, chair; Genevieve Mina; Ted Eischeid  Other legislators who later sat with the panel and asked questions:  Donna Mears: Ky Holland, Andy Josephson Commissioner of Correction (DOC), Jen Winkelman, testifying by video.   You can listen to a recording of the meeting here. The bulk of the meeting was the questioning of Department of Corrections Commissioner Jen Winkelman.  Commissioner Winkelman sounded quite forthcoming about what she knew and promised to follow up on issues that came up that were new to her.   Though as the questioning went along, it appeared that there were a number of things that others brought up that she hadn't heard about.  The ICE detainees have only been at the Anchorage Correctional Complex (ACC) for ten days and she acknowledged that there has been a learning process, particularly dealing with rules and procedures governing ICE detainees.   Concern was voiced that ICE detainees are NOT criminals and that it is inappropriate for them to be housed in a facility built for criminals.   One person stated that Alaska was the only state housing ICE detainees in a state facility.  One reason, the Commissioner noted, was that Alaska, despite a large federal presence, has no federal prisons.   Another key point was that Alaska has had a contract with the federal government since 2013 to house federal prisoners, usually until they can be shipped to another prison.  Alaska has temporarily housed ICE detainees, but not for more than 72 hours.  And that there was no new contract for these new detainees from out of state. The ICE agent for Alaska is also the ICE agent for the prison in Tacoma where this new group came from.   Attorneys for ICE detainees in Alaska testified that many of the rules for ICE detainees have been violated.   Attorney Quirk, testifying from Washington, DC said neither he nor his client got advance notice of the transfer.  In fact Quirk got no notice at all and attempts to contact his client in Tacoma led to his learning that he was no longer there.  Nor did anyone say where he'd gone.  Quirk thought he was deported possibly.   And, also against regulations, his client's property was not given to him when he was transferred, including his passport, all his legal documentation including his contact information for his attorney.   Toward the end, someone asked about a rumor that ICE was preparing a detention center in Adak.  The Commissioner said she'd only heard about it on social media.     The National Detention Standards for Non-Dedicated Facilities (Revised 2019) were mentioned often and quoted from a number of times.  These are referenced occasionally as "the Trump guidelines."

The overview lists some of the highlights.  Below is my very rough transcript of the meeting. There's a lot missing, but it gives a sense of what was discussed.  I was a couple of minutes late (I thought it was 1:30pm and when I double checked, I had to hustle.)  The room was full and I had to sit on the floor.  The video screen only faced the panel.  Though I moved up to get a (bad) photo of one of the witnesses. The meeting was civil, even cordial, though serious concerns were raised.

Reps. Mears, Eischeid, Gray, and Mina (l-r)

Q, Gray:  Type of contract we have between DOC and Federal government - unusual?  

A, Winkelman:  Statute allows the commissioner to contract with other states or US to take prisoners.  Regard to US, we have agreements since we took federal prisoners because there is no federal prison in Alaska.

Q:  Describe the contract?

A:  Current contract in place since 2013.  Effective until terminated in writing.  I'll make sure committee has copy.  

Q:  How will Alaska be reimbursed?

A:  A daily bed rate for individuals in our custody, daily rate we bill federal government.

Q:  This decision to bring these people made through your leadership?

A:  Because contract, we have a good working relationship.  June 4 local ICE agent contacted staff and asked how many could Anchorage safely house.  We calculated that.  Anchorage is the only facility that could house for more than 72 hours.  Other prisons in Alaska cannot go over 72 hours.  Two big asks:

1.  Names and ?? of those coming and 2.  medical information.  They delivered.  We do not normally know who is coming in from any agency.  So this was hugely helpful to know who was coming.  ICE and DOC remarkable teamwork.  We knew who was coming.  Expecting 59, but only 41 came.  Two were picked up the next day and then 2 more.  35 now.

Q:  Was theree any public notice?

A:  Not from DOC. 

Q:  ??

A:  Longstanding process.  No public process, given our authority and statures.  Checks and balance falls on Legislative audit?  

Rep Eischeid Q:  ICE approached DOC?  A: Yes  They asked how many could DOC house?  Was there an answer?

A:  We agreed on 59 when ICE asked.  Our leadership checked available beds, staffing, etc.  we agreed on 59.

Q:  Requested on medical conditions.. How were detainees selected?

A:  Great questions.  Need to ask ICE.

Q:  How many transferred to Alaska 

A:  ??????  72 hour limit

Q:  Did DOC have to move anyone out of Anchorage facility?

A:  No.  We did move them..  Due to regional ???  We could have housed the extras without movement.  We decided to move some, to relieve burden on staffing.  Nothing different from normal.  We get heads up from local officials and move people out for med and safety reasons?

Q:  Cost to Alaska from moving detainees from Washington state to here

A:  Not that I know of.   ...  Daily costs covered by payments, food, clothing, staff, indirect costs

Q, Mina:  ????

A:  Per diem rate is $223.70 across the board.

Mina:  What about medical costs?  Per diem cover that?

A:  Covers onsite medical costs, anything offsite handled through ICE

Mina:  Training for staff AC  for longer than 72 hours prisoners?

A:  This is not unusual.  over 72 hours, it happens.  Staff trained to deal with that.  

,,,,  Moved here because of severe overcrowding in Tacoma

Q:  Orientation for trainees and staff.  

A:  Phones, immediately given food on arrival.  Following days, arrange for translation services for those with limited English.  How to use digital law library.  Answer questions.  Effort to orient everyone as we do with others.  Difference is how many came in at once.

[My note:  This all sounds fine in the abstract, but how do you practically tell detainees with limited English (in various languages) about how to get translation services, and then how do they understand all the other instructions.  This all depends on the sensitivity of the people doing this, and based on later testimony, there were lots of problems that this glosses over, or that Winkelman didn't know about.]

Q:  Do all detainees have ICE detainee handbook?

A:  I don't know

Q:  ICE rules, page 20,  say they need them. 

Q, Eischeid:  What Fed standards apply to detainees?  Are you using Fed standards?

A:  We are using Alaska State standards, we aim to achieve any national gold standard.  That said, my reasoning saying it was a question for ICE, they had to approve our standards.  They checked our policies and walked around our facilities and determined we have met their standards.  

[I would say this answer is a "NO".  There are specific standards in the Handbook which apply to ICE detainees, most of whom are not criminals, and have specific rights as detainees seeking legal decisions about their rights to stay in the US.  These are quite different from what a prison would have for criminal inmates who have been sentenced by a court.]

Q:  Can attorneys meet with detainees?

A:  Yes.  Bumpy at first.  We have people protesting every day.  Need to check if visits authorized.  We are adding additional rules, work with ICE on who is approved to visit detainees.  We have attorneys, family, and others trying to meet with inmates.  I would say yes.  

Q:  Do you have standards about seeing an attorney within 24 hours.  

... A: We do.  we saw new people coming in and out

Grey interrupting:  "New rules, p. 166, should permit visits 7 days a week including holiday.  p. 168 able to meet with prospective attorneys... Attorneys here not that aware.  It seems should be pretty open access.

National Detention Standards p. 166

A:  I will state my understanding.  That is why initial days, staff thought they had to go through vetting process, told that by ICE agent, but shown invalid.

Eischeid:  Seems from outside looking in, seems that since detainees from ICE but it's a facility that doesn't usually deal with detainees.  Not good?

A:  We have custody of both criminal and non-criminal detainees.  Difference was how many came in at once.  That caused the bumps

Q:  Previously, you said you got 2-3 detainees before?

A:  Didn't give a number, but yes,

Mina:  ICE decides who is approved for meetings with detainees?

A:  Our first understanding, but some of those restrictions have been lifted.

Mina:  For just legal or members of the public?

A:  Yes. 

Mina:  Immigration hearings - can they attend in a timely manner.  What happens if hearing is out of state, but they are here.  

A:  Yes.  ICE are the gatekeepers.  Their court dates are not something we are aware of.  ICE schedules that.  Need to ask ICE. 

Mina:  Process for detainee wanting to communicate with their counsel

A:  They have access to phone system and help on how to use it.

Gray:  P. 171 guidance - detainees MUST be advised.  Allowed to meet in a private room - none of that mentions phone meetings.  [Guidance here refers to National Detention Standards mentioned above.] [I think he meant p. 168.  Page 171 is about consular (not counselor) visits.  

Mina:  What's the process...

A:  ICE determines when ready for release.  We do not handle that paper work

Mina:  A lot of articles on conditions.  Access to go outside, exercise, religious services

A:  One hour outside daily.  Day room for exercise, religious.  DOC chaplain.  Dietary preferences, need to request for things not available.  Dietary - any special diets DOC provides.  Many special diet

[My comment:  These may be the rules, but how they are carried out is another story.  The attorney testimony below offers examples of the rules not being adhered to.]

Eischeid:  ???

A:  Don't know.  Part 2 - nothing brought to me that has been an issue.

Eischeid:  Problems with family requests?

A:  Not to my knowledge, hasn't been long enough to really know.  I know about legal rep, and we worked through that.  Haven't been doing this long enough - nothing has risen to my attention.  Only ten days so far.  

[My note:  'nothing has risen to my attention' is probably accurate, but allows for lots of problems that she doesn't know about.]

Eischeid:  Under what conditions handcuffed?

A:  Only time when being transported, other than ???, handcuffed in front. 

Eischeid:  Any use of force?

A:  Incident in unit where verbal demonstration, aggressively, did not want to lock down, No one was gassed, moved to rooms for lock down.  

Gray:  I believe that was June 12 afternoon.  What are reasons for lockdown.  How long?

A:  Happen routinely multiple times a day, or emergencies.  The incident in question, don't know if routine or emergency.

Gray:  P.3 of Trump guidance.  Any lockdown reported to ICE.  Was that done?

A:  I'm going to say yes.  I know we do that regularly, but I don't know that specific one.

Gray:  I heard about that incident from many people.  One detainee asking for access to his property so he could get contact info for his counsel, and then everyone was pepper sprayed.

A:  No one was pepper sprayed.  

Gray:  Rules - medical officials check on health issues before

A:  I don't know

Gray:  We do know that at least one was on a respiratory and others get sick

Mina:  Mental health services provided?  Paid by?

A:  Yes, both medical and mental health.  Cost of care.  In person in their module multiple times a  day, explaining how to request information.  Fill out form, triaged by nursing.  

Mina:  Law libraries.  How to get access to Anchorage libraries?

A:  Law library is not available.  Get info, working with someone getting translated.  Any other info is available.

Mina:  Turnaround time reaching out to ACC and making it happen.

A:  Wed June 4 and ???

Mina:  Current contract ...?

A:  Tough questions,  how many can we safely house.  This was not unusual, except for the # in one day.  We had a heads up.

Gray:  From several sources, two lockdowns, one pretty lengthy.

A:  Not aware, but knew lockdown on No Kings Day.

Gray:  Not allowed to shower of change clothes after pepper spray.  Wasn't able to change underwear for three days.  Guidance says one day.

A:  First I've heard about this.  I will look into that.

Gray:  Thanks.  Hope you can stay on as we get other expert testimony.

Woods, ACLU attorney:  experience 8 years on Mexican border.  These individuals are not incarcerated from criminal offense, just immigration issues.  Protected from harm, medical and mental health care.  Brothers, partners, fathers.  Some have been granted .... but being held in punitive conditions.  3 people per cell with one open toilet.  Two showers per week.  No spare clothing at all.  No windows.  Out of cell are shackled.  Been on a lot of lockdown.  Deprived of personal belongings, including contact info.  Only 4 telephones only 2-3 available.  Only two free phone calls. No international calls.  No way to buy phone accounts, others have others do that.  Pepper spray, lasers, isolation.  Very concerned about well being.  Struggling with punitive setting and isolation.   Access to religious materials gone unanswered. 

Concerned ability to deal with legal needs.  No access to immigration case law or ways to copy documents.  I have heard personally.  Does not comply with standards

Gray:  how many have you met with?  5 personally

Other experiences:  Family detention centers have different standards, Legal trailer, attorneys on the ground, detainees able to walk to trailer.  Also experience elsewhere, didn't have to prove my legal id.

Gray:  Different here?

A:  Very different from Tacoma and elsewhere.  In Tacoma they have tablets in cells to call family, no handcuffs, more outside, no strip search after speaking to legal counsel 

Gray:  Commissioner, is that your understanding?

A:  I will find out.  They will follow any protocol criminal detainees follow.

Gray:  Woods says they do not have access to property?

A:  I know there was delay.  Property an issue at the beginning.  I believe resolved.

Eischeid:  Trump guidance says, Before trainees transferred all items returned to detainees.  

Mina: 

Woods:  Complicated legal issues.  Type of immigration, entry location, asylum,  Some detainees are legal residents and have durable legal status to be in US

Gray:  We'll go to next witness .. Nicholas Olano

Olano:  Immigration attorney.  14 years in Alaska f5 years before that

Gray:  What do you do with Alaskans picked up?

Olano:  If arrested by ICE ...???

Gray:  How often held in Alaska.  A:  Normally 72 hours.  ICE would want to move them out of Alaska as fast as possible.  

Olono:  Designed as criminal setting.

Gray:  Still getting people sent to Tacoma?

Olano:  ?????

Gray:  Your experience that Alaska detainee could put up bond?

Olano:  Yes

Gray:  Compare to Florida experi3ence

Olano:  Very different.  Florida designed for this.  These individuals used to system and not prepared to be in criminal center.  

Gray:  What risks?

Olano:  Couldn't say?

Gray:  Anything wrong in being in criminal setting?

Olano:  Being held in punitive setting, not what  would happen elsewhere. 

Gray:  Commissioner Winkelman, do you know if they are being shackled when meeting with attorneys?

A:  No, but know that there are different requirements for prisoners.

Gray:  Protocol for shackling when meeting with legal - they aren't criminals.

Mina:  Do you know if detainees had opportunity to be released on bond?

Olano:  Some were elegible in Tacoma.  

Gray:  Final attorney Sean Quirk  

Quirk:  Sean Quirk, Washington DC.  5 years in Navy.  Briefly talk about what has happened with my client who was transferred to Alaska from Tacoma without explanation to him or me or prior notice.  Tried to contact him in Tacoma.  This Monday finally received answer we could contact him.  Then they said he wasn't here, they didn't know.  Thought he was deported.  No one contacted us he was transferred.  Happy to answer questions

Learning a lot from testimony today.  Communications hard from the beginning, and got passed off to others.  Took a while to get 30 minute call Wednesday.  First contact since transferred.  Client said they took away all his papers.  He hadn't memorized my phone number so couldn't call me.

Gray:  Commissioner can you speak to different phone time rules.

A:  Rec time is one hour per day.  Will follow up on discrepancies.

Gray:  One hour a day outside five days a week.  Seems they are getting that.  Trouble contacting attorneys via phone.  Why?

A:  I know at the beginning of transfer there were problems.  This is the first time I'm hearing about it.  I will be following up.  

Gray:  p.160 of guidance - facilities shall not restrict # of calls to reps.

Mina:  Attempts to contact your client?

Sean Quirk:  Everyone we contacted told us to contact someone else.  Emails.  Found out he was in Anchorage on Monday and took til Wednesday.  Time difference and language makes it harder.  8-4 Alaska time difficult.  

Mina:  Also looking at p 160 of Trump standards.  This pertains to emergency calls, staff should help has fast as possible.  Mon-Wed seems longer than the 8 hour ideal.  Question for Mr. Quirk.  Facilities should help making confidential call, staff should help them make the call confidentially.  Your client get this?

Quirk:  Once we did confirmed no one in the room with him.  I don't know about process.  He has not contacted me since Wednesday.  

Mina:  Staff made it possible to contact attorneys?

DOC:  Yes, aware of and working on it.  Challenge in this situation.  From out of state, language barriers.  I'm working on.  

Gray:  Situation Mr. Quirk described not learning about client transfer for a week.  Common?

Alano:  common

Wood:  There is a requirement that ICE notify you.

Alano:  In my client's case notice did not happen.

Quirk:  ICE has to notify 24 hours in advance.  Didn't happen

Eischeid:  Describe the papers that were lost

Quirk:  All his documents, passport and docs to prove his asylum case, and what we sent to him, engagement letter, and others.  All gone with transfer.  As far as I know from Wed.  he has not received them.  

Gray:  Open Questions to public.

Rep Mears:  I have concerns with what is happening with ICE.  2 big areas:  1  Elsewhere in ICE facilities and here we have criminal incarceration facilities.  2.  Alaska is far away.  No contact with family, friends, and other local sources.  Contracts .... Opportunity to ask questions.  Hope hearings lead to changes.

Gray:  p. 163  "To maintain detainee morale and family relationships encourage family visits"  How are family from Lower 48 encouraged to come.

DOC:  I don't know.  Treating like any other criminal or civil detainee.  Extremely hard when folks are far away.

Gray:  Have any family or friends had visits    

Reps. Gray, Mina, Holland, and Josephson (l-r)

Josephson:  Why are we investing energy and time treating guidance as advisory, not compulsory.  We are only being refunded for out costs.  Why are we doing this at all.

DOC:  Fair questions.  Because of military presence and us not having a federal detention center, we will continue to be a federal partner, and one of those partners is ICE.  Don't usually stay in Alaska more than 72 days.  Same ICE agent in that area is same as for Alaska.  Asked if we could we safely house detainees for 30 days.  We said yes.  That's where we are at.

Josephson:  Asked if contract requires us to cooperate?  Admin could have decided not to do this?

DOC:  That's fair to say.  Longstanding contract in place and we were asked how many we could safely house?  If we had been full, it could have been a different answer

Josephson:  You said deployed and then said not used.  If pepper spray was used, not directly against detainees?

DOC:  Used on the ground, not directly on detainees.  

[my short break]

Gray:  Change in per diem price change, related to new ICE detainees?

DOC:  Coincidental - old contract ended May 31.

Gray:  Were they able to bring medications with them  Enough supply?

DOC:  Yes, Yes.  One of our big asks, before they arrived  - that we had medical abstract for each detainee and their medication.

Rep. Holland:  Is there a duty or procedure at DOC to protect the rights of people held in custody to be sure not moved in way to disrupt their proceedings

DOC:  That is something we do for all incarcerated.  But ICE is responsible for who is moved and when.

Mina:  Alaskan ??    ICE

DOC:  Currently undergoing recertification

Mina:  Timeline for recertification?

DOC:  You need to ask ICE

Mina:  We heard 30 minute limite on phone call.  Is that enough time for translation services or legal advice?

DOC:  Fair question and I'll follow up on that.  

Mina:  3 people to a cell normal?

DOC:  Thanks for the question,  when it came up I wanted to comment.  There is enough room in the module, there is enough - we asked if they want to move to another cell, they have banded together and so despite having room to move out of three in a cell and many have chosen not to.

Mina:  to attorneys, do you agree with that?

Wood:  I haven't heard that people choose to stay in a cell with three.

Gray:  repeated q

DOC:  I asked before this hearing and was reassured that was their decisions.  

[Of course we don't know what the conditions of moving were that caused the detainees to stay put?  Into cell with people who don't speak their language?  Other issues?]

Mina:  30 days - ??

DOC:  When ICE contacted us, they contacted ACC knowing we could hold longer than 72 hours, need to stay for up to 30 days.  So, beyond that, I don't know their plan going forward.

Mina:  No restriction, right now DOC just waits to see what will happen?  

DOC:  Short answer is yes, but we are in regular contact with ICE agent to be in the mod once per week.  He has made frequent visits to the facility.  The idea that we are in constant communication on when individuals are moving out.  Six have already moved out.

[No one has asked who this ICE agent is for Alaska and Tacoma]

Mina:  Other states have overflow?

DOC:  I'm not aware and have a good working relationship with the ICE agent and he overseas Alaska and Tacoma and contacted us.  Unusual request and one we could meet

Mina:  To attorneys:  are you aware of other states?

Woods:  Others have federal detention facilities.  To our knowledge, Alaska is only state where detainees in State facilities.

Gray:  Some negotiations that facility in Adak being considered.

DOC:  I have not in any knowledge in my professional capacity, though I read in news article or on social media heard about it.

Olano:  Anchorage is already very far away.  We are not El Salvador.  How to get people there, This will cost Alaskans money.  Bad idea.  

Woods:  Practice to get them to facilities where it's hard to access and potential expansion to Guantanamo.  I haven't heard of it but will take it seriously.  

Escheid:  Anything that prohibits state legislators touring the ACC and seeing the conditions?

DOC:  Nothing and I would encourage it and welcome it.  

Gray:  Not an easy hearing from Commissioner Winkelman and appreciate you being here and responding.  

DOC:  I appreciate the comments.  Hard questions and not easy.  Ultimately at the end of the day. I have a passion for this work. Often difficult.  Two types of authority.  Encourage everyone to reach out and if there are things, let us know.  I want a better DOC.  Kudos for my staff for how they have handled this.  Increased pressure surrounding social unrest surrounding this issue.  I have phenomenal staff and couldn't do my job without them.  

Gray:  To media, pages 172-4 says media can schedule meetings with detainees.  Also like to thank Department of Law.  They chose to answer in writing and they are available on BASIS. You can see the letter here.  

Concludes hearing at 3:10 pm

AIFF2024: The Stranger's Case Was Powerful - Thursday Schedule [Video Added]

 It was a full house at the E Street Theater Wednesday night for The Strangers' Case.  The film is packaged with five chapters:  The Doctor; The Soldier; The Smuggler; The Poet; and The Captain.  They all converge in this story that starts out (after an opening scene in a Chicago hospital) in a hospital in Aleppo, Syria.  The doctor goes home to a birthday party and a bomb blast.  The soldier is upset when ordered to shoot a group of men accused of being terrorists, because it include a boy who wrote graffiti.  The smuggler sells spots on a boat from Turkey to Greece, cash only, no guarantees.  The poet is a refugee who is trying to get his family to Greece.  The captain is in the Greek Coast Guard who goes out everyday to look for and rescue boat people.  You can see the trailer in the previous post.

The only actor I knew was Omar Sy, the great French actor who's played in television series and many movies.  It was particularly poignant given that Assad's regime in Syria was overthrown just this week.  A film you should look out for.  

At the film was Ash Avildsen, whose own film, Queens of the Ring, plays tomorrow night.  I asked him for a quick intro to his film at after the showing of The Strangers' Case.  It's below.  At the end you can see his demonstration of appreciation for The Strangers' Case.

[I'll add the video tomorrow morning.  It's still uploading to Youtube and I need some sleep.DONE!]

I've seen so many really good films.  The documentaries are particularly strong this year, though The Strangers' Case is a narrative feature.  I'm hoping that having Omar Sy in the film will help it get wide distribution.  

Thursday's Schedule

9:00 AM: Sonic Storytelling: Music Licensing and Artist Collaboration in Film  Alaska Experience Theater

Moving to the E Street Theater now

10:00 AM – 12:00 PM: Coffee Talk/Panel

12:00 PM – 2:00 PM: Doc Shorts #2

• The Collector – 15:00
• Tentsítewahkwe – 17:21
• Designed by Disaster – 19:52
• Broken Flight – 18:00
• Signal Fire: Towards Reconciliation – 30:00

And now to the Museum

2:00 PM – 4:00 PM: Female Filmmaker Showcase Shorts 

A decade after high school, three old classmates reconnect and reevaluate their lives while hiking a mountain in Alaska.

• Vessel – 17:44
• Derive – 18:38
• Yazidi Women: From Victims To Survivors – 7:06
• The Icefield: An Expedition Memoir – 26:46
• Sunflower Girl – 13:08
• Julian – 6:53

4:30 PM – 6:30 PM: Alaska Teen Media Institute Presents After-School Special – Event Tickets

7:00 PM – 9:00 PM: Alaskan Feature: Uphill 

There's not a lot out there about this film.  It seems pretty new.  TMDB has the bare minimum - but it includes the image I'm using, the actors, and a budget ($15,000).

The DuckDuckGo search engine offers this under Plex.

"Uphill (2024) release date is Thursday, December 12 starring Adam D Boyer, Victoria Summer Felix, Matthew Rush and directed by Adam D Boyer. A decade after high school, three old classmates reconnect and reevaluate their lives while hiking a mountain in Alaska."

It doesn't actually say that if you go to the Plex link.  But if it's true, this is the world premier in Anchorage this evening.  

All this was still at the Museum.  

Now we move over to the Bear Tooth.

5:30pm  Diving Into Darkness

Screenshot from Press Page Photo

If you've gone to any of the AIFF films, you've seen Jill Heinerth swimming underwater in dark caves, and telling us it's the closest thing she can think of to being on another planet.  Wikipedia tells us:

"Jill Heinerth (born 1965) is a Canadian cave diver, underwater explorer, writer, photographer and film-maker.[4] She has made TV series for PBS, National Geographic Channel and the BBC, consulted on movies for directors including James Cameron, written several books and produced documentaries including We Are Water[5] and Ben's Vortex, about the disappearance of Ben McDaniel. . .

In 1998, Heinerth was part of the team that made the first 3D map of an underwater cave.[8]
Heinerth became the first person to dive the ice caves of Antarctica, penetrating further into an underwater cave system than any woman ever[5][dead link] In 2001, she was part of a team that explored ice caves of icebergs[9] where she and her then husband Paul Heinerth "discovered wondrous life and magical vistas" and experienced the calving of an iceberg, documented in the film Ice Island.[10]"

The AIFF2024 program tells us that the 2024 Explorer's Achievement Award goes to Diving into the Darkness.   This is a new award, but I heard tonight that Jill Heinerth is in Anchorage and will be at the screening to receive the award.  

I'm conflicted over whether I should post the trailer here, just because it's been played before every single film/program I've been to at this festival.  Instead, here's a link to the film's website and you can go watch it yourself.  If you haven't seen the trailer, you should.  

Here's from the director's statement:

As our friendship deepened, I discovered that Jill's story was profoundly deep, both literally and figuratively, and how the personal side of her story was immensely captivating. Yet, this remarkable story had largely remained confined to short video formats. Given my unique position at the intersection of the filmmaking and diving realms, I found the call to tell her story irresistible. What followed was a year of intense collaboration, a creative partnership that would prove invaluable as we tackled the herculean challenges of principal photography.

I had no intention of being a passive observer while my colleagues risked their lives to capture the story on film, especially when it came to the underwater sequences. So I undertook the gruelling journey of

becoming a certified cave diver on a rebreather, something which had never been done before amongst

film directors. I descended alongside the cast and crew into the depths of the caves, well beyond the reach of recreational divers. It was an arduous yet exhilarating experience to dive, work, and learn alongside some of the world's most renowned cave divers. Despite the monumental difficulties and inherent risks in directing a crew of cave divers, I would embark on this adventure again without hesitation.

8:00 pm (still at the Bear Tooth)  Queen of the Ring 

From Collider:

"From writer/director Ash Avildsen and based on the book by Jeff Leen, Queen of the Ring tells the incredible true story of Mildred Burke (Emily Bett Rickards), a single mother from a small town who went on to become the first million-dollar female athlete in world history. Mildred was a woman determined to make a name for herself as a female wrestler at a time when it was illegal across most of the United States, becoming a three-time women’s world champion from the 1930s through the 1950s despite all the challenges. At the same time, her personal life was not without its challenges, especially once she meets promoter Billy Wolfe (Josh Lucas), with whom she falls in love, gets married, becomes aware that he’s cheating on her with several of the other female wrestlers on his roster, and decides to stay married as a business arrangement, so that she doesn’t get screwed out of her own money. Through everything, she perseveres, becoming a pioneer in the sport that she loved. . .

"How did this project come your way? Was this just an audition that came up?

RICKARDS: I received the script in my inbox. There was no audition, just a talk with (writer/director) Ash [Avildsen] and questions about whether I had wrestled. The answer was no. And how comfortable I was with physicality, which was very comfortable. I felt very capable of this woman. I’m really grateful that Ash sent me and gave me this opportunity because I wouldn’t have known who this woman was. And I had never gotten to go under such a physical transformation for a character before, one that was not only energetic, but had to have the body structure to find the energy. It has really opened up my eyes, in terms of my process and acting. It just makes me hungry for more. It’s a cycle."

 Grammar note:  I wasn't sure where the apostrophe should go in The Strangers' Case.  Before or after the final s?  I checked the program and put it before the final s.  But that makes it singular, which, after seeing the movie didn't make sense.  There were a lot of 'strangers.'  And I see now that the trailer spells it Strangers'.  So I've fixed it.

The program also misled me on this last film.  The title in the program is Queen of the Ring.  But the title on the trailer is Queens of the Ring.  Colider also has it singular. So I've changed it where I can find it, but it takes too long for me to upload video to YouTube to change it on the video tonight. 

[Update: Dec. 12, 2024, 11:52pm:  I saw Queen of the Ring tonight, and the title on the film was QUEEN, no S.  So I've changed what I could. Editing the video and uploading it again will take a bit more time.  Also, I left an 'l' out of Ash Avildsen's name.  But I've fixed that too.]

 [ACS has been promising fiber optic for two years now, but until then I'm stuck with painfully slow internet.]

AIFF2024: Wednesday: Omar Sy Plays A Smuggler Of Syrian Refugees

 There's just one picture on the schedule for tonight.  

E Street Theater

315 E Street, Anchorage, Alaska 99501

8:00 PM – 10:00 PM: Feature Narrative: The Strangers' Case – Event Tickets

Whether you know Omar Sy from Lupin or Jurassic World or X-Men: Days of Future Past, you know this amazing French actor.  

And just a couple of days after Assad has been overthrown and has fled Damascus, we have this film about Syrian refugees.  

From Deadline: 

"Beloved French actor Omar Sy stars in the debut feature from longtime producer Brandt Andersen in The Strangers’ Case, a searing and international ensemble that is world premiering at the Berlin Film Festival on Friday. [That was last February]

Sy stars along with Yasmin Al Massri in the film, which is an extension of Andersen’s Oscar shortlisted 2020 short Refugee also starring Sy and Al Massri. It’s playing as a Berlinale Special Gala title later this week.

The film follows the chain reaction of events involving five different families in four different countries after tragedy strikes a Syrian family in Aleppo: a doctor (Al Massri) and her daughter, who come home following a chaotic shift at an Aleppo hospital; a soldier who witnesses heinous crimes towards men, women and children in the service of the Syrian regime; a smuggler in Turkey (Sy) who tries desperately to make ends meet for his young son while also trying to save enough money to afford his own escape; a poet from a Turkish refugee camp who barters for space on an overcrowded boat with his young family; and a Greek coast guard captain who spends his days and nights rescuing sinking lifeboats full of migrants."

From Guy Lodge, in Variety:

"The international scope and grueling human cost of the global refugee crisis lends itself to contemporary epic filmmaking of a particularly sober stripe, as seen mostly recently in Agnieszka Holland’s “Green Border” and Matteo Garrone’s Oscar-nominated “Io Capitano.” Shorn of their ripped-from-the-headlines urgency, such stories of humans crossing vast distances and facing hostile odds in pursuit of a better life are as old as time itself. A muscular, assured debut feature from U.S. producer-turned-director Brandt Andersen, “The Strangers’ Case” stresses the sprawling scale of the situation with a chaptered structure that pivots between multiple involved parties in the refugee’s journey, from warmongers to traffickers to rescuers to the displaced victims themselves. . .  

“The Strangers’ Case” is titled for a prescient, Shakespeare-written speech from the play “Sir Thomas More,” in defence of those displaced from their country and barred from others: “Would you be pleased to find a nation of such barbarous temper that, breaking out in hideous violence, would not afford you an abode on earth?” Brandt’s debut hasn’t quite the Bard’s poetry, but the plaintive conscience is present and correct."

 

Innocence Project Ribs, Veggie Pickup, Steller Turns 50

Keeping busy these days.  I'm in the third grade class daily mostly helping one young man catch up on his English but also with other kids too.  Biking in the breaks in the rain.   

Also went to the Alaska Innocence Project's BBQ Rib Cook-off.  This year their invite also mentioned there'd be veggie options too.  The baked beens were great.  

Justice is one of my most cherished values, and the idea of innocent people be locked up, even executed, moves me greatly.  Right now the national Innocence Project is working to prevent an innocent man from being executed. 

"The Missouri Supreme Court has scheduled the execution of Mr. Williams on Sept. 24, for a crime he did not commit."

Even the prosecuting attorney involved has changed his mind.

"The St. Louis County prosecuting attorney reviewed these DNA results and filed a motion to vacate Mr. Williams’ conviction because he believed the DNA results proved by clear and convincing evidence that Mr. Williams did not commit this crime."

Moving on to the execution, when there is serious question, even if not definite proof, of innocence, tells me these people are not serious about justice. 

The BBQ took place at the Alaskan Airmen's Association great building at Lake Hood float plane base.  It's a great location, but the steady rain and cloud cover that evening meant there were very few planes taking off or landing.  And one would hope they might consider a name change soon.  Airmen seems a lot sexist.  I suspect they could find reasonable synonyms, like pilots, flyers, etc.  

Picked up our Thursday veggies from Grow North Farms.  

And Friday afternoon went to the Community part of the Steller Secondary School 50th Anniversary celebration.  Here's one of the students who spoke to the crowd hold the Legislative Proclamation Rep. Alyse Galvin presented the school.  Alyse was involved with Steller a long time as a parent.  (As were we, but not for so long).  I saved this picture in fairly high resolution.  The story is pretty cool, but not sure you can read it.  Among the signatures is Sen. Jesse Kiehl of Juneau, who was a Steller student when my daughter was.  

Here's Rep. Galvin talking to the gathering before making the presentation of the Certificate.  To the side are the student speaker (whose name I didn't catch), the principal Maria Hernandez, and a parent who worked hard to organize the anniversary weekend.  

And here's Bob Reid, one of the original Steller teachers back in 1974, who came up from Texas to participate.  Bob talked about how the school got started and the ideals of creating a school where everyone participated in the decisions on courses, rules, etc.  Students, teachers, administrators, staff, and parents.  And how the vision was to bring the world into the school and involve the students out in the world.  

Bob was also a neighbor of ours before he moved to Texas, so it was great to see him again.  His major claim to fame for me was that he was the host of "Nothing but the Blues" on the then new public radio station KSKA.  

For those who can't read the Legislative Proclamation, here's part of it:

"The self-directed aspect of Steller Secondary School is a big part of what makes Steller so successful, and so unique.  With an emphasis on responsibility to self and to one's community, students, parents, and staff work together through a democratic process to set school policy and procedures.  The school ethic encourages self-advocacy and inquiry:  students are encouraged to participate in collaborative processes to determine what courses should be offered and which events will take place. 

With no bells to call students to class, no advanced placement classes, and no interscholastic sports, students who choose to attend Steller find themselves both appropriately challenged and personally engaged through the opportunity to co-create independent studies and intensives with their instructors and their peers, and to develop self-directive intensives ranging from foreign and domestic travel, sports, carpentry, drama, creative writing, sculpture, and batik, to fun with math and the chemistry of cosmetics.

As part of Stellar's commitment to their motto, "only the educated are free," and their recognition that education of the individual occurs in the context of an interdependent world, the school heavily emphasizes service to community, both through a sustained commitment to service intones community, region, and state, and through a commitment to one another within the school's peer mentoring and leadership opportunities."

I'd note, that while it says "no advanced placement classes, and no interscholastic sports," students are free to arrange those activities at other schools in the district.  My daughter took advanced placement classes at another high school and she took German at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) while she was in high school.  And NBA player Trajan Langdon played basketball for East High School while he was at Steller.  

The school was named after Georg Steller, (from Wikipedia):

"Georg Wilhelm Steller (10 March 1709 – 14 November 1746) was a German-born naturalist and explorer who contributed to the fields of biology, zoology, and ethnography. He participated in the Great Northern Expedition (1733–1743) and his observations of the natural world helped the exploration and documentation of the flora and fauna of the North Pacific region.

Steller pursued studies in theology and medicine before turning his attention to the natural sciences. In 1734, he joined the Russian Academy of Sciences as a physician, eventually being selected to accompany Bering's expedition to the uncharted waters between Siberia and North America. Steller kept detailed records of species and cultures encountered, as well as ocean currents during the journey. . ."

Among the regular visitors to our backyard, the Steller's Jay was named after Georg Steller.  (The photo is from a 2014 post and I wrote then that I did nothing to enhance the color. The light was just right.)

So connecting several threads here, I took Dr. Margritt Engel to the Steller anniversary celebration.  Dr. Engel was my daughter's UAA German teacher while my daughter was at Steller.  But more important, Dr. Engel translated Georg Steller's journals from the expeditions to Siberia and North America.  She brought two with her to give to the school for their library and to arrange for further interaction with the school and scholarship on its namesake.   

Biking For Veggies Gets Me Into Police Blockade

 It's Thursday.  The Refugee Assistance and Immigration Service of the Catholic Social Services in Anchorage has a farm - Grow North Farm - where I subscribe for weekly veggie pickups over the summer.  It's about 7.4 km or or a bit over 9 miles round trip.  I can do much of it on wooded bike paths.  But eventually I get to a quiet residential street in Airport Heights.  

My first hint was a police car a block to the east.  But then as I headed down the street there were more police cars.  Lots of them.  My first reaction was a bad crash, but I'm on a bike and I can go around on the sidewalk if necessary.  But then I got within about 20 feet of the cars and police behind them, yelling at someone I couldn't see.  But I could see that at least one officer had a gun pointed over the car.  As regular readers of this blog probably know, guns are not a fascination of mine.  But one of the benefits of blogging is that I learn new things.  Here's an image of shotguns I got when I googled 'police guns'.  What I saw most resembled one of the circled guns, probably the bottom one, because he was holding it and I saw that box magazine as well.  (Based on the pictures and interactive description from here.)  Of course, I'm just guessing from my brief look and googling now.  

I realized quickly that if the police had guns pointing further down the street, over their cars, that there was someone down there who might start shooting toward the police, near where I was.  (There are fairly regular reports in the newspaper of Anchorage police involved in a shoot out.)  Rather than pull out my camera and try to catch this dramatic scene, I turned my bike around and headed back, turned the corner and tried the next street over, which got me to DeBarr.  From DeBarr and Airport Heights, I took this picture while waiting for the light to change.  I never heard any shots fired.

I originally encountered one set of police coming from the south.  Now I'm looking south from two blocks to the north.  So there were police on both ends of the street.  

I carried on toward Grow North Farm.  It seemed bizarre that cars and people were carrying on normally so close to this dramatic scene, without even knowing that something was happening.  

On my way back everything on that block was back to normal.  Not a sign that anything had happened.  It was like a movie set had packed up and gone home. (I grew up in LA where there were movie shoots all over.)  But I don't know that a movie set would have cleaned up as well.  

At home I unloaded the veggie haul.  Today's selection was:

• Rainbow Chard/ Collard Greens

• Mizuna

• Cilantro

• And a choose-two grab bag of: Kohlrabi, Cucumbers, Zucchini, Salad Mix, Hot Peppers, Tarragon, and Oregano

From the grab-bag, I chose Kohlrabi and Cucumbers.

I played around a bit with the Curves on my photo program to offer you this somewhat alien looking kohlrabi.

As a bonus, we got to pick out a peony.  This one made it in pretty good shape sticking out of my backpack on the ride home.  

Taking Advantage of My Air Drop Working Again

 My phone asked me to log in with my Apple ID today.  On a whim, I tried Air Drop after and it worked.  So, in what I hope is a long window, I'll put up some pictures.  

Grow North is the farm in Mountain View where the Refugee Assistance and Immigration Service of Anchorage Catholic Social services grows food for the summer and operates a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) with once a week pick ups and sells fresh vegetables and some baked goods as well during the week.  You can't get much fresher food in Anchorage unless it's from your own garden.  

The garlic and the picture of the farm are from last week.  

This week's box includes:

• Classic cauliflower,
• Crunchy kohlrabi
• Unique malabar spinach,
• Tasty bok choi,
• And some lovely sage for the herb of the week!

From the email that CSA subscribers get:

"Malabar spinach seems like it would retain similarities to that of regular spinach. The plant uses the name spinach in it, yet the ironic part of that the two could not be more different. Malabar spinach grows on a vine, granting it the nickname of vine spinach, whereas regular spinach grows from the ground (like many leafy greens)."  

This Goose Lake as I rode by  The ducks hang out here because its's  spot where people feed them.

On a completely different bike ride, out past Taku Lake, they've had the big blue sign up much of the summer, but the little one just popped up.  If you can't read the small sign (which I'm guessing you can't) it says, "We are upgrading the skatepark!"  It also says the construction budget is $1.2 million. I know we've had inflation over the years, but really?  $1.2 million for curved concrete?  Curious how much profit the contractor, also listed as "Street Maintenance and Grindline Skate Parks LLC" is making.  I realize they may be doing more than just the skateboard park, but it would be nice if there was a watchdog group which gathered all the data on summer construction projects and evaluated how the money was spent.  

In other construction news, the ACS fiber optic team was out on Crescent in Geneva Woods today.  We're on the Lake Otis side, but all this area is getting wired.  That bright orange wire is popping up all around the neighborhoods.  

And it's mushroom season.  Here are some making appearances in my yard.

Don't have time now to research these.  The orange one is an amanita - hallucinogenic and al over Anchorage now.  It can also make you really sick.  Not planning on eating any, though I'm waiting for the King Boletes and the Shaggy Manes.  

But I have started eating the olive bread I made last night.  It came out well.  The one in the back is a dill experiment.  (We got lots of fresh dill from Grow North Farm last week.)

Meanwhile J got off the phone this evening with her long time friend (does 45 years count as long time?) who lives on the Haleakala foothills in Maui.  Her house is far from Lahaina, but there is also a fire up in that neighborhood as well and she's been evacuated and is staying with friends.  If I recall right, Maui has its share of eucalyptus trees, and their oil burns easily.  May the fire be quickly extinguished and your house survive.  

Teaching English To A Refugee In Alaska - Polishing Old Skills

RAIS is the Alaska Catholic Social Service's Refugee Assistance and Immigration Service.  Last summer I volunteered to tutor English for them, but I decided that I did not want to go into someone's house regularly during COVID.  They said some of their clients live outside of Anchorage and maybe we can do this online.  

Several weeks ago they got back to me.  A refugee living outside of Anchorage wanted lessons. (I'm going to be vague to protect confidentiality.)

In Peace Corps training back in 1966 and 1967 we got killer training for Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL).  The trainer in charge of the TEFL lessons was like a teaching machine.  She had a technique and a style that, in hindsight, was a really good way to teach a foreign language AND the lessons were good for teaching any class.  I can't believe her name escapes me at the moment.  I used to have nightmares about her watching me practice teach.  [UPDATE March 11, 2023 - It was Phyllis!]

A 50 minute class consists of

• 5 minutes of pronunciation drill
• 10 minutes of vocabulary lessons
• 20-25 minutes of grammar drills
• 20-25 minutes of reading the lesson in the text out loud and questions and answers about the text

The pronunciation drill would be related to some of the words in the vocabulary lesson.  The vocabulary would come from the reading in that chapter.  The grammar drills focused on lots of oral repetition using the grammar we were working on.  And, of course, it included the vocabulary and sounds we just did.  There might be a sentence and after the students could repeat it fairly well, I'd give them words that they used to replace words in the sentence.  This was a good way to see if they understood it or whether they were just parroting stuff they didn't understand.  

We had a Level 3 English textbook at training that was used in Thai high schools.  The readings in the chapters were about Thai history, US history, and British history.  (I learned the basics of key Thai historic figures that way.)

When I arrived at my school, I found they were using the same book we had trained with.  And the class was at a chapter that I had done a practice lesson on in training in DeKalb, Illinois.  It felt like magic.  

So, using what I learned then,I've started preparing my lesson plans, though now I can do that with Keynote (Apple's version of PowerPoint.).  My student is highly motivated, already speaks fluent enough English, but grammar and vocabulary are limited and pronunciation could be improved as well.  Lesson 3 is tomorrow morning (Saturday).  So far he's put up with my very packed lessons with good humor.  I think I will have to ease back a bit - I can't sustain that level of effort.  But we've got lots of material to work with over the next month.  I told him he's my boss and he has to tell me what he wants and then I'll do it. But, of course, his texts also alert me to sentences and grammar he needs to work on.    

As I've been reading online to get foreign language teaching tips, I found one that both of us like:  Learn the words to English songs you like.  He's suggested the Beatles "Yesterday."  So I'm going to see what sort of grammar and pronunciation lessons we develop using the lyrics as a starting point.  (I used "Hello, Goodbye" once in Thailand.  Very easy lyrics.)

I'll look at the grammar they use, and then try to substitute words to make a lot more useful sentences from the lyrics.  

Learning to teach English as a Peace Corps volunteer meant we were learning Thai using the same method that we were preparing to teach our students with.  That's a very humbling experience which gave me a much better understanding of what my students were struggling with.  What looks so obvious to a native speaker seems impenetrable to a non-native speaker.  Sounds they make in Thai, we simply couldn't distinguish at the beginning.  So I had a lot more patience than I probably would have when my Thai students had the same problems I had and was still having trying to speak Thai.  Thais only have eight final consonant sounds.  Eight!  B, D,  K, N, NG, M, P.  (I checked online and they include W and Y, but it seems to me that those really become vowel sounds.)  But that means Thais have a LOT of trouble with all the consonants and consonant clusters (RD, ST, CH, NK, etc.)

So I've been looking at specific pronunciation issues that speakers of my students native language have.  

That's been using a lot of my creativity.  

I also learned in our first meeting that one of his sponsors is someone I've spent a fair amount of time with in the last couple of years.  

Anchorage's Refugee Farm Market - Great Fresh Produce And More

 Catholic Social Services has a host of programs to help various communities.  RAIS - Refugee Assistance and Immigration Services - is focused on new refugees coming to Anchorage.  They help them get housing, English lessons, jobs, into school, and other help as needed.  One of the most visible activities is the Grow North Farm, on 

Mt. View between Bragaw and Airport Heights.  

As you can see from the sign, they are open weekday afternoons from 4-7pm.  

The growing season seems to be in its prime now.  These are pictures from Thursday when I went to pick up my CSA box.  CSA is Community Supported Agriculture.  Community members subscribe to get weekly produce boxes.  Details vary from program to program, but the RAIS program pick up is on Thursdays.  But there are lots of vegetables for anyone to buy, even without a CSA subscription.  

                                                                               

The vegetables on sale are picked that day.  

A number of the refugees are from African countries such as Somalia and Congo and Ethiopia and they are growing greens they know from home.  We got sorrel and dodo in a recent box.  Fortunately RAIS also has a cookbook with recipes for some of the produce that are not usually available in Anchorage.  

                  

I was told these were pickled radishes. There are other goodies available from different vendors - spices, sweets, and other surprises.  

Potatoes.

The vendors get the benefit of tents and umbrellas which they have definitely needed in August.  

There's also a food truck and every Thursday there's a dinner offering from a different culture.  This Burmese coconut chicken soup was great.  And last week we go an Arabic rice dish that had a wonderful sauce.  

Getting to meet the folks who grow and sell the food is a big part of attraction of this market.  We've got fascinating neighbors here in Anchorage with lots to teach us.  

This is a summer only market.  It's scheduled go through the end of September.