Sept. 26 - Oct. 2, 2019
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Lummis hosting Salish Sea gathering in Blaine, page 7
Wildbird Charity feeds kids on weekends, page 8
Birch Bay man builds electric bikes, page 15
PRSRT STD U. S. Postage PAID Permit NO. 87 Blaine, WA 98230
Canadians increasingly subject to fiveyear bans from U.S., say lawyers By Jami Makan
(See CBP, page 5)
s Musicians from Silver City Band performed at Surf and Turf By the Sea, on September 14 at the G Street Plaza in downtown Blaine. Hosted by the Blaine Chamber of Commerce, the event featured fish and chips and pulled pork barbecued by award-winning pit master Christopher McBride. There was also a beer garden for attendees to enjoy.
Photo by Louise Mugar
Upcoming forums to feature general election candidates By Jami Makan The public will have a chance to learn more about candidates appearing on the 2019 general election ballot at a series of upcoming forums. The League of Women Voters of Bellingham/Whatcom County (LWV) is inviting the public to attend its upcoming forums, in which candidates will answer questions from the audience as well as from a moderator. The first LWV forum will take place on Saturday, September 28 from 9:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. at the Whatcom County council chambers, 311 Grand Avenue in Bellingham. It will feature candidates for the
Whatcom County executive, sheriff and assessor positions, as well as the Whatcom County Council at-large position and the Port of Bellingham commissioner position. This forum will include a lunch break so that attendees can engage more informally with candidates. On Saturday, October 19 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Ferndale High School, a LWV forum will host candidates for Ferndale mayor, Ferndale City Council positions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 and the Whatcom County Council district 5 seat. Also on Saturday, October 19 from 9:30 a.m. to noon at Lynden city hall annex, a LWV forum will host candidates for Lyn-
Library event to address opioid overdose prevention By Kira Erickson The Whatcom County Health Department will be hosting an event providing information on opioids and preventing overdoses from 1 to 2 p.m. on Saturday, September 28 in the Blaine library. Public health nurses will deliver a presentation on naloxone, the generic name of the medication used to reverse the effects of an opioid overdose. Narcan is a brand name of the medication, and is often used interchangeably when talking
about naloxone. “They will be explaining how to assess for signs of overdose, explaining a little bit about the opioid crisis, what that means in our county and how to access Narcan,” said public health nurse supervisor Lynn Pittsinger. Naloxone is non-addictive and can be purchased without a prescription at many pharmacies. Pittsinger said the medication removes the opioid from its receptor site so that someone who has overdosed can recover.
The event at the Blaine library is one of several educational opportunities that the health department has been hosting in the county on opioids and overdose prevention. “We’ve more recently been trying to do in-person trainings, knowing this might be a better way to reach folks so they have a more hands-on experience in order to learn more about this,” health department communications specialist (See Opioids, page 4)
den city council positions 1, 2, 3 and 4 and Whatcom County Council district 4. Separately, the Birch Bay Bible Community Church will host a candidate forum for Birch Bay and Blaine on Monday, October 14 at 7 p.m. Candidates have been invited for the Whatcom County assessor, sheriff and executive positions; county council districts 4, 5 and at-large positions; and Blaine school district director positions 2 and 4. General election day is November 5. Voters may register or update their voter registration by visiting voter.votewa.gov, or may visit the Whatcom County auditor’s office for assistance.
INSIDE
U.S. border guards are now issuing fiveyear bans to Canadians and other non-citizens at a higher rate than before, according to immigration lawyers interviewed by The Northern Light. Five-year bans, formally called expedited removals, used to be issued in cases of egregious conduct such as lying to a border guard or being caught working in the U.S. illegally. But immigration lawyers say that the bans are now being issued more liberally, including when visitors lack the right documents or are simply unaware of the rules. “I’m getting tons of cases where people come to the border and don’t have the right documents or they are naïve in what they are doing, and they get five-year bars,” said Blaine immigration lawyer Len Saunders, who noted a case in which a Canadian professional was banned from the U.S. for having a notarized, rather than an original, copy of his college degree. Saunders described a recent case in which a Canadian woman married an American man. After the wedding ceremony took place in Surrey, B.C., the two attempted to cross the border into the U.S., where they planned to spend two months at the husband’s house. The woman was issued a five-year ban. “In the past, they would have done a simple denied entry and said you really need to apply for a green card and don’t come back until it’s been approved or there’s proof that you’ve filed,” said Saunders. In another case, a Canadian man got a temporary job working for a winery on the Canadian side of the border. However, he decided to reside at his girlfriend’s parents’ condo on the American side of the border during this period. After crossing the border every day to go to and from work for a few months, he was banned from entering the U.S., because officials believed
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