Beliefs and Holy Places
Beliefs and Holy Places

Author: James S. Griffith

Publisher: University of Arizona Press

Published: 1993-09-01

Total Pages: 242

ISBN-13: 0816514070

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The region once known as Pimer’a AltaÑnow southern Arizona and northern SonoraÑhas for more than three centuries been a melting pot for the beliefs of native Tohono O'odham and immigrant Yaquis and those of colonizing Spaniards and Mexicans. One need look no further than the roadside crosses along desert highways or the diversity of local celebrations to sense the richness of this cultural commingling. Folklorist Jim Griffith has lived in the Pimer’a Alta for more than thirty years, visiting its holy places and attending its fiestas, and has uncovered a background of belief, tradition, and history lying beneath the surface of these cultural expressions. In Beliefs and Holy Places, he reveals some of the supernaturally sanctioned relationships that tie people to places within that region, describing the cultural and religious meanings of locations and showing how bonds between people and places have in turn created relationships between places, a spiritual geography undetectable on physical maps. Throughout the book, Griffith shows how culture moves from legend to art to belief to practice, all the while serving as a dynamic link between past and future. Now as the desert gives way to newcomers, Griffith's book offers visitors and residents alike a rare opportunity to share in these rich traditions.

Toxic Communities
Toxic Communities

Author: Dorceta E. Taylor

Publisher: NYU Press

Published: 2014

Total Pages: 356

ISBN-13: 1479805157

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

From St. Louis to New Orleans, from Baltimore to Oklahoma City, there are poor and minority neighborhoods so beset by pollution that just living in them can be hazardous to your health. Due to entrenched segregation, zoning ordinances that privilege wealthier communities, or because businesses have found the OCypaths of least resistance, OCO there are many hazardous waste and toxic facilities in these communities, leading residents to experience health and wellness problems on top of the race and class discrimination most already experience. Taking stock of the recent environmental justice scholarship, a Toxic Communities aexamines the connections among residential segregation, zoning, and exposure to environmental hazards. Renowned environmental sociologist Dorceta Taylor focuses on the locations of hazardous facilities in low-income and minority communities and shows how they have been dumped on, contaminated and exposed. Drawing on an array of historical and contemporary case studies from across the country, Taylor explores controversies over racially-motivated decisions in zoning laws, eminent domain, government regulation (or lack thereof), and urban renewal. She provides a comprehensive overview of the debate over whether or not there is a link between environmental transgressions and discrimination, drawing a clear picture of the state of the environmental justice field today and where it is going. In doing so, she introduces new concepts and theories for understanding environmental racism that will be essential for environmental justice scholars. A fascinating landmark study, a Toxic Communities agreatly contributes to the study of race, the environment, and space in the contemporary United States."

Bridges to Baghdad
Bridges to Baghdad

Author: Charles R. Kubic

Publisher:

Published: 2009-01-01

Total Pages: 427

ISBN-13: 9780981992952

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The story of the U.S. Navy Seabees and the First Marine Expeditionary Force Engineer Group during Operation Iraqi Freedom. Bridges to Baghdad tells the story of the "fighting Seabees? and their role in the Iraq War, focusing upon their individual experiences from the time they "snuck" into Kuwait in the fall of 2002 through their redeployment to Iraq as part of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM II in 2004. Bridges to Baghdad also recounts the Seabees' operations at the command level from the perspective of their commander, Rear Admiral Chuck Kubic, including the story of the creation and employment of a new division-level organization, the First Marine Expeditionary Force Engineer Group (I MEG). This was the first such Naval Expeditionary Engineer formation of its kind since World War II. I MEF Commanding General, Lieutenant General James Conway, later summed up the Seabee?s value to the war effort when he told a key MEG task force commander that "the determination and skill that your Sailors displayed was nothing short of magnificent!"

Water-Quality Hydrology
Water-Quality Hydrology

Author: V.P. Singh

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 284

ISBN-13: 9401103933

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Water is vital to life, maintenance of ecological balance, economic development, and sustenance of civilization. Planning and management of water resources and its optimal use are a matter of urgency for most countries of the world, and even more so for India with a huge population. Growing population and expanding economic activities exert increasing demands on water for varied needs--domestic, industrial, agricultural, power generation, navigation, recreation, etc. In India, agriculture is the highest user of water. The past three decades have witnessed numerous advances as well as have presented intriguing challenges and exciting opportunities in hydrology and water resources. Compounding them has been the growing environmental consciousness. Nowhere are these challenges more apparent than in India. As we approach the twenty first century, it is entirely fitting to take stock of what has been accomplished and what remains to be accomplished, and what accomplishments are relevant, with particular reference to Indian conditions.