Oklahoman
Oklahoma City Ward 8 Councilman Mark Stonecipher says it is time to revisit and revise the 2015 panhandling ordinance that was ruled unconstitutional by the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver last summer.
Stonecipher commented after the U.S. Supreme Court denied the city s plea for a new hearing. A city council majority argued the ordinance was necessary to protect public safety, while critics said it criminalized poverty. The appeals court ruled it was an unconstitutional violation of free-speech rights.
Worth noting: Stonecipher, an attorney, suggested a revision in line with the 10th Circuit’s decision. In a concurring opinion and in footnotes, the appeals court judges said the council could have crafted an ordinance more closely aligned with the stated goal of enhancing safety for pedestrians in traffic medians.
Dino Lalli
For The Oklahoman
There always has been an enormous connection between Native Americans and the rhythms of their environment, to the land and to on another, as well as to their customs and traditions. Their oral traditions are a lifeline, of sorts, from generation to generation.
Diverse is a word often used to describe the rich Native American heritage in Oklahoma. One of the many ways to experience that diversity is by visiting and enjoying Native American events and powwows held each year throughout the state. These events celebrate the culture of the state’s American Indian tribes, and the pride in having those festivals is extraordinary.
Exhibition at the Heard Museum explores one of the great American artists of the 20th century
Leon Polk Smith: Hiding in Plain Sight presents fresh scholarship and appreciation for this Modernist masters inspiration from American Indian culture and the Oklahoma Plains.
PHOENIX, AZ
.-The Heard Museum is presenting a new original exhibition, Leon Polk Smith: Hiding in Plain Sight. Leon Polk Smith, one of the great American artists of the 20th century, has been studied and celebrated through major exhibitions, publications and scholarship over many years and yet, a significant source of inspiration and influence on his artistic production remains largely unexplored. Leon Polk Smith: Hiding in Plain Sight takes visitors on the journey of how a young Smith, influenced by American Indian culture in his native Oklahoma, became one of Americas most accomplished painters and a founding icon of midcentury modern art and design.