Not the whole story
Anti-environmental anger in northeastern Oregon
captured headlines last year when Joseph residents hung in effigy
activists Ric Bailey and Andy Kerr (HCN, 11/14/94). But according
to a recent survey, 58 percent of the residents in the Hells Canyon
region believe "the region's natural environment should be
protected even if this means that some people will have to change
jobs." The poll, by Whitman College professor Phil Brick and
several students, surveyed 1,250 registered voters from Union,
Baker and Wallowa counties in northeast Oregon and Nez Perce and
Idaho counties in central Idaho. "As usual, it's the group that
screams the loudest that gets the most attention, even though these
screams seldom represent the views of the whole community," says
Pat Hannigan, a student who participated in the survey. For a copy
of the survey, Common Goals, Divided Communities, contact Brick at
Whitman College in Walla Walla, Wash.
(509/527-5291).