Outdoors column | Les Winkeler: An interesting start, to say the least - The Southern
In many ways, the past six months have been the most interesting of my life.
I retired in December. Although I felt in my heart is was time, there were lingering doubts. Some people don’t adjust well. Several acquaintances went stir crazy and reentered the work force within months of retirement.
Granted, I still have my hand in the newspaper business, but filling the empty hours has not been an issue. I don’t know how I found time to work all those years.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March, it intensified retirement.
Now, there were more empty hours and nowhere to go. After 40-year careers in labor intensive fields (my wife owned a floral business), we were thrust together in our home. We’ve probably spent more time together in the last six months than we have in the previous almost 44 years.
Turns out we made a good decision in 1976.
On the other hand, I’ll admit the closing of state parks was an issue early on. I’m fortunate enough to live near both Saline County Conservation Area and Sahara Woods State Fish and Wildlife Area. And, due to the pandemic both areas remained closed during the early part of spring migration.
Don’t feel sorry for me. That was the worst thing that happened to us due to COVID-19.
Since the areas have reopened, I’ve been able to spend more time than ever in the woods and fields with my camera. All that quiet time naturally leads to reflection.
Something that has been weighing on my mind recently came to my attention as the result of an ugly incident in New York’s Central Park on May 25.
Christian Cooper, a Black man, was birding in the park when he came upon a White woman with an unleashed dog. When he asked her to leash the dog, as required by park regulations, she went ballistic, calling police claiming she was being attacked by a Black man.
About a week later, I received an email from the National Audubon Society announcing Black Birders Week. The initiative was aimed at boosting African-American participation in activities such as birding.
That got me to thinking.
I’ve been on numerous Southern Illinois birding expeditions in the past couple decades. To the best of my ability, I can’t remember seeing a Black person on any of those trips. Being intellectually lazy, I never explored the reasons.
It’s not that I assumed a cultural lack of interest in nature. I’ve had friends tell me they enjoyed my outdoors reporting over the years, particularly stories about wildlife. And, I’ve taken friends into the field to see birds firsthand.
Yet, there apparently is a racial divide. The reading I’ve done suggests that African-Americans haven’t felt welcome in some birding circles.
I’d like to address that. And, I'd love to hear ideas from readers, Black and White, as to how and why this invisible wall was constructed.
Is it simply the lack of overtures to people of color, or is it something more overt?
If you have a group that is interested in nature, I’d love to speak to you. I love showing my bird photographs to groups — when COVID-19 allows us to do that safely. Such a meeting would provide an outstanding vehicle to further explore the issues that are separating us.
I’d be happy to lead a birdwatching trip. I’ve never pretended to be an expert birder and would be glad to arrange for someone with more knowledge to attend. The world is a beautiful place that we should enjoy together.
My contact information is, as always, listed at the end of my column.
LES WINKELER is the outdoors writer for The Southern. Contact him at les@winkelerswingsandwildlife.com or on Twitter @LesWinkeler.
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2020-07-04 18:06:10Z
https://thesouthern.com/outdoors/outdoors-column-les-winkeler-an-interesting-start-to-say-the-least/article_bba76300-bc81-501c-a9ac-ac957421a35e.html
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