A Neighborhood Planning Newsletter Published by Action Langley Park Issue Number 208, June 2011 Counting Latino/as Back in 2000, the Census counted about 35 million Lati- nos. Ten years later, the count was just over 50 million?one of six people in the USA. That?s about a 43% gain for the Latino subgroup and 56% of the country?s population growth! The DC/VA/MD metro area has about 712,000 Latinos, 13.2% of the area?s population, Among young people, area Lati- nos constitute 18.2% of the population?so the future is in sight. The largest Latino group in this area is of Salva- doran heritage, about one-third of the total. In second place is Mexican followed by Puerto Rican. Not surprisingly, the DC metro area has a far smaller La- BIG & LITTLE It can be difficult to live in the Langley Park area (and perhaps other county areas) if you are Mr. or Ms. Little because Mr. Big will try to take away what little you might have. Once upon a time, about 40 microentrepreneurs ran small food truck businesses in the Langley Park area (and there were others elsewhere in the county). But Mr. Big forced all of them to leave, to give up their businesses. The misters and misses Little were squashed. Once upon a time, the council awarded several hundred new medal- lions (permissions to work) to independent taxi drivers so that they could own their own micro-businesses. But Mr. Big and gang are poised to rescind those oppor- tunities. (See page 4, below.) The misters and misses Little are being squashed. Currently, about ten thousand residents live in afford- able apartments in the Langley Park area. But Mr. Big and gang approved a so-called sector plan that calls for bull- dozing many of those apartments, and no community- maintaining options for the residents were included in the plan. So the many misters and misses Little will be forced out of their homes as the bulldozers demolish their apart- ments and the gentry arrive. Of course, none of this should be a surprise. In the USA, the gap between the have-more people and the have-less people has been increasing over the past sev- eral decades. But it?s sad to see the gap expanding close to home. We also need more officials and businesspeople who don?t think the main consideration should be in- creased property tax revenue or increased higher-end purchasing. We sure need champions for mister and miss Little. PG Gang Save Langley Park from Demolition! ? Come to the ?Save Langley Park? meeting on Friday, June 17, 6:30 p.m., at the First United Meth- odist Church, 6201 Belcrest Road, Hyattsville. ? The goal: No forced displacements of residents or small businesses! ? No bulldozers crushing the apartment homes of thousands of residents! ? No bulldozers crushing the area?s scores of small businesses! ? Come one, come all: tenants, home owners, community organizers, &more. ? The invitation list includes County Executive Rushern Baker & many others. ?Counting? continued on Page 4 THE WILL CAMPOS TOWN HALL Councilman Campos organizes an annual town hall meeting at Northwest- ern High School. This year the event, in early June, drew an audience of about 200. Campos especially focused on the budget and the difficulty it has created to fund all programs. But schools and emergency agencies are protected from most of the cutting. He also men- tioned his legislative agenda, including a noise ordinance, a residential parking permit system, an a ?Campos? continued on Page 4 Among All Latinos In Selected Metro Areas NEWS AND NOTES IMMIGRATION State Laws?Maryland: Maryland?s In-State Tuition Law, passed in the last legislative session, has been challenged by the anti-immigrant gang. The news from that gang is that its adherents have collected a sufficient number of signatures to put the issue on the November ballot. If so, that means there will be very active campaigning in October and early Novem- ber, and that will determine the future of the state?s ?Dream Act.? Utah, Arizona: The Utah legislation on immigrants has gone to court. An AP item states: "Legal scholars say Immigra- tion is enforced by the federal government, and any state at- tempting to tell the federal government how to enforce immi- gration laws is stepping into potentially unconstitutional terri- tory. So far, courts have agreed with that assessment. The hold placed on parts of Arizona's law by a district court judge was upheld in April by a three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, and earlier this week Gov. Jan Brewer said she plans to appeal the rulings to the U.S. Supreme Court." Obama?Politics and/or Conviction? Conservative com- mentator Michael Barone (clue about his conservatism: his articles are in the Washington Examiner?this comment on 15 May 2011) writes about the President Obama's El Paso speech: "The administration has been attacking state laws requiring employers to use E-Verify. If Obama were serious about enforcement he would be calling for mandatory E-Verify. That would be a more effective tool against illegal immigration than even the strongest border enforcement. But as Obama's record makes clear, he's not really interested in passing a law. He knows his support has been slipping among Latino voters and he wants to goose it back up. El Paso was all about elec- tion 2012, not serious immigration reform." BLP?s guess? Poli- tics and conviction. Obama?Change in Tactics: From the New York Times (29 May 2011) ?After months of criticism from Republicans who said the President was relaxing immigration enforcement in workplaces, the scope of the administration?s strategy has become clear as long-running investigations of employers have culminated in indictments, convictions, exponentially in- creased fines and jail sentences. While conducting fewer headline-making factory raids, the immigration authorities have greatly expanded the number of businesses facing scrutiny and the cases where employers face severe sanctions. In a break with Bush-era policies, the number of criminal cases against unauthorized immigrant workers has dropped sharply over the last two years.? Obama and the GOP: In his recent address in El Paso, the President joked that his Republican opposition would not be satisfied with border controls until a mote was built along our southern border and it was filled with alligators. Yes, a joke; but it does seem that quite a few legislators will not be satisfied no matter how con- trolled the border becomes, even if there is a mote with alligators. The constant criticism of the Obama administration?s efforts along the border lends credibil- ity to the President?s comment. Winning Poem: The American Immigration Council gives out an annual prize to a young person who submits the best immigration essay or poem. Here is a small portion of Maya Young Wong?s winning contribution, a poem entitled ?My Grandfather Ben?: MY GRANDFATHER BEN So his parents said, "You'd better leave home And go to America where you can roam". Until you find a great place of your own. America, Gold Mountain, is the place to go Big and wide, and high and low. Everything is yes, and there are never any nos. But here in America life was hard And it wasn't like a birthday card. The full poem can be accessed on the web at http:// www.communityeducationcenter.org/my-grand-father-ben- 2011-national-grand-prize-winning-entry. The pattern of opti- mism and disappointment is a common theme in immigrant stories. Then some ?make it,? others don?t. Detention: More than one million immigrants have been deported since President Obama took office! Prior to deporta- tion, many of them spend time in detention. The American Civil Liberties Union maintains a blog on immigration issues. Here is a portion of a recent item: "The purpose of immigra- tion detention is to ensure that immigrants appear for their deportation hearings and, if they lose, their removal. Immigra- tion detention is not meant to punish people for crimes. In- deed, more than half of the people in immigration detention have never been convicted of a crime. ... But the sad reality is DHS detains more than 33,000 people on any given day, for months or years. Thousands of these people present no flight risk or danger to the community, or whose deportation is unlikely. ... This detention comes at great cost to taxpayers: $45,000 per detainee per year, for a total of $1.9 billion in this fiscal year, with $100 million more than that requested in the FY-12 budget. HR1932 proposes to detain even more people unnecessarily." The blog address: http://www.aclu.org/blog/ immigrants-rights. New York Says NO: Governor Cuomo has announced that New York was suspending participation in ICE's Secure Communities Program. ?There are concerns,? said the gover- nor, ?about the implementation of the program as well as its impact on families, immigrant communities and law enforce- ment in New York,? Wow! So the massive breaking up of families and the kicking out of non-criminals may not take place in New York! And Illinois has taken a similar position. Two big states whose power in part stems from immigrants. Which state is next? Maybe Maryland ... for the same rea- sons! But enthusiasm must be tempered by the fact that Secure Communities relies on finger prints sent by local jurisdictions to the FBI?after which FBI sends them to Homeland Secu- rity. Will New York and Illinois stop sending fingerprints to the FBI? After all, the FBI deals with all criminals, and fingerprints are useful in immigrant (non-immigrant) crime-fighting. So the realistic change would be for local jurisdictions reducing non- criminal fingerprinting and/or the FBI not sending along fin- gerprints Homeland Security unless they are connected with a possible felony. THE COPS Good News?Police Fight Bullying: The Prince George?s police department has released the following bully- ing message: "Prince George?s County Police Department is asking all community members to be active participants in preventing bullying ? every day. Everyone can help prevent bullying by setting good examples for any child they interact with. Remember to avoid rude and abusive behavior and dis- play respect in all of your daily encounters. Be attentive to the children you come in contact with. Provide them with healthy outlets instead of gangs, crime or violence, and always set ?News and Notes? continued on Page 3 2 the example by upholding the law with integrity.? For more information, call the Prince George?s County Police Depart- ment?s Press Information Office at 301-772-4710. Good News?The Calvo Caper: Readers may remember that in June 2008 law enforcement officials stormed Berwyn Mayor Calvo's house, handcuffed the mayor and his mother, and shot the family's two dogs. Later, investigations revealed that the Mayor had no involvement in a criminal activity. Now the matter is moving towards a close. Fox TV news quotes the mayor: "Mayor Calvo says Rushern Baker, the new County Executive, is the one who listened. The previous administra- tion he says only wanted to fight. 'The difference between dealing with the Jack Johnson administration and the former sheriff and Rushern Baker has been like night and day,' said Calvo. 'This is a direct result of Rushern Baker?s leadership, not just wanting to settle a case, but wanting to learn from what happened to put in place best practices and that to me is a big deal.'? Mixed News?Murders: During the first five months of 2011, there have been 52 murders in the county. That?s up from 36 in 2010 but well below a recent high of 73 in 2005. In truth, it?s hard to stop a murder because there cannot be a police officer on every street corner, in every house. Alas. But it is possible to open more after-school, weekend, and summer programs to redirect energies. Note: Police Major Velez re- ports that crimes of violence in his (and our) district declined 15% so far in 2011, although property crimes held about even. EDUCATION Don?t Blame the Teachers: Two education specialists writing in the New York Times (1 May 2011) should make us think: ?When we don?t like the way our students score on international standardized tests, we blame the teachers. When we don?t like the way particular schools perform, we blame the teachers and restrict their resources. Com- pare this with our approach to our military: when results on the ground are not what we hoped, we think of ways to better sup- port soldiers. We try to give them better tools, better weapons, better protection, better training. And when recruiting is down, we offer incentives.? Why not teachers? Obama on Latino Education: "Latino students are more likely to attend our lowest performing schools, more likely to learn in larger class sizes, more likely to drop out at higher rates. Fewer than half take part in early childhood education. Only about half graduate on time from high school. And those who do make it to college often find themselves underprepared for its rigors." (President Obama, 19 October 2010) Too true. Why Learn a Second Language: Cognitive neuroscientist Ellen Bialystok of York University has spent almost 40 years learning about how bilingualism sharpens the mind. Her good news: Among other benefits, the regular use of two languages appears to delay the onset of Alzheimer?s disease symptoms. And she urges immigrant parents to pass on their native lan- guage to their children. (NY Times,30 May 2011) Maryland Dream: The bill that passed the legislature to enable some undocumented students to go to a college at in- state rates is being challenged by those who, apparently, don?t like a sub-set of young people. A petition effort to put the item on the November ballot has concluded, and now there will be counts and squabbles and maybe votes. Stay tuned! THE BUDGET Mary. Lehman is the County Council member for District 1. Via email, she shares some of her views on the budget, which is clearly not large enough to cover many important public functions. Here is a portion of her message: "Every agency came before the council in a series of budget briefings that highlighted the work of each department and how it spends money. Those sessions gave council members the opportunity to question staffing, policies, programs, and services as well as the condition of the county's roads, sidewalks, parkland and myriad buildings? schools, recreation and senior centers, libraries, police and fire stations, maintenance facilities and leased office space. We also heard from citizens, nonprofit service providers, teachers and other school system staff who testified at a se- ries of public hearings. ... If you wonder whether public testi- mony moves lawmakers, the answer is, unequivocally, yes. ? Unfortunately, hundreds of teachers and support staff face layoffs, which means increased class sizes, an issue that deeply concerns me. This fall, my oldest child will be in high school, and I will have two in middle school and one in ele- mentary, so I understand how challenging it is for teachers to teach and students to learn with more kids in a classroom. Unless we expand the county's tax base, we will continue to struggle to fund a government ?." AAA: Prince George?s County has just received an AAA (the tops) rating by the Fitch Ratings company. That helps to keep county borrowing costs down. Well done! UNEMPLOYMENT In Maryland, the unemployment rate has dropped from April 2010 to April 2011?specifically, from 7.1% to 6.6%. That?s good news! Nationally, the April 2011 was 8.7%. So for job opportunities, Maryland is not a bad place to look. AFFORDABLE HOUSING Fairfax County: Could Fairfax County officials be more thoughtful about the cost of housing than officials in some, er, Maryland suburb(s)? We read in the Washington Post (31 May 2011): Quoting a county official: "Part of the county?s long-term plans for redeveloping Tysons includes ambitious affordable housing measures. Officials say new rules would allow young professionals and retail, hotel and restaurant workers to live near their jobs. 'If the plan did not include that kind of requirement .?.?. we would have people continuing to commute there from somewhere else.'? Montgomery County: Its side of the sector plan has moved forward with a hearing last week before the County Council. The MoCo plan is much?much!?less destructive than the one drafted by the destructive PG planners led by Aldea Douglas. Nevertheless, at the hearing, a representative of the Guatemalan community (the largest in the Langley Park area) voiced concern: "People keep talking about how nice the trains are going to look, but no one wants to talk about the negative side of it. People are going to have to move away." Prince George?s County: Maybe a few Prince George's County officials and planners should take lessons from the sister counties? After all, the planners who created PG?s Takoma-Langley Crossroads Sector Plan and the elected officials who approved the draft included nothing firm about affordable housing or residents? abil- ity to remain in their home neighborhood. Yes, there were some ?we love affordable housing? statements, but nothing concrete. Could it be that there are some connections between de- velopers and county decisionmakers? Let?s hope not; let?s hope that the pay-to-play years have ended. But how can an observer understand the decisionmaking involved in the Sec- tor Plan? How many local areas in the USA or elsewhere have been confronted with a plan to bulldoze most of the af- fordable apartments? Lagos did it; Jakarta did it. But here? ?News and Notes? continued from Page 2 3 (continued from the last BLP issue) Back in June 2010, the County Council changed the taxi system towards more opportunities for individual owner- drivers and more opportunity information: The Advancement Project (www.advancementproject.org) wrote: "Today, after more than three years of struggle, the County Council of Prince George?s County passed CB-36-2010 providing a much needed overhaul of the county?s taxicab industry. The law which will have its greatest impact on the livelihood of drivers, who are predominantly immigrants from Africa, South Asia, and the Caribbean, is a joint victory for the Prince George?s County Taxi Workers Alliance. Advancement Project is extremely pleased to have aided Prince George?s County drivers in the reformation of the taxicab industry promoting an end to unfair worker conditions and strengthening a move- ment toward a new phase of economic prosperity and stability within a sustainable and well-rounded industry." At the same time, CASA de Maryland staff members wrote: "This week, the Prince George?s County Council passed CB-36-2010 by unanimous decision. This legislation increases worker rights and opportunity, improves the quality of service, and it promotes accountability and transparency between the county, taxi- cab companies, cab driv- ers, and the riding public. Some of the immediate improvements will be that the county will issue 400 medallions to inde- pendent cab drivers, allowing them to maxi- mize their earning rather than the current system that places 50% or more of their income into company coffers. While the increased competition will improve service for the riding pub- lic, the legislation also strengthens consumer protections and complaint provisions." But the positives may be short-lived. The Gazette (26 May 2011) reports: ?After an hour-long debate in front of more than 50 cab drivers, the Prince George's County Council intro- duced a controversial proposal [on May 24] to scale back a major overhaul of the taxi industry. The council plans to hold a public hearing June 21 on the proposed legislation, which would alter a law approved last summer that nearly doubles the number of cab medallions?permits needed to drive a taxi?in the county to 1,489 over the next five years. The county had about 785 licensed cabs when the bill took effect last year, and the county distributed 254 new medallions to drivers over the winter. "Councilman Will Campos (D-Dist. 2) of Hyattsville intro- duced a change that would limit the number of cab permits to the current 1,039 and cancel plans to give an additional 75 cab medallions every October until 2016. ... ?If [the cab growth] continues, I believe we will over-saturate the market.'" Those in favor of keeping the expanded licensing argue that a cut back favors taxi companies over individual taxi owners and that unethical lobbying and influenced has been involved in the effort to reverse the earlier medallion expansion. Does anyone have evidence that there is an under- or over-abundance of taxis in the county? Surely, the decision to change or not change should be based on some evidence. Before the Council vote, let constituents have the evidence. What about Councilman Campos's change? He is quoted as offering the following explanation: ?I voted for it, but I was not in favor it.?* What???? He couldn?t have said that. * http://thefightback.org/2011/05 (29 May 2011) tino/a population than areas closer to the border with Mexico. For instance, in the Los Angeles - Long Beach area, the Latino population is almost six million, which is 43.3% of the total population. And there too, the future will see a higher percentage; the under-18s consti- tute 58.6% of the population. At the national level, the origin most strongly present is Mexico; there are more than 30 million Mexi- can-heritage people in the USA?63% of our total Latino population. In second place but much smaller is the Puerto Rican population at 4.6 million. Then come four groups in the 1-2 million population range: Cubans, Salvadorans, Do- minicans, and Guatemalans. ?Counting? continued from Page 1 Salvadoran Mexican PRG ua te m al an Other Country LATINOS IN DC METRO regulation to make it difficult to build a outsized ?McMansion? in a non-mansion neighborhood. Several VIPs from the county participated, including County Executive Rushern Baker, Police Chief Mark Magaw, Police Major Hector Velez of District 1, and Senator Paul Pin- sky of the county?s legislative District 22. These guests all talked about their responsibilities and values. A very important and useful component of the ?town hall? is the availability of representatives from about a dozen county agencies who met with audience members after the formal commentaries ended. There were representatives from hous- ing agencies, parks, the State?s Attorney, and more. This is a very useful resource for many of those who attended. Well done, Will. Un f o r t u - nately, there was no time allotted for q ue s t i o n s . Perhaps that was espe- cially unfortu- nate for this meeting be- cause there were demonstrators at the high school door (see photo), mostly complaining about the Campos switch from last year?s position favoring more taxi medallions to this year?s reversal. Potential questions: Who are the demonstrators? What?s up? Why the policy change? Should we have more taxis in the county? Or fewer? (The taxi matter returns to the County Council on June 21.)* But the evening was certainly a success. *See column to right for more on the taxis. Note: the texts in the above photo were made sharper by photoshop. ?Campos? continued from Page 1 SOME BUSINESSES LOSING STRUGGLE Walking around the four shopping areas at the New Hampshire - University crossroads reveals too many ?For Lease? signs. Plus the Shoppers space is still empty and the former Jamaican restaurant has not been reoccupied for several years. Let?s hope for positive change soon. 4 THE CENSUS BUREAU REPORTS ON LATINO/AS (HISPANICS) IN 2000 AND 2010 More and more information is being released about the 2010 census, and many data are quite interesting. Below are data about Latino/a numbers overall and by heritage country. Of course, Mexico comes first with fully 63% of the 2010 Latino total, an increase in just the past decade of more than 11 million people (54.1%)! But the rate of in- crease among those of Central American heritage is greater: Hondurans increased 191% to 415,832 people; Guate- malans increased 180.3% to 671,722; and Salvadorans increased by 151.7% to 993,803. The total Central American increase over the decade was 137%. It is interesting to note that people from Spain increased 534.4%: from only 100,135 to 635,253. Clearly, the Spaniards have been fleeing the very rocky economy in their home country during the past decade. Of course, oppor- tunity is the main cause of international migration; the second cause is safety?the factor that drove so many Central Americans to the USA in the 1980s and into the 1990s. (How did the Spanish folks get all those visas?) Maryland has increased its Latino/a population significantly over the past decade, from 227,916 in 2000 (4.3% of the state?s total) to 470,632 (8.2% of the state?s total). Maryland is essentially tied with Virginia for the fourth largest number of Salvadorans in the USA. Alas, we do not have the Latino/a data for the Langley Park area yet; but it will be reported as soon as possible. Source: census.gov 5 CONTACT THE COUNCILMAN If you are in District 2, which includes Langley Park, Hyatts- ville, Adelphi, and many other localities in the central-western portion of Prince George's County, your councilman is William A. ?Will? Campos. Here is contact information By foot: County Administration Building, 14741 Governor Oden Bowie Drive, 2nd Floor, Upper Marlboro By telephone or fax: (301) 952-4436; by facsimile: (301) 952-3238 By email or telephone to members of the Campos team: ?Will Campos, Councilman 301 952-4436?wacampos@co.pg.md.us ?Sylvia Brown, Constituent Services Aide 301-952-3614?sebrown@co.pg.md.us ?Arturo Gabbedon, Community Outreach Coordinator 301 952-4858?agabbedon@co.pg.md.us ?Grace Papagiannis, Senior Affairs Liaison 301-952-4128?GAPapagiannis@co.pg.md.us ?Alonzo Washington, Chief of Staff/Legislative Aide 301-952-4437?ATWashington@co.pg.md.us ?Evelyn Younger, Administrative Aide 301-952-4436 ejyounger@co.pg.md.us ?Walter Moody, Community Laioson 301-952-4436, wmmoody@co.pg.md.us BASIC INFORMATION ACTION LANGLEY PARK The nonprofit 501c3 organization, Action Langley Park, is a coalition of residents, businesspeople, workers, academics, church leaders, and others. It was founded in 1998 to improve the quality of life of residents in and near Langley Park. The means include services, information-sharing, and advocacy. The organization?s service/event activities focus on a Fall ?Health Check? and a Spring ?Langley Park Day.? Meetings of the organization take place about every other month, usually on Thursday evenings, at the Langley Park Community Cen- ter. All meetings are open, and participation is encouraged. For information, send an email to actionlangley- park@yahoo.com. BARRIO DE LANGLEY PARK This neighborhood planning newsletter is edited and pub- lished by Action Langley Park, with a supportive link to the Langley Park Project of the University of Maryland. (Editor, Bill Hanna) It appears irregularly, but approximately every two weeks. Submissions and suggestions are welcome at ac- tionlangleypark@yahoo.com. Back issues of BLP will soon be available on the web. HAPPENINGS Here we list upcoming ALP activities and other events that come to our attention. Have an event to list? If so, send infor- mation well in advance to actionlangleypark@yahoo.com. June 8?Crossroads Farmers? Market in the 7676 New Hampshire Ave. 2:30-6:30 p.m. Every Wednesday! June 11?Fun Day at St. Michael and All Angels Church, noon to 6 p.m. Games, music, moon bounce, and more. 8501 New Hampshire Ave. For information, call 301 434-4646. June 17?Save Langley Park meeting, 6:30 p.m. at the First United Methodist Church, 6201 Belcrest Rd., Hyattsville. June 18?Free Community Dinner & Food Distribution at the St. Michael and All Angels Church, 8501 New Hamp- shire Ave. in upper Langley Park. From 5 to 6:30 p.m. This is a regular event; it takes place every third Saturday of the month. For information, call 301 434-4646. June 21?Envision Prince George?s, a ?conversation,? 6 to 8:30 p.m. at the County Ballroom, 2411 Pinebrook Ave., Landover. Information: 301 952-3594. June 25?El Preg?s Multicultural Fair, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., 700 Roeder Rd., Silver Spring. Jobs, immigration services, etc. June 25?CASA?s Summer Fair, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the CASA mansion (8151 15th Ave. Health checks, legal and know-your-rights workshops, and more. For information, call 301 431-4185. June 30?Action Langley Park meets at 7 p.m. in the Langley Park Community Center. The main agenda item will be planning ALP?s work for the coming year. June 30 to July 4 and July 7-11?Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the National Mall in D.C. Themes: Colombia, Peace Corps, Rhythm and Blues. August 2?National Night Out Celebration, 3-5 p.m. in and around the Langley Park Community Center. Music, games, and friendly police officers. September 18?Hispanic Festival in Lane Manor Park, noon to 6 p.m. Lots of food, music, and games. The location is on the south side of University Blvd. about one-half mile west of the University of Maryland. November 6?Health Check 2011 from noon to 3 p.m. at the Langley Park Community Center. This annual event pro- vides free screenings for many potentially harmful health con- ditions; high blood pressure, rotting teeth, HIV, diabetes, poor kidney function, and more. Yes, it?s free! HOSPITAL CARE As BLP readers know, Washington Adventist Hospital planned and now has jurisdictional approval to move its main hospital functions from Takoma Park to a new campus in the White Oak area. The move was caused in part by the inability to expand in its current site. When the move takes place, the former location will be converted into a wellness campus, and Mary?s Center will be involved in that effort. Seems good. But wait: Dimensions Healthcare System?that?s the or- ganization that seems not to be able to run Prince George?s Hospital too well?is protesting, claiming that it (Dimensions) will have to increase its caring load. And Holy Cross and Montgomery General are protesting too?perhaps for the same reason. Appar- ently, the quality of the region?s health care is not the protesters? issue; rather, it is the fear that some pa- tients will gravitate from their current facilities to the new Washington Adventist Hospital. What a shame that the health care community in subur- ban Maryland cannot focus on the overall health care pro- vided to residents and instead focuses on the fear of losing a few patients. Clearly, the new Washington Adventist facility will raise the overall quality of care for all. Maybe, just maybe, Dimensions Healthcare will be catalyzed to get its act to- gether. People who live and/or work in the Langley Park area should not worry. There will be the wellness center in Ta- koma Park, plus the Mary?s Center, plus Holy Cross, and more; and the new Washington Adventist Hospital site is only about four miles away?about a four minute drive in an am- bulance right up New Hampshire Avenue. 6