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18 The GUIDE to YELLOW SPRINGS 2019 – 20 YELLOW SPRINGS NEWS 213 Xenia Ave. (upstairs) www.360degreetraining.com ˚ Private Training ˚ Small Group Training ˚ Pilates ™ ˚ TRX ˚ 21-Day Accountability Groups ˚ Nutrition Support melissa@360degreetraining.com MELISSA HESTON CPT (937) 901-0344 Jail House Suites Beautifully renovated historic jail house built in 1878. Just one “cell” block from downtown Yellow Springs. Available for overnight and extended stays. www.jailhousesuites.com 111N.Winter St., Yellow Springs, OH 45387 937-319-1222 Border Continued from page 17 Quarry opponents undaunted PHOTOS BY MEGAN BACHMAN In 2018, Jon Vanderglas walked through a wetland at his family farm on Garrison Road that could be threatened by water pumping if a nearby property is mined. "Why would you destroy something that filters water and prevents floods?" he asked. An interfaith gathering, hosted by the Yellow Springs Friends (Quaker) Meeting, met with regional advocates and Abdoulaye Sow, a Mauritanian spokesman who lives in Fairfield, in January 2019 at Rockford Chapel on the Antioch College campus. Sow and another member of the Mauritanian community returned to town the next month to speak with the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship. Ohio reportedly has the largest Maurita- nian population — estimated at up to 5,000 people — of any state in the country. Many have been here for 15–20 years, reporting in with immigration authorities each year. But after Trump became president, Mauritanian nationals going to their annual check-in were unexpectedly detained. Some were deported, while some remain in custody with appeals pending. Some, seeing the situation, have sold their homes and businesses and fled to Canada, while others have gone into hiding. Abdoulaye Sow said his community feels helpless amidst the government actions. “We don’t have a voice,” he said. As a child in his birth country, he witnessed violence against black Mauritanians; and as an adult, he is working internationally against modern-day slavery. While officially illegal in the country of 3.5 million people, slavery still claims 15–20%, mostly women and children, of the black population, Sow said. Advocates suggest contacting U.S. law makers, seeking action through phone calls, letters and emails. As a lawyer speaking about the situation said, “waiting for ICE to be more compassionate isn’t going to happen.”  ♦ By YS NEWS STAFF A few miles north of Yellow Springs, the fight over a proposed limestone quarry has been brewing for more than two years. Citizens Against Mining, or CAM, has been leading the opposition to the mine, proposed for 420 acres in Mad River Town- ship by the company Enon Sand & Gravel. “It’s all been farmland forever,” said area resident Mike Verbillion last year, looking out over hundreds of acres of land slated for mining. For Verbillion, who lives on a 42-acre farm on Hagan Road that’s been in his family since the 1870s, it’s hard to imagine the quiet interrupted by sounds of rock- blasting explosives, the dozens of trucks daily barreling down country roads, or the changes to local waterways and aquifers that the mine might cause. “I’m not against mining, but I’m against mining that affects communities and is going to affect them for years ahead,” he said. CAM has raised concerns about the mine’s possible impact on local groundwater and surface water as well as increased traf- fic and noise from the operation. Fighting the quarry on multiple levels, CAM members have appealed the com- pany’s state mining permit, commented extensively on Ohio EPA permit inves- tigations, educated county officials who ultimately voted against a settlement with the company and raised awareness in the community. However, as Enon Sand & Gravel contin - ues to push for the project, CAM has stayed vigilant. For more information and updates, visit www.citizensagainstmining.org .  ♦