How a Nevada Town’s Racist “Sundown” Siren Became a Quaint Dinner Bell in the White Imagination
Every day, at 6:30 p.m. sharp, a siren blares through the town of Minden. For citizens of the Washoe nation, the sound carries a painful, violent memory.
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In Minden, Nevada, a cherry-red siren, perched atop the town’s volunteer fire department, sounds every evening at 6 p.m. on the dot. If you listen to town manager J.D. Frisby tell it, the siren is a symbolic gesture of gratitude for Minden’s emergency workers. Other residents consider it a charming dinner bell, signaling the call to home. In reality, though, the siren was, and still is, a warning an active relic of an early twentieth-century ordinance that ordered Native residents to exit the county’s borders by 6:30 p.m. The current split in the town over the siren’s purpose, which has stretched on for decades, is a reminder that Confederate monuments aren’t the only ways in which infrastruc
Sheila Leslie
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This opinion column was submitted by RGJ columnist Sheila Leslie, who served in the Nevada Legislature from 1998 to 2012.
As the flurry of bills and budgets are processed in Carson City during the last month of the legislative session, it’s worth remembering that creating a new law is not the only way to right a wrong. A little compassion and empathy, and a lot more communication, could resolve many situations where there is conflict. Case in point: the “sundown siren” in Minden.
Historically, many small towns in the United States used blasts from a daily siren in the late afternoon to signal that people of color needed to get out of town before darkness fell. In the South, the target was primarily African Americans, while in the West, it was Native Americans who were being warned to leave town before sunset. Enforcement of this racist policy caused untold violence; beatings were common and people were murdered for resisting the siren call of
Apartment lobby opposes bill after praising it on TV
May 3, 2021
VegasPBS Nevada Week host Kipp Ortenburger and Suzy Vasquez, executive director of the Nevada Apartment Association, in an April 23 Nevada week broadcast. (VegasPBS screengrab).
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This story was originally published by Nevada Current.
They were against it before they were for it before they were against it.
At a Friday state Senate Judiciary Committee hearing for a proposal to automatically seal pandemic-related evictions, the Nevada State Apartment Association testified in opposition to the legislation, despite earlier public comments in support of the bill.
During an appearance onPBS’s Nevada Weekthat aired April 23, Susy Vasquez, the executive director of the association, was asked what potential solutions were available if the feared wave of evictions hits when Gov. Steve Sisolak’smoratorium expiresat the end of May.
Las Vegas Weekly
John Sadler Thu, Apr 15, 2021 (2 a.m.)
Democratic lawmakers in Nevada want more state agencies to be able to automatically register people to vote, the same as the Department of Motor Vehicles does.
Under a proposed Assembly bill, the state Department of Health and Human Services, the Silver State Health Insurance Exchange and Medicaid offices could automatically register voters. People doing business with the agencies would also be able to opt out.
Agencies would not be allowed to transmit voter registration data to election officials without ensuring a person is eligible to vote under Nevada law.
“The overall objective of Assembly Bill 432 is to expand upon our proven and successful automatic voter registration system. By implementing this system in other state agencies, we can help eligible voters register to vote and maintain up-to-date name and address information,” said Assemblyman Howard Watts, D-Las Vegas, who introduced the bill.