The Durham Community Martin Luther King, Jr. Steering Committee Inc. is accepting nominations for the 2013 Keeper of the Dream Award. Nomination submissions are due by Friday, Dec. 21.

The Keeper of the Dream Award is a public recognition of individuals, organizations, or institutions for outstanding leadership and/or service to improve the quality of life for all citizens and work toward racial equality, human rights, peace and economic justice for all people. Annually, the MLK Steering Committee acknowledges one individual and one organization.

Nominees must be a resident or previous resident of the Durham community, of any age, demonstrated outstanding leadership and/or service to improve the quality of life for all citizens and work toward racial equality, human rights, peace and economic justice for all people and not have recently received honors or recognition for this act.

The individual and organization selected will receive email notification of their selection. The award will be presented during the 2013 Annual Religious Service on Monday, Jan. 21, at St. Mark A.M.E. Church, 531 S. Roxboro St.

For information or to obtain a nomination form, visit durhammlkcommittee.org or contact me at secretary@durhammlkcommittee.org.

DeWarren K. Langley

MLK Steering Committee

Be on lookout for deer

The Durham County Sheriff’s Office is urging motorists to drive cautiously. The fall and winter months bring an increased presence of deer on Durham County’s roadways, and deputies often see a spike in deer-related vehicle collisions this time of year.

Collisions involving deer are most common between the hours of 5 p.m. and 7 a.m. A good number of the collisions we respond to are during the evening hours when people are traveling home from work when it’s dark, making it more difficult to see deer in the roadway or on the shoulder.

There were 293 animal-related collisions in Durham County in 2011, according to data provided by the N.C. Department of Transportation. It is estimated that 90 percent of those crashes involved deer. The final quarter of 2011 accounted for 61 percent of the 293 collisions with 179 crashes.

Here are tips to help reduce the chance of being in a collision with a deer:

• Slow down in posted deer crossing areas and heavily wooded areas;

• Statistics indicate most car-deer crashes occur near bridges or overpasses. Deer also follow railroad tracks, streams and ditches;

Drive with high beams on, when possible, and look for reflective wildlife eyes;

• Deer often travel in groups. If one deer is present, there are often more nearby;

• Do not swerve to avoid striking a deer. This could cause loss of control of the vehicle, resulting in a more serious crash;

Deer-related crashes aren’t limited to the rural areas of the county. Deer can often be seen in heavily populated areas and along major roadways such as Highway 70, Highway 501, and Miami Boulevard. Drivers need to remain alert and drive cautiously at all times – doing so will dramatically reduce their chances of being involved in a crash.

Mike Andrews

Durham County Sheriff

Fair debt deal

As we speed headlong into the holiday season, some of our congressional delegation in Washington are fighting for our rights and working to get a fair debt deal done before the end of the year – and some aren’t.

Far too many Democrats and Republicans are pushing to put Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid benefits on the chopping block. Negotiations are already happening and Congress only has a few weeks left in session, so Sen. Hagan needs to hear from you today!

Tell Sen. Hagan to reject any deal that cuts Social Security, Medicare or Medicaid benefits, or cuts taxes for the wealthiest Americans. We can’t afford it!

It’s true that without a new deal to decrease the deficit before the end of the year, we’ll see the automatic cuts and tax increases start going into effect in January. But there will still be time to fix that if it’s necessary, and no deal is better than a bad deal.

Send Sen. Hagan a message today and tell her the people of North Carolina want a good present under the tree this year!

Kevin J. Rogers

Action NC

Durham

Prevent science cuts

This January, core government functions such as scientific research, education, public safety, and environmental protection will face deep cuts under budget sequestration.

If lawmakers cannot put politics aside to avoid continued cuts to these programs, our nation’s security, global competitiveness, and economic growth will be compromised. Teachers will be taken out of classrooms, cutting-edge research will be stifled, and conservation of America’s natural resources will be diminished.

Experts agree these essential jobs and services are not the drivers of our nation’s debt, and these federal programs have already done more than their part to reduce the deficit – cut to levels not seen since the Eisenhower presidency.

I urge the president and members of Congress to work together to find a balanced approach to address the deficit and to prevent further cuts to science.

Rindy Anderson

Durham

Time for transit

I read the article “Buses, trains might alleviate Beltline construction woes” (N&O, Dec. 6) with a sense of both frustration and horror.

Horror because as a commuter to Raleigh, my life is going to change significantly. Frustration because if we had a comprehensive transit plan for the Triangle, we wouldn't have to waste all of this money building temporary solutions to deal with the construction.

If the mess we will be forced to deal with doesn't motivate the Wake County commission to refer the transit question to the ballot, I don't know what will. It's time for the Wake County commissioners to get out of the way and let the public decide on whether it wants to pay for more transit.

Dave Rogers

Durham

Workers as people

The recent election has significantly raised the profile of the Hispanic population in this country and the hopes for comprehensive immigration reform by the newly elected Congress. Immigration reform is an incredibly urgent issue, and I hope Congress is able to make meaningful reform while keeping in mind who it is we need reform for.

For many of us living in North Carolina, the closest contact we have to illegal immigrants is through our food. Fifty-two percent of all farmworkers are in the U.S. illegally, and these people are critical to our food system, as recent immigration reform efforts in Alabama and Georgia have shown. Without these workers, our food would literally rot in the field.

Farmworkers pay a huge price to bring us our food. Their average yearly income is about $11,000, and they rarely receive benefits. Work on-farm is difficult and labor intensive. Pesticide exposure poses an enormous health concern from chemical-related injuries and illnesses. In fact, farmworkers are more likely to suffer these effects than any other work force in the U.S.

As we discuss immigration reform in the coming year, let's be sure to remember who we are talking about and what they do for us.

Eric Hansen

Durham