| UNFAIR PARK | The Other Epidemic Texas has documented the first case of a highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected in a wild bird. BY JACOB VAUGHN W hen Eric Folkerth, a se- nior pastor at Kessler Park United Methodist Church in Dallas, caught wind that a highly pathogenic avian influenza was going around the U.S., he brought in four large bird feeders he had around his home. With the avian flu this year running ram- pant among bird populations in the U.S., kill- ing millions, Folkerth said he heard reports that bringing his feeders inside could help prevent the spread. “This is the first time I’ve been aware of this bird flu going around and the anxiety about it,” he said by phone. He’s hoping for some official guidance soon on whether he can put his feeders back out. As of April 20, more than 32 million birds across the country have been hit with this year’s strain of the avian influenza, accord- ing to the Animal and Plant Health Inspec- tion Service. Now, the first case has been detected in a wild bird in Texas. After a great horned owl at a rehab facility in Wichita County started showing symptoms of the flu, the National Veterinary Services Laboratory reported it to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. This follows the detection of the flu in a commercial pheasant flock in Erath County early last month. The flu is highly contagious, according 4 4 to Texas wildlife officials, and can easily spread among wild and domestic birds alike. So far, it’s been detected in 38 states across the U.S. While birds may not always exhibit symptoms, they risk diarrhea, in- coordination, lethargy, coughing and sneezing, as well as sudden death. The vi- rus can spread in several ways, including contact with an infected bird population, or contamination of equipment, clothing, or of bird handlers themselves. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department recom- mend that facilities with wild or domestic bird populations beef up their biosecurity measures to reduce the risk of transmis- sion. People should also limit their contact with wild birds. Wildlife professionals who take in birds should also look for symptoms and consider quarantining them to limit exposure. Shpernik088 / Wikimedia Commons While the risk of transmission to humans remains low, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department says people should wear gloves and masks and wash their hands if contact with wild birds can’t be avoided. If you come in contact with a bird showing symptoms, the department says you should contact them or the Texas Animal Health Commis- sion Region Office. After the first case in a Texas commercial bird population was detected in early April, the Dallas Zoo took most of its birds off display. That first case was within 100 miles of the Zoo. “We are taking every precaution to keep our birds safe and healthy,” the Dallas Zoo said on its Facebook page on April 4. “For that reason, many of our birds will remain behind the scenes, away from their public-facing habitats until the threat has passed, including African penguins, flamingos and more.” The Forest Aviary and Birds Landing ex- hibits were also closed to the public. The zoo said it was following recommen- dations from the U.S. Department of Agri- culture to prevent the spread of the virus. By the end of the month, the Dallas Zoo was bringing back some of its birds to their front facing exhibits for attendees to see. Because there weren’t any new cases reported within a 100-mile radius of the zoo, it felt the threat had passed. “Penguins are in their pool, and our Wings of Wonder habitats are filling up again,” the zoo said on April 29. “We will slowly bring additional bird species back out into open-air areas in the weeks to come, as long as the [highly pathogenic avian influ- enza] situation remains stable.” Just the day before the zoo announced some of the exhibits would be returning, the first human case of the avian flu was re- ported in a Colorado man. The infected per- son was working at a commercial farm. The Dallas Zoo told the Observer last week that it was aware of the Wichita County case and would “remain vigilant about monitoring the situation.” But they The U.S. Department of Agriculture wants people to report birds exhibiting symptoms. said that there aren’t plans yet to reel in any of the bird exhibits largely because the latest Texas case is outside the 100 mile radius the zoo was worried about. “Right now, given the distance between this new case and the zoo, we will not imme- diately change our plans,” the zoo said in an emailed statement. “Birds that have been moved back into their open-air habitats will remain there, but we will not hesitate to move birds off habitat if the situation evolves. All of our safety and security poli- cies for staff and volunteers, including bios- ecurity measures and screening questions for anyone who comes into contact with birds, remain in place.” ▼ POLITICS DISCRIMINATION DISCREPANCIES recently skyrocketed to the highest point in 12 years, led by a spike in offenses against Black and Asian people. But certain Texas Republicans see things S a little differently, according to a new poll. Some believe it’s white people and God- fearing Christians who face the most hate. Last week, the University of Texas/Texas Politics Project released a poll showing that 74% of Texas Democrats believe that either Black or transgender people endure the highest level of discrimination in the nation. Republicans were split between white folks (34%) or Christians (31%). This comes as conservative politicians and local leaders are cracking down on trans rights, driving pro-LGBTQ+ teachers from classrooms and banning anti-racist lessons. Still, Texas U.S. Rep. Chip Roy appeared on FOX earlier this year, in February, to warn of the threat Christians supposedly face worldwide, including here in the U.S. A member of Finland’s parliament, Päivi Räsänen, was on trial for her beliefs, Roy said. He lambasted the controversy as a “war on religious freedom.” (Räsänen was ac- cused of provoking anti-LGBT+ hate speech after she derided homosexuality as a “disor- der of psychosexual development” and called gay people “dysfunctional,” according to Euronews.) “This is a really chilling reality in a West- ern civilization country,” Roy said. “This isn’t Iran; this isn’t China. This is Finland, and the American people need to know this is coming to a theater near you.” Roy went on to admonish the Equality Act, which, if passed, would prohibit dis- crimination based on sex, sexual orientation and gender identity in every state. He said much can be learned from Holocaust survi- vors, adding that the worst crime leading to German Nazis’ mass extermination of mi- nority groups was “silence.” Prosecutors had offered Räsänen and a bishop embroiled in the controversy a deal: Walk away from your faith to evade prosecu- tion, Roy continued. She didn’t accept. “Americans, this is coming to you,” he said. “Let’s stand with these brave Finnish patriots and make sure that we’re fighting for our religious liberty.” (In March, Räsänen and the bishop who reprinted one of her anti-LGBTQ pamphlets were acquit- ted on all charges.) Lone Star State conservatives aren’t the only ones who think this way. In a 2020 na- tional survey by the Public Religion Re- search Institute, nearly three-quarters (73%) of Republicans who trusted FOX most out of all TV news reported that they be- lieved Christians face “a lot of discrimina- tion.” Around 58% said white people are often discriminated against. The numbers were smaller, though, MANY TEXAS REPUBLICANS BELIEVE THAT WHITE PEOPLE AND CHRISTIANS FACE THE MOST DISCRIMINATION, ACCORDING TO A NEW POLL. BY SIMONE CARTER ome experts are warning that Chris- tian nationalism is on the rise, shap- ing American politics. Hate crimes when FOX Republicans were asked about racial/ethnic minorities: 36% believed Black people endure such bias. Just 34% of partici- pants said the same for Hispanic people and 27% for Asian people. ▼ ABORTION REPUBLICANS REJOICE JEFF LEACH, DAN PATRICK AND MANY TEXAS REPUBLICANS ARE APPLAUDING THE U.S. SUPREME COURT’S DRAFT DECISION TO OVERTURN ROE V. WADE. BY PATRICK STRICKLAND L ast week, Politico revealed that the U.S. Supreme Court had voted to over- turn Roe v. Wade — the 1973 decision that ensures the right to an abortion — in a draft decision written by Justice Samuel Alito in February. >> p6 MONTH XX–MONTH XX, 2014 MAY 12–18, 2022 DALLAS OBSERVER DALLAS OBSERVER | CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | MOVIES | CULTURE | NIGHT+DAY | FEATURE | SCHUTZE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS | CLASSIFIED | MUSIC | DISH | CULTURE | UNFAIR PARK | CONTENTS dallasobserver.com dallasobserver.com
