Rodeo time in Lynden, get your poem in a phone booth

See a midwinter rodeo in Lynden, learn about how the media portrays Muslim-Americans, and find out why hitchhiking’s good for the environment.

Hell on Hooves Rough Stock Rodeo

The top 20 cowboys and cowgirls in the Pacific Northwest and Canada will compete in four events – bull riding, bareback riding, saddle bronc riding and barrel racing – for up to $20,000 in prize money during the Laurel Farm & Western Supply Hell on Hooves Rough Stock Rodeo at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Washington Tractor Arena at the Northwest Washington Fair and Event Center, 1775 Front St., in Lynden. Some of the Hell on Hooves contestants have qualified in the past for the National Finals Rodeo. Also, children will try their luck in mutton-busting. Music in the beer garden will be offered until 11 p.m. after the competition. Advance tickets are available for $15 at Laurel Farm & Western Supply, 325 W. Laurel Road. Tickets cost $18 at the gate; children 5 and younger are admitted for free. Info: 360-354-4111 and on Facebook.

Poem Booth Contest

2 Residents of Whatcom County are invited to submit a poem to be displayed in a future Poem Booth outside the downtown Community Food Co-op, 1220 N. Forest St., in a Kickstarter, community-supported project, coordinated by Christen Mattix, Summer Starr and Shannon Laws. The writer of the winning poem will receive a $25 cash prize and a $25 Community Food Co-op gift certificate. Runner-up poems will be posted on poembooth.weebly.com. The suggested writing prompt for the contest is “If you could call anyone, anywhere, any century (including this one), what would you say?” Submit poems to: poemboothbham@gmail.com by midnight, Feb. 17. Poems should be one-page maximum, 12-point font, attached via Word doc or a PDF. Please do not include your name or other recognizable information on the document. The winning poem will be announced on Presidents Day, Feb. 20. The poem will be on public display within the Poem Booth from March 1 to May 31. Four Poem Booth contests are planned for 2017; recipients will be selected and poems displayed for March, June, September and December. Info: 360-393-2583.

Media coverage of Muslim-Americans

Brian J. Bowe, an assistant professor of journalism at Western Washington University, will discuss his research on how media coverage shapes perceptions of Muslim-Americans in a free presentation from 4-5:30 p.m. Wednesday in Western Libraries’ Special Collections on the sixth floor of Wilson Library. Bowe will examine the ways that the routine decision-making processes of media workers shape the public’s perceptions of Muslims in the United States and the tendency for media discourse to treat Muslims as monolithic others, rather than individuals with a range of beliefs and experiences. Bowe will focus on his research into the coverage of a series of recent controversies, including debates over mosque construction and proposals to pre-emptively ban Shariah from American jurisprudence. He will also explore how some reporting exhibits Islamophobia, (or indiscriminate negative attitudes directed at Islam), while other coverage shows evidence of Islamophilia, (which is the stereotypical “good Muslims” who are model citizens, in contrast to “bad Muslims,” who serve as rhetorical enemies). Info: 360-650-2613, Jenny.Oleen@wwu.edu.

A Hitchhiker’s Perspective

Lummi Island resident Michael Schneider will talk about his hitchhiking trips in the Midwest and across the South in a free illustrated talk he calls “Thumbing at 10 cents a Mile,” at 1 p.m. Saturday at Ferndale Library, 2125 Main St. Learn about the people who gave him rides, hear the stories they told him, and join in a discussion of the social and environmental benefits of hitchhiking and of the overblown fears that make it so difficult in America. Info: 360-384-3647, wcls.org.

Oils spills and the Salish Sea

5 Melanie Driscoll, the National Audubon Society’s director of bird conservation for the Gulf Coast and Mississippi Flyway, will discuss oil spill prevention and preparedness and the risks facing vulnerable communities of the Salish Sea at 7 p.m. Wednesday in the Whatcom Museum Rotunda Room in Old City Hall, 121 Prospect St. The event is co-sponsored by North Cascades Audubon Society and RE Sources for Sustainable Communities. Driscoll will share her thoughts on the particular risks facing Native Americans and other vulnerable communities in the Salish Sea. Driscoll’s perspective comes from her involvement in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster and subsequent years of response and restoration efforts and the spill’s effects on wildlife, the environment, and local communities. Info: 360-733-8307, re-sources.org.