Feature Archives

Strikers on the picket lines at Marriott hotels in San Francisco, San José and Oakland are determined to fight poverty level wages and increased medical costs as they struggle to live in one of the most expensive areas in America. Bay Area laborers who have walked are joined by workers in Boston, Detroit, and the Hawaiian islands who are striking against the world’s most profitable hotel chain. On October 20, over 3,000 workers and supporters marched in San Francisco. Of 300 who protested in San José that day, a contingent stayed to drum and chant through the night, keeping awake the few hotel guests who crossed picket lines.

The opposition to Measure M has now raised over three quarters of a million dollars, which is being used to spread fear and misinformation about rent control. While most of this money comes from out of the area, real estate interests like the National Association of Realtors and the California Apartment Association, local landlords in Santa Cruz are also part of the problem. In response, community members in support of tenants rights continue to demonstrate at the properties of slumlords, including a rally on October 11 at a building owned by Harry Dong.

The country was transfixed when Christine Blasey Ford testified against Supreme Court Nominee Brett Kavanaugh on September 27. On the same day in Palo Alto, neighbors, friends, and colleagues of Dr. Ford rallied to her support. Actions in Berkeley, San Francisco, Mountain View, and San Mateo demonstrated the Bay Area's commitment to supporting victims of sexual assault and protested what they called Republican rape culture. A major demonstration in the nation's capital will be held with a sister rally in San Mateo on October 6.

Co-founders of Take Back Santa Cruz (TBSC) Analicia and Dexter Cube opened up for a candid, "on the fly" interview on September 12. Dexter answered questions about his past and his multiple brushes with the law, including being fined tens of thousands of dollars by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and losing his licence for defrauding financial clients. Analicia Cube, the self-described President of TBSC, questioned the "mental balance" of Measure M rent control supporters in Santa Cruz, and was defiant that TBSC was not involved with the Santa Mierda hate blog.

The National Democratic Independent Farm Workers Union (SINDJA) is calling upon all sister organizations to participate in the International Global Action against the transnational corporation Driscoll's — one of the most exploitive agricultural companies in the San Quintín Valley, Baja California. Workers are demanding: freedom to unionize, a collective contract with SINDJA, no more sexual harassment, daycare centers, and fair wages.

Direct Action Everywhere and co-founder Wayne Hsiung, along with dozens of unnamed individuals, are forbidden from stepping on Whole Foods property in Berkeley. On September 21, the Alameda County Superior Court granted a restraining order seeking to stop protests against the company. Whole Foods had sought to ban protests on its property throughout the entire state. Despite the court ruling, "Occupy Whole Foods" is proceeding as planned September 23-29.

On September 8, more than 30,000 people marched in San Francisco as part of a major international climate mobilization. The “Rise for Climate Jobs, and Justice” march filled the city’s streets just days before the Global Climate Action Summit (GCAS). Protesters took to the streets again on September 13th after the summit had commenced, this time shutting down the intersections and substantially disrupting the entrance into the GCAS venue.