Feature Archives

On Sunday, February 3rd, the Mobilization to Free Mumia Abu-Jamal presented Fighters for Freedom, an event in support of Mumia, who is a political prisoner and death row journalist. The event was held at the ILWU Local 34 Hall in San Francisco. The event honored and included Dennis Bernstein, Lynne Stewart, Michael Franti, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, Barbara Lubin, and Aundre Herron. The recent video about Mumia's case that was broadcast on NBC's Today Show was shown. A court decision about if Mumia will be granted a new trial is imminent, and emergency demonstrations in response to the outcome have already been scheduled.

In the morning of January 30th, Alejandro Barrita Ortiz, director of the Auxiliary, Industrial, Banking and Commercial Police, was assassinated in Oaxaca City at “El Tequio” sports park near the international airport. Barrita had been identified as a key player in police operations during and immediately after the 2006 Oaxacan popular uprising. Police operations are underway throughout the city, and the military has cordoned off the area of the assassination.

The Santa Cruz Municipal Code Chapter 9.64 concerns the use of public parking lots and garages and was later amended to apply to all downtown public lots, and went into affect in mid-November, 2007. The law prohibits any person from staying in a parking garage or lot for more than 15 minutes and then only if you're parking or retrieving your car or bike. If you're disabled and can prove it, you have 30 minutes.

The community of Santa Cruz won a victory on January 23rd in Parking Lot #4, the lot at Cathcart and Cedar. There under the two tall trees, the weekly drum circle bounced back from last week's police intimidation. Last week cops with ticketbooks dispersed the drummers, Food Not Bombs, and anyone loafing, loitering, or lingering with warnings of $100+ fines.

On January 12th and 13th the first APPO (Popular Assembly of the Peoples of Oaxaca) Youth Encuentro was held in Zaachila, Oaxaca, Mexico. Among the many plans of action agreed upon by the diverse group of young folks, was a march on January 15th for the liberation of political prisoners in Oaxaca, in particular David Venegas Reyes, an APPO council member and member of VOCAL (Oaxacan Voices Constructing Autonomy and Freedom).

Sammy Galvan was killed by Modesto police in August 2004. A wrongful death lawsuit will be heard in the federal courtroom in Fresno. This article is about the circumstances of Sammy’s death, police accountability, and the struggle for justice.

Weekly protests to demand justice for Gary King, Jr. are now held on Thursdays from 4pm to 6pm outside of the District Attorney's Office at 1225 Fallon St. in Oakland, at the corner of 12th St. & Oak St. Gary King Jr, a 20-year-old African-American man, was killed by Oakland police officer Patrick Gonzales on Sept. 20th, 2007. After tasering Gary King Jr., Gonzales then shot him twice in the back. Family, friends, neighbors, and supporters gather at the weekly protests to demand that Gonzales face the consequences of his actions-- "and to demonstrate that vicious police behavior will not be tolerated!"