Feature Archives

According to Staff of SubRosa Cafe, there was a break-in and burglary at their space in downtown Santa Cruz in the early hours of June 26th. Someone broke a window, took some stuff from the backroom and a small amount of money left in the register. A small portion of the SubRosa collective, who were dealing with the aftermath and cleanup, decided that they do not want to pursue charges against the person who was arrested. SubRosa Staff say, "We see this as another symptom of capitalism--some people have nothing and feel desperate enough to break in to spaces that also, it turns out this time, have nothing."

Activists concerned about the close ties between Big Oil and Big Banks protested at a branch of JP Morgan/Chase Bank in Palo Alto on June 26th. Demonstrators encouraged customers to move their money to community banks or credit unions, telling passersby that not only did Chase take bailout money as a "too big to fail" institution, but that it is the chief depository bank for British Petroleum.

On Thursday, June 24th at 6:30pm at the Louden Nelson Center in Santa Cruz, local anarchists are hosting a panel discussion entitled "Demystifying Anarchy" to help non-anarchists understand the depth and nuance of anarchism. The event is intended for people who are curious about the philosophy, or might have questions or concerns. Demystifying Anarchy will feature a panel of anarchists who will speak about what anarchy means to them and how they see the world.

Arab Queers write: "We, the undersigned queer Arab organizations, are appalled by the US Social Forum’s decision to allow Stand with Us to utilize the event as a platform to pinkwash Israel’s crimes in the region. Stand with Us is cynically manipulating the struggle of queer people in the Middle East through its workshop entitled LGBTQI Liberation in the Middle East.”

Update: On June 23rd, the leadership of the US Social Forum voted to cancel the workshop in question for "being in violation of the anti-racist principles central to the US Social Forum."

After more than a year in a Tel Aviv hospital, Bay Area activist and photo-journalist Tristan Anderson has returned home to California. Tristan was critically injured when he was shot in the head at close range with a metal high-velocity tear gas canister at the Israeli Separation Wall on March 13, 2009, while taking photos following a demonstration against the apartheid wall in the West Bank village of Ni'lin.

On May 5th, KION Salinas Channel 46, reported on "The Anarchist Profile in Santa Cruz" promising to go in-depth "to really understand and explain the sub-culture of anarchy we have here in Santa Cruz." In the video, KION reporter Brooke Holmquist tries to connect the May Day property destruction to a "gypsy drum circle" at farmer's market, protests at UCSC and SubRosa Cafe.

Four armed deputies attempted to visit SubRosa on May 19th. SubRosa was closed at the time, and the deputies told SubRosa's neighbor that they wanted to talk to staff about "worker's comp issues." One of them was an inspector in the Santa Cruz District Attorney's Office. Apparently, this makes good on the DA's promise to investigate SubRosa for any connection with the May Day property destruction.