Feature Archives

Saturday Sep. 24th at 10am: March to End the War in Iraq, Bring the Troops Home Now!
A march and rally of around 50 was held in downtown Fresno today (September 10, 2005) to encourage students to "opt-out" of being contacted by military recruiters. Organizers for the march said that under The No Child Left Behind Act public schools are obligated to furnish the contact information of students to the federal government for use by military recruiters. At the rally in front of the Navy recruiting center, participants were told that many students and parents may not know they have the legal option of opting out by signing a form requesting that the school administration not supply their personal contact information for military recruitment purposes. Schools are not financially penalized for informing students and parents that they have the right to opt out from being contacted by military recruiters.
Pictures and Report: 1 | 2 | Peace Fresno website

A rally in support of Cindy Sheehan drew over 300 people on the corner of Broadway and 16th in Sacramento on Saturday the 27th. This was the largest of the three rallies that were held in support Sheehan. Many of Sheehan’s supporters were holding signs that read, “America Stand with Cindy” and, “We all want answers.” As many protestors know sometimes the number of people is miniscule. But it was evident that from the beginning that Sheehan’s supporters drew an incessant amount of honking and peace signs from cars the entire evening. So even though the drivers weren’t standing on the corners, it was their honking and support that kept the momentum going. This also says that there are way more dissenters of war than just those standing on the corner.
Report and pictures | Previous Coverage

Copwatch, a group that originally started in Berkeley in the early 90's based around the idea that communities of people should watch and document the police to prevent police misconduct, has spread to Fresno. The event was a meeting of diverse groups of people from varoius communities within Fresno. Speakers called on people not to be scared of police or local politicians, and to stand up for their community against police terror. A founding member of Berkeley Copwatch presented at the the event, and gave a workshop on how to Copwatch, and how to engage in documenting police interactions with people on the street.
For more info, and a Fresno Copwatch Know Your Rights flyer, go here.

Sacramento county residents have been bombarded with aerial spraying of pyrethrins and piperonyl butoxide for the past 5 nights wihout informed consent ot sufficient notice to protect themselves. Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito Vector Control Board has stated the chemicals used are harmless when in fact they have been shown to cause cancer and other mutations. Due to certain exemptions, the Board has not had to apply for permits, gain property access or even inform the public of the actions they are taking. The aerial spraying is designed to stop the spread of West Nile Virus, and contains Pyrethrins and Piperonyl Butoxide in the form of a product called Evergreen 60-6, and is sprayed each night between 8 pm and midnight. Residents were given no fair warning and have been told to stay inside, shut off air conditioners, bring in children's toys, pets, etc during the spray, but that it is "completely harmless." These chemicals have been found to cause cancer in laboratory animals and have increased the probability of leukemia in farm workers. Organizers are planning a rally on Friday to bring attention to the issue. Read more here | Blowing the Whistle on West Nile - Shades of 1950's and DDT | No Spray's Website

On August 16, 2005, The County of Fresno entered into a contract with the City of Fresno to provide for the beautification of city-owned buildings and grounds. As part of this agreement, 50 County jail inmates will be used to pick up trash and litter, remove weeds and dead brush, care for medians, and provide landscape maintenance. No money will be exchanged between the City and the County and everyone asked to comment on this relationship believes this to be a win-win situation. "Everybody benefits" is the word around the halls of government. John Crockford, co-chair of the Fresno County Peace and Freedom Party, believes the absence of discussion of labor in situations like this is indicative of the contempt our elected representatives have for working people. "The County jail inmates who work to produce a cleaner Fresno deserve the respect and dignity due all workers. Indeed, they deserve the respect and dignity due all people, regardless of their position in society." Read more here

September 5th will be the one-year anniversary of the death of Dyron Brewer in the CYA's Chad prison for youth. A mass memorial and march will be held in Stockton on Monday, September 5th, from 12pm to 3pm, to honor Dyron's life. The cause of Dyron's death is unknown, but he was the fourth prisoner to die in the CYA system last year. Durrell Feaster, Dion Whitfield, and Roberto Lombana also lost their lives inside CYA’s youth prisons in 2004.

Books Not Bars says, "We are joining together to make sure these young lives are not lost in vain.... It’s time to close the CYA’s youth prisons and build a new system of rehabilitation and support – a system these young people deserved but never received." No More Lost Lives will be a day of music, poetry, speeches, honoring, and prayer. Read more | Books Not Bars Campaign

Update: Reprive in Sequoia National Monument
Stumps of recently thriving trees dot the Sierras, as the detritus of logging piles up in the Sequoia forest. This pageantry of destruction is brought to you by Sierra Forest Products of Terra Bella California (that a company like this is located in a town with such a name is only one among many sad ironies in this sordid story) and its chief sponsor, the US Department of Forestry. In a stunning, relatively overlooked area of the southern Sierras, just east of California Hot Springs and the south valley town of Porterville, the Forest Service is facilitating one of the most rotten deals in the recent, rotten history of logging on public lands. And these are not just any public lands but a National Monument established in 2000 to protect giant Sequoias, in large part by prohibiting timber cutting and restoring the lands to their primeval condition. The sale is called the Saddle Fuels Reduction Project, and as in so many recent cases timber extraction is occurring under the ruse of fire suppression. Forest activists have documented many cases of large trees being marked for removal in open areas of forest with smaller nearby trees left behind. For more info | Sierra Nevada Earth First | 9/2 - 9/6: Sierra Nevada Earth First! Sequoia Action Camp!