Feature Archives

On Friday, November 17th, supporters of local animal advocate Nadia Winstead held rally at 10am in front of the Federal Building in San Francisco. Afterwards, U.S. District Court Judge Susan Illston found Winstead to be in civil contempt for her refusal to testify before a federal grand jury investigating the animal liberation movement. Judge Illston stayed the enforcement of the contempt order for two weeks to allow Winstead to file the appeal.

On December 7th, Bay Area United Against War will celebrate the recent victory over JROTC with a potluck dinner at Compañeros del Barrio, at 474 Valencia St in San Francisco. The San Francisco Board of Education voted on Tuesday, November 14th to phase out its JROTC (Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps) program over a two-year period. It is believed that this is the first time any school district has eliminated an existing JROTC program. The Board of Ed members who voted in favor of eliminating JROTC from San Francisco’s schools are Dr. Dan Kelly, Sarah Lipson, Eric Mar, and Mark Sanchez.

During October and November, Bay Area Vegetarians (BAV) distributed vegan food samples and literature, and most recently, vegan recipes and literature. The events are not difficult to organize, volunteers enjoy them, and it gets vegan information into the hands and minds of people who may not have otherwise received this information. From these events to vegan baking classes to demos at area KFC's in support of PETA's Kentucky Fried Cruelty campaign, BAV keep themselves busy. BAV is currently looking to expand their volunteer team to do leafleting on a regular basis in the East Bay, San Francisco, and the South Bay.

A new group called Mandate for Peace has emerged in the wake of the 2006 elections. They say that the mid-term elections were a referendum on the war, and that the results showed that the voters said that they want peace. The organization says that the next step is to make sure that the new Representatives implement the will of the people and get the troops out of Iraq. Code Pink, Grandmothers for Peace, United for Peace, and others gathered outside of Nancy Pelosi's San Francisco office on November 9th to demand that she speak up for the antiwar majority and take immediate action to bring the troops home. Video and Photos: 1 | 2 Mandate for Peace has encouraged others to take similar actions.

On Thursday, Nov. 9th, The Northern California Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists honored imprisoned videojournalist, Josh Wolf, and Chronicle sports writers, Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, with the distinction of Journalists of the Year "for upholding the principles of a free and independent press." They were recognized for the award because they chose the risk of jail time, rather than reveal confidential sources or turn over unpublished parts of their work to federal grand juries. Josh Wolf was also awarded Best Male Vlogger and Most Controversial Video at the first annual Vloggy Awards in San Francisco on Nov. 5th.

On November 7th, voters around the US will go to the polls. While most of the national focus is on the chance that Democrats will take at least one branch of Congress, Republicans, and conservative issues appear to be making some gains, especially in California.

It appears that some California Democratic Party leaders have been rallying support for Republican governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. Proposition 85, which would require parental notification before a teen can have an abortion, appears to be passing. In Bay Area races, the business community and major newspapers are working to get progressive supervisor Chris Daly out of office, and in Berkeley progressive City Council member Kriss Worthington is on the receiving end of the most expensive campaign in the city’s history.

On Wednesday, November 1st, anti-war protesters held a vigil to protest a Democratic Party fundraiser. They will be outside of the Warfield Theater, 982 Market Street at 6th/Taylor Streets, from 6:30 to 8:30pm. Bill Clinton, Nancy Pelosi and Democratic donors will be inside, at an event called "Flashback to the 60's." The vigil was co-sponsored by Not in Our Name, CodePink, and Global Exchange. Green Party Congressional candidate Krissy Keefer planned to vigil silently to mourn the death of democracy. Protesters aimed to draw attention to Pelosi's refusal to help end the war and impeach President Bush.