Feature Archives

On February 9th, an Alameda County judge ruling against the City of Berkeley's Police Review Commission essentially banned open hearings about police officers and blocked public access to records of police misconduct. Berkeley Copwatch says, "The community must come together and take action against this blow to public safety and police accountability!" Copwatch will hold a meeting on Monday, February 19th at 8pm in the Grassroots House, 2022 Blake St. in Berkeley.

Three years after it was raided by armed federal marshals, SFPD and FCC agents, SF Liberation Radio will have its day in court on Wednesday, Feb. 14th, in a special federal court session convening on the UC Berkeley campus. SFLR, through counsel Mark Vermeulen and other pro bono attorneys from the National Lawyers Guild, will argue that the federal government violated the station’s first amendment rights when it obtained a warrant for the seizure of the equipment through a back-door, ex parte procedure. The US Government utilized a maritime law to conduct the raid without giving advance notice to the station, arguing that a radio station is literally like a ship that may sail away in the night.

On January 29th, Alameda County Superior Court Judge Barbara Miller issued a Preliminary Injunction barring the University of California at Berkeley's proposed removal of a century-old stand of native Coast Live Oaks in response to motions filed by the California Oak Foundation and its co-petitioners including Save the Oaks at the Stadium. Audio

On January 21st, Moe's Alley in Santa Cruz hosted a benefit show for the Oakland-based hip hop group The Coup. It was an all star line up of musicians and MC's with a common cause of helping The Coup after their tragic bus accident. Listen to the live recording. Audio

On Monday, January 15th, there was a fire at the Chevron refinery in Richmond. Richmond residents in the immediate vicinity of Chevron refinery were outraged by the lack of warning about the accident-- there were no audible sirens or warnings via the telephone system that broadcasts information in in English and other languages. On Wednesday January 24th, Contra Costa County will be sponsoring a community meeting in Point Richmond in regards to the fire, at 7pm at the Washington Elementary School, 565 Wine Street (near Cutting Blvd).

On March 1, 2007, a reduction in federal housing voucher payments goes into effect in Berkeley. It will place 750 Section 8 families at risk of major rent increases, forced relocation, or the loss of their housing vouchers in a worst-case scenario. In an effort to speak out against the life threatening cuts to their housing vouchers, Section 8 tenants had planned to go to the January 30th Berkeley Housing Authority (BHA) meeting, but they learned in mid-January that the meeting had been cancelled.

Friday, January 19th will be the next Walnut Creek Critical Mass. Bicyclists will gather at Walnut Creek BART. Organizers plan to spread a message of peace, demanding the retraction of troops from Iraq and an end to the recent aggression on Iran. Participants have been asked to bring signs, noise makers, music, and other things to have fun.