Feature Archives

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 3299 contract with the University of California (UC) expired on January 31st. AFSCME members (custodians, food service workers, gardeners, maintenance workers, shuttle drivers, and medical center workers), students, teachers, and community allies rallied at UCSC's Baytree Plaza on January 31st, then marched to the Chancellor's Office at Kerr Hall to demand justice for UC's lowest wage workers.

On January 24th, the California Supreme Court ruled 5-2 that employers can fire workers for using medical marijuana. The court dismissed a lawsuit brought by Gary Ross under the state's Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) that he had been wrongfully denied employment by RagingWire Telecommunications after he had tested positive for past use of marijuana on a urine test. The court ruled that it did not create a general right to use medical marijuana, but only protected patients from criminal sanction for possession or cultivation of marijuana. The court's decision leaves the door open for discrimination against medical marijuana users via drug urine tests.

The California Prevention of Farm Animal Cruelty Act would prohibit some of the most egregious practices in factory farming such as packing egg-laying hens into wire "battery cages" and confining pregnant pigs and baby calves in crates so small that the animals cannot even turn around. Volunteers are currently working to collect 650,000 signatures by the end of February to place the measure on the ballot in the November 2008 general election.

State Senator Carole Migden has introduced a California Senate Joint Resolution calling on Congress, the President, and federal law enforcement to stop raiding legal medical cannabis collectives and respect California’s law. Senator Migden’s resolution follows an escalation in Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) attacks on medical cannabis providers and threats against property owners who rent to hundreds of collectives all over California. Senator Midgen represents the 3rd District: Marin County and portions of San Francisco and Sonoma Counties.

On January 13th, candidates whose names will appear on the California Green Party primary ballot on February 5th came together for a debate in San Francisco. Cindy Sheehan was the moderator, and Cynthia McKinney, non-candidate Ralph Nader, Jared Ball, and Kent Mesplay were in attendance.

The Peace and Freedom Party held six presidential candidate forums this weekend to inform voters about their choices on the February 5th presidential preference primary ballot. These events started with a January 11th forum in Sacramento, and continued with events in San Francisco, Fresno, Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Diego.

The California Nurses Association says insurer CIGNA has "blood on their hands." The family of a 17-year-old woman who died after being initially denied payment for a liver transplant is suing the teen's insurance company. Nataline Sarkisyan died on December 20th after her family removed her from life support. She had been in a vegetative state for weeks due to complications following a bone marrow transplant. Insurer CIGNA HealthCare had first denied a doctor-recommended liver transplant for Nataline, who suffered from leukemia, but had reversed course a day before her death in the face of mounting public pressure.