Feature Archives

UC Financial Crisis: Big Picture and Practical Actions is a public forum occuring at UCSC's Classroom Unit 2 on Thursday, October 29th from 7-10pm. Two of the featured speakers, Stanton Glantz and Robert Meister, have been particularly devoted to investigating the University of California's finances.

On October 24th, as part of the worldwide action on climate issues, activists rallied throughout Northern California. In Santa Cruz, marchers carried placards through town and held a mock trial of the automobile. In Humboldt County, demonstrators chose the ancient redwood forest in Richardson Grove as their protest site because it is threatened by Caltrans’ proposal to widen highway 101. In San Francisco, Justin Herman Plaza was filled with an enthusiastic crowd, while in nearby suburbs residents gathered to share planet-saving tips with neighbors.

On October 19th, in a federal court house in Los Angeles, Alex Sanchez was once again denied bail. Sanchez, a nationally recognized activist and peacemaker, is accused of maintaining ties to his former gang and participating in a conspiracy to murder. Bail was denied after Judge Real suppressed testimony from father Greg Boyle, an expert in Los Angeles gangs.

The Santa Cruz, CA collective Wo/Men's Alliance for Medical Marijuana (WAMM) won a major award in August from The Society for the Study of Social Problems, a national organization of sociologists. The SSSP’s "Social Action" award and a check for $1,000 are given each year to a not-for-profit organization which embodies and enacts the social justice goals of the SSSP.

Dahr Jamail, an independent unembedded reporter in wartime Iraq, will discusses his latest book The Will to Resist: Soldiers Who Refuse to Fight in Iraq and Afghanistan on Wednesday, October 14th at 7pm at the Vets Hall in Santa Cruz. This event is a fundraiser for the Santa Cruz G.I. Rights Network affiliate and Dialogues Against Militarism (DAM).

On September 28th, Mutulu Olugbala aka M1 of dead prez was interviewed by Boots Riley of The Coup about his recent trip to Gaza, Palestine and Cairo, Egypt. The event, a fundraiser for the San Francisco Bay View National Black Newspaper and Block Report Radio, was held at Santa Cruz Barrios Unidos and co-sponsored by the Prisoners of Conscience Committee (POCC), Barrios Unidos and the Watsonville Brown Berets.

During the massive 10-campus walkout on September 24th, several dozen students and workers occupied the Graduate Student Commons at the University of California at Santa Cruz (UCSC), issuing statements acknowledging their intention to escalate the conflict: "Occupation is a tactic for escalating struggles," they note at their website, "We must face the fact that the time for pointless negotiations is over."