Feature Archives

On August 8th, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger was un-welcomed to Salinas High School by members of the American Federation of Teachers, Monterey Bay Central Labor Council, Watsonville Brown Berets and other demonstrators. With an escort of police in cruisers and on motorcycles, Schwarzenegger's vehicle drove past a group of protesters and into a back entrance of Salinas High. Police quickly locked out the people who, in the theory of US Democracy, are supposed to be represented by the Governor.

Alessandro Tinonga writes: The war against Lebanon is absolutely shocking. According to the BBC, the number of Lebanese casualties may be as high as 900 after nearly four weeks of fighting. Almost one third of the dead are children under the age of 12. Latest UN estimates for displaced people in Lebanon put the figure at between 700,000 and 800,000.

For those of us in the anti-war movement, we must take a stand against the violence being perpetrated against the Lebanese and the Palestinian people. However, there is a clear point of division amongst the anti-war movement: how to address the issue of national liberation. This division manifests itself in many ways ranging from a political statements from major anti-war organizations like United for Peace and Justice, or the hesitancy of some elements of the Santa Cruz anti-war movement to have a united demonstration last Friday against the war.

Eight members of the Santa Cruz Weapons Inspection Team (SCWIT) performed a street theatre skit to commemorate the 61st anniversary of the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima, Japan. The group, all dressed in white clothes, assembled at noon on the corner of Pacific Ave and Cooper St. in downrtown Santa Cruz for a dramatized reenactment of the nuclear bombing interspersed with a mock inspection and symbolic dismantling of a Trident II D5 nuclear submarine missile. Audio || Photos

Lockheed Martin, the world's largest weapons contractor, manufactures the Trident II missile and tests its components and subsystems at their 4,400 acre site in Bonny Doon. SCWIT has been trying to raise awareness about the safety of this facility for many years and used the Hiroshima Day event to build for a march on Wednesday, August 9th to the gates of Lockheed Martin. Community members are invited to join a carpool from the Holy Cross Church parking lot at 12:45pm. The march begins at 2:00pm a half mile before the gates to the facility on Empire Grade Road. SCWIT also holds a vigil outside the Bonny Doon Lockheed Martin site on the second Thursday of each month.

Buddhist Peace Fellowship Displays Names of Iraq War Dead

Each year on August 6, many peace activists, commemorate the nuclear bombing of Hiroshima, Japan, with protests & marches. Some use street theatre and satire to bring a message of peace. Others choose a more subtle approach, trying to connect with people on a personal level. One such group is the Buddhist Peace Fellowship of Santa Cruz. Members of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship used the Hiroshima Day anniversary to draw attention to the casualties of the war in Iraq. All day at the corner of Center and Lincoln Streets, the group displayed a three foot tall, hundred foot long, scroll listing 40,000 names of Iraqi civilians killed in the war. There was also a pair of booths created which listed the names, photos, and brief stories, of over 2,000 US and coalition soldiers who also died in the war. Audio || Photos

The 6th annual Art in Action performance, Stop the Violence, took place in Santa Cruz on August 3rd. 25 youth artists, many from Oakland, performed hip hop, spoken word, original music, dance and theater. Original art and digital stories created during a 10 day Art in Action camp in Ben Lomond were also shared.

Donna Deiss writes: Shane is a critically ill AIDS patient who has lived at the Riverview Apartments for five years in Santa Cruz but his name was never put on the lease. The landlord is evicting us on the basis of a very minor fire from a candle although they do not admit any reason. Any tenant can be evicted for any reason without cause in Santa Cruz County. Rent control has failed here four times. The Tenants Rights Union of Santa Cruz County has one remaining member, me, a 58 year old disabled marine pipefitter and caregiver for Shane. I won an Unlawful Detainer against the owner in 1997 due to retaliation for my tenants rights activities. The landlord gave us no warning and will not listen to us prefering to trust Santa Cruz Property Management which has harrassed us and used housing discrimination practices against us. A previous resident manager admits they have been looking for an excuse to evict me for a long time. Read more

In response to recent gun shots and assaults in Santa Cruz, a march and rally took place on July 29th as a way for various communities to unite against violence and call for peace in the streets. Three seperate marches, Live Oak/East Side, Beach Flats and West Side, converged at Louden Nelson Park. White Hawk Aztec Dancers led moms, dads, kids, musicians, students, workers, people living in rehabilitation homes, folklóricos and others through the streets of Santa Cruz. The rally in the park consisted of young speakers, dancers, musicians and Santa Cruz politicos. Read more and view photos

Rupert Murdoch, Tony Blair, and cohorts met at a media conference titled, "Imagining the Future," in Pebble Beach on Sunday. Blair also attended a party hosted by Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch at the Pebble Beach resort near Monterey.

They're gathering to "talk about the future of the world generally - everything from geopolitics to the environment to technology, the situation in the Middle East and so on." The Guardian reports that, "Roger Ailes, the Fox News executive, will introduce four US military officers, who will share their experiences of serving in Iraq." And "AG Lafley, the chief executive of Procter & Gamble, one of the world's biggest advertisers, will talk about building brands. According the the Monterey County Herald, "the conference's content won't be shared with the outside world." Read more

see also: Tony Blair Comes to California