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(sorted by date posted in reverse chronological order)
Bay Area Residents React to Airstrikes on Syria by Taking to the Streets 
On the evening of September 23, the airwaves were filled with reports of strikes by the United States and its allies against targets in Syria. Quick response in Palo Alto by the Peninsula Peace and Justice Center called on SF Peninsula residents to gather and protest. Demonstrations were held in San Francisco and San José as well....
Posted: Fri, Sep 26, 2014 3:10am PDT
Developers Inadequately Address Endangered Species Habitat in Coastal Development Permit 
On August 29, the California Coastal Commission on August 29 sent a letter to the developer of the Monterey Bay Shores Resort, Ed Ghandour, informing him his response to the requirements of the conditional Coastal Development Permit (CDP) was deficient. The Coastal Commission tentatively approved the development in April, after years of opposition from environmental groups. Monterey Bay Shores is planned to be built along a pristine stretch of coastal dunes in Sand City, and at risk is a popu...
Posted: Tue, Sep 23, 2014 6:00pm PDT
“Be on the Look Out” Flyer Depicting Dave Id was Distributed to BART Police Officers 
On September 22, former BART Police Deputy Chief Dan Hartwig will be called to account in federal court for his role in targeting and arresting independent journalist David Morse during a “No Justice No BART” protest at the Powell Street BART station three years ago. Morse was the only credentialed journalist who was handcuffed, arrested, and held in police custody for several hours, while other reporters with and without credentials were all released without citation from a police encircleme...
Posted: Fri, Sep 19, 2014 10:04pm PDT
Half Moon Bay Family also Names County and 911 Dispatcher in Federal Lawsuit 
On September 9, the family of Yanira Serrano Garcia announced they filed a civil rights lawsuit against San Mateo County and San Mateo Sheriff's Deputy Menh Trieu in Federal District Court in San Francisco for the June 3 killing of Yanira at her home in Half Moon Bay. On August 18, San Mateo County District Attorney Stephen M. Wagstaffe announced charges would not be filed against Deputy Trieu for the killing....
Posted: Sun, Sep 14, 2014 2:25am PDT
Observers Document Killing of Whales, Dolphins and Sea Lions by Fishery 
The National Marine Fisheries Service has released new data showing that the California-based drift gillnet fishery targeting swordfish killed an estimated 53 marine mammals from May 2013 through January 2014. Fishery observers monitored 34 percent of the drift gillnet sets made last year; they documented that the fishery killed an estimated three California gray whales, six short-finned pilot whales, nine northern right whale dolphins, nine California sea lions and 26 short-beaked common dol...
Posted: Sun, Sep 14, 2014 1:43am PDT
Tribal Members and River Advocates Attend Day Celebrating Water Flow 
On August 27, over 200 Tribal Members and Leaders, river advocates and politicians attended a day of celebration on the Trinity River below Lewiston Dam. It was a day that the Bureau of Reclamation designated as a “Multicultural Day,“ so the Hoopa Valley Tribe organized an event to demonstrate the impacts of water diversion on their culture and the river communities....
Posted: Sun, Sep 14, 2014 1:16am PDT
Battle for Passage of the ERA has been Fought for 91 Years 
"Equality of rights under the law shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of sex. It's time for these words to be made constitutional law", said Jackie Speier, U.S. Representative for California's 14th congressional district at a rally in Redwood City on August 26. Women in attendance at the rally wore red bandanas in solidarity and sang in unison led by the Raging Grannies, "We fought this fight before and now we fight again today."...
Posted: Sat, Sep 13, 2014 11:45pm PDT
Protests in Support of Justice for Michael Brown Erupt All Over the World 
Rallies and marches in solidarity with the people of Ferguson, Mo. were held across the world following the events of August 9 when Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown in broad daylight in front of numerous witnesses. Michael was reportedly unarmed and holding his hands up while attempting to surrender when he was gunned down. Protests in the Bay Area were held in San Francisco, San Jose, and Santa Cruz....
Posted: Sat, Sep 13, 2014 11:23pm PDT
Officer Who Beat Tarek Abu Khdeir also Suspect in Other Violent Crimes 
Israel's Ministry of Justice has filed an indictment against a border policeman for assaulting and injuring 15-year-old Tarek Abu Khdeir, cousin to Muhammad Abu Khdeir, who was burned to death by Israeli settlers, in July. According to reports, the officer, whose name remains under gag order, was indicted at the Jerusalem magistrate court on September 10, for using "excessive force" that could not be justified....
Posted: Fri, Sep 12, 2014 6:16pm PDT
Longtime Santa Cruz Residents Forced Out of Town by City and UCSC 
A Save Paula's Cottage supporter writes: "Here we rally to save one person (and her daughter) in one granny unit. Perhaps if we can help this one person, that will start the ball rolling to save others. Paula, the popular teacher, mom, and PTA president has lived in the cottage on her parents' property for 22 years without difficulty. Now, thanks to the City's UCSC backed eviction program, she has received notice to be out on September 1st or face massive fines. Paula has spoken before City ...
Posted: Sun, Sep 7, 2014 2:46pm PDT
Salinas is 'Our Ferguson' Declares One Demonstrator 
To send a strong message that "killer cops" are not welcome in Santa Cruz, community members gathered on August 26 to protest a speaking engagement at Bookshop Santa Cruz featuring Salinas Police Chief Kelly McMillin. "We are creating a public presence to say loud and clear that the Salinas police chief who oversaw the killings of four Latino men in four months is not welcome in our community," read a flyer provided by Sin Barras, the Santa Cruz-based organization that called for the demonstr...
Posted: Thu, Sep 4, 2014 6:57pm PDT
New Trial Date Set for Santa Cruz Eleven: July 27, 2015 
On August 22, another energetic parade was held in support of the final four Santa Cruz Eleven defendants, who are still facing criminal charges in relation to the 2011 occupation of the vacant bank building located at 75 River Street. Wells Fargo is the so-called plaintiff in the case. Though defendants argued in court District Attorney Bob Lee should be recused from the case, due to his financial relationship with the bank, Santa Cruz judge Stephen Seigel on August 27 denied their motions a...
Posted: Thu, Sep 4, 2014 12:37am PDT
Genetically Engineered Crops Are Major Driver in Butterfly's Population Crash 
Environmental groups filed a legal petition on August 26 to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service seeking Endangered Species Act protection for monarch butterflies, which have declined by more than 90 percent in under 20 years. During the same period it is estimated that these once-common iconic orange and black butterflies may have lost more than 165 million acres of habitat — an area about the size of Texas — including nearly a third of their summer breeding grounds....
Posted: Sat, Aug 30, 2014 11:56pm PDT
Journalist Brad Kava Attempts to Use Media Hype to Cash-in on Crime with 'Cane-O-Mite' 
Former Santa Cruz Patch editor Brad Kava, who is still a journalism teacher at Cabrillo College, is now selling a device he invented that offers senior citizens the ability to secure a pepper spray can to their canes. He has named it: "Cane-O-Mite." It is essentially a holster for pepper spray and, in the Indiegogo campaign and YouTube video produced to market it, Kava preys on the fears of the elderly. He cites an increase in news reporting on crime as a justification in his sales pitch for ...
Posted: Fri, Aug 29, 2014 6:18pm PDT
After Being Told they Will Arrest her Brother's 'Black Ass,' Woman Films Police 
Yannidies Brown writes: Today, August 21, 2014, I, Yannidies Brown, have just not only witnessed, but experienced, police brutality. It started roughly at about nine o'clock in the morning when my brother Rogiers Brown, my fiance Christopher Wuerfel, and I were at an empty parking lot waiting on a ride. An SCPD officer, Bradly Barnett, approached my brother Rogiers telling him that he needs to "get the fuck out of the parking lot" and "I'm going to write you a ticket."...
Posted: Fri, Aug 29, 2014 5:50pm PDT
Presentation by Dr. Andy David Intended to Justify Israel's Attacks on Gaza 
On August 21, Santa Cruz activists picketed outside of a talk at Temple Beth El about Israel and Gaza, given by Dr. Andy David, Israel's Consul General for Northern California and the Pacific Northwest. The topic of the talk was "Operation Protective Edge," Israel's name for their most recent military assault on Gaza, which began on July 8 and has killed thousands of Palestinians. To greet those entering the talk, a series of large signs with the names of those killed in the war was displayed...
Posted: Tue, Aug 26, 2014 1:00am PDT
Salinas Group Denied Library Space for Community Forum on Police Violence 
On August 17, the Direct Action Monterey Network joined a group of residents in Salinas at a demonstration against police violence. Four unarmed Latino men have been killed by Salinas police since March. Although the event was intended to be a community forum, the Cesar Chavez Public Library refused to let the group use their facilities. The gathering was interrupted when someone came over to tell the group that a man was being arrested across the street, but cops were prevented from arrestin...
Posted: Sun, Aug 24, 2014 11:09pm PDT
Protests in Support of Justice for Michael Brown Erupt All Over the World A rally and march in solidarity with the people of Ferguson, Mo. was held in downtown Santa Cruz on August 17. On August 9, Ferguson police officer Darren Wilson shot and killed 18-year-old Michael Brown in broad daylight in front of numerous witnesses. Michael was reportedly unarmed and holding his hands up while attempting to surrender, saying "don't shoot" when he was gunned down. Since that time, protests in support of justice for the Missouri teenager have erupted all over the world....
Posted: Sat, Aug 23, 2014 7:47pm PDT
Defendants Prohibited from Working with Animals, Still Face Felony Animal Cruelty Charges 
On August 21, the national nonprofit Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) announced a settlement on behalf of plaintiffs Animal Place, Farm Sanctuary, and Harvest Home Animal Sanctuary in the animal groups’ lawsuit against egg industry defendants Andy Cheung and Lien Diep. The defendants abandoned 50,000 hens without food at a facility near Turlock, which led to the largest farmed animal rescue in California history....
Posted: Sat, Aug 23, 2014 8:07am PDT
Longest Blockade of Israeli Ship in History — Zim Lines Ship Forced to Leave Oakland Port 
In a major victory against the Israeli Zim Lines shipping company, their ship the Piraeus was forced to leave the Port of Oakland after a mass march, four days of picketing, and the refusal of ILWU Local 10 and ILWU Local 34 to work the ship despite attempts by the Oakland police department and Alameda County deputies to break up the ongoing pickets. The Zim ship is believed by some to have unloaded only a portion of cargo before giving up and heading back out to sea. Oakland's "Block the B...
Posted: Thu, Aug 21, 2014 11:21am PDT