Fresno’s first attempt at civilian oversight of the police is not yet a year old, so perhaps it is too soon to make any definitive judgments about its effectiveness. The Office of Independent Review [...] Continue Reading
Activism
Opinion and Analysis from the Grassroots
Defunding Public Education: An Arresting Development By Tim Young Americans are facing the largest economic crisis since the Great Depression. States like California have responded by pulling the [...] Continue Reading
A War Veteran and Homeless
“I’m thankful to be alive,” answered Wilson, a homeless veteran with his homeless wife, “and I’m thankful to be in Fresno.” “Huh, thankful to be in Fresno?” I ask back. Before he answered, I [...] Continue Reading
Progressive News Briefs
Fresno Police Violate Federal Court Order Protecting the Homeless In January of this year, the City of Fresno violated the settlement agreement protecting homeless people from having their property [...] Continue Reading
The New Jim Crow
Michelle Alexander’s The New Jim Crow is a brilliant history and assemblage of legal decisions, statutes, rules and practices that have incrementally grown since the 1970s to form a system of mass [...] Continue Reading
On Hold at the Housing Authority
My husband, Tom, and I are reluctant landlords. We have just been told by Preston Prince, the new director of the Fresno Housing Authority, that we have a “small portfolio” of rental properties. What [...] Continue Reading
The Ben Lomond Four (Muslims Targeted During Ramadan)
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) houses prisoners of every faith imaginable: Islam, Catholic, Protestant, Episcopalian, Baptist, Jewish, Mormon, Buddhism, Hinduism, [...] Continue Reading
Grassroots Profile
I remember when I first met Camille Russell. A group of us peaceniks was picketing against the bombing of Kosovo on what we now call “Peace Corner” at Shaw and Blackstone, and there was a newcomer [...] Continue Reading
Meeting Energizes Peace Community
On the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the New York World Trade Center and the Pentagon, the peace movement in our politically conservative San Joaquin Valley got a big boost. One hundred [...] Continue Reading
Zen Women and Social Action for Peace
For an interesting slant on nonviolent social engagement, I recommend studying the historical example of Buddhist women. The 2,300-year history of Buddhist women, back to the time of the Buddha, [...] Continue Reading
The ACLU Goes Back to School
The Golden Westside Planning Committee and others in southwest Fresno asked the Fresno Area American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Board to support community efforts to build a new neighborhood middle [...] Continue Reading
Opinion and Analysis From the Grassroots
The Conflict in Palestine/Israel Cries Out for Justice By Meghan Walsh When people ask me about my interest and slight obsession with the Middle East, I always fumble with a response. The [...] Continue Reading