New KFCF Programming
The Central Valley Partnership (CVP) has announced that it will host a monthly radio show on KFCF 88.1 FM (kfcf.org) on the second Thursday of each month from 3 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
The program, Valley Rising, which will be hosted by Daren Miller, CVP board chair and community activist, and Daniel O’Connell, the executive director of the CVP, will discuss the CVP’s progressive values and mission “to achieve social, racial, environmental and economic justice in the San Joaquin Valley.”
The CVP is a regional progressive network that is multiracial, intergenerational and gender-inclusive, bringing together a diverse set of organizations, backgrounds and perspectives: labor unions and worker organizations; conservation, planning and environmental groups; women’s rights and LGBTQ+ advocates; political and community partners involved in health and human services, education, immigration and civil rights; and individuals involved in public service.
The program will highlight upcoming guests for the CVP’s regular monthly meetings that occur on the third Tuesday of every month at Fresno City College. Visit centralvalleypartnership.org for more information.
Local Democrats Disappointed with Newsom’s Transgender Shift
The Fresno County Democratic Party has expressed its disappointment with Governor Gavin Newsom’s words and actions on his new podcast, This is Gavin Newsom, and his platforming of far-right radical spokesperson Charlie Kirk. During the podcast, Newsom agreed with Kirk and called it “deeply unfair” for transgender athletes to participate in girls’ sports.
“Mr. Newsom’s comments are very disappointing,” said Marsha Conant, first vice chair of the Fresno County Democratic Party and Central Valley rep to the California Democratic LGBTQ Caucus.
“These are not the values of the Democratic Party. We believe in the unique diversity and perspectives everyone brings to the table. This includes our transgender community members.
“It’s especially true now that the Republican Party has dedicated itself to removing them from public existence—erasing history from national websites, purging data from federal databases and trying to pass legislation to keep them out of public spaces. Now, more than ever, we need to stand with our transgender community.”
Border Patrol Sued for Unlawful Practices
In response to brazen and unlawful raids by federal agents in the Central Valley earlier this year, the United Farm Workers (UFW) and five Kern County residents have sued the Department of Homeland Security, Customs and Border Protection and the U.S. Border Patrol to prohibit them from stopping, arresting and summarily expelling community members from the country using practices that violate the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
In January, Border Patrol agents based at the U.S.-Mexico border traveled more than 300 miles to Bakersfield to launch “Operation Return to Sender,” a weeklong operation through predominantly Latinx areas of Kern County and the surrounding region.
Border Patrol agents required Maria Hernandez Espinoza, who had resided in Kern County for 20 years, to sign forms she was not permitted to read, without disclosing that she was agreeing to leave the country and ignored her pleas for an opportunity to appear before an immigration judge, as is her right under federal law. Hernandez Espinoza and at least 40 others are now stranded in Mexico, separated from their families and unsure when they will see their loved ones again.
“They stopped us because we look Latino or like farmworkers, because of the color of our skin. It was unfair,” said Maria Hernandez Espinoza, one of the plaintiffs in the lawsuit. “I hope our rights are protected so that all workers can work and live in peace.”
“Border Patrol’s lawless practices do not make anyone safer. They terrorize communities, violate the Constitution, and disregard limits that Congress has imposed on immigration agents,” said Bree Bernwanger, senior staff attorney at the ACLU Foundation of Northern California.
“This lawsuit seeks to end Border Patrol’s unlawful reliance on racial profiling, indiscriminate arrests without a warrant, and using coercion and deception to deny people their rights.”
Sunrise Futures: Moving Towards Liberation
The McClatchy Foundation has launched “Sunrise Futures: Moving Towards Liberation,” a storytelling journey that uplifts Central Valley leaders who are the heartbeat of democracy. These leaders have catalyzed the power of community through local media, journalism and storytelling.
The campaign shares the stories of leaders reflecting on personal and professional experiences, and looking ahead to the futures they are imagining. It is a commitment to the people building the Central Valley’s future, both as individuals and as a collective. In a shared voice, they are finding a path forward.
Elana, a youth participant at Breakbox Thought Collective in Fresno, says that “a sign of listening is when the things that you say actually happen.” This is an invitation to listen deeply, act with intention and move in ways that honor the leadership shaping the future of the Central Valley.
Esmeralda, co-founder of a bilingual community newspaper, notes that “people see us in the community, and they learn to trust us. We start building trust. When we do, community members open up to us, attend events, and get involved.”
Help amplify these stories. Share them with your networks and follow @jbmcclatchy to hear these firsthand voices, in both Spanish and English. Read the blog “Moving Towards Liberation: Storytelling as Impact” to see how our storytelling fuels the McClatchy Foundation’s grantmaking approach. Visit jbmcclatchyfoundation.org/stories/.
Labor Newspaper Still Going Strong
February marked the 125th-year anniversary edition of Organized Labor, a newspaper still published and circulated every month by the San Francisco Building and Construction Trades Council.
The first issue of Organized Labor was published on Feb. 3, 1900. William McKinley, a Republican, was president, and Theodore Roosevelt was vice president. The city of San Francisco was thriving due to both the fallout from the gold rush and the beginning of trade with the Pacific Rim. The Trades Council had been around since Feb. 6, 1896.
A few years later, in 1908, the quote “Remember Your Friends As Well As Your Enemies” sat atop the Organized Labor nameplate on the paper’s cover page. The words ring truer than ever today, inspiring labor to fight on.
According to Michael Kazin in his book Barons of Labor, the city’s building trades unions were already well-organized. “Beginning in the late 1890s,” Kazin wrote, “San Francisco workers built the strongest labor movement that existed in any American metropolis.”
View archives of Organized Labor at sfbuildingtradescouncil.org.
Californians Against Waste
In early March, Governor Gavin Newsom prevented the adoption of regulations required to implement SB 54, California’s landmark Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act.
The Los Angeles Times reported that Governor Newsom directed CalRecycle to restart the regulation process, despite more than two years of stakeholder engagement and thousands of public comments.
While Californians Against Waste find the outcome of the Governor’s decision disappointing, “it’s ultimately not surprising that the plastics industry is backing away from its agreement to tackle plastic pollution and trying to slow down the process that they themselves agreed to.
“The closed-door lobbying by industry representatives in the 11th hour demonstrates how industry has worked to undermine SB 54.
“The impacts of plastic pollution on our health and the environment make it clear, we can’t afford to continue with the status quo that industry is fighting so hard to defend.”
