Exploring Punishment By Morghan Vélez Young (Editor’s note: “Exploring Punishment” is a new series about the U.S. fixation with punishment that will journey beyond explorations of jails and [...] Continue Reading
Social Justice
Like Thunder: Merrill Goodall’s Part in the Struggle
By Trudy Wischemann A recent book review, “Like Lightning: A Book for Our Time” (Community Alliance, August 2021), stressed the seminal role of Paul Taylor, the humanist Berkeley economist, in [...] Continue Reading
Following the Money for the Unhoused
By Bob McCloskey In one of the hottest summers on record, the City of Fresno continues to fail to provide housing for its most vulnerable citizens. As the mayor and City Council members tout their [...] Continue Reading
Homeless Man Brutalized by Fresno Police Has a Victory in Court
Lewis Brown, a homeless man who the Fresno police brutalized, was recently found not guilty of charges brought against him. Charges were filed against Brown after the demolition of the encampment he [...] Continue Reading
Professional Diversity Improvement Hits Fresno Unified
The Fresno Unified School District (FUSD), which is California’s third largest school district serving more than 73,000 students, has long been criticized for the absence of diversity among its [...] Continue Reading
California Approves $156 Million Fund to Combat Asian Racism
Asian Americans cheered the July 12 passage of California’s API (Asian Pacific Islander) Equity Budget, a three-year $156 million initiative that seeks to equip the AAPI (Asian American Pacific [...] Continue Reading
Anti-Asian Hate and Racism
Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have seen a rapid increase in hate crimes against Asian Americans. The mass shootings in Atlanta and Indianapolis have shocked the conscience of the [...] Continue Reading
Protest for Better Treatment of the Homeless
Homeless people and supporters of the homeless joined in two demonstrations at Fresno’s City Hall on July 20 and 23. They demanded better alternatives to being on the streets. On July 20, homeless [...] Continue Reading
Colombia: Is Lucas Villa’s Death a State Crime?
“There has been persecution against my family before and after the attack against my brother, so that was something premeditated; we understand that it is a state crime,” said Sidssy Uribe Vázquez, [...] Continue Reading
School Board Excludes Spanish Speakers
By Kevin Hall Politics trumped best practices in the recent push by Fresno Unified School District (FUSD) Trustee Elizabeth Jonasson Rosas to name a new school after philanthropists Murray and [...] Continue Reading
On the More Money Trail “Allegedly” for the Unhoused
By Bob McCloskey Recently, Fresno County “cleaned up” a homeless encampment along Kings Canyon Avenue, just east of Temperance Avenue. The folks at the encampment had to move to County [...] Continue Reading
Broad Coalition Opposes Voter Suppression Laws
The dramatic image of Texas Democrats leaving the legislature before midnight to block a voter restriction bill spotlights a surge of activism to secure access to the polls. Voting rights advocates [...] Continue Reading