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SF Bay Area Independent Media Center (Indybay) Features
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2024/03/20/18864374.php
Indybay Beats Back Illegal Search Warrant and Gag OrderVictory! EFF Helps Indybay Resist San Francisco Police Warrant and Gag Order2024-03-21T00:30:35Z2024-03-21T00:30:35Zen-US
After pushback from Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) attorneys citing California and federal shield laws, SFPD agreed on January 31 to take no further action on the warrant. With the gag order remaining in place, and wary that SFPD might make another attempt at a search, Indybay and EFF proceeded with preparing a formal motion to quash the warrant and vacate the gag order. On March 7, San Francisco Magistrate Judge Linda Colfax reversed herself and vacated the 90-day gag order, confirming that the warrant became void on February 3.
In its nearly 24-year history, Indybay has resisted numerous warrants and other police inquiries seeking identifying information of contributors. Not once has Indybay revealed such information when requested.
Later in January, activists for a ceasefire in Gaza disrupted Vice President Kamala Harris during her "Fight for Reproductive Freedoms" appearance in San Jose. Protesters carried placards and banners that read "Bombing Babies is Not Reproductive Justice" and shouted "genocide is not reproductive freedom.”
Related Features:Annual SF Counter-Protest of Anti-Abortion March Comes Amid New Post-Roe Reality (2023) |
Counter-Protesters Rise Up at Anti-Abortion "Walk for Life" (2022)
]]>City of San FranciscoFront PageHealth, Housing, and Public ServicesSouth Bay AreaU.S.Womynimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2024/01/10/18861790.php
UC Berkeley Moves to Kill People's Park ForeverWall of Shipping Containers Intended to Keep the Public Out of People's Park2024-01-10T08:21:21Z2024-01-10T08:21:21Zen-US
Even as an outstanding case awaits a final decision from the California Supreme Court regarding student housing, UC Berkeley intends to build on the land. The university went in for the kill on People's Park shortly before midnight on January 3, sending in hundreds of police to clear the park of people and to make way for wall of shipping containers stacked two-high around the entire perimeter of the park. Cops from the University of California, California State University, California Highway Patrol, Alameda County Sheriff, and San Francisco County Sheriff participated in the raid, drawing crowd control weapons on those inside the park and on those protesting outside. As soon as police had control of the park, chainsaws began removing trees, bulldozers wrecked existing structures, and cranes pushed around dirt and debris.
Protesters were ready for the raid, with knowledge that UC was about to move on the park, but police closed nearby streets and set up barricades to prevent more from coming to defend the park. Several demonstrators were arrested. Protests have continued on Telegraph Avenue and other surrounding areas while UC finished the wall, which now features security cameras.
Taking local resistance to the next level, protesters in Northern California have engaged in a number of direct actions aimed at disrupting business as usual, targeting those most responsible, and raising the profile of the call to free Palestine. While President Biden was in San Francisco for the APEC Summit, activists shut down all westbound lanes of the Bay Bridge, and others hung a banner on Highway 101 between the airport and San Francisco. A US military vessel destined to deliver weaponry to Israel was blocked from leaving the Port of Oakland for the better part of a day. The San Francisco office of US defense contractor Lockheed Martin was locked down. Communiqués posted on Indybay claim sabotage of train lines in multiple cities, as well as a water main at a pro-IDF fundraiser. Others have taken it upon themselves to smash windows of a military recruiter, banks, and businesses with ties to the Israeli war machine. Banner drops and graffiti in solidarity with the Palestinian people have gone up all over.
Related Features: Millions Stand Up Worldwide in Solidarity with Palestine |
Israel Decimates Gaza, Nearly 2M Palestinians Displaced |
BDS Protesters Block the Boat, Prevent Unloading of Israeli Ship (2021)]]>Anti-War and MilitarismArts + ActionCaliforniaCentral ValleyCity of San FranciscoEast Bay AreaFront PageGlobal Justice and Anti-CapitalismInternationalPalestineU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/12/08/18860974.php
Millions Stand Up Worldwide in Solidarity with PalestineLargest Ever Pro-Palestine Marches in NorCal Demand End to US Aid for Israel's War on Gaza2023-12-09T07:58:16Z2023-12-09T07:58:16Zen-US
In two months, more than 17,000 Gazans have been killed, tens of thousands wounded, huge swaths of infrastructure turned into rubble, and the vast majority of the population displaced, on the verge of famine and widespread disease. And yet, on December 8, the US once again used its UN Security Council veto on behalf of the State of Israel, blocking a ceasefire motion that had the support of over 100 countries. The carnage in Gaza continues, with only a fraction of desperately needed humanitarian supplies allowed into the territory.
Millions of people worldwide are standing in solidarity with Palestinians, starting with emergency rallies the day Israel's relentless bombing in Gaza began. Marches and rallies have continued ever since, demanding a ceasefire, the end of US military support for Israel, and that Palestine be freed once and for all. Every week there are more protests in cities large and small, including in many that have never seen a pro-Palestinian demonstration. City governments in Richmond and Oakland have passed motions urging a ceasefire. In San Francisco, tens of thousands have marched against Israel's war on Gaza.
Related Features: Taking Direct Action Against US Support for Israel's War on Gaza |
Israel Decimates Gaza, Nearly 2M Palestinians Displaced ]]>Anti-War and MilitarismCentral ValleyCity of San FranciscoFront PageInternationalPalestinePeninsulaSanta Cruz / Monterey Bay AreaSouth Bay AreaU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/11/18/18860538.php
Massive Opposition to APEC SummitThousands of Police and Metal Walls Isolate Elites from the People in San Francisco2023-11-19T03:16:18Z2023-11-19T03:16:18Zen-US
Twenty thousand "No to APEC" protesters kicked off a week of demonstrations on November 12. On November 15, a huge metal wall separating the APEC economic-military elites from the rest of the world was the scene of one of the larger demonstrations. Demonstrators hoisted huge banners inviting the war criminals to leave the city. Prominent among activists were the most immediate victims of the global corporatists, native peoples and Pacific Islanders. The action focused on many issues: militarism, poverty, fossil fuel, climate chaos, and the Palestinian struggle.
On November 15, in front of the metal wall fortifying the APEC summit entrance, protester Sarah White was brutally assaulted by APEC attendee Michael Davies. Knocked unconscious, she fell to the ground, hitting her head on the metal barrier. Sarah's jaw was broken in multiple places; she suffered bleeding on the brain and will require surgery. Davies was charged with assault and arraigned on November 21.
See Also: As Biden Visits, Bay Bridge Shut Down to Demand Gaza Ceasefire and End of US Military Aid to Israel |
Malaysia to raise Palestine issue at San Francisco Apec meeting |
Philippines: Unions decry deceptive, vague ‘labor agenda’ of APEC |
Call for Global Labor Strike for Palestine on 11/9/23 at SF Rally for Palestine]]>City of San FranciscoFront PageGlobal Justice and Anti-Capitalismimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/10/31/18859989.php
Climate Activists Call for Escalation in the Fight for the FutureThree Activists Detained at Climate Protest for Crossing Beale Air Force Base Gate2023-11-01T06:34:25Z2023-11-01T06:34:25Zen-US
At sunrise on October 19, youth climate activists gave a speech decrying the imperialist military-industrial complex, responsible for countless ecological atrocities, energy consumption, and carbon emissions. The speech started with a youth activist giving a statement of solidarity with the people of Palestine and saying that the climate crisis can only be won when everyone is free, including the people of Palestine. Another youth activist called out Beale Air Force Base commander Geoffery Church for his empty promises about "listening to the community" and wanting to make a base that works on "community values." The youth activist declared the entire US military an imperialist machine that destroys the environment and is inherently antithetical to community values.
A call went out for an immediate escalation in the fight for the future. Four activists, banners in hand, then marched across the demarcation line at the Schneider gate of Beale Air Force Base. Military police attempted to forcibly remove the activists from the base by shoving and pushing them back towards the line. Three were detained and marched into the gate building, where they were held for over an hour. Outside of the gate, eight other climate activists renewed the blockade in front of the now-closed gate and held the line until those detained were released. Two were charged with trespassing.
Three Activists Detained at Climate Protest at Beale Air Force Base |
Wells Fargo's Fossil Fuel Investments Protested in Market Street Action]]>Anti-War and MilitarismCaliforniaCentral ValleyEnvironment & Forest DefenseFront PageU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/10/31/18859988.php
Israel Decimates Gaza, Nearly 2M Palestinians DisplacedSeven Weeks of Israeli Blockade and Bombings Leaves Gazans Struggling to Survive2023-11-01T05:39:01Z2023-11-01T05:39:01Zen-US
Israel retaliated with a total blockade of Gaza cutting off food, water, electricity, and fuel supplies, collectively punishing Gaza's 2.3 million residents. In the first week alone, Israel dropped over 6,000 bombs and missiles on the Gaza Strip, more than the US dropped on the entire country of Afghanistan in any given year. The bombings have continued since, nearly 24 hours a day. Israel ordered all residents of northern Gaza to move south, and hundreds of thousands did at first while others tried to hold on, fearing a second Nakba and that they would never be allowed to return to their homes. Israel's far-right government ministers have openly advocated for genocide and mass expulsion of Palestinians, suggesting that all Gazans be permanently pushed into Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, a "voluntary resettlement."
The level of destruction in Gaza in just seven weeks is staggering. Over 1.7 million Palestinians have been displaced and face serious malnutrition and dehydration, as well as bombings in southern Gaza, which was promised by Israel to be safer. Nearly 15,000 have been killed, a third of whom are children, with tens of thousands injured. The actual death toll is certainly higher with many unaccounted for, likely buried under rubble as Israel levels entire neighborhoods. Around 50% of all residential housing in the strip has been destroyed. Water wells and other critical infrastructure has been permanently destroyed. Israel has killed 108 UN staff, at least 200 medical and aid workers, and over 65 journalists. It has bombed and raided hospitals, schools, churches, mosques, UN facilities and more, often where war refugees were seeking shelter from bombings elsewhere, allowing in barely enough supplies to keep the population from completely starving to death. Communications networks and internet access have gone dark repeatedly. Fears of an epidemic outbreak and general health emergency grow as the majority of hospitals have been forced to close and conditions continue to deteriorate.
Additionally, thousands of Gazans who worked in southern Israel were imprisoned, with multiple reports of beatings and denial of food and water. In the West Bank, Israel has abducted/arrested over three thousand Palestinians and killed more than 200. Israeli settlers have taken the war as a green light to attack Palestinians and have killed at least eight, including one child.
A four-day truce finally began on November 24, with Israeli hostages expected to be traded for imprisoned Palestinian women and children, tried in military courts without standard civil defense procedures, if not held without charges in "administrative detention." It is expected that more aid trucks will be allowed to enter the strip during the truce, but Israel has promised to continue its relentless war on Gaza once the truce ends.
Related Features: Taking Direct Action Against US Support for Israel's War on Gaza |
Millions Stand Up Worldwide in Solidarity with Palestine ]]>Anti-War and MilitarismFront PageInternationalPalestineU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/10/17/18859648.php
No to Cop CampusStop Cop Campus Coalition Protests Planned Police Facility in San Pablo2023-10-17T07:10:08Z2023-10-17T07:10:08Zen-US
The Stop Cop Campus Coalition intends to prevent the new facility from being constructed, arguing such huge amounts of money would be better spent meeting the needs of city residents rather than policing them. On August 10, a protest was held on what was scheduled to be the ground breaking day for the new police building, but the city got cold feet and cancelled the event. No groundbreaking has been scheduled since, and activists are hoping it never happens. On September 30, another protest was held which was large enough to march down the middle of San Pablo Avenue from Kennedy Plaza to the site of the proposed "Cop Campus."
After the demonstration, the fence enclosing the building site was down and the estimated completion date had been corrected to "never."
March Against Cop Campus in San Pablo |
Stop Cop Campus Coalition Protests Planned Police Facility in San Pablo |
San Pablo Says No to Cop Campus |
StopCopCampus.org
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https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/10/12/18859538.php
Institute for Study of Zionism to Hold Inaugural ConferenceConference on Speech-Chilling “IHRA definition” of Antisemitism Launches New InstituteBattling the “IHRA Definition”: Theory & Activism, on October 13-14. Through the lens of research on structural racism, state violence, and social justice movements, the conference will analyze political campaigns that seek to codify the “IHRA definition” of antisemitism, and efforts to oppose IHRA policies.]]>2023-10-12T19:53:51Z2023-10-12T19:53:51Zen-USBattling the “IHRA Definition”: Theory & Activism, on October 13-14. Through the lens of research on structural racism, state violence, and social justice movements, the conference will analyze political campaigns that seek to codify the “IHRA definition” of antisemitism, and efforts to oppose IHRA policies.
This is the first research conference focusing on IHRA campaigns, which have been a feature of conservative strategy since 2016 and are linked to anti-Critical Race Theory campaigns. IHRA campaigns have been widely criticized as efforts to chill academic freedom, and to exclude groups from funding and civic life including human rights, peace, racial justice, and legal advocates, and Palestinian and progressive Jewish organizations. Battling the “IHRA Definition”: Theory & Activism is also the first conference under the banner of Critical Zionism Studies. Critical Zionism Studies studies Zionist politics and ideas in relation to forces including states, capital, race, and culture, and it examines power from the perspective of people experiencing its effects. The Institute supports the “research from below” that is central to Critical Zionism Studies.
The conference is sponsored by numerous academic centers and departments spanning critical race and ethnic studies, Near East studies, Arab and Muslim studies, culture, creative practice, and environment at New York University, the University of California Santa Cruz, and San Francisco State University. It is additionally sponsored by student groups at NYU and CUNY, academic freedom groups in the United States and Europe, and grassroots organizations. Panels and events will take place in New York City (at NYU and The People’s Forum) and Santa Cruz (at the Resource Center for Nonviolence).
See Also: Civil Rights Groups Warn UCSC Attempts to Censor Pro-Palestine Scholarship May Violate Federal Laws]]>Education & Student ActivismFront PageInternationalPalestineRacial JusticeSanta Cruz / Monterey Bay AreaU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/09/29/18859257.php
Thousands March in Sacramento to Demand End of Fossil FuelsCalifornia Climate Justice Actions in Coordination with Massive New York City March2023-09-30T03:03:23Z2023-09-30T03:03:23Zen-US
Showing that activism can be effective, California's Governor Gavin Newsom's administration has sued the major oil companies for the damage caused by fossil fuel induced global warming and for knowingly deceiving, for decades, the public about the dangers. Nonetheless, while Newsom and Biden tout their environmental bone fides, both have issued thousands of oil drilling permits.
From the tenor of the demands expressed by the many organizations participating the event, it was clear that the environmental movement will not settle for a nicer, "greener" oil industy. They want an end to fossil fuel use. Totally.
Related Features: Environmentalists Speak Out Against Oakland Airport Expansion as Climate Disasters Accelerate |
Wells Fargo Headquarters Blocked to Stop "Business As Usual" |
Street Theater Depicts Apocalyptic Vision of Climate Destruction |
Oil Companies Greenwash Reputations Through the News Media]]>CaliforniaCentral ValleyEnvironment & Forest DefenseFront Pageimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/09/25/18859184.php
Standing Up to the TERFs in San FranciscoEverywhere Anti-Transgender "Feminists" Gathered in SF Was Met with Trans Rights Protest2023-09-26T03:37:39Z2023-09-26T03:37:39Zen-US
On the first full day of the WDI conference, transgender-supporting groups raised a ruckus with a speakout and rally in front of the Hilton Hotel on Kearny. Following that demo, a second group of protesters took Kearny, blocking it for several hours. SFPD arrested one protester after the Hilton sign was vandalized and briefly broke out their riot gear. Later that night, the front doors of a WDI-friendly art gallery near the Hilton was treated to a coat of red paint with the words "NO TERFS ON OUR TURF." On September 18, the TERFs staged a small protest in front of SF city hall and were outnumbered by trans rights counter-protesters.
Related Feature: TERFs Told to "Get Out of Oakland!"]]>City of San FranciscoFront PageLGBTI / QueerWomynimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/08/19/18858425.php
Oakland Airport Expansion Plans Meet PushbackEnvironmentalists Speak Out Against Airport Expansion as Climate Disasters Accelerate2023-08-19T22:01:21Z2023-08-19T22:01:21Zen-US
The Oakland airport expansion proposes sixteen new aircraft gates and parking for an additional one thousand cars. Environmentalists claim that the solution to the new and hitherto never before seen climate disasters that are occurring due to fossil fuel intensive human activity is less fossil-fueled human activity.
The expansion plans overlook climate disasters currently occurring all around the world:
Historic hurricane reaches Los Angeles with catastrophic flooding
Exploding Pacific Northwest wildfires pose health risks, air quality issues throughout West
Florida ocean temperatures surge to 100 degrees with mass coral bleaching in some reefs
Siberian wildfires now bigger than all other fires in world combined
For the first time in recorded history, smoke from wildfires reaches the North Pole
The wildfires that swept through Maui are the deadliest in U.S. history
The city finally moved on the Stop Shopping Center in late July. For over 10 days, more than 500 musicians in Porto have been forcibly evicted from their workspace, by police and the city authorities, with over 100 rehearsal rooms and workplaces closed down at Stop, in what has been called the largest DIY studio complex in Europe. Thousands came out to protest the eviction.
Artists face forced Eviction of STOP in Porto, the largest DIY Studio complex in Europe
]]>Arts + ActionFront PageGlobal Justice and Anti-CapitalismGovernment & ElectionsInternationalPolice Stateimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/07/27/18857618.php
Free Peppy and KrystalBrian “Peppy” DiPippa and Krystal DiPippa Face Decades in Prison on Trumped Up Charges2023-07-28T05:31:15Z2023-07-28T05:31:15Zen-US
The charges relate to a protest of a hundred or so people outside of the O'Hara Student Center at the University of Pittsburgh on April 18, where notorious transphobe Micheal Knowles was invited to speak by a right-wing student group. The DOJ claims the protest itself was "civil disorder" and alleges that Peppy threw two smoke bombs and a firecracker during the disorder, and that Krystal assisted him. They now face up to twenty years in prison and fines of up to $750,000.
From the solidarity website: "Peppy and Krystal are exceptional and caring humans. For decades they have been active participants in solidarity with oppressed and marginalized people. Their tireless advocacy and community building has put them in the crosshairs of state repression. They will both undoubtedly face a long and arduous court process in the months, if not years, ahead and will need a variety of care, support and compassion. Today they need our support."
Supporters are encouraged to write letters to Peppy in prison and to contribute to their legal defense fund.
Free Peppy and Krystal! |
Related Court Documents |
Archive of DOJ Indictment Announcement
]]>Education & Student ActivismFront PageLGBTI / QueerPolice StateU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/07/19/18857416.php
Wells Fargo Headquarters Blocked to Stop "Business As Usual"Halt to Fossil Fuel Funding Demanded as Wells Fargo Operations Shut Down2023-07-19T19:53:11Z2023-07-19T19:53:11Zen-US
With the 333 Market St. headquarters entrance locked to the public with many police inside, the San Francisco Fire Department were called to cut off the demonstrators' homemade locking pipes and separate the connected protesters. Using power tools and keeping a medical gurney at the ready, they attempted to hide the procedure behind a large tarp. As people outside the bank's glass wall banged on the wall shouting "drop the tarp" and "what are you hiding," the whole affair lasted well over two hours. The six, greeted by cheers of encouragement from supporters, were then led out of the building to be photographed, fingerprinted and cited. Their court date is set for August.
Related Feature:Climate Justice Protest at Wells Fargo Rages as Major Storm Slams San Francisco
]]>City of San FranciscoEnvironment & Forest DefenseFront PageGlobal Justice and Anti-CapitalismU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/07/13/18857314.php
French See Democracy FadingDemonstrations Wrack France, Boiling Over After Police Murder of Youth2023-07-13T21:34:26Z2023-07-13T21:34:26Zen-USNahel Merzouk, a seventeen-year-old of Algerian descent, at a traffic stop. The rebellion was intense. Police, fire stations, schools and city halls were attacked as symbols of the State. A car was sent into the home of a mayor, injuring his wife. Merchandise was expropriated from over two thousand stores.
In response to this latest immigrant-led revolt, the French government has taken a number of repressive anti-democratic actions. Government spokespersons have restricted their rhetoric to deploring protest "violence," while ignoring underlying causes, and have become more strident in accusing opposition on the left of disloyalty to the Republic. Former presidential candidate Eric Zemour proposed to withhold French nationality from people born in France to French parents until they "apply" for citizenship.
Several hundred protesters were detained, tried, convicted, and sentenced to lengthy prison terms all in the space of forty-eight hours. One seventeen-year-old with no prior record was sent to prison for a year and a month for allegedly throwing an empty soda can at a group of police (hitting no one). Government officials are also trying to impose severe fines and remove public assistance from the parents of protesters.
Related Feature:
French Working People Will Not Accept Retirement Age Increase]]>Front PageGlobal Justice and Anti-CapitalismGovernment & ElectionsHealth, Housing, and Public ServicesImmigrant RightsInternationalLGBTI / QueerPolice Stateimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/07/02/18857154.php
San Francisco Celebrates Pride in Myriad of WaysA Call for Pride to Return to its Roots as a Riot in Defense of LGBTQ+ Rights2023-07-03T04:17:21Z2023-07-03T04:17:21Zen-US
Taking the route of the original San Francisco Pride march held in 1970, organizers Juanita More and Alex U. Inn led a group of about two hundred people in a rally followed by a march that culminated in an afternoon of music and dancing in the streets. Speakers included a reproductive justice advocate who said their movement includes queer and trans rights in addition to abortion rights. Others called for Pride to return to its roots as a riot in defense of LGBTQ+ rights.
Meanwhile, in yet another part of town, members of Starbucks Workers United went on strike. They spoke out in front of the Castro district store about their fight for a union and the company’s decision to ban PRIDE decorations in stores across the country.
In a 2019 interview, Ellsberg said, "My experience with the Pentagon Papers showed that an act of truth-telling, of exposing the realities about which the public had been misled, can indeed help end an unnecessary, deadly conflict." "This example is a lesson applicable to both the nuclear and climate crises we face," he added. "When everything is at stake, it is worth risking one's life or sacrificing one's freedom in order to help bring about radical change."
Related Feature: Ellsberg, Former Gov't Officials Kick Off Campaign to Free Bradley Manning
]]>Anti-War and MilitarismCity of San FranciscoEast Bay AreaFront PagePolice StateU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/05/31/18856411.php
"Fentalyfe" Poster Campaign RedecoratedReactionary "Street Art" Campaign Backed by Billionaire Michael Moritz Targeted by Graffiti ArtistsIn a pseudonymous communiqué published on Indybay on May 21, "some vandals" write: Under the cover of night, with the Frisco fog as our accomplice, a crew of friends vandalized over 10 of the right-wing, pro-police “Fentalyfe” street poster installations.... These disturbing posters are part of a $300k campaign, by reactionary group Together SF, that is shaming drug and Narcan users, and calling for the racist criminalization of poor people.]]>2023-06-01T06:52:37Z2023-06-01T06:52:37Zen-USIn a pseudonymous communiqué published on Indybay on May 21, "some vandals" write: Under the cover of night, with the Frisco fog as our accomplice, a crew of friends vandalized over 10 of the right-wing, pro-police “Fentalyfe” street poster installations.
We painted messages such as "Narcan Saves Lives, Cops Kill People", "The War On Drugs Failed", "TogetherSF = SFPD", "Cops Sell Fentanyl", "Fuck You Fascists", and "Fuck Michael Moritz".
These disturbing posters are part of a $300k campaign, by reactionary group Together SF (who are funded by billionaire venture capitalist Michael Moritz), that is shaming drug and Narcan users, and calling for the racist criminalization of poor people. They are also calling for the criminalization of graffiti while themselves wheat pasting posters on the streets.
Related Feature: Community Demands Justice for Banko Brown
]]>Arts + ActionCity of San FranciscoDrug WarFront PageGlobal Justice and Anti-CapitalismHealth, Housing, and Public ServicesPolice Stateimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/05/31/18856409.php
Community Demands Justice for Banko BrownSecurity Guard Tackles, Punches, Shoots, and Kills Banko Brown Over Alleged Shoplifting2023-06-01T05:19:54Z2023-06-01T05:19:54Zen-US
The following day, San Francisco police arrested Anthony on suspicion of murder, but, on May 2, San Francisco district attorney Brooke Jenkins announced that she would not be filing any charges against Anthony. Jenkins refused to release surveillance footage of the killing, yet said in a statement that the security video "clearly" showed Anthony acted "in self-defense." The community was outraged. On May 9, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to demand that Jenkins make the video public. Finally, on May 15, the DA released the video footage and other files related to the case. The video does not show Anthony acting in self-defense.
Banko's friends, family, co-workers, and concerned community members have protested ever since to demand accountability for the killing, marching and rallying at City Hall, the DA's office, and at the Walgreens on Market Street where Banko was shot. On May 26, Banko's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit filed against Walgreens, its parent company, a security firm, and the guard who shot him, seeking $25 million in damages.
Related Feature: "Fentalyfe" Poster Campaign Redecorated
]]>City of San FranciscoFront PageLGBTI / QueerPolice StateRacial Justiceimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/05/27/18856364.php
Enviro Law Restrictions Proposed to Expedite Favored ProjectsLong-Time Industry Goal Is to Hamper CEQA by Expanding Exemptions, Limiting Challenges2023-05-28T06:27:51Z2023-05-28T06:27:51Zen-US
CEQA is a landmark environmental law that the construction industry, Big Ag, Big Oil and other Big Money interests have been trying to eviscerate for years in order to shorten the contracting process for bridge and water projects, limit timelines for environmental litigation, and simplify permitting for complicated developments in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta and elsewhere throughout California.
On May 25, the California Senate Budget Committee, in a 3-0 vote, temporarily blocked Gavin Newsom's legislative plan, ending the proposal for this legislative year.
California Senate Committee Blocks Governor's Plan to Gut Environmental Law |
Governor guts landmark environmental law to expedite the salmon-killing Delta Tunnel |
CalMatters analysis of proposal
]]>CaliforniaCentral ValleyEast Bay AreaEnvironment & Forest DefenseFront PageGovernment & ElectionsNorth Bay / Marinimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/05/26/18856346.php
Aussies Say No to Nuclear Sub Base at Port KemblaSolidarity Rally Held in San Francisco Against US Nuclear Submarine Base2023-05-27T00:28:19Z2023-05-27T00:28:19Zen-US
An international day of action was held on May 5 against a US nuclear submarine base in the Australian Port Kembla. One rally took place at Port Kembla. A solidarity rally was held in San Francisco against the base and the Australian, UK, and US military alliance (AUKUS). Several speakers representing Veterans for Peace, union activists, and others spoke of their opposition to the build-up of a war with China, along with using Australia as a pawn in that effort.
Read More
]]>Anti-War and MilitarismCity of San FranciscoFront PageInternationalU.S.image/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/05/25/18856338.php
May Day 2023 Marches and Rallies Demand Dignity and EqualityNorthern California Marks International Workers Day for Labor and Immigrant Rights2023-05-26T06:06:07Z2023-05-26T06:06:07Zen-US
In San José, union members and allies gathered from throughout the South Bay and beyond, then took to the streets for their annual march. "Up, up with liberation! Down, down with deportation!" was one of many chants heard along the annual march from Roosevelt Park to Plaza de Cesar Chavez. With flags and banners, union enthusiasts took over major San Jose downtown streets along a route that went past City Hall.
In Fresno, around 200 people marched through downtown to advocate immigrants' rights. The march was organized by the Coalición 1 de Mayo and supported by many community groups, including the Dolores Huerta Foundation and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights (CHIRLA).
Related Feature: May Day Marches Return to the Bay Area (2021)
]]>Central ValleyCity of San FranciscoFront PageImmigrant RightsInternationalLabor & WorkersSouth Bay Areaimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/05/25/18856337.php
Oakland Catholics Declare Bankruptcy Over Abuse LawsuitsCritics Say Bankruptcy Stiff-Arms Sexual Abuse Survivors by Limiting Their Options in CourtSNAP writes: Everything about this bankruptcy strikes us as wrong. It is all about keeping money and secrets.]]>2023-05-26T04:15:36Z2023-05-26T04:15:36Zen-US SNAP, a network of survivors of institutional sexual abuse and their supporters, writes: Everything about this bankruptcy strikes us as wrong. It is all about keeping money and secrets. From one coast to the other, the same ruse is being used by Catholic bishops. Minimize and cover-up child sex crimes, while keeping abusers in ministry. Then, fight against changes to the statute of limitations which would expose those crimes. Finally, when secular laws provide a window to justice, go to federal bankruptcy courts and pretend that they are out of money. The Diocese of Oakland is surely morally bankrupt, it seems to us, but they do not deserve to be declared financially bankrupt. The Diocese owns a Cathedral worth $200 million. It has hundreds of acres of land in Piedmont, Orinda, Lafayette, and Danville. Except for character and integrity, it is not poor.
Related Feature: St. Mary's Sunday Mass Disrupted, Catholic Patriarchy Denounced
]]>East Bay AreaEducation & Student ActivismFront PageHealth, Housing, and Public Servicesimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/04/25/18855640.php
French Working People Will Not Accept Retirement Age IncreaseTradition of Revolutionary Protest Continues in Paris and Across France as Labor Fights On2023-04-25T16:41:14Z2023-04-25T16:41:14Zen-US
The French left, with its revolutionary tradition, has a history of almost, but not quite, achieving power. The times they really did achieve dominance, as in the pre-WWII Blum government, they failed to support the Spanish Republic in its fight against the Hitler and Mussolini supported General Franco. This led to generations of fascism for Spain. The Socialist Mitterrand government did make social achievements. President Holland was socialist in name only. His presidency turned into something of a joke when he was photographed sneaking out of the Elysee palace on a scooter to go visit his mistress.
Currently, the French labor movement is more unified than it has been in a long time. Still, labor's relationship with the political left under Jean Luc Mélenchon is bumpy. As the leader of the "Insoumis" (unsubmissive) party, Mélenchon somewhat combines the qualities of Jean Jaurès, Eugene Debs, and Bernie Sanders.
Historical Background:
The Revolution and The Commune]]>Front PageGlobal Justice and Anti-CapitalismGovernment & ElectionsHealth, Housing, and Public ServicesInternationalLabor & Workersimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/04/21/18855578.php
Abortion Medication Safe For Now, But Perhaps Not for LongProtests Continue Despite US Supreme Court Allowing Access to Abortion Pill Temporarily2023-04-22T06:51:27Z2023-04-22T06:51:27Zen-US
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals then scaled back the Kascmaryk ban on April 13, but issued new restrictions on mifepristone, reducing the number of weeks into a pregnancy it could be used and forbidding its shipment by mail. On April 15, a national day of action, demonstrators in Scottsdale, Arizona, protested in front of the headquarters of Alliance Defending Freedom, the right-wing lawers designated a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center that filed the lawsuit in Amarillo. Locally, protests were held in Sacramento, Half Moon Bay, Mountain View, Santa Cruz, Oakland, and other cities.
On April 21, the U.S. Supreme Court extended the stay against any mifepristone bans or restrictions, sending the issue back to the Fifth Circuit for further deliberations. While this is seen as at least a temporary victory, defenders of reproductive justice rights say that extremists will continue try to ban abortion at the federal level and the fight is far from over.
Related Feature: Renewed Sense of Urgency Driving Reproductive Rights Actions
]]>CaliforniaCity of San FranciscoEast Bay AreaFront PageGovernment & ElectionsHealth, Housing, and Public ServicesPeninsulaSanta Cruz / Monterey Bay AreaSouth Bay AreaU.S.Womynimage/jpeg
https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/04/17/18855508.php
Oil Companies Greenwash Reputations Through the News MediaBig Oil Sponsors Dinners and Awards for California Journalists, Gets Favorable Mentions2023-04-18T02:28:14Z2023-04-18T02:28:14Zen-US
Further examples abound. The WSPA sponsored a "media dinner" in Sacramento on February 28 as part of a business conference known as "BizFed Sacramento Days." Speakers at the dinner included editors and bureau chiefs from the the Sacramento Bee, the LA Times, and the Orange County Register.
And, when the Sacramento Press Club announced that the WSPA would be the "Lede Sponsor" of their Journalism Awards Reception on March 29, the press club wrote, "WSPA is dedicated to guaranteeing that every American has access to reliable energy options through socially, economically and environmentally responsible policies and regulations." That greenwashing language was lifted directly from WSPA's own public relations copy on their website.
Meanwhile, Big Oil spends millions of dollars lobbying California politicians every economic quarter and it pays off. A total of 897 oil drilling permits have been approved since the start of the year by CalGEM, the state’s oil and gas regulator.
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https://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2023/04/14/18855485.php
Drag Up and Fight BackDrag Activists March in San Francisco Against Nationwide Anti-Trans/Queer Bills2023-04-15T04:51:27Z2023-04-15T04:51:27Zen-US
So far in 2023, lawmakers in 46 states have introduced more than 650 anti-LGBTQ bills. These attempts to strip away the rights of queer and trans people include attacks on gender-affirming care and drag shows, as well as book bannings.
In the San Francisco march, many demonstrators carried signs and wore paraphernalia in remembrance of drag activist Heklina who was a pioneering figure in the San Francisco drag scene and an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ causes. Heklina died in London just two days before the march at the age of 55.