Feature Archives

On October 17, a caravan of 20 autos parked in front of Mark Zuckerberg's Palo Alto home so protesters could honk loudly and deliver a pink slip to the Facebook CEO while chanting, "Mark, You’re Fired!" The protest came on the heals of whistleblower Frances Haugen’s testimony before the Senate Commerce Committee. Haugen, a former Facebook employee, told senators the social media giant's products "harm children, stoke division, and weaken our democracy."

On September 1, Texas’ anti-abortion law banning the procedure after about six weeks of pregnancy went into effect, despite the 1973 Supreme Court ruling which established a constitutional right to this form of healthcare. Reproductive justice advocates in the San Francisco Bay Area and across the country held major protests on October 2 and October 3, with the fate of Roe v. Wade and legal abortion on the line. Indybay has coverage from a dozen cities.

Responding to legal pressure from the Center for Biological Diversity, the federal government finalized a new rule on July 30 expanding critical habitat protection along the West Coast for critically endangered Southern Resident killer whales. The population of Southern Residents stands at just 74 orcas. The National Marine Fisheries Service designated 15,910 square miles of new critical habitat, expanding current protections in Washington’s Salish Sea south along the coasts of Washington, Oregon and California to Point Sur.

Actions marking May Day across Northern California demanded worker rights, housing for all, and racial justice, expressing solidarity with the Chilean general strike. Marches and rallies were held in San Francisco, Oakland, San José, Fresno, Mountain View, and other cities. In Oakland, a vacant house was reclaimed and a nighttime march called for abolishing the police. In Alameda, protesters rallied outside the homes of those who called police on Mario Gonzalez.

Following a protest march that attacked the Vacaville City Hall and police station on the night of January 17, anti-racists attacked the US Citizenship and Immigration Services headquarters in San Francisco the following night. An "anonymous autonomist" writes: On January 19, on Ramaytush Ohlone land occupied under the name "South San Francisco", the county courthouse was vandalized with anti-police, anti-State, anti-colonization slogans and the windows of the front entrance were smashed in.

Worried about the possibility of an electoral emergency, many organizations are mobilizing people across the U.S. to be ready to protect the election results and ensure that all votes are counted. Over 500 events are scheduled for November 4, their activation to be decided by 9am PST that day. In the San Francisco Bay Area, activists have already held demonstrations saying waiting wasn't necessary. On October 29 in Oakland, artists painted a giant street mural with the words "Choose Democracy, Stop a Coup.".

Breonna Taylor was fatally shot in her home by Louisville, Kentucky, Metro Police Department officers Jonathan Mattingly, Brett Hankison, and Myles Cosgrove on March 13. A Grand Jury returned an indictment for one officer with three counts of wanton endangerment for shooting into neighboring apartments — and no charges directly related to the murder. Announcement of the Grand Jury's decision on September 23 sparked protests across Northern California.