Feature Archives

On December 21st, about 30 Mall Walkers for Peace, including members of San Mateo Peace Action, Declaration of Peace, Veterans for Peace, San Mateo Democracy for America and the Raging Grannies, strolled the Hillsdale Mall in San Mateo as part of the 4th national Iraq Moratorium event in as many months. The Raging Grannies wore their signature hats and buttons while others sported t-shirts with the words "Troops Home Now!"

The Iraq Moratorium called on everyone to take some public action to stop the war on Iraq - on Friday, September 21st and every third Friday of the month from now on. In San Francisco there wereactions Friday at 1187 Franklin at 10am and at Market & Montgomery at 5pm. In San Mateo, 150 people gathered for an evening rally. In Berkeley, there was a rally at Acton and University. In Palo Alto there was a rally at Lytton Plaza. In Oakland, was a march on the docks starting from the West Oakland BART station. There were also be rallies at many other location around the Bay Area.

On August 9th, East Palo Alto youth rallied against environmental racism and celebrated the partial shutdown of Romic Technologies. Romic is a hazardous waste recycling facility that has been operating in East Palo Alto since 1964 and has not had a proper operating permit for the past 14 years. Community residents have waged a campaign to shut down Romic in East Palo Alto since 1989.

Michael Moore's movie "Sicko" opened Friday June 29th at movie theaters around the US. The movie focuses on the problems in the US health-care system. It highlights several countries that do not have these same problems since their health systems are not based around the profit motives of insurance companies, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies. On opening night, raging Grannies, doctors, nurses, and patients engaged theater-goers at the Century 16 in Mountain View California, passing out over 1,000 leaflets and collecting postcards that demanded a single payer health care system for California.

Members of East Bay Animal Advocates staged a protest on Sunday, June 10th, in front of the Lunardi's Market in Belmont to draw attention to what they say is animal cruelty behind the production of eggs sold by Lunardi's. East Bay Animal Advocates allege that the chickens used to produce eggs sold by Lunardi's food chain are kept in small battery cages that allow the birds virtually no mobility.

On May 30th members of Youth United for Community Action (YUCA), celebrated a California state order that will shut down large portions of a major hazardous waste handler located in East Palo Alto, ironically named Romic Environmental Technologies. For 43 years, Romic Environmental Technologies has operated a hazardous waste recycling facility in East Palo Alto.

The Day Worker Center of Mountain View, which has been housed for the past 5 years at the Calvary Church at California Street and Escuela Avenue, is losing its facility on July 31st, 2007. At a press conference on May 18th, the Center was to announce that it has been searching for a new home for over a year, but has been stymied by high real estate prices. The Day Worker Center provides a safe space for workers and employers to connect, fosters community building, and hosts services such as English language classes. The Center is seeking the support of the community to help locate and fund a new space in the appropriate geographic area for its constituency.