San Diego Free Press

Grassroots News & Progressive Views

You are here: Home / Archives for Activism

DREAMER: I Was Invited to the State of the Union. This is What It Was Like.

by

By Karen Bahena / Alliance San Diego

Democratic leaders from the House and Senate welcomed the largest group of Dreamers to attend a State of the Union address. I stood in disbelief when I received an invitation and I want to thank my congressman, Scott Peters, (D-CA), for making the cordial invitation and standing with Dreamers like myself. It was a remarkable statement of resistance and it sent other members of Congress the message of urgency for a narrow, bipartisan bill that would protect Dreamers all across the country.

Moments before President Donald Trump took the stage, I was escorted by my congressman to my seat. I scanned the House of Chambers from the upper balcony and immediately attempted to make eye contact with attendees who wore “migrating butterfly stickers” in a show of support for immigrants, refugees, and Dreamers. We acknowledged each other’s presence and stood there in solidarity shaking our heads and raising our eyebrows through what turned out to be a distasteful, hate-filled speech.   [Read more…]

Cape Town Water Wars: A Literal Shitstorm | Video Worth Watching

by

This first brief Chronicle Digital video is from October of last year, but succinctly describes how Cape Town came to be in the predicament it now faces: an insufficient supply of potable running water for the city.

This second video from The Real News channel is from just a few weeks ago and presents updated information on the situation from Patrick Bond, professor of Political Economy at Wits University in South Africa. Currently the estimated “Day Zero” is April 20th. That’s when the plan would call for setting up 200 water distribution sites for this city of 4 million people.

Can California learn from the events that Cape Town is experiencing? Consider what effects a water shortage would have on issues such as food production, tourism and other aspects of the economy. In the Cape Town region 60% of the water is reserved for agriculture, chiefly for the cultivation of grapes for wine and rooibos (redbush) for herbal tea. Is that supportable given the limited resources?

When people begin to grasp the nature of this struggle for resources, and as corporations attempt to profit from this situation, how will people fight back? What weapons do the poor have?   [Read more…]

Progressive Activist Calendar – February 2-12, 2018

by

There are forty-two events of interest to activists in San Diego over the next ten days. It’s safe to say the pace and intensity of progressive politics have not lessened as we enter into year two of Our Dear Leader.

I have a few observations to share before you get to the good stuff:

Superbowl Sunday is this weekend. I remember when it was something I looked forward to…
The Nunes Memo was released, and if you live in a fact-based reality, it was a dud…
ICE, aka, Immigration and Customs Enforcement are rapidly becoming the secret police…
  [Read more…]

Trump’s State of the Union Was a Middle Finger to Immigrants | Video Worth Watching

by

Now This correspondent Versha Sharma provides some context for the immigration policies and issues covered in this year’s State of the Union address, including the domestic origins of MS-13. She also points out the irony that the immigration policies being pushed by Trump would have made it impossible for his family to have immigrated.   [Read more…]

Only One Voter in Rep. Duncan Hunter’s District Contributed to His Campaign

by

Congressman Duncan D. Hunter’s dismal campaign finance reports have attracted national attention, and not in a good way. He raised a paltry $50,073 in the last three months of 2017 and spent $264,255, with $178,146 spent with five law firms. At the onset of 2018, the campaign had just $290,904 in the bank, less than half of what it did a year earlier.

Vape store owner Molly Sylvester was the sole donor living in the 50th Congressional District, contributing $2000 to the five-term Congressman’s re-election effort in the last three months of 2017. Other support came mostly from San Diego-area residents outside the district, D.C. lobbyists, and out-of-state political action committees.

Two strong Democratic opponents have emerged in the supposedly Ruby Red 50th, and both outraised Hunter, accord to reports filed with the Federal Election Commission.   [Read more…]

Pacific Beach Street Guardians Provide Jobs for the Homeless

by

By Caryn Blanton

Founded in October 2016, Pacific Beach Street Guardians (PBSG) is a non-profit (501c3) that functions as a social enterprise. Neighbors who are experiencing homelessness are hired to handle many different tasks, including:

  • Care for the streets, sidewalks, alleys, parking lots and beaches of our community
  • Perform janitorial/custodial work for local businesses, organizations, and residents
  • Provide event services (set up/take down and trash/recycling)

As a social enterprise, PBSG offers much more than a job – Team Members are given the opportunity to gain pride, purpose, stability, dignity, a path to self-sufficiency and hope.   [Read more…]

Rightist Bordertown Patriot Provocateurs Plan Chicano Park Disruption

by

A right-wing group calling itself Bordertown Patriots has announced plans for a “Patriot Picnic” at Chicano Park on Saturday, February 3. While they have couched their intentions in innocuous language, disavowed rumors of provocative actions, and deny any racial animus, a history of confrontations involving their followers suggests otherwise.

The advertised goal of these reactionaries is to remove the symbolic Aztlan flag flying in the park and replace it with an American flag. Their make-me-a-martyr style of organizing requires them to claim the park is a “no-go zone” for “patriotic Americans” and the U.S. Flag is therefore banned.

A similar event in September, promoted as a Pizza Party by many of the same right-wingers, drew a handful of participants who left under police escort after one of their group acted provocatively, attracting the attention of hundreds of peaceful counter-protestors in another area of the park.   [Read more…]

Jimmy Kimmel Gets Real – MAGA vs. DACA | Video Worth Watching

by

MAGA vs. DACA. In a segment on his show following the State of the Union speech, Jimmy Kimmel takes on the DACA issue by trying to make it real. He assembles a small group of DACA opponents and introduces them to a family that is currently struggling with the current unresolved situation. At one point during the discussion, one of the opponents makes the claim that “we live in a most-loving, compassionate, exceptional country”. Jimmy pushes back, stating his disagreement, and his observation that “I think that this country has become cruel.”   [Read more…]

Local Democrats Get An Early Start – Progressive Activist Calendar, January 26 – February 4, 2018

by

How can we make sure the Blue Wave washes some of the sludge out of local government?

By rolling up our sleeves and getting to work. Early. Like now. And that’s what the San Diego County Democratic Party and many local activists are doing. And there is still time for YOU to get in on the action.

It’s the middle of ‘winter’ in San Diego, and this calendar lists eight canvassing efforts, along with four forums giving people an opportunity to see candidates in person over the next week or so. Bravo!   [Read more…]

You Can’t Get Clean Energy From Natural Gas!

by

By Edward Bergen / SD350

In retrospect, branding the toxic gas that emerges from underground deposits as “natural gas” was a stroke of marketing genius. It sounds so, well, natural. But natural gas is much more like “organic tobacco” – harmful in any form.

The more experts study natural gas, the more evidence they find that this fossil fuel is inflicting great damage on our environment. It is damaging when it’s burned and damaging when it’s extracted from the ground. In fact, the extraction and burning of natural gas to produce electricity is a dirty process. This dirty process impacts the clean water and air we need to live.   [Read more…]

We Need to Talk About Stephen Miller – Sam Bee Breaks It Down | Video Worth Watching

by

A TrumpShutDown? A SchumerShutDown? Or was it a MillerShutDown? And what is it with Stephen Miller and janitors? Full Frontal’s Samantha Bee breaks it down for us. [NSFW: language]   [Read more…]

An Open Letter to the Bellwether Election State | Dear Ohio, Part 1

by

Dear Ohio,

I know you didn’t create this presidential havoc all by yourselves, but you are, after all, the bellwether state in presidential elections. People say if a candidate doesn’t win Ohio, he or she can’t become President.

So I thought I’d start sharing with you some concerns I have, as you will most likely be vetting our next president. I know there are some Ohioans who profoundly dislike us Californians, but on the chance that some of you still consider us part of the United States of America, perhaps you will take a moment and read this letter.   [Read more…]

©2010-2017 SanDiegoFreePress.org

Code is Poetry