The South Bay celebrates Women’s History Month with two outstanding exhibits:

San Ysidro’s The Front celebrated their 10th annual Dia de la Mujer. On Thursday, March 9th the art gallery opened its  Back to Basics featuring 21 female artists from both sides of the border varying from photography, sculpture, paintings and digital art. 

“Back to Basics suggests that the way out of many of our problems is to return to the origins, to the most basic forms of community interaction, to respect for nature and all living beings, to teamwork, to respect differences, to search for happiness and love in the simplest things, to the inner and deep look of our existence,” said Norma Iglesias Prieto, curator of the exhibit and Professor of the Department of Chicana and Chicano Studies at SDSU. 

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… Chula Vista City Council Member Mike Diaz Grossly Exaggerates Crime Rates Involving ‘Illegals’

Jose Cerda of The Star Newcalled out a CV council member in the Chula Vista Star News explaining that:

City councilmember Mike Diaz stated in a Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017, Star-News article entitled: “An Offer of Sanctuary, The Welcome Mat or Neither,” to reporter Robert Moreno, that: “In the United States about 47,000 citizens die from illegal aliens driving while intoxicated under alcohol and other kind of drugs.” Councilmember Diaz continues, “If you look at that there is a problem with people who are here illegally who are felons, creating crimes.” Adding, “If you can convince me that a sanctuary city is going to make our citizens safer, I’m all in it but there is no statistics that prove that.” (See more.)

But according to Cerda’s research, in 2014 there were 9,967 victims of alcohol or drug related driving impairment, not the 47,000 Diaz alleges. In addition, Cerda writes that the academic studies he’s found conclude there is no evidence of higher crime rates in cities with sanctuary policies.   [Read more…]

Independent Investigation On Whether SANDAG Deceived the Public: Mayor Ron Morrison on the Board of Directors

Summary: The Voice of San Diego reported that SANDAG may have deceived voters, telling them Measure A would generate $18 billion over 40 years, although they knew this was untrue. Mayor Morrison was a SANDAG Board of Director and residents wondered if he knew about the deceit. 

Residents during public comments and two council members asked that the California Attorney General do an investigation. The motion failed in a 3-2 vote. A subsequent motion asked for an independent investigation without the California Attorney General, which passed unanimously.

On February 21st, Voice of San Diego reported that prior the November 2016 election, voters were told Measure A would generate about $18 billion over 40 years. Newly uncovered emails, however, revealed SANDAG staff knew as early as 2015 that the $18 billion figure was unrealistic. (The measure failed.)   [Read more…]

South Bay took a big blow in comprehensive news coverage and support this week when reporter Christine Huard was laid off from the San Diego Union Tribune.

Huard covered all of the South Bay school districts, often uncovering scandals such as the fact that San Ysidro has paid millions, but not yet received their solar panels from Manzana Energy — a company whose owner also owns La Prensa San Diego. She also covered school board irregularities, celebrated school successes and so much more. This has now, overnight, disappeared.

Huard is only one of two regular South Bay writers at the Union Tribune, Allison Sampite-Montecalvo being the other reporter who serves approximately 450,000 residents south of the I-54 to the border. The other reporters laid off with Huard apparently are going to be staff members who wrote about the Chargers in the sports section. This is yet another example of under-covered and sometimes outright ignored communities losing a key voice who skillfully and thoroughly took on tough assignments necessary to get to the truth   [Read more…]

“… nine years and $16 million later, not a single solar panel has been installed.” Christine Huard at the San Diego Union Tribune reports this week.

Already back in April 2016, the U-T reported that the project was running behind schedule. A presentation by Manazana Energy had the owner quoted as saying, “November-December 2015: Ribbon Cutting. System Testing and Commissioning. Handover of System.”

In that very same article, the U-T wrote:

“We’re in April and nothing has been done,” said Rose Estevez, who has three children enrolled in San Ysidro schools. “It does concern me and a lot of other parents. We don’t know where this money went. We don’t know why the solar panels are not up yet.”   [Read more…]

Children in South Bay school districts have expressed fears ever since Donald Trump was elected President. Superintendent Francisco Escobedo of the Chula Vista Elementary School District wrote to parents across the district telling them that their elementary schools were safe areas for students of all citizenship situations.

“I received an email … from a teacher, thanking me for that letter that helped her talk to her child and ease his fear, because he came to school crying,” Escobedo said. “He came to school in fear that someone will come and remove him from the classroom.”

The district is one of California’s most diverse with 68 percent of students Hispanic and 35 percent are learning English.   [Read more…]

By Barbara Zaragoza

Happy Holidays from North of the Fence! And you know what that means for the South Bay: TAMALES!

It’s hard these days to go anywhere South of the I-54 without someone telling me that they are making hundreds of tamales for friends and family. It’s a Christmas tradition. Granted, most people want to make them at home with many family members participating. But if you’ve got too many things to do before Christmas Day, where can you buy the best tamales?

Tamales Ancira is my #1 pick for the best tamales in San Diego Count. They create a taste bud delight that lets you go back in time over 8,000 years ago when the Mayans and Aztecs made these delectable gems. This small restaurant, located on in western Chula Vista on Main Street, has the largest number of flavors I’ve ever found. They make their tamales fresh and by hand everyday. You can choose from beef, pork, chicken, cheese and jalapeno, picadillo, chicharron, sweet corn, beans & cheese, pineapple, nuts and raisins.
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A Few Points About Our Political Representatives

Many of our political representatives took their oath of office this week: Irene Lopez, a new trustee for the San Ysidro School District; Kevin Pike and Nick Segura as trustees for the Sweetwater High School District; Roberto Alcantar and Griselda Delgado as trustees of the Southwestern Community College board.

For residents of South San Diego, your Councilmember David Alvarez experienced a disappointment. He was not voted in as the City Council’s new President, although many had hoped for this outcome. Alvarez made this statement.

State Senator Ben Hueso introduced a bill that would fund legal representation for noncitizens facing deportation. 68% of noncitizens held in detention facilities do not have legal representation. What’s more, people detained who receive lawyers are more than five times as likely to succeed in challenging their deportation.   [Read more…]

The Chula Vista City Council has promised $1.2 million annually from the city’s general fund to back its agreement with the Port of San Diego on the Bayfront Master Plan project. The vote took place on Nov. 15. The San Diego Union Tribune elaborated on the details.

The Tribune quoted CV Port Commissioner Ann Moore as saying, “This action demonstrates the city’s continued commitment to this project, which will generate revenue and create the top-tier destination that Chula Vista deserves.”

The Editorial Board of the UT also wrote about Chula Vista this week, citing that the second most populous city is experiencing exciting times, particularly with an agreement to turn the 535-acre industrial site into a residential and resort destination (the Bayfront project). The editors did ask where the money might come from to build such an expensive project.   [Read more…]

Right Wing ‘Rebel Alliances’ in Imperial Beach

Before the elections, Imperial Beach residents received unsigned election fliers in their mailboxes. The fliers asked people to join “Rebel Alliances” and contained debunked conspiracy theories about Hillary Clinton. Vincent Farnsworth at the San Diego Reader reported here.

Border Residents and a Trump Presidency

Residents and employees at the U.S.-Mexican border feel jittery after Trump’s election, especially since Mexico is the U.S.’s third largest trade partner. What’s more, calls for “Build a Wall” baffle some of us because — here’s what Border Field State Park looks like today.   [Read more…]