San Diego Free Press

Grassroots News & Progressive Views

The Early Years of Norma Hernandez: Life Outside the Comfort Zone

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Norma Hernandez’ road to becoming a Chicana activist is different than that of the other Latinos and Latinas I have written about. Norma was born in Tijuana in 1938 and lived there until she was fifteen years old. She is an only child born to Mr. and Mrs. Arce. Fortunately, there were a large number of cousin, aunts and uncles that provided an extended family experience.

Her great-grandmother Valeria was an Otomi Indian who lived in San Luis Potosí Mexico on a little ranchito. Norma’s mother was born in Johnson, Arizona, a small mining town near Bisbee Arizona which no longer exists today.

When her mother was a year old, Norma’s grandparents moved to Mexico. The United states was experiencing a chicken pox epidemic. Fearing for the health of his family her grandfather moved them to Tijuana where he would own a barber shop and later a movie theater.   [Read more…]

Geo-Poetic Spaces: Idyll of Pomos

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Eyes closed into hands
touching the womb

Grass grows greener
where the goddess of Pomos
bent legs in birth
arms stretched out
over infant earth   [Read more…]

Primary Update: California Democrats Get Ready for Hillary vs. Bernie and Beyond

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There was no knockout blow thrown at last night’s Brawl in Brooklyn between Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Sanders threw haymakers, never quite connecting. Clinton responded with deft political footwork and an ongoing series of jabs. Both were hoping to draw support from New York voters in next week’s primary.

“Does Secretary Clinton have the experience, the intelligence to be president? Of course she does,” Sanders said. He pivoted, pointing out her ties to Wall Street and her vote for the war in Iraq, closing with, “I don’t believe that is the kind of judgment we need.”   [Read more…]

Candidates Summary for Chula Vista’s Struggling District 4

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By Barbara Zaragoza

I’ve been covering South Bay elections all week, but the most important in the June 7 primary is Chula Vista’s City Council seat for District 4.

In July 2015, the City Council approved 4 Districts for Chula Vista. That means Chula Vista residents will only be able to vote for people running within the boundaries of our specific districts. It also means our council representative must live in the District for which they are running.

Two District Seats are up for election in 2016: District 3 and District 4. Because only two candidates qualified for the District 3 elections–Steve Padilla and Jason Paguio–they will go directly to the November ballot.

That leaves District 4.   [Read more…]

Meet a Doctor Who Provides Abortion Services Because of His Christian Faith

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What made a Christian doctor start what Esquire magazine deemed “The Abortion Ministry”?

By Valerie Tarico / AlterNet

What kind of person becomes a full-time abortion provider, traveling across state lines to end unhealthy or unwanted pregnancy despite screaming protesters threatening death and damnation? Whatever image you may have in mind, Dr. Willie Parker probably doesn’t fit it.

Parker is a bald, athletically built African American whose soft-spoken presence contrasts his size. A committed Christian, Parker says he provides abortion care not in spite of his faith but because of it. When filmmaker Dawn Porter met Parker, she was inspired to spend the next phase of her life making the documentary Trapped, which focuses on the challenges faced by abortion providers—and Parker in particular—in the Deep South. Parker was “so open and thoughtful in talking about the work and about the whole political climate that it got me thinking about the intersection of politics, abortion and power. So I asked if I could follow him,” Porter says.   [Read more…]

Revealed: CIA Funding Companies That Specialize In Social Media Spying

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In-Q-Tel reportedly investing in firms that monitor, collect, and analyze social media activities on platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

By Deirdre Fulton / Common Dreams

Reflecting the CIA’s “increasing focus on monitoring social media,” the spy agency’s venture capital arm, In-Q-Tel, has made investments in four social media mining and surveillance firms, The Intercept revealed Thursday.

According to a document obtained by journalist Lee Fang, In-Q-Tel is funding companies that monitor, collect, and analyze social media traffic and activities on platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. The investments were previously undisclosed.   [Read more…]

Primary Update: The GOP’s Hate Campaign Heads to California

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California Republicans announced yesterday that Presidential candidate Donald Trump will be the keynote speaker at the state party’s spring convention, joining Ted Cruz and John Kasich at the Bay Area gathering later this month.

The Donald will address a lunch banquet on the opening day of the GOP gathering in Burlingame, on April 29. Kasich will speak that evening, followed by Cruz the next day. Needless to say, Trump slot is the most high profile.

The June 7th California primary will likely play a decisive role in the Republican nominating contest, with voters determining whether Trump can amass the 1,237 delegates necessary to secure the nomination.

Only 13 of the state’s bloc of 172 GOP convention delegates go to the candidate who collects the most votes statewide.   [Read more…]

Is It All Coming Together?

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Is it all coming together,
or all falling apart?
I can’t tell anymore.
I came with love,
but can’t find your heart.   [Read more…]

Justice Stalled: Backlog of 2,873 San Diego Rape Kits

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By Suzanne E. Morse/ Heartfelt Voices United

There is a hidden number in San Diego, one that barely anyone ever speaks about. That Number: 2,873. What is that number?

As of June, 2015, that is the amount of rape kits that lie unprocessed in storage facilities in San Diego, backlogged. That means there are 2,873 rape victims that have never received justice. And that upsets me. Does it upset you?   [Read more…]

South Bay Local Elections: A Primer

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San Diego Dist. 8, National City, Imperial Beach, Chula Vista

The June 7th election is coming soon and we in the South Bay want to know who will be on our ballots. Here’s a primer for your local elections:   [Read more…]

Tiny Shelter Demo at San Diego Earth Fair 2016

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Amikas / Homeless to Housed San Diego

Amikas will be providing an opportunity at Earth Fair to find out more about the tiny shelters being suggested as an alternative to the makeshift tent and tarp encampments springing up throughout San Diego. We will be demonstrating how easy it is to construct an I-Wood tiny shelter during Earth Fair on April 17, at exhibit #788 in the Pan American Plaza North in Balboa Park. It will take approximately 1 – 2 hours to construct the 8 x 12 unit, beginning around 9:30 AM.   [Read more…]

Downtown Double Cross: Hoteliers Walk Back Briggs Lawsuit Settlement (Or Did They?)

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This week’s twists and turns involving Attorney Cory Briggs, the City, the Chargers and the barons of the hospitality industry are simply stunning. Get your popcorn now, folks, cause this mess is likely to go on for a while.

Forget for a moment about whether a new stadium or convention center or combination facility is desirable; yesterday’s shenanigans peeled back the facade on local politics to reveal a mess of squabbling interests and a mayor paralyzed by the prospect of actually doing something, anything.

At the center of all this are ballot measures potentially paving the way for a joint use facility in the East Village, aka the convadium. I’ll do my best to sort this out.   [Read more…]

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