Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,

We have a crisis on our hands and we need your help. Due to budget cuts, all three libraries in the City of Salinas are due to close in the near future. The saddest irony of this situation is that Salinas was the home of the literary great and champion of the poor and downtrodden, John Steinbeck. In fact, one of the libraries scheduled for closure is named in his honor. Another one of the libraries is named after the great Cesar Chavez, and houses one of the state’s best Spanish-language collections.

the latest neo-con spin / what the left can learn

Abortion is universally classified as a women’s issue, but it is also a class issue. No matter what restrictions are placed on abortions, not all women suffer equally. Class has always been the deciding factor in the right to choose an abortion.

This year marks the 35th anniversary of the death/assassination of journalist/activist Ruben Salazar. Well-known for his work at the Los Angeles Times and the Spanish-language KMEX-TV, Salazar was a passionate advocate of minority issues and an important voice in the Chicano Rights Movement. His powerful columns on police abuse of Latinos made him a controversial figure and a target of investigation by the Los Angeles Police Department and the FBI. In August 1970, Salazar was killed while reporting on the Chicano Anti-War Moratorium march in Los Angeles. The police raided the peaceful gathering, and Salazar was fatally wounded when a ten-inch tear gas canister hit him directly in the head. The coroner’s report ruled that his death was a homicide, but no further investigation was initiated and no charges were ever brought against the LAPD officer who fired the projectile.

On Tuesday March 22nd, Mayor Mike Rotkin introduces a radical measure to severely limit public comment on most of the agenda items that come up at City Council. Robert Norse sent the following critical letter to Mayor Rotkin and the City Council, urging them to defeat item #18.

Call 420-5020 or e-mail citycouncil (at) ci.santa-cruz.ca.us to register your opposition.