Under the Gun in Ireland (tags)
A visit to the occupied North of Ireland in 1983. Happy Paddy's Day!
What's Wrong with San Diego's City Finances? (tags)
The predominantly Queer San Diego Democrats for Equality heard a presentation July 26 from "Paradise Plundered" author Vladimir Kogan. The book, co-written with professors Steven P. Erie and Scott A. MacKenzie, argues that San Diegans have long wanted their city government to do far more in services than they're willing to pay for in taxes -- and recently they and the politicians seeking to lead the city, most notably Right-wing Queer Mayoral front-runner Carl DeMaio, have been scapegoating city workers and their unions for the city's pension crisis and other financial shortfalls.
"Explosive" 9/11 Documentary Premieres in San Diego (tags)
One day before the film's "official" premiere in Beverly Hills, architect Richard Gage and other members of Architects and Engineers for 9/11 Truth showed their new film, "9/11: Explosive Evidence: Experts Speak Out" at the Joyce Beers Community Center in San Diego. Its thesis is that "controlled demolition," not fires caused by the impacts of the planes hitting the buildings, brought down the World Trade Center towers on September 11, 2001.
San Diego Queer Groups Fight Proposition B (tags)
Queer organizations in San Diego, including Canvass for a Cause (CFAC) and the San Diego Alliance for Marriage Equality (S.A.M.E.), are uniting against Proposition B, a "reform" initiative sponsored by openly Gay Right-wing Republican City Councilmember and Mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio that would destroy any hope of retirement security for city workers.
Queer Democrats Endorse Teachers’ Union Leaders for School Boards (tags)
The predominantly Queer San Diego Democrats for Equality have become virtually an appendage of the local labor movements in making their 2012 election endorsements. In January they rejected progressive Congressional candidate Lori Saldaña and endorsed her moderate Democratic opponent, Scott Peters, largely on labor's say-so. In February they rated anti-marriage Catholic Juan Vargas and marriage equality defender Denise Moreno Ducheny equally "acceptable" for another Congressional seat. And in March they picked teachers' union leaders for their school board endorsements.
Will Rodriguez-Kennedy: Queer Republican Leader Becomes Democrat (tags)
In a dramatic scene at the February 23 meeting of San Diego Democrats for Equality, former San Diego County Log Cabin Republican Club president Will Rodriguez-Kennedy re-enacted his decision to switch parties and become a Democrat. His reason: he's not only tired of Republican Queer-bashing, he's put off by the hypocrisy of openly Queer San Diego Mayoral candidate Carl DeMaio, who has pandered to anti-Queer prejudices to get endorsements from the San Diego County Republican Central Committee and has taken money from donors to the anti-Queer Proposition 8.
San Diegans Rally Against Citizens United Decision (tags)
Though the original location had to be changed when agents of the Department of Homeland Security blocked off the original one, San Diegans nonetheless held a rally January 20 against the Citizens United decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, which opened the floodgates for even more corporate influence over American politics and elections.
Sean Wherley: Activist Comedian Laughs Out Proud (tags)
Veteran activist and political staffer Sean Wherley found another outlet a year ago when he took up stand-up comedy and started the Laugh Out Proud shows the second Thursday of every month at Martinis Above Fourth in Hillcrest, San Diego. His monthly shows present Queer and Queer-friendly comedians from San Diego and L.A. — and they're funny!
Queer Democrats Endorse Occupy San Diego (tags)
The predominantly Queer San Diego Democrats for Equality (formerly the San Diego Democratic Club) held their first regular meeting since the name change October 27 and overwhelmingly endorsed Occupy San Diego. The strongly worded resolution, based on one passed by the San Diego County Democratic Party, not only supported Occupy's right to protest and camp out in the Civic Center Plaza downtown but also ringingly endorsed the group's challenge to corporate power. The club also endorsed progressive Congressmember Bob Filner for Mayor of San Diego in the 2012 election.
“Paradise Plundered” Takes Aim at San Diego’s Political Culture (tags)
Once upon a time, San Diego had a reputation for being an efficiently governed city whose taxes were low -- and so was its level of services, especially to working-class and lower-income people. Today the level of services is even lower and the city is so wretchedly governed the New York Times called it "Enron by the Sea." What happened is explained in the new book "Paradise Plundered," whose co-author, Vladimir Kogan, came to the Hillcrest Town Council October 11 and talked about the city's infamous pension crisis.
Free the Equality Nine! Action Sept. 28 in Downtown San Diego (tags)
Over a year has passed since the ?Equality Nine? ? members and supporters of the San Diego Alliance for Marriage Equality (S.A.M.E.) ? were arrested on August 19, 2010 at the San Diego County Administrative Center. Now the Equality Nine plan to present their petitions to City Attorney Jan Goldsmith at a rally Wednesday, September 28, 4 p.m. outside the City Attorney?s office, 1200 Third Avenue downtown. The next court hearing in the case is scheduled for Monday, October 17 in the San Diego County Courthouse downtown.
Queer Democrats Warned About Threats to Reproductive Choice (tags)
The predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club heard two presentations at its June 23 meeting: a report on the likely strike by the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) against southern California?s three largest grocery chains ? Ralph?s, Albertson?s and Vons ? and a warning about the potentially devastating effects of Republican and radical-Right policies against women?s rights to reproductive choice. Though the struggles of women to maintain safe and legal access to contraception and abortion may seem to have little in common with those of workers for decent pay, access to health care and other benefits, speakers on both issues noted how the radical Right has effectively linked them in the service of a paternalistic agenda that regards workers as mere cogs in a capitalist economy, and women as mere vessels for giving birth to the next generation.
San Diego Hammers Down on Medical Marijuana Dispensaries, Despite Public Support (tags)
Despite overwhelming public input asking for a looser ordinance that would allow medical marijuana dispensaries to locate in commercial areas throughout San Diego and remain open while they pursued permits, the San Diego City Council voted 5-2 on Monday, March 26 for an ordinance that will close down all dispensaries for at least a year and force them to locate only in industrial zones — inconveniently far from the patients they serve. Even most of the Councilmembers who voted for the ordinance, which was tweaked at the last minute to make it slightly less restrictive, made it clear that they regard medical marijuana patients and the institutions that serve them as a detriment, not an asset, to the city.
Queer Democrats Oppose Initiative to Add Non-Elected Members to School Board (tags)
Two multimillionaires, Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs and hedge-fund CEO Rod Dammeyer, are sponsoring an initiative called “San Diegans 4 Great Schools” to add four non-elected members to the board of the San Diego Unified School District. The predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club debated this initiative March 24 and passed a motion urging voters not to sign to put it on the ballot. Among their concerns were the potential dilution of voter input on the school board, the presence of the president of Roman Catholic Church-owned University of San Diego on the panel of nine people making the appointments, and the ways paid signature gatherers routinely lie about what initiatives will do in order to get people to sign them. The club heard from Scott Himmelmeyer, USD employee and spokesperson for the initiative, as well as current school board president Richard Barrera speaking for and against it, respectively.
Over 1,000 Turn Out in San Diego to Support Wisconsin Workers (tags)
Over 1,000 people turned out for a rally outside the San Diego County Administrative Center February 26 at noon to support Wisconsin's unionized public workers against the threat by Governor Scott Walker and the Republican majority in the state legislature to pass a bill essentially eliminating the right of the state's public employees to unionize and bargain collectively. A wide range of speakers, including union activists, community leaders and elected officials, said that if Walker's bill and similar ones in other states pass, it will essentially mark the end of the American middle class. The rally was part of a nationwide mobilization, and many of those who braved the cold and the rain to attend mentioned that the protesters in Wisconsin itself are sleeping out in the cold and snow in weather far worse than that in San Diego.
Right-Wing Queer Councilmember DeMaio Dominates San Diego Economic Debate (tags)
Openly Queer Right-wing San Diego City Councilmember Carl DeMaio dominated a forum on the city’s budget woes sponsored by the Hillcrest Town Council February 5. Three other panelists spoke ¬— former San Diego City Attorney Mike Aguirre, who stunned his supporters in the progressive community by joining DeMaio in campaigning against a proposed city sales tax increase last fall; former City Councilmember Michael Zucchet, a lobbyist for the city workers’ main union; and economics professor Alan Gin — but DeMaio and his proposed “Roadmap for Recovery,” a plan to balance the city’s budget by privatizing city jobs, slashing pensions and reducing supposedly “nonessential” city services, was the basis for the discussion and provided the context to which the other three panelists responded.
Redistricting, Open Primaries and the Challenges for Democrats (tags)
At the January 27 meeting of the predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club, Jess Durfee, chair of the San Diego County Democratic Party and former president of the club, explained the challenges the party faces as the citizens’ redistricting commission begins work on redrawing legislative lines for the 2012 election and beyond. He also talked about California’s new open primary law, which also goes into effect in 2012 and allows members of any political party, or of no party at all, to vote in primary races, with the two top finishers from the primary running against each other in the general election even if they’re from the same political party. California’s Democratic leadership opposed both these changes, but Durfee’s presentation focused on making them work and protecting the party’s interests in this new electoral environment.
November 2 Election: Any Democrat Over Any Republican! (tags)
This is not the year for American Leftists, progressives and liberals not to vote — or to cast protest votes for alternative parties. The extremely Right-wing Tea Party has virtually taken over the Republican Party and, if not stopped, has a good chance of winning control of the country in 2012 and instituting policies that will result in a full-blown depression, a corporate dictatorship and, ultimately, the end of the human race through unchecked global warming. We MUST vote to elect EVERY Democrat on the ballot in 2010 and 2012 — AND we must mount a massive direct-action movement to put pressure on the Democrats to govern progressively.
Over 200 Turn Out for Matthew Shepard Memorial in San Diego (tags)
Over 200 San Diegans marched in Hillcrest October 12, 2010 to commemorate the 12th anniversary of the death of Matthew Shepard, target of an especially brutal Queer-bashing attack in Wyoming, and to honor the lives lost to Queer-bashing, bullying and teen suicide. The event featured two marches, a preliminary rally outside Obelisk Bookstore (site of a memorial plaque to John Robert Wear, 17-year-old killed in a Queer-related assault in 1991) and a program at San Diego’s LGBT Center that featured speakers including Terry Summers, a personal acquaintance of Matthew Shepard.
Foundation for Change Honors Local “Changemakers” Sept. 26 (tags)
The San Diego Foundation for Change held its annual “Changemaker Celebration” Sunday, September 26 on the Prado patio in Balboa Park. Part outdoor picnic, part bazaar of social-change organizations, part fundraiser and part short commemoration, the event honored longtime local activists Larry Baza of the San Diego Democratic Club, Victor Clark-Alfaro of Tijuana’s Bi-National Center for Human Rights, and the Environmental Health Coalition and its longtime director, Diane Takvorian.
Aguirre, Frye Debate San Diego's Prop. D at Queer Democratic Club (tags)
The campaign over Proposition D — an attempt to raise the sales tax in San Diego one-half cent to avoid draconian cuts in police, fire and other city services — has made strange bedfellows. Former city attorney Mike Aguirre, an otherwise progressive Democrat, has made common cause with Right-wing talk radio hosts and anti-tax zealots in opposing the measure. He and progressive City Councilmember Donna Frye debated Prop. D at the September 23 meeting of the predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club — which overwhelmingly voted to endorse the measure.
Zenger’s Newsmagazine Editorial on Proposition 8 Decision (tags)
Written before the most recent development in the federal case challenging Proposition 8 — the good-news, bad-news decision of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to delay same-sex marriages in California until at least December, but also to consider the all-important issue of whether the supporters of Proposition 8 even have legal standing to appeal — this editorial from the summer 2010 print edition of Zenger's Newsmagazine shows what a roller-coaster this issue has been and how the Queer community needs to be militant and ready for a long-term battle for full equality before the law, including marriage rights.
Queer Democrats Split on 79th Assembly District Race (tags)
The predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club revealed itself dramatically split in the Democratic primary race for the 79th Assembly District. City Council president Ben Hueso is running a classic “insider” campaign, relying on major endorsements and fundraising clout. His principal challenger, Sweetwater Union High School District board member Pearl Quiñones, is seeking the office in a progressive grass-roots campaign in the tradition of Assemblymember Lori Saldaña (who endorses her) and City Councilmember Donna Frye. The club was unable to reach the 60 percent threshold needed for an endorsement, and ultimately voted to rate both candidates “acceptable.”
Law School Discusses Medical Marijuana in Wake of County Raids (tags)
One week after San Diego police officers, sheriff’s deputies and federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agents raided 14 medical marijuana dispensaries in San Diego County, the National Lawyers’ Guild chapters of California Western and Thomas Jefferson Schools of Law held a forum on the medical marijuana issue at Cal Western. Among the speakers were Gerald Singleton, attorney representing many of the people arrested in these and previous raids against medical marijuana providers; Dion Markgraaf, local activist who's been prosecuted four times for helping medical users obtain marijuana; and Alex Kreit, attorney and law professor who's been involved in medical marijuana issues. They particularly discussed the hard line against medical marijuana taken by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors and attorney general Bonnie Dumanis.
Over 250 San Diegans Memorialize Dr. George Tiller (tags)
Over 250 San Diegans turned out to the First Unitarian-Universalist Church in Hillcrest Thursday, June 4 to memorialize Dr. George Tiller, family-planning doctor and abortion provider, who was murdered in his church on May 31. The event was a combination church service, pro-choice rally and candlelight vigil, in which attendees and speakers renewed their commitment to be active in protecting a woman's right to reproductive choice against the terrorist tactics many so-called "pro-life" abortion foes use to eliminate American women's access to safe, legal abortions.
The U.S. Economy on FIRE (tags)
The current U.S. economic crisis didn't start a few years ago when banks and financial institutions started selling "subprime" real estate loans to high-risk borrowers and then repackaging them as "mortgage-backed securities." It began in the early 1970's as a result of a long-term plan by America's major corporations and business leaders to drive down workers' wages and extract more surplus value — and the workers' response, which was to take on more debt. Any real solution that benefits working people cannot be instituted until the power of the corporate rich over the political system is broken.
Stephen Whitburn: Progressive San Diego City Council Candidate (tags)
Zenger’s-endorsed District 3 City Council candidate STEPHEN WHITBURN is the real deal: an experienced journalist and progressive who’s seen more of the world than San Diego and knows from government in other cities what works and what doesn’t. Don’t be fooled by an opponent who offers nothing but charm, geography and experience at taking orders.
4/25: Con. Protests New Blackwater Development Near Cal-Mex Border (tags)
“Residents of San Diego County rejected Blackwater’s proposed mercenary training facility in Potrero, and I cannot imagine that San Diegans will feel any differently about Otay Mesa,” said Congressman Filner. “The use of civilian-defense contractors is irresponsible, and should be stopped immediately. Not only are they unaccountable to the Military, the State Department and Congress; they are civilians serving in combat and combat-training. Many have been wounded or have wounded others, and yet, they are not veterans; there is no safety net when they come home. It is criminal to ask civilian men and women to perform the role of the military when they lack the support necessary to return to their civilian lives. The paramilitary-style training conducted at these facilities has no place in our backyards!”
Queer Democrats Hold Love-Fest for School Board Candidates (tags)
The predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club overwhelmingly endorsed three candidates in local school board races in a love-fest meeting February 28 that contrasted dramatically with their previous one on January, a knock-down, drag-out debate between incumbent city attorney Mike Aguirre and two of his challengers (one of whom has since left the race). They also rated openly Gay Republican Carl DeMaio "unacceptable" as a candidate for the San Diego City Council.
Over 50 Attend Progressive Community Summit (tags)
Over 50 people attended a progressive community "Mega Summit" in San Diego February 17. Organized by the San Diego County Community Coalition and San Diegans for 9/11 Truth, the event brought together representatives from various local groups ranging from anti-war and anti-drug war groups to insurgent candidates for elective office and urban landscape activists.
San Diego's Controversial City Attorney 'Speaks (tags)
To his supporters, San Diego city attorney Mike Aguirre is an activist and truth-teller who'sone of the few local elected officials dealing seriously with the city's budget crises. To his opponents, ranging from the Right-wing San Diego Union-Tribune to the city employee unions, he's a loud-mouthed obstructionist who's dividing the city and costing it money. The controversy was on display January 24, when Aguirre and two of his election oppoennts debated at the predominantly Queer San Diego Democratic Club.
Blackwater moving to San Diego (tags)
sound familiar?
STOP THE TRIPLE FENCE - Coastal Commission Hearing Wed. Feb 18th (tags)
The California Coastal Commission is meeting on Wedensday, February 18th at 12 noon at the Lodge at Torrey Pines in La Jolla to decide whether or not to allow the construction of the Triple Border Fence on the US/Mexico Border. You can attend the hearing and show your opposition!
S.D. Peace Activists Discuss Post-9/11 “Global Turning Point” (tags)
Over 100 San Diegans attended a six-hour “Movement-Building Workshop” sponsored by the San Diego Coalition for Peace and Justice November 18 in Balboa Park. Much of the discussion revolved around the long-term ambitions of the Right to use the crisis atmosphere after September 11 to smash civil liberties and silence Left-wing dissent once and for all. Also discussed were racist or religiously-motivated attacks against Arab-Americans and Muslim Americans, and what the intense patriotic fervor sparked by September 11 — symbolized by U.S. flag displays — means for the future of anti-war activism in this country.
Over 200 San Diegans Gather to Protest U.S. War Plans (tags)
Over 200 San Diegans gathered at Horton Plaza September 22 for a rally and march with four major themes: condemnation of the September 11 terrorist attacks on the U.S.; a call for a response based on peace and justice; an end to scapegoating of Arab-Americans and Muslim Americans; and protection of U.S. citizens' civil liberties during the crisis.
Peace Vigil in San Diego at Horton Plaza Saturday, Sept. 22 at 2:00 PM If the U.S. uses force before Saturday, there will be a demonstration that day at 5 p.m., at the above location.
San Diegans Stage "Die-In" for Giuliani July 23 (tags)
As part of the July 23 memorial protest for Carlo Giuliani, San Diegans staged this die-in outside the Federal Building downtown.
San Diegans March July 23 to Commemorate Giuliani (tags)
Over 30 San Diegans marched through downtown to the Federal Building July 23 to protest the killing of Carlo Giuliani by police in Genoa, Italy July 20 during the demonstrations against the G8 summit.
San Diegans Host Die-In In Memory of Giuliani (tags)
Over 30 San Diegans participated in a vigil, rally and die-in to honor Carlo Giuliani, killed by police during the anti-globalization protests in Genoa, Italy, and to reaffirm their commitment to the fight against corporate-dominated globalization.
YES!
San Diego folk back cops
San Diego response to Bio2001
Three Cheers for San Diego Police (tags)
San Diego Police hit a home run...
Activist Attendance Low but Police presence was overwhelming... (tags)
Just a few activists were willing to sit in the sun and listen directors of organizations talk about the reasons for the protests and declaration of sentiment of the protestors.
CALLING ALL GREENS! for BIojustice 2001 march (tags)
At Tuesday's general membership meeting, the Green Party of San Diego consensed to endorse the Biojustice 2001 efforts to educate and mobilize the public for the teach-in in June 22 and 23. It was also agreed to organize a contingency that would take part in the main permitted march on Sunday, Jun 24 from Balboa Park to the Convention Ctr.
Community agreements for Biojustice/Biodevistation 2001 (tags)
Community agreements for Biojustice/Biodevistation 2001