UC Regents Yet to Meet AFSCME 3299 Demands
For the past two years AFSCME 3299 workers bargained for a fair contract with the UC, but have yet to reach an agreement. Tired of waiting, about 60 students with the UC Santa Cruz’s Worker Student Solidarity Coalition (WSSC) and AFSCME 3299 gathered Wednesday at…
DOJ Challenges Watsonville’s Sanctuary Ordinance
Mayor Oscar Rios said he was not surprised when Watsonville City Council received a letter from the Department of Justice (DOJ) on Nov. 15 warning sanctuary cities to comply with federal law or face losing funding. Watsonville is one of 29 jurisdictions nationwide the DOJ…
Realities of the Housing Crisis
A housing crisis in a college town is a difficult situation for all residents, including students balancing their studies. At UC Santa Cruz, students living off campus must face the challenge of finding housing in a city with limited rent regulations and affordable housing, while…
40 Years of Art Rehabilitation
Henry Frank had just arrived at San Quentin State Prison in 2003 when his friend convinced him to sign up for Arts in Corrections. After his friend’s persistence, Frank started attending the morning acrylics class. Frank’s artistry quickly took off. He moved on to block…
A.J. Gonzalez to be Tried as an Adult
Adrian “A.J.” Gonzalez was a 15-year-old freshman in high school when he allegedly lured, forcibly raped and killed 8-year-old Madyson Middleton. Now, at age 18, Gonzalez will stand trial as an adult for six different felonies, including kidnapping, murder and sexual assault-related offenses. After a…
State Bills Address CA Housing Crisis
The Santa Cruz community and government straddle opposite ends of a spectrum in response to California’s housing crisis. After the recent approval of 15 affordable housing bills, it is now up to Santa Cruz to take the next steps — and local activists want their…
Leaving a Legacy
In the 1985 Watsonville Canning Strike, the longest national strike of its time, nearly 2,000 workers walked out of the cannery. It marked its 30th anniversary on Oct. 15. Former strikers, elected officials and community members gathered at the Watsonville Senior Center to commemorate the…
Looking Back at Food Not Bombs
Food Not Bombs, a grassroots activist group founded 37 years ago and working toward feeding the houseless and managing food waste, began when Keith McHenry was a Boston University student working at an organic grocery store. “I felt bad I was throwing away all this…
Fighting for the Freedom to Sleep
Although Santa Cruz County’s houseless population has decreased in the past four years, the county still ranks in the top ten among small regions for the largest number of houseless people. There are over 1,450 houseless individuals countywide, according to the 2015 Annual Homeless Assessment…
Opening the Curtains on Mental Health
The room was dimly lit with a blue haze as the crowd watched from the shadows of the main stage theater. It brightened as the haze disappeared to reveal the cast of over 100 dressed in white. The room was silent as the students put…