Living by the Pajaro River.
Photo by TARMO HANNULA
We Need Running Water, Toilet Facilities and Trash Bins - Like Everyone Else
By MONIKE TONE
On July 27, Watsonville police, without prior notice, conducted a sweep of a homeless camp along the Pajaro River. Some people who live at that camp work in the fields and leave for work early in the morning. These people are hardworking men and women who feed us all and provide a lot of the nation's food.
I am the one who tries to take charge and be a voice for these men and women. Some of these men and women speak Spanish and cannot read so I am their voice. My voice represents about 200 multi-racial individuals who live on the river. I let them know that they have rights and it is very heartfelt to know these people depend on me as well as another gentleman, West. We're the only two people to step up and come forward to let these people know that it's not right what’s being done here in Watsonville. We are part of Santa Cruz County and we feel we are forgotten.
I feel that Santa Cruz County needs to realize that we are here and that we are a known homeless encampment. Federal government census takers come down here yearly. There are many other homeless encampments around Watsonville-South County: there is the slough at Ramsay Park, around Home Depot, in back of Safeway and the south side of the river in Monterey County. Only one campsite that I know of has children, and that would be at the Home Depot campsite.
We are people who deserve dignity and respect just like anyone else. Like everyone else, we need running water, toilet facilities and trash bins.
It really hurts my heart to know that south county is known as a poor part of the county and that our county supervisors will not provide these basic needs. Santa Cruz County Health Department falsely states that they regularly go to these encampments but they don't as far as I have seen. For the first time on July 27, I met with a woman from Santa Cruz County Health, named Alexa, who stated that she regularly comes to these campsites and hands out flyers. I questioned that and the value of flyers during pandemic. I have lived down here on the river for nine years and I've never seen her down here handing out these flyers.
I don't know how Santa Cruz and Monterey County are getting away with this. When the July 27 sweep occurred, I let the officers know that we still had a shelter in place order issued by the CDC and that we should be left alone until further notice.
Please let our county government know that we need running water, trash bins and toilet facilities. The downtown plaza already has portapotties and running water and there are dumpsters on the river on the Santa Cruz County side.
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To the 2021 Graduates....
By MAS HASHIMOTO
EDITOR'S NOTE: Mas delivered this speech to Kirby High School graduates on June 5.
Thank you for that kind introduction (by Head of School, Christine Hutton) and for the honor to speak to the 2021 graduates of Kirby High.
May I introduce my wife Marcia, the love of my life. We’ve been married for over 50 years, and we’ve never had an argument—never. We live in the same frequency of peace and harmony which leads to happiness. She’s a retired kindergarten teacher. She received students at the beginning of their educational careers, and I received them at the end. These students got the “Hashimoto treatment.”
To the graduates: Congratulations! Commencement!! —"this could be the start of something big.” No, I’m not going to sing.
To those graduates online. I must tell you that I couldn’t attend my graduation either. I was sick with the German measles. How can an American of Japanese ancestry get German measles in the United States? I was awarded my diploma in the mail and here it is.
Graduates, what gifts are you presenting to your parents this day? You don’t expect any presents, do you? You should give presents of appreciation to your parents. A suggestion, if you don’t have any money, fold two origami cranes and give them to your parents who gave you the greatest gift of all—life. The giving of the cranes means you wish them long lives, happiness, and peace. (Hold up two origami cranes.)
As an introduction, I’ve lived all my life in Watsonville except when traveling around the USA and world. I was born during the depths of the Great Depression, in 1935; my father died just before my 3rd birthday. Our restaurant business closed for my father was the chef. My mother cared for seven sons. I’m the seventh. We became farm workers.
During WW II, I was a Prisoner of War (POW) along with my family, imprisoned by my own country for 31⁄2 years without charges, attorney, trial, or due process of law. The Constitution simply didn’t apply to us. I was 61⁄2 years of age in 1942. This is my prison number -- 12524 D. Two of my older brothers fought in the US Army during WW II with the Military Intelligence Service (MIS) against the Japanese because they could read and write Japanese. We used the Japanese language as a secret weapon against the Japanese. Today, the MIS is the Defense Language Institute at the Presidio of Monterey.
A Congressional commission which investigated our unjust incarceration concluded it was due to” racism, war hysteria, and the failure of political leadership.” The US Government apologized to us with the Civil Liberties Act of 1988.
From age 10 in 1946, I was a farm worker every summer. If it grew in the Pajaro Valley, I picked it. There were no protective child labor laws and no farm workers union. The money I saved paid for my college education.
I was a soldier in the US Army during the Cold War, stationed at the Presidio of San Francisco with a top-secret Chemical Section where we developed chemical weapons: nerve gases that will kill almost instantly; nuclear weapons – no, not bombs, but radioactive weapons that could destroy a nation’s food supply; and biological agents (germ warfare), viruses to be used in wartime. We worked with dead polio viruses only to learn that the Russians were working with live polio viruses. Are you ready for COVID-20?
Before attending Watsonville High School as a freshman in 1949, female teachers who got married had their contracts terminated and their positions were given to married men. Several of my teachers were racist, hated “Japs.” With “C” grades, we couldn’t make the honor rolls.
In 1960, I was the first person of color to be hired by my alma mater, Watsonville High, and taught US History there for 36 years. At the beginning, I didn’t know much. I was only a page ahead of the students.
So, in the summer of 1963, I bought a car to visit the nation's historic sites.
In Dallas, Texas I had to have the car lubricated and the oil changed. In those days, gasoline was 25 cents a gallon and one didn’t have to get out of the car. Four youths would pump the gas, check the oil and tires, and clean the windshield.
I pulled into this station and four black kids were working there. I drove on. I was looking for white kids, thinking that white kids will do a better job. As I pulled out of the station, I suddenly realized I was a racist! I didn’t like me at all. I had to change. My mother didn’t raise me to be a racist. I couldn’t safely turn back, but there was another station next door. I pulled into that one. Four black boys were there.
I had to go to the “pottie,” and I had my choice. There were 3 toilets—men, women, and colored. I went into the colored one. My car was serviced beautifully. We didn’t have credit cards in those days. Everything was by cash. I paid the white cashier, and he threw my change on the ground for he saw me go into the colored restroom.
Five months later in Dallas, President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. It was Friday, Nov. 22, 1963. It was the last time I wore a bowtie.
The civil rights movement earnestly began. There are more stories I could tell.
Often on the first day of school, I would ask my students to take out a piece of paper and draw an American for me. I’d go around the room for a few minutes.
I would ask, “Got someone in mind? How many of you thought of drawing a woman? Women are the majority in this country. Who said it’s a man’s world? No, it isn’t. Women can do everything a man can do and do more!” How many of you thought of drawing a blond, blue-eyed hunk of a guy? Hitler would have been so proud.
But, how does one become a racist? “You’ve got to be carefully taught to hate by the time one is 6, 7, or 8.” That’s a song from the musical, "South Pacific."
In my day, parents and churches had the greatest influence. In Hollywood movies, how were Americans of African, Hispanic, Asians and native American descent portrayed? The awful stereotypes were ingrained in the minds of the American audiences.
In college, my economic's professor said he was not a racist. He was not prejudiced. He had preferences. He preferred whites to people of color. Semantics.
Newspapers stated they were “100% American,” but their articles were anti-minorities. It was written that “The Japanese race is an alien race which can never be assimilated into the American way of life. There’s nothing of value of Japanese culture.” How many of you enjoy sushi?
Many organizations were racist: Daughters of the American Revolution, Native Sons of the Golden West, Elks (not any more), KKK, Growers’ Association, and today there are many others – including political action committees. Corporations own cable channels and social media. You are confronted with hatred and discrimination every day on social media.
Many politicians believe their careers were based upon passing “Jim Crow” laws.
“Americanism,” in the dictionaries, is for whites only—based on English language, customs, traditions, culture and heritage. We must change that definition to include pizza and spaghetti; sushi and karate (“wax on, wax off”); tacos and burritos, chop suey and fortune cookies ... you can add more.
You know, I’m not Japanese. My parents were Japanese, but I’m an American of Japanese ancestry. In Japan, I am a gaijin – a foreigner. In London, I was called a “Yank”. But, here, in many parts of the US, I am a “Damn Jap.” There are places not safe for me to travel and not just in the South and, with a California license plate.
Americanism is a matter of mind and heart, not of race or ancestry.
When you look at someone, who do you see? A human being. We’re all of one human race. Please, appreciate and enjoy our differences—our variants.
Parting lesson: My Scoutmaster Hardy Tsuda told us, “Always leave the campsite better than you found it”— the mountains, hills, and beaches.
As you graduate, think in terms of always leaving – making this world humanly better than you found it. And, you all can start by voting.
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Eagle Scout Helps Food Not Bombs
By OSHRI ZOHARA
Photo contributed by OSHRI ZOHARA
I'm Oshri Zohara from Troop 609. I recently dropped off a van full of donations to Food Not Bombs, I want to thank them for everything they do for our community. Also a huge thank you for taking all of the donations I had. It had been very difficult for me to get in contact with any of the homeless shelters around Santa Cruz and the ones I did get in contact with would not take my donations.
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Footbridge Services Summer Soirée
By BRENT ADAMS
It's been 3 years since we first delivered our portable storage program to a city parking lot. Since then, we've built an authentic homeless services center that's a model of efficiency and effectiveness. We've served 1,000 individual clients with storage services, washed 5,000 loads of laundry, and have offered 3,000 showers. We've given thousands of blankets, tons of clothing and hygiene items to those in need. This has transformed the experience of homelessness for many hundreds of people and has improved life for us all.
This herculean task couldn't have been done without a growing community of support. Celebrate this milestone with us and help us usher a future in which we're hosting a women's shelter, building modular tiny houses and shepherding several homeless encampments; additionally, this will be our 8th year of Warming Center Program.
You are invited to our candle-lit dinner with entertainment, Aug. 15, at 6 pm, 150 Felker St., Santa Cruz. The night's menu will feature a large buffet of catered and homemade delights for all tastes. We're going all out for this one. Contact: email, website or (831) 588-9892.
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
A Stellar Jay forgaging in the forest duff outside Morgan Hill might be explaining its version of the cosmos.
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"PUSH," the film on the global housing crisis - Stop the Property Speculators - Housing is a Right
A relatively new phenomenon known as “dark buildings” is the buying up
or putting up of luxury residential mid and high-rise buildings that are
intended to remain vacant, or “dark.”
Fundamentally, the film, "PUSH," advocates for the universal right to housing as enumerated by the United Nations, 1948 Declaration of Human Rights,
article 25. Home is a precondition to a safe, healthy, dignified life; and yet worldwide, proper housing is increasingly unaffordable for middle and working classes.
At least 59 percent of Americans are a paycheck away from being homeless
according to a 2019 survey by Charles Schwab, and over 40 million Americans are now facing eviction because of the pandemic. Are unoccupied luxury condos really a solution?
The film will be shown for free on Sunday, Aug. 15, at 6:30 pm at the Resource Center for Nonviolence at 612 Ocean St., Santa Cruz. There will be free food and local speakers will address the effort to stop the Cruz Hotel, Farmers Market Parking Garage, and other development projects. Also, organizers of the Greener Downtown and Empty Home Tax ballot measures will speak on their proposals.
Sponsored by Food Not Bombs - The Santa Cruz Homeless Union - Santa Cruz DSA - Reimagine Santa Cruz - The Santa Cruz Climate Action - United Nations Association of Santa Cruz County
You can also watch the film here on YouTube: PUSH
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Tell Santa Cruz Community Credit Union - No Luxury Hotels
A New York developer is trying to buy the downtown Santa Cruz branch of the Santa Cruz Community Credit Union, at 324 Front St., to build a 6-story luxury hotel.
Seven hundred and thirty eight members/owners of the credit union have already signed a petition, which resulted in the Credit Union board scheduling an online membership meeting on Friday, August 13th from 12PM to 2PM! If you are a member and have not signed the petition, you can do it now.
It is critical that we show up in large numbers to get the message across that as member-owners, we believe that a 228 room luxury hotel with 60 parking spaces in our downtown will be a detriment to our community. It will occupy valuable real estate that is zoned for housing and will clog our streets, fill parking spaces meant to serve residents and visitors, stress our water supply, move profits out of state, and add carbon to our air.
In order to attend the meeting, you must be a credit union member and have registered by filling out the form at this link. There is an hour allotted at the end of the meeting for public comment. Please check the box that says that you want to speak against the hotel. It's a way to show your opposition. If you find you have nothing to say, you can always pass.
Unfortunately this “special member meeting” is scheduled during working hours, so if you aren’t able to attend, please take a few minutes to email your thoughts. And, because the only way for Credit Union members to know about this meeting is by going to the website, we urge you to forward this letter to your member friends!
We are planning to track letters and attendance and would very much appreciate your notifying us of your registration and ccing your letter to info@buildcommunitynothotels.org. To sign the petition, visit our website.
This meeting is our chance as member-owners to question the sale and envision an environmentally and socially sound use of our property in keeping with the mission of a local member-owned credit union!!
Your Build Community Not Hotels advocacy group: Ron Pomerantz, Micah Posner, Sheila Carillo, Chris Krohn and Batya Kagan
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“Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast.”
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Santa Cruz County Covid-19 Report
By SARAH RINGLER
The Santa Cruz County Health Department regularly releases data on the current status of Covid-19 in the county. The number of cases on Thursday totaled 16,901, up 285 from last Thursday's 16,616. The number of new deaths has remained constant at 207 since June 17. There are 526 hospitalizations; click here to view graph of hospitalizations.
On the county's vaccination webpage, as of Aug. 2, 66% of the county has had at least one dose and 58% have had two doses. These numbers increased by one since July 26. That webpage also has a link where you can get a digital copy of your vaccination record.
The county's Effective Reproductive Number is now rising above one. See chart below. Numbers above one show the spread of the virus is increasing. Below one means the spread is decreasing.
To get tested without a doctor’s request, call 1-888-634-1123 or go online at https://lhi.care/covidtesting. Other testing sites that may have restricted access can be found here.
Any Californian age 12 or up can get vaccinated for free. For information on getting vaccinated, click here.
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% deaths by ethnicity/% of population:
White - 55%/58%
Latinx - 36%/34%
Black - 0/1%
Asian - 7%/4%
American Native - 0.5%/not available
% deaths by gender/% of population:
Female - 51%/50%
Male - 49%/50%
Other - 0
Under Investigation - 0
Deaths by age/202:
30-39 - 2%
40-49 - 3%
50-59 - 2%
60-69 - 13%
70-79 - 21%
80-89 - 31%
90+ - 27%
Tested positive by region/% of population:
Mid-county - 22%/12%
North county - 20%/60%
South county - 57%/29%
Under investigation - 0%
Weekly increases in positive tests:
June 12-19 - 7%
June 19-26 - 23%
June 26 to July 3 - 22%
July 3-9 - 23%
July 9-16 - 40%
July 16-23 - 20%
July 23-30 - 27%
July 30-Aug. 6 - 13%
Aug. 6-13- 12%
Aug.14-20 - 16%
Aug.20-28 - 10%
Aug. 28-Sept. 3 - 10%
Sept. 3-10 - 6%
Sept. 10-17- 8%
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Sept. 17-24 - 7%
Sept. 25- Oct.1 - 5%
Oct. 1 - 9 - 4%
Oct. 9-15 - 4%
Oct. 15-22 - 5%
Oct. 23-29 - 4%
Oct. 30-Nov. 5 - 6%
Nov. 5-12 - 10%
Nov. 12-19 - 11%
Nov. 19-26 - holiday
Nov. 19-Dec. 3 - 29% 2 weeks of data for this week only
Dec. 3-10 - 16%
Dec. 10-17 - 17%
Dec. 17-24 - 14%
Dec. 24-31 - 19%
Jan. 1-7 - 13%
Jan. 7-14 - 14%
Jan. 15-21 - 11%
Jan. 21-28 - 5%
Jan. 28-Feb. 4 - 5%
Feb. 5-11 - 2%
Feb. 11-18 - 2%
Feb. 18-25 - 1%
Feb. 25-March 5 - 1%
March 5-11 - 1%
March 11-18 - 2%
March 18-25 - .5%
March 25 - Apr. 1 - .7%
Apr. 1-8 - 0.1%
Apr. 9-15 - 1%
Apr. 16-22 - 2%
Apr. 22-30 - 2%
Apr. 30 - May 6 - .3%
May 6-13 - 2%
May 13-20 - 0%
May 24 - Data readjustment by county means percentages cannot be calculated this week.
May 27 - June 3 - 0%
June 3-10 - 0%
June 11-17 - .25%
June 18-24 - 0%
June 25-July 1 - 0%
July 2-8 - .3%
July 9-15 - .2%
July 16-22 - .5%
July 23-29 - 1.2%
July 30-Aug. 5 - 2%
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Fashion Street - Ride in Style
By SARAH RINGLER
Bike riders of all ages pedal along Brennan St. in downtown Watsonville.
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Labor History Calendar for August 6-12:
Aug. 6, 1945: United States drops A-bomb on Hiroshima.
Aug. 6, 2017: Death of farmworker forced to stay on the job until he collapsed sparks strike of immigrant blueberry pickers in Sumas, Washington.
Aug. 7, 1890: Elizabeth Gurley Flynn, IWW organizer born.
Aug. 7, 1931: IWW strike begins at Boulder Canyon Project, Utah.
Aug. 8, 1903: Cripple Creek, Colorado miners' strike begins.
Aug. 8, 1995, 700,000 public workers hold one-day sit-in strike across Turkey.
Aug. 8, 2019: 80 part-time Amazon warehouse workers strike in Eagan, Minn.
Aug. 9, 1890: Knights of Labor strike New York Central Railroad, defeated by union scabbing.
Aug. 9, 1945: United States drops A-bomb on Nagasaki.
Aug. 10, 1914: Australian IWW runs front page ad declaring: "War! What for?War is hell. Send the capitalists to hell and wars are impossible!"
Aug. 10, 1933: Boss press laments women pickets' effectiveness in 4th day of California beet strike; many arrests.
Aug. 11, 1833: Robert Ingersoll born.
Aug. 11, 1894: Troops drive 1,200 in Kelley's Army of unemployed from Washington DC; Jack London and Big Bill Haywood are among the deported.
Aug. 12, 1898: Coal company thugs kill 7, wound 40 miners trying to stop the scabs in Virden, Ill.
Aug. 12, 2017: Labor activist Heather Heyer murdered while protesting fascist march in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Aug. 12, 2017: 17,000 textile workers strike over missing pay and COLA in Mahalla al-Kubra, Egypt.
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Photo by TARMO HANNULA
Magical Muhammara Walnut Dip
By SARAH RINGLER
Diana Abu Jaber, in her memoir "The Language of Baklava" calls this dip, "An enchanting opening dish, this dip or spread is good for when you want everyone to come to the table." Abu Jaber has some powerful and sometimes humorous descriptions of her childhood as she negotiates her own identity living with her hardheaded Jordanian father, and thankfully, easy-going American mom. Recipes are paired with events in the story; for example, the recipe "Comforting Grilled Velveeta Sandwiches" appears in chapter about her American mother.
The consistency of this dip is like peanut butter. Because of the walnuts, it has a nutty taste. The spices, roasted bell peppers, tomato paste and pomegranate juice sweeten the dip and I found it hard to stop eating.
The easiest way to get red roasted bell peppers is to buy them in jars. You can buy unsweetened pomegranate juice or take a fresh one, put the seeds into a blender or food processor and blend until they liquify. Then, strain out the seeds. I used one whole pomegranate.
It's a little early for pomegranate time in California. The small tree is native to what is now Iran. It is an unusual fruit that is slightly acidic and hopefully sweet. It is very commonly used in the Middle East cooking like this recipe. The membrane surrounding the seeds can be annoying because they need to be arduously pulled away to reveal the seeds. The seeds explode in your mouth and on your clothes as well. Somewhere I remember someone telling me that you could tell a lady by her ability to eat a pomegranate without getting stains on her clothes. That kind of pressure I can live without so don't call me a "lady." According to aquaphoenix.com, there can be from 200 to 1,400 seeds per fruit. There are many ancient, historical, classical and biblical references to pomegranates. Greeks considered them the "fruit of the dead," but more commonly in other cultures like Hindu, Persian and Chinese, they are seen as symbols of fertility. In Christian art, an open and torn pomegranate symbolized Jesus's suffering and resurrection.
Before Columbus's travels, tomatoes were unheard of in the Middle East. Pomegranates were the common taste equivalent so you could use all pomegranate juice and leave out the tomato paste for a more authentic flavor.
1 tablespoon chili pepper flakes
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 1/2 cups toasted walnuts
1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons unsweetened pomegranate juice - 1 pomegranate
pinch salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/4 cup tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
2 roasted red bell pepper, peeled and chopped
small bunch flat leaf parsley, chopped
Pita bread, warmed
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread the walnuts on a baking pan. When the oven is heated, toast the walnuts for about 10 minutes. Watch carefully. They should be turn slightly brown and harden and shrink a bit.
Then combine all ingredients except for the parsley in a food processor. Purée until smooth.
Spoon into a bowl and garnish with chopped parsley. Cover and chill until ready to serve. Top with olive oil and serve with warm pita bread.
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YOUR STORY OR ART HERE: Please submit a story that you think would be of interest to the people of Santa Cruz County. Try and keep the word count to around 400. Also, there should be suggested actions if possible. Submit to coluyaki@gmail.com
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Welcome to Serf City Times Over time, our county has grown more stratified and divided with many people feeling left out. Housing affordability, racism and low wages are the most obvious factors. However, many groups and individuals in Santa Cruz County work tirelessly to make our county a better place for everyone. These people work on the environment, housing, economic justice, health, criminal justice, disability rights, immigrant rights, racial justice, transportation, workers’ rights, education reform, gender issues, equity issues, electoral politics and more. Often, one group doesn’t know what another is doing. The Serf City Times is dedicated to serving as a clearinghouse for those issues by letting you know what is going on, what actions you can take and how you can support these groups.This is a self-funded enterprise and all work is volunteer.
Copyright © 2021 Sarah Ringler - All rights reserved
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