While I’m not exactly sure how they did it, Californians signed some petitions and went through some court hearings and got our primary elections scooted up to February 5th. They used to be in June, and by then no one really cared who we thought should be president, especially the folks running for president, so it’s fair to say we were left feeling a bit ignored. But now that we have primaries during high season, we matter. And so I was very excited when I got my absentee ballot in the mail the other day, ready to join the ranks of those whose voices count during this presidential race madness. But when I opened the envelope, all I saw was one measly ballot of state and city propositions. Had someone forgotten that my opinion on who should run this country now mattered? Well, I did some quick research at sfgov.org and realized that the Feb 5 election is a modified closed presidential primary. That means that you must have registered with a particular political party to vote for candidates from that party. I registered back in the days when hottie Matt Gonzalez had me convinced the Green party was making a bid for the big time, and I decided not to pick sides at the moment. So I, like many others, am a “declined to state” voter, political party-wise. But if you are like me, don’t fret, you can still get in on the action. Both the Democratic Party and the American independent Party allow us fence-sitters to vote in their elections. You must request that ballot from a poll worker when signing the roster on Election Day. Absentee voters like me can fill out a Vote-by-Mail application requesting either the democratic or Independent Party ballot. But mail that baby in soon—Vote-by-mail applications must be received by 5pm on January 29.

On the eve of the holiday for which we celebrate the courageous life of Dr. King I am as ever stirred and disturbed thinking of this man’s life in retrospect.
The questions I usually ask myself are:
What made this man able to lead such a fierce grass roots movement which has yet to be met let alone surpassed?
Are we as a country even capable of such dreams, idealism and leadership now?
Is life for African Americans significantly better than the in the days of Dr. King?/What has been the legacy of desegregation in this country?
The symbolic significance of Dr. Kings marches were not only a galvanizing force for policy change but a visible, nearly tangible signal of hope. The systemic racism visible across the country in failing schools, destitute ignored slums, over crowded prisons is hardly heartening for the progress of Dr. King’s dream.
My father, who worked for CORE, the Council of Racial Equality, in San Francisco during the heady times of Dr. King states:” yes there is change, widespread and significantly so. There is legal recourse for racism that previously went unchecked” I try to focus on this however, especially working in the social welfare system and brushing close and closer to the endemic powerlessness experienced by people of color from even before day one at kindergarten it is hard to remain hopeful. Our so-called ‘liberal’ city is among the most racially segregated cities in the country. This article ran in the SF gate this week, describing the gentrification of the Bay view neighborhood.Bayview, a neighborhood with all the hallmarks of a ‘ghetto’ bearing myriad environmental concerns, no grocery store, constant gun violence and lacking in sufficient medical care for children, schools and even a grocery store is finally being revitalized, and many worry it is not for the residents.
Some choice tidbits from this story” citywide, San Francisco’s black population decreases every year. Census estimates show the population dropped from 96,000 in 1970 - or 13 percent of San Francisco residents - to 51,000 - or just 7 percent - in 2006.”
“In 1996, the median single-family home in the neighborhood cost $129,000, according to the real estate information firm DataQuick. Today, even with the recent downturn in real estate, the median price is $570,000, an increase of 342 percent.”
There are amazing health statistics that come out this neighborhood, and when I say amazing I simply mean it is hard to fathom how this rich city can allow this to occur within its county lines, with in a first world country.
Growing up in the wake of hope, so I have come to think of all of us born following the grand disillustionment following the social movement of the 60s and 70s, I have worried we are in a post dream world. Post dreams, post irony, post utopic thinking. I have to wonder what would Dr. King see if he could show up here in 2008 and see the continued racism now playing out starkly in economics and criminal justice systems in the country? Would he still be able to dream? Despite the bemoaning this speech moves me each time a new.
“I say to you today, my friends, so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal.”

I have a guilty sort of secret to share: I love the library. The musty smell of the books, the hush-hush atmosphere, the limitless amount of information stored within four walls… am I the only one getting worked up about this? As an avid reader, journalist and leximaven, I think the sexiest place in the world (second to this, anyway) is the main branch of the San Francisco Public Library. And today, the library unveils a physical and technological revamp, the highlight of which is 6,000 square feet of new space that the library will use to display it’s entire popular fiction collection for the first time in history. The renovation reportedly cost $6 million, which San Francisco taxpayers OKed, and hopefully was money well spent. That building and the thousands (millions?) of titles it holds may be orgasmic, but it’s been confusing from the start and more than a little overwhelming. Here’s hoping they’ve made it easier to navigate the shelves — which will help my researching abilities tenfold. I know where I’m going on my lunch break…

(photo courtesy of vasta on flickr)

You can always trust SF for a juicy court battle. Forward thinking ideas will never be without their detractors, I’m just glad to live in a city that isn’t afraid to stand up to their constituency—in this case, the small business community/restaurant owners. On Wednesday San Francisco won the right to put in place a key part of its universal health care program. A federal panel of judges reached a unanimous decision to allow the city to require businesses with more than 20 employees to pay a fee to help cover employees’ health care costs. These fees are slated to help about 20,000 San Franciscans without insurance.

The law, which passed the city’s Board of Supervisors in 2006, had been challenged by a local restaurant trade group who said it would violate a federal statute prohibiting local plans that conflicted with the state or federal programs. It would also take a big chunk of change from their pockets, considering that most restaurants classify employee healthcare as a locker well stocked with Band Aids, burn cream and Advil.

Under the law, businesses with more than 20 employees are required to pay a minimum health care contribution of $1.17 to $1.76 an hour for each employee. The fees can go toward a variety of health-care options, including employer-provided insurance, health savings accounts, direct payment of medical bills, or payment into the new Healthy San Francisco program.

By Pescador

I wanted to get this out there before it actually happened, so those of you who are reading this can check it out for yourselves, especially those who speak Spanish (if you don’t, you can still connect through the magical language of art).
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A show opened Saturday evening at White Walls Gallery in San Francisco that comprised a beautiful spectrum of city scapes, from the dark dystopic to airy and free to altogether psychedelic. The show was a feast for the eyes as each artist is exceptionally skilled in presenting well wrought works that demand the minds attention from corner to corner.

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The first show the new year at the Photo Epicenter on Lilac Alley showcased an impressive span of national artists whose work is defined principally by its unconventional, un-gallery aesthetic. It is always a challenge to put the work of ’street artists’ within a confined space without loosing some vitality, however as anyone who has tried a hand at street art the limitations of time and space can impede creativity aka if the cops are coming you have to be quick, and the weather makes even legal street art a challenge.

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Like many San Franciscans, I rely on MUNI to get to and from downtown each day for work. And like many San Franciscans, I take an inordinate amount of pleasure in observing my surroundings during my 40-minute commute to Powell Station every morning. So can I just say… Did anyone else notice the giant sign inside the station advertising social workers? I was just getting used to the saturation of all those Kaiser ads, and then today I noticed a poster over the ticket machines reading something along the lines of “Educated. Ethical. Experienced.” for the National Association of Social Workers. Weird, no? Do social workers need to advertise?

Change seems to be the word on everybody’s lips right now. Nationally, the body politic wants something new and something that will fix all our woes—health care, education, crime, diplomacy—but for all we hear American politicians are out to invent the wheel. Why don’t we ever look to successful working systems in other countries? Case in point: La Sistema, Venezula’s avant-garde approach to music education for its youth. The New York Times recently did an amazing piece on the National System of Youth and Children’s Orchestras of Venezuela. Across Venezuela “la sistema,” as it is known has established 246 centers, known as nucleos, which admit children between 2 and 18, assign them instruments and organize them into groups with instructors. They practice two or three hours every day, and the children are performing recognizable music virtually from the outset. Presently the program has an enrollment of 250,000 students, most ofthem from humble backgrounds. The author, Arthur Lublow, talks about the impact of stepping into a practice room: “It houses youngsters who have been taken from the streets or from violent or crime-ridden homes into the protective custody of the state. Only 57 kids were residents of the shelter, but 300 more who lived in the neighborhood came there for daily music instruction. I watched several orchestral groups perform, including a string ensemble of 7- and 8-year-olds sawing away at Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy,” the first violinists scratchily bowing and the second violinists fingering pizzicato notes. The harsh overhead fluorescent lights, the white and ocher paint peeling off the concrete walls and the bars on some windows (dating from the building’s origins) might have cast a gloomy air over the proceedings. Instead, the pleasure and pride that the children took in their collective effort was infectious.”
But someone’s listening. The L.A. philharmonic has recently announced plans to inaugurate a program, “Youth Orchestra L.A.,” that is directly modeled on the Venezuelan prototype. And check out the superstar pupil of the program, new L.A. Philharmonic music director Gustavo Dudamel, 27, as he guest conducts the SF Symphony March 20–22.

Art from the Beat Within by Michael Orozcor

San Francisco has launched a new Civil Gang Injunction in an effort to tighten it’s grip on the gang violence that has been overwhelming the SF community, particularly targeting neighborhoods like the Mission, Western Addition, and the Bay View. So what does this “Civil Injunction” mean anyway?
This injunction is basically an attempt by city officials at stopping the crime and violence by going after members and presumed members and labeling them a public nuisance when gathered as a group. Already thought of as a success in Los Angeles, the gang injunctions involve “civil lawsuits against gang members to prohibit conduct that constitutes a public nuisance, including loitering, carrying pagers, blocking traffic, vandalism, trespassing, conduct associated with drug trafficking and a variety of other activities”. If violated, the injunctions, which are court ordered, can lead to civil penalties and some could lead to time behind bars.
This appears to be a good strategy on paper but it is hardly the solution to the “gang problem” in San Francisco or elsewhere for that matter. As a social worker in the Mission neighborhood, I know and collaborate with grassroots organizations focusing on gang and violence prevention. Many of these organizations are run by ex-gang members who use their experience to reach out and educate the youth in their own communities to stay away from gang violence and crime. Although it is not specified, the injunctions could very well affect gatherings by these organizations and the youth participating with them.
Another concern is that the injunctions also seem to target Latino and African American communities and fail to put pressure on other neighborhoods, such as China Town, Richmond, and the Sunset to name a few, where gangs continue business as usual. Since the injunctions prohibit and penalize public gatherings, they are also preventing the members of these communities to be in public spaces in a group. What will this mean for community celebrations and family gatherings in parks or neighborhood streets? Will everyone just have to hide in their homes? Don’t get me wrong, I am not in support of gangs but the solution is not in continuing to penalize and criminalize young people or their communities. These injunctions are controversial and are not headed for success because they oppress communities instead of uplifting them.