Arcata 420 Festival Slide Show

Women March to Take Back the Night

About 200 women marched last night from the HSU quad to the plaza to protest against rape, bigotry, and all forms of sexual violence. At a rally before the march, hundreds of t-shirts representing survivors and victims were hung from the University Center.

Activists put up demonstration tree-sit at 420 fest

Humboldt County tree-sitters put up a demonstation tree-sit at Arcata's 420 fest in Redwood Park. They said they were trying to make people awware that ancient forests are still being cut. At 4:20 pm, a huge cloud of smoke appeared in the park. Members of NORML were tabling at the event to raise awarness about yhe need for marijuana law reform.

This weekend in Arcata

Baridi Night

Last night I went to Baridi Night At the Redwood Peace & Justice Center. There was druming, a refugee meal of beans and cornmeal, and a showing of the documentary film "The Invisible Children". This excellent and moving film depicted the struggle and suffering of children in Uganda, who fear being abducted by the Lord"s Resistance Army, and be forced to fight in that country's civil war. After that, Eric Verprauskus spoke about the refugee camps in Zambia, which he visited last year. For more info visit http://www.forgeprogram.org/mission.htm

Step it up Arcata!

Next saturday, will be the largest day of citizen action focusing on global warming in our nation’s history. It is a nationwide campaign comprised of over 1300 actions being held on April 14, 2007 as part of a National Day of Climate Action. The message will be "Step it up, Congress! Cut Carbon 80% by 2050". In Arcata there will be walking tours of the future Humboldt Bay waterline, starting from the plaza at 10am, 12pm and 3:30pm. At 10:45am there will be a critical mass bike ride to the Kotke Ranch, where there will be tree planting with the Billion Trees Campaign. There will be letter writing and information on the plaza and a final gathering at 4pm. Saturday is also the first farmer's market of the year.

Vets for Peace hold vigil on plaza

Veterans for Peace are still holding their weekly, silent vigil against the Iraq War every Friday, from 5-6pm on the Arcata Plaza.

Mayor Calls Council Vote "a real shame".

Two conservative Arcata City Councilmembers endangered the future existence of the Arcata Food Endeavor and Service Center, by voting against a motion to extend the lease, at last night's council meeting. The large, overflowing audience seemed shocked and outraged by the no votes of Councilmembers Michael Machi and Alex Stillman. The motion by Councilman Paul Pitino, to extend the lease an additional 14 months, failed in a 2-2 vote, with Councilman Mark Wheetley absent. Pitino asked for some compromise, but Machi and Stillman showed no interest in one.
Mayor Harmony Groves called the vote "a real shame'. She pointed out that returning Iraq war veterans may be in need of the services that the center offers. The Endeavor gives food boxes to needy families, The overwhelming majority of which, are not homeless. The Service Center provides showers to the homeless, case management, and hot lunches three times a week, down from five times in past years. Many citizens spoke in support of the Endeavor, including Father Erik Duff.
Also last night, a large group of citizens protested to the council that the Arcata Police Department is marginalizing the annual "Take back the streets" march against sexualized violence. Police force marchers to stay on sidewalks instead of marching in the street, citing saftey concerns. Speakers said marching on the sidewalk was less safe, and that police were sending a message that the " police do not consider sexualized violence a priority".
Fear that the council would reverse their compliance with Prop. 215 and California medical marijuana laws, was another issue that brought many residents to last night's meeting.
It appears to me that the rightward shift in the council is alienating much of the community. Progressives lost their council majority in last November's election, when anti-war activist Dave Meserve lost his seat. As more outrage develops over the reversals of the new conservative majority, perhaps we will see a recall movement.

People Project Campout

The People Project held a campout this past weekend to focus on their organizing efforts. The People Project is a group of people that are concerned about the human rights of homelless people and meets on Tuesday nights at 6:30. A major goal, that has developed over the last year, is to establish a free, ecologically-sustainable campground in Arcata. The People Project motto is "Power from the streets!".

Bicyclists for Peace Ride into Arcata

A group of bicyclists who are riding across the continent for peace, stopped in Arcata last weekend. They met with many Arcatans to tell people about their journey from Washington State to Washington,D.C. More information can be found at http://catalystsofhope.org/