Sunday Reads: The Nick and indie film’s place in Santa Cruz culture; PVUSD policy aims to silence teachers, union writes

Five years after the closure of the Nickelodeon, is indie film culture in Santa Cruz dead, or merely in hibernation?

The Nickelodeon Theatre in downtown Santa Cruz has been closed for more than five years, bringing up questions not only about the viability of independent film, but also whether the once robust subculture of arthouse cinema in Santa Cruz will ever come back. Read more from Wallace Baine.

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OPINION: PVUSD’s ‘controversial issues’ policy isn’t about neutrality – it’s about silence, fear and control

Pajaro Valley Unified School District’s proposed “controversial issues” policy pretends to protect balance, but instead threatens to silence teachers and sanitize truth, the Pajaro Valley Teachers Federation writes in a Community Voices op-ed. By demanding teacher neutrality and forcing teachers to ask permission before they can discuss tough topics, the district is engaged in censorship, they write. California law already guards against bias, and they believe the proposed policy changes are overreach. They demand the district’s board of trustees reject them in a vote set for Wednesday. Read the opinion piece here.

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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

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