Jeri Ross lost her father to incarceration when she was 10 and then, as an adult, spent decades wishing she could visit him. But he was housed in a prison 3,000 miles away from her Santa Cruz home. In July, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill to change that pattern for the 195,000 kids who currently have a parent or guardian in state prison. The “Keep Families Close” bill orders the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to place a parent, legal guardian or caregiver of a minor child in the correctional facility closest to the family’s home. Ross celebrates the bill and what it means for kids.
Community Voices
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
California is its own sort of slave state — we need to enact farmworker rights now
Ann Lopez, the executive director of the Center for Farmworker Families, believes California farmworkers “make up a slave subclass modeled after the slavery model from the South.” Farmworker families experience poverty, live in fear of family separation and are suffering high rates of pediatric cancer, birth defects and pesticide-related illnesses, she says, because they lack rights and government safeguards. Here, she offers three steps we all can take to help transform the lives of farmworkers in Santa Cruz County.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Here’s some good news: The Santa Cruz bus system is aiming for zero carbon by 2036
The Santa Cruz Metropolitan Transit District is expecting $66.7 million dollars in state and federal grants and Volkswagen settlement money that will allow the district to move more quickly to a completely carbon-free transportation solution. This is the largest purchase of hydrogen cell buses in the nation’s history. Lookout columnist Mike Rotkin, who is a member of the Regional Transportation Commission, breaks down the numbers and explains the significance.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
The secret to aging in Santa Cruz: Wear that tiny bikini on the inside
Lookout columnist Claudia Sternbach is sometimes surprised at the gray wave sweeping Santa Cruz. On her regular beach walks, she sees “more and more older folks out catching some rays.” Census data confirms the trend; the county’s 65-84 age bracket grew by 81% between 2010 and 2020. Sternbach, in her 70s, shares her thoughts as she grapples with her own age-related ailments and “being transported to this other existence.”
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Cabrillo, prove you have name change support
New Leaf Community Markets brand manager Lindsay Gizdich said the store is moving from Pacific Avenue in order to have…
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Pickleball is like surfing — not welcoming to newbies
New Leaf Community Markets brand manager Lindsay Gizdich said the store is moving from Pacific Avenue in order to have…
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Let’s use the mayor’s bond to help people buy homes
New Leaf Community Markets brand manager Lindsay Gizdich said the store is moving from Pacific Avenue in order to have…
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Could Dave have talked HAL into opening the pod doors if HAL was an advanced AGI?
Doug Erickson, Santa Cruz tech guru and founder of Santa Cruz Works, helps us understand artificial intelligence by taking us back to 1968’s cult classic “2001: A Space Odyssey.” Could that fictional scenario of machines taking over for people happen with today’s AI? He leads us through some scenarios.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Will Santa Cruzans really ditch their Teslas to ride the rail?
New Leaf Community Markets brand manager Lindsay Gizdich said the store is moving from Pacific Avenue in order to have…
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Living with your 40-something children isn’t for everyone, but it’s trending in Santa Cruz
“I tease them that they have taken over my whole house, which is not far from the truth, but the trade-off for me is that they are wonderful, healthy cooks who make dinner for me nearly every night,” Jeannie Herrick writes of her adult daughter and her daughter’s partner, who moved into Herrick’s Aptos home after leaving Los Angeles amid the pandemic. “I am definitely getting spoiled.”