Month: October 2023

Chico parents form anti-racism coalition Parents demand zero tolerance for discrimination

Mele Benz

by Natalie Hanson
posted Oct. 31

Chico Unified parents who demand that their school district crafts stronger protections for students and faculty against hate speech say they are forming an anti-racism coalition.

Mele Benz is one of numerous parents in Chico who say they want children to have better protection from discrimination and hate speech. She is one of three parents who head the board of what is now the NorCal Anti-Racism Coalition, which represents about 100 family members and allies. It asks that Chico Unified School District (CUSD) demonstrate no tolerance for hate speech or discrimination on its campuses. (See sidebar on increased bullying in California schools here.) read more

At the Chico Cemetery, celebrating Día de los Muertos Families gather to honor a Latin American tradition

photo by Ulises Duenas
An altar at the Chico Cemetery.

by Ulises Duenas
essay posted Oct. 29

Death is universal and inevitable. It’s almost impossible to prevent a loved one’s death from being emotionally painful when it happens. But how a culture or family views death and the passing of a loved one is far from universal.

Día de los Muertos, or “Day of the Dead,” is a Mexican holiday that came from combining Aztec and Spanish traditions. The focus is on celebrating the lives of those we lost and using food and music to give them a good time before their souls return to rest. The holiday is all about associating death with feelings of joy and thankfulness rather than with reopening old wounds. read more

Protesting our military extravagance Looking ahead to "flooding, melting polar ice, human migration"

photo by George Gold
September protest at Beale Air Force Base.

by George Gold
guest commentary posted Oct. 26

In September, about a dozen members of the Chico Peace Alliance traveled to the front gate of Beale Air Force Base to deliver a message to pilots and support workers.

We wanted to share our view — not often noted by the defense establishment — about the hazards that are caused by the U.S. military industrial complex. Our view was that peace is more important than war, and that the U.S. defense infrastructure causes a huge negative environmental impact right there in Marysville and around the world. read more

Chico’s unhoused use survival strategies Extreme weather makes homelessness tougher than ever

photo by Karen Laslo
Donna Shepard

by Leslie Layton
posted Oct. 2

The first in a two-part series on homelessness in Chico in 2023.

Donna Shepard spent some of Chico’s hottest days this past summer hunting down water.

Shepard lives at the encampment known in Chico as the “alternate site” -– the homeless campground the City established to comply with a lawsuit settlement -– and though a spigot was installed, the water it released in the middle of a hot day was itself often too hot to touch.

After collecting water elsewhere, she’d douse herself and her three small dogs. “It gets so hot out here I almost lost Dixie,” she said of her 15-year-old Chihuahua mix. Her two other dogs are service animals; she describes herself as “four times legally blind.” read more

New lawsuit filed against City in Tyler Rushing case Tyler's dad says City is withholding records

Paula & Scott Rushing

by Natalie Hanson
posted Oct. 2

Scott and Paula Rushing have spent six years fighting the City of Chico over its role in the killing of their son, Tyler.

Now, the Rushings face yet another hurdle -— they’ve been denied police records about the 2017 shooting and tasering of Tyler.

Scott Rushing, a Ventura resident, has filed a lawsuit claiming the City of Chico violated California’s public transparency laws by refusing to provide Chico Police Department records.

It is not the first time Rushing has claimed the City withheld records of his son’s death from his family. read more