Chicoan recalls xenophobia of her childhood
WWII internment camps unjustly imprisoned Americans
courtesy of Diane Suzuki
I am Sansei, a third-generation Japanese-American who did not experience the hardship and humiliation of being rounded up without due process and imprisoned for three to four years as my elders did. But I did experience the racism and xenophobia in the 1950s in the aftermath of war.
Refugees fleeing violence from their homelands south of our border are now being locked up in immigration detention centers that are intentionally located in isolated sites. Americans should be ashamed that these men, women and children are being imprisoned in our country with the threat of being sent back to where they might be killed.
Citizen review of Chico police urged by group
Phillips, Rushing shootings prompted six-point reform plan
photo by Karen Laslo
Emily Alma
A group of citizens that has produced an ambitious “vision” for Chico police reform first came together last year after the officer-involved-shooting deaths of Desmond Phillips and Tyler Rushing.
“We were like magnets,” said Margaret Swick, a member of a group calling itself Concerned Citizens for Justice. “We were just pulled together. We were just concerned about the police shootings.”
On Monday (June 18) from 6 to 8:30 p.m., Concerned Citizens for Justice will give a community airing to its six-point program for “improving the climate of respect between law enforcement and the community.” One reform the group describes as “essential” is establishing “an independent, impartial citizen board with authority to review all police files.” The public meeting will be held at the Chico branch of the Butte County Library, 1108 Sherman Ave.
The ‘browning’ of state’s green movement
El movimiento verde se vuelve café
Protesters in Sacramento, part of a new generation of climate activists helping to redefine mainstream environmentalism in California.
Photo via Flickr
Almost thirty years ago East Los Angeles resident and mother of nine kids, Juana Gutierrez, took on an oil giant and won. Hailed at the time in national and international media, Gutierrez was seen as being in the vanguard of a “fledgling” environmental movement, one deeply rooted in California’s expanding communities of color. (Lea esta nota en ingles aqui.)
Today that fledgling movement has blossomed into what is fast becoming the new mainstream of environmental activism in the state.
“Things have obviously changed, not just in the last couple of years but over a number of years,” says Bruce Saito, head of the California Conservation Corps. A veteran of the state’s environmental community, he says that, thanks to the legacy of Gutierrez (who died in 2004) and other activists, today more than ever environmental leaders in California are placing a greater emphasis on the needs of people and communities, particularly in underserved regions.
Inday’s serves up Filipino dishes for Chico
Restaurant’s origins from neighborhood cookouts
photo by Leslie Layton
Inday Geiger
The origin of Inday’s Restaurant started with a friendly neighborhood cookout 20 years ago after Ethel “Inday” Geiger emigrated from the Philippines to Chico.
Her deep craving for traditional Filipino meals was so persistent that she started preparing them at home with her husband, John Geiger.
Traditionally, Filipino homes have multiple generations living in a household. Adults often care for their aging parents while raising their own children. As a result, preparing large meals has been a regular occurrence for Inday Geiger.
To deal with hoards of leftovers, the Geigers started weekend neighborhood cookouts to share her culture, traditions and, most importantly, her food.
Japanese student likes U.S. culture’s openness
Youth activism lauded; election turmoil worried her
Kanako Otani
When Kanako Otani first left Hiroshima, Japan, to study at Chico State, she was afraid she would face discrimination on a daily basis. To Otani’s surprise, she found that the culture in the United States was very open, expressive and diverse.
“Here, I can pursue whatever I want and be whoever I want to be,” said Otani, who came to the United States four years ago. “In Japan we practice collectivism, so everyone tries to be the same. If you do something different you might be considered weird and a lot of people don’t like that.”
Otani, a communications major who graduated with a bachelor’s degree this spring, feels that she made the right decision to come to the United States. Her family and friends from Japan agree.