News
rs26452_20170827_berkeleyantifarally_credit_bertjohnson-8-qut-800x533.jpg

Your Questions About the Weekend Protests, Answered

08.31.2017
|
By

By KQED News Staff, KQED News Fix
KQED asked our audience what they wanted to know about the far-right and counterprotests over the weekend. How many right-wing or racist demonstrators were actually present anywhere in S.F.? Asked by Matt Oja
It’s tricky to get a handle on this number in San Francisco, because Patriot Prayer plans changed multiple times, ultimately dispersing the protests and counterprotests. The largest gathering of far-right activists was about 30 in Pacifica, where the Patriot Prayer group held a press conference. Read the complete story at KQED News Fix.

News
dsc_2563.jpg

Bike-Sharing in the Mission: Who Is Taking Whom for a Ride?

08.30.2017
|
By

By Joe Eskenazi, Mission Local
To paraphrase something Sigmund Freud may or may not have said, sometimes a bicycle is just a bicycle. In this city, that’s a good thing to keep in mind. Bicycles have become all things to all people and two-wheeled proxies for anything and everything. San Franciscans who merely desire a cheap, efficient and healthful way to get from here to there at better-than-Muni speeds have not relished being lumped in with self-righteous cyclists who seem to think riding a bike is a political statement and a means of demonstrating moral superiority — an indicator that they are, simply, “better” people than those who do not ride. Similarly, cyclists — many of them neither white nor wealthy — have been surprised to learn that the goofy Ford GoBikes they’ve been pedaling around town, perhaps for as little as $5 a year, aren’t a potential substitute for bike ownership without the hassles of maintenance, rampant theft, or dragging cycles onto crowded buses or trains but, rather, rolling gentrification. GoBikes have been defaced, vandalized, and even lit ablaze.

News
img_0211.jpg

An Earthquake Early-Warning System Is Heading to California

08.29.2017
|
By

By Angela Johnston, KALW/Crosscurrents
Three years ago, a major earthquake rattled the Bay Area. Napa Valley was hit the hardest: 200 people were injured, one person died and the total financial damage in the area was almost a billion dollars. It was also the first time an experimental early warning system called Shake Alert notified researchers of a major quake before it actually happened. If researchers secure enough funding, we may have more time to duck, cover and hold on before the next big one. at 
Read the complete story at KALW/Crosscurrents.

News
beall-e1503977171294-800x600.jpg

California Lawmakers Reach Agreement on Affordable Housing Bond

08.28.2017
|
By

By Guy Marzorati, KQED News
Gov. Jerry Brown and Democratic leaders in the Senate and Assembly have reached a deal on a $4 billion bond measure to fund affordable housing in the state. The measure addresses one cause of California’s affordable housing crisis: a lack of state funding to construct homes for low-income residents. 
Read the complete story at KQED News. 

News
Anti-Trump protesters join hands on the Golden Gate Bridge after the November 2016 presidential election. Photo by David Andrews // Hoodline

Public Press Weekly: A Focus on Racial Unrest and California

08.25.2017
|
By

 

Photo by David Andrews // Hoodline
The violence at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., this month and President Donald Trump’s much-criticized response have highlighted the resurgence of hate groups in the United States. White nationalism is on the rise in California and right-wing groups are planning rallies in such cities as San Francisco and Berkeley this weekend. How to react to these rallies has been the subject to fierce discussion: Ignore? Protest — violently or peacefully? Update 5:29 p.m. PT Friday: Patriot Prayer organizer Joey Gibson says he is canceling the Crissy Field rally on Saturday and will instead hold a 2 p.m. press conference in Alamo Square, several blocks from a planned Civic Center counterprotest.

City Hall
15259578_183201625478507_5682577842178501273_o.jpg

Crissy Field Rally: Message of Peace Tainted by Violence

08.25.2017
|
By

Update at 3:49 p.m. PT: Organizer Joey Gibson says he is canceling the Crissy Field rally on Saturday and will instead hold a 2 p.m. press conference in Alamo Square, several blocks from a planned Civic Center counterprotest. “We asking the city to keep us safe,” Gibson said on Facebook. » Read more

News
rs24967_20170415_berkeleyprotest_credit_bertjohnson-4-qut-800x533.jpg

What You Need to Know About This Weekend’s Far-Right Rallies

08.24.2017
|
By

By Ryan Levi, KQED News Fix
Two far-right rallies are planned in San Francisco and Berkeley this weekend. They come just two weeks after a violent white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Va., that left one anti-racism protester and two police officers dead. On Wednesday, the National Park Service approved a permit for a rally led by the far-right group Patriot Prayer at Crissy Field in San Francisco on Saturday, Aug. 26. Read the complete story at KQED News Fix.

News
kalw_firstspeech_twitter.jpg

Is Hate Speech Protected by the Constitution?

08.23.2017
|
By

By Hana Baba, KALW/Crosscurrents
The National Park Service  has decided to issue a permit to right-wing group Patriot Prayer for a rally on Saturday in San Francisco’s Crissy Field. Organizers call the S.F. event a “Free Speech Rally,” touting their right to peacefully rally for free speech. On their Facebook page,  Patriot Prayer says “extremists are not welcome.” There is a similar rally planned for Berkeley the following day. But these rallies come in the aftermath of the deadly Charlottesville, Va., protests just 10 days earlier.

News
dsc_5544-1024x678.jpg

Spanish-Speaking Teachers Getting Special Training to Meet California’s Demand for More Bilingual Teachers

08.22.2017
|
By

By Theresa Harrington, EdSource
Native Spanish speakers who have been teaching in English-only classrooms are the focus of specialized training in many districts across California to meet the increased demand for bilingual teachers. “We have a lot of teachers who at one point were bilingual who are now teachers of English-only classes,” said Maria Maldonado, Fresno Unified’s assistant superintendent for English learner services. “Our bilingual teachers need a lot of support. Many are native speakers of Spanish, so their Spanish is quite causal. We want high-level academic language.”
Read the complete story at EdSource. 
For more information on bilingual education in California, read the San Francisco Public Press Special Report “Bilingual Schools.”

News
housing_costs_state_economy-1024x875.jpg

Californians: Here’s Why Your Housing Costs Are So High

08.21.2017
|
By

By Ben Christopher and Matt Levin, CALmatters
Half the state’s households struggle to afford the roof over their heads. Homeownership — once a staple of the California dream — is at its lowest rate since World War II. Nearly 70 percent of poor Californians see the majority of their paychecks go immediately to escalating rents. This month, state lawmakers are debating a long-delayed housing package. Here’s what you need to know about one of California’s most vexing issues.