César Chávez Park dedicated 
By KEN KOHLER

Saturday, April 13, 2002 was a beautiful day and a significant day for Modesto. The 4th street Park was renamed and dedicated to César Chávez.

This dedication was long overdue. César died April 3, 1993. Much of the work the farmworker organizer did affected this valley. Six of 7 Modesto City Council members, including the Mayor Carmen Sabatino, were in attendance. The Board of Supervisors, state and federal representatives sent representatives, however. It was a sad commentary that those we have elected did not make themselves more available to honor this wonderful man; a man who, when he co-founded the National Farm Workers Association (NFWA) in 1962, insisted that it be on the foundation of non-violence; a man who followed in the steps of Francis of Assisi and Gandhi.

The ceremony was beautiful with a poetry reading by Francisco Santana, "Yes it Can Be Done", and A Poem of Dedication by debee loyd, Modesto's Poet Laureate. Next to the stone naming the park, the Hispanic Youth Leadership Council planted a tree. The usual proclamations were presented. César's daughter Elizabeth Chávez-Villarino was delayed and did not make it to the dedication. However, it was a De Colores day, day for all nationalities to come together and celebrate a life that made a difference.

This was the second annual César Chávez Community Celebration, led locally by the Stanislaus County Office of Education. On display again this year was The Life and Legacy of César Chavez photo exhibit, developed by Sandy Sample, Modesto Peace/Life Center boardmember. Once again it attracted memories, questions, and controversy.

Mayor Sabatino says he will hang a portrait of César in Modesto City Hall.

César Chávez was not about awards, but probably realized that they gave him and his cause clout. Caesar, like Mother Theresa, Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr., all came from humble beginnings. Yet they all had a clear vision of their mission. Like Martin Luther, I believe that they all would have said, "Here I stand, I can do no other". They were not saints; they just decided to be proactive and not reactive to the wrongs that they saw. Like César they all said, Yes I can.

40,000 people attended César Chávez's funeral in Delano in 1993. A handful in comparison attended the park dedication. The dedication, however ,was as important because with its dedication, we rededicate ourselves to working in non-violence, to giving each person his dignity regardless of race, sex, color, creed, national origin or sexual orientation. We are the colors. We must stand with our predecessors and say, Yes We Can.

Responding to Race and other ism's à la Dolores Huerta March 28, 2002, Turlock, CA.

Person #1: "Why don't you go back to where you came from?" Dolores: "I am where I came from."

(Chanting) "We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!" "We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!" "We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!"

Person #2: "Blacks are lazy." Dolores: "My brother-in-law is black."

"We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!"

Person #3 (on plane to Dolores): "Jews are greedy." Dolores: "I'm a Jew."

"We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!"

Person #4: "Arabs are terrorists." Dolores: "My cousin is Arabic."

"We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!"

Dolores: "Someone once asked Cesar, 'Why do you have so many women in positions of leadership?' He answered, 'Because they know how to get the work done.' "

(Chanting) "We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!" "We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!" "We didn't cross the border, the border crossed us!"

- Deborah R. Miller 
Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farmworkers Union, spoke at CSU Stanislaus ' César Chávez celebration.

Alternative Television/Radio 
By JOHN LUCAS

Tired of the same old corporate media? There is relief from the propaganda you see and hear on your TVs and radios. Independent media is alive and well here in Modesto. The person behind this breath of fresh air, in this stench of conformity and mindless broadcasting, is Brad Johnson.

Brad's 2 hour cable access show LPFM (Low Power F.M.) / Indynews runs on AT&T cable TV Friday night from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. and Saturday night from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. on Channel 8.

He has broadcast a speech given by Noam Chomsky at Massachusetts Institute of Technology after September 11. Just recently he presented a talk given by Father Roy Bourgeois from the School of the Americas Watch at Modesto Junior College. The priest discussed United States involvement in training Latin American Army officers and soldiers on how to terrorize their people in order to keep corrupt and oppressive governments in power.

In the future Brad will be showing the speech that Danny Glover gave in Modesto for the commemoration of Martin Luther King Jr.'s Birthday in January 2002. This became a very controversial event because of remarks Mr. Glover made about the death penalty and September 11. The City of Modesto, Modesto Junior College, and Modesto Bee pulled out as sponsors after these remarks were made. The Modesto Peace/Life Center signed the contract that made it possible for him to speak here.

Brad will also being showing local peace activities, demonstrations and vigils. So tune in and let your friends know there is a break from corporate sponsored massed media.

ACTION: Call (209)545-9116. or email Brad Johnson for sources of alternative media at brad@salida.org. Also check out web-site www.Partytown.com for alternative radio.

Vandals mar UOP Gay Pride Week 
By JULIE DAVIDOW, Stockton Record Staff Writer

A rainbow flag and large rocks decorated for Gay Pride Week at University of the Pacific were discovered vandalized late Tuesday after a member of the Pacific Gay Straight Alliance received an anonymous message with directions to the flag. The flag, which had been missing since Monday, was found crumpled in a plastic bag soaked in urine hanging in a men's bathroom at The Summit, a campus cafe. The rocks, which are located on a grassy patch on campus and serve as a billboard, had been painted with rainbow stripes to symbolize gay pride.

Vandals wrote over the paint with the phrase, "Straight Pride." Leaders of the 40-member Pacific Gay Straight Alliance issued a press release Wednesday labeling the incident a hate crime.

Marco Alarcon, co-president of the PGSA, said Gay Pride Week's scheduled events will continue as planned, including a Gender Bender Show and Dance to cap off the week Saturday. A rally against hate was added to the week's roster in the wake of the vandalism. The rally will be held at 11 a.m. today on the McCaffrey Center stage.

"This week was ... a litmus test of where students on this campus stand on issues of equality, inclusion and dignity," Alarcon said in a prepared statement. "If anything, this is going to galvanize our student organization, our allies and our network into finishing this week strong."

University officials said campus police reported the incident to the Stockton Police Department as a theft, not a hate crime. "At this point, there's no data there to suggest such a classification," university spokesman Russell Wiley said. Wiley said other campus organizations frequently have their banners stolen as a prank.

Stockton police spokesman Doug Anderson said an illegal act is classified as a hate crime only if it was targeted specifically at an individual or group because of race, gender, sexual orientation or religion. "If they stole that flag because they don't like gays (it's a hate crime), but if they did it as a prank, which you see often at colleges, then that's not a hate crime," Anderson said.

Julie Sina, Pacific's vice president of student life, said she considers the vandalism "a supreme crime of disrespect for people." Sina said students from different organizations have worked together closely since Sept. 11 to promote tolerance and understanding, making this incident even more shocking. "With everything we've had to deal with, why would anyone do something that would be that disrespectful and that hurtful and make people feel not welcome."

When club members couldn't find the flag for Gay Pride Week's opening ceremony Monday afternoon, they assumed it was misplaced. They realized the flag had probably been stolen when it didn't turn up by Monday night, said Janelle Hodson, a member of the PGSA executive board. "We put fliers up all over campus announcing that the flag was missing," Hodson said.

Tuesday, the Office of Student Life received a typed, unsigned letter explaining where to find the flag. A member of PGSA also received a muffled voice-mail message late Tuesday indicating the flag's whereabouts. Alarcon said he's not sure whether the flag will be reusable once it returns from the dry cleaner.

Gay rights groups from California State University, Stanislaus, the University of California, Santa Cruz, and other community members have offered to pay for a new banner. "It's very comforting to know that's going on at a time like this," Alarcon said.

To reach reporter Julie Davidow, phone 546-8294; email jdavidow@recordnet.com

The Bicycle is (should be) King in May 
By MYRTLE OSNER

Modesto will celebrate "Bike to Work Week" from Monday through Friday, May 13 to 18. Of course you don't have to limit your bicycle riding to that week but if you aren't bicycling to work now, it's a start.

Although Bike Commute Week is a state sponsored effort, the actual Bike to Work Day for Modesto is Thursday, May 16. The destination is Tenth Street Place, in the Plaza on the Tenth Street side of City-County building. From 6:30 to 8:30 am, police escorts will be available from various parts of town to downtown. A continental breakfast will be free to all who arrive there by bicycle. A schedule of the places where police escort will be available is on the website listed below. The week's events are sponsored by Modesto's Ridesharing Program. The event is oriented toward people who work downtown, but that doesn't mean you can't ride to work anywhere. Modesto is so flat that it ought to be easy.

On Saturday, May 18, there will be a Family Cycling Festival from 9 am to 4 pm on the grounds of the old County courthouse on I Street. An inter-active "On the Safe Side" installation will entertain and education for children. Sponsored by the Center for Human Services, a "mini-city" is set up in such a way that children can ride through it, learning how to bicycle on the streets safely. It teaches safety, including wearing helmets properly. (When accidents happen to people who don't have their helmets properly on their heads, severe injuries can take place.)

Also at the Saturday event, which goes on , there will be entertainment by unicyclists, booths and information for adults and children alike. If your child has sports in the morning you can still catch the event in the afternoon. Other entertainment includes a BMX show from La Jolla.

Streets will be blocked off beginning at 8 am. for the two races. For the die-hards is the Bicycle Criterium race. Register at 13th and H streets. You have to be a real racer to want to do this. Rick Teale, president of the Stanislaus County Bicycle Club and the "Save Mart Criterium" are the sponsors.

A race open to both children and adults will be for everybody who shows up from 10 to 11, gather in front of the courthouse. There will be booths and information there too.

The "Safe Communities Coalition" under the aegis of the Health Services Agency has collected reams of statistics in an attempt to pinpoint what causes accidents involving pedestrians/bicyclists. Their goals are to decrease the rate of injury and death to bicyclists and pedestrians, to educate the public on roadway sharing, to decrease the rate of injury and death to teenage drivers and passengers, and to decrease the rate of injury to child passengers.

The Coalition is about halfway through its work, expecting various agencies within Stanislaus County to take on parts of these goals. If you are interested in working on these goals, it is not too late to join the coalition. Contact Myrtle Osner 522-4967 for meeting times, or contact the Safe Communities Coordinator, Lisa Schmelz, 558-7162.

ACTION: A schedule of the places where police escort will be available at www:modestogov.com/etd/ride. Link to "bike to work." City of Modesto Ridesharing Coordinator Anne Marie Newton can be reached at 571-5193.

The Fallacy of Health Insurance

 "... and, then, the other thing we do in this nation is we blame it on the individual. If someone dies prematurely, it's their fault. If they have a bad outcome, it's their fault. If they have a job that doesn't provide insurance, it's their fault that they didn't get a well paying job that had insurance. If they come in and their diabetes is uncontrolled, they didn't take their medicines, it's their fault they didn't take their medicines. No, it's more... They don't have insurance. They don't have prescription coverage. They can't afford their medicines. Their employer doesn't provide health insurance because they need to be profitable."

-Rudolph Mueller, M.D., author of "As Sick As It Gets" critiques the U.S. health care system in an 11 minute video that can be downloaded at www.snowshoefilms.com/. See the website www.healthcareoptionsproject.org

 --Submitted by Betty Ann Vencill

COLOMBIA: U.S. military aid, a treacherous path 
Excerpted from Witness for Peace

Colombia has endured nearly four decades of brutal armed conflict between the army, guerrillas, and right-wing paramilitaries. Primarily the victims have been civilians.

Into this tragedy the US has sent billions in mostly military aid to "fight the war on drugs." The US Congress has awarded billions to the Colombian army - a military that has well-documented ties with the paramilitary death squads hired by corporations and big land owners.

This failed policy, which includes massive crop fumigation, HAS NOT reduced drugs in the US., in fact, coca production has actually increased. It HAS however, devastated the environment, inflamed the Colombian conflict, escalated human rights abuses, and forced tens of thousands of people to flee their homes and livelihood.

Fumigation means crop dusting over massive areas of the countryside and Amazon rainforest. Instead of coca eradication, aerial fumigation kills everything in its path, including the food sources of campesiños. Plus, powerful people in Colombia want the campesiños' land and use this as an excuse to take it. This has devastated the environment and killed people.

Why do some policy makers in Washington want to increase US military aid in Colombia? A recent Witness for Peace newsletter points to defense manufacturers and profit from increased military aid, international oil companies that own most of the oil fields in Colombia, and the "eradicate drugs at the source" policy of the US intervention.

Those who grow coca are still doing so; it resprouts from the roots instead of being killed by the chemicals.

The alarming new development is the Bush administration's push to escalate involvement in Colombia under the excuse of anti-terrorism. A military approach to curbing the violence in Colombia has failed in every attempt. Now is the time to consider locally designed economic and social solutions.

ACTION: Lobby your Congressmember and contribute to the work of Witness for Peace. For more information contact Witness for Peace at 202-588-1471, 1229 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20005 or www.witnessforpeace.org --Excerpted by Myrtle Osner

GORM ET RECIPE

They left their hummus.
I fried the biscuits.
I fried them in olive oil
with a little fresh basil.
I dipped them in hummus.
Used up all the biscuits.
Switched to Ritz crackers.
Added some raisins.
They left their rum.
Added some rum.
(just a teaspoon or two)
And that,
fellow gormets,
is how
Ritzy Rum Raisin Hummus
was born.
(Yum-yummus)

-Sheila Landre

Dr. Paul Erhlich speaks at CSU Stanislaus on population and biodiversity 
By MARTIN J. ZONLIGT

Speaking to an overflow CSU Stanislaus audience on April 10, Dr. Paul Erhlich reminded them that the year 2002 is "International Biodiversity Year."

His main themes were:

Population pressures, together with patterns of consumption in the West, with focus on the United States, have negative effects. From an estimated two thousand persons living about six million years ago, two billion in 1930, and over six billion today, population growth is resulting in the tearing up of biodiversity. Population growth is a major cause of the increasing greenhouse effect. Another concern is the emulation by the immigrant of American consumption patterns de-emphasizing concern with immigration to the United States per se. (These patterns are being exported to the rest of the world. MJZ)

Biodiversity, which is necessary for survival, is being ignored. Though the United States is ahead in environmental regulations with companies taking the lead, environmentally friendly pest control using natural enemies, as well as the fight to protect other diverse species are steadily being lost. He emphasized that the base of America's wealth is its agricultural resource. Industry is dependent on raw materials. Protection of Central Valley soil is of prime importance to America's economic well being.

Ehrlich suggested some solutions: o Birth rate should be below the death rate. The optimum world population with a decent standard of living for all would be about 1 billion to 2 billion, the estimated population in 1900. o Consumption vs. pleasure: Kick the automobile habit for short distance travel; reserve it for long distance. One should use public transportation to and from work. One must separate necessity from desire.

Economists and ecologists agree and are working together. Ehrlich described the cooperative effort that resulted in saving the watershed for New York City. Trophy homes and other developments were encroaching on the watershed with resulting pollution problems. A choice had to be made between capital improvements or the restoration of the natural environment. The latter solution was selected with full support of the farmers and is being implemented at a much lower cost. In summary, how to translate scientific agreement in the areas of population and biodiversity into political agreement and how to withstand social pressures are two of today's major concerns.

Dr. Paul Erhlich, Bing Professor of Population Studies, Stanford University, is the author of two recent books: Wild Solutions. Yale University Press, c2001, and Human Natures: Genes, Cultures, and the Human Prospect. Island Press [for] Shearwater Books, c2000

ACTION: Elaine Gorman, local Zero Population Growth activist and educator, is available to present hands-on activities to teachers, students, and organizations on the connections between population, resource use, and the environment. Contact Elaine at 524-7630 or goford@ainet.com.

March and rally to call for a time out on executions

Attend the First Annual Moratorium Day in Sacramento on May 1, 2002. Ed Asner and others will join Death Penalty Focus and Californians for a Moratorium on Executions for a Noon march from the courthouse to the capitol for a rally and to deliver 75,000 moratorium petition signatures to Governor Davis.

To sign the petition online and get more information, check www.californiamoratorium.org or call 415-243-0143. Bring contingents and signs. Moratorium Day L.A. will take place on May 2nd, where there will be a special evening gathering with Mike Farrell, Ed Asner, and friends. Check the web site for details or call 213-637-7402.