Article by Heather R. Putnam; photos by Bradley Stuart
On Saturday, October 29, the 18th Annual Peace & Unity March was held in Watsonville, California. The march was organized by the Autonomous Chapter of the Watsonville Brown Berets in collaboration with White Hawk Danza Azteca to honor victims of gang-related violence in Watsonville and to push for an end to the violence in the community. The opening ceremony at Watsonville Plaza began with a blessing song performed by local drummers. Following that, Sandino Gómez, historian for the Watsonville Brown Berets, recounted how the march began in 1994 to honor Jessica and Jorge Cortéz, 16 and 9 years old, who were gunned down execution-style because they had witnessed a gang–related crime. Gómez emphasized that “violence is not the solution” and that everyone present “must be part of the solution”. A representative of the mothers of victims, Rose de Ramirez, who lost her son to gang-related violence sixteen years ago, emphasized, “We need support from the community to stop violence”. Read More and View Photos
Occupy Santa Cruz kicked off at 10am on October 6th at San Lorenzo Park. Dozens of people gathered for discussions, and to settle in for an ongoing occupation of the park. A tarp was strung from trees, food donations were collected and distributed, and talks are underway about bathrooms, safety, focus and message of the occupation, the general assembly meeting at 6pm, marching and demonstrating, outreach, and much more. 
Occupy Santa Cruz, a local convergence in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street, held it’s first General Assembly on 
On May 15, Santa Cruz SlutWalk took the sidewalks to make a unified statement about sexual assault and victims’ rights, to demand respect for all, and re-appropriate the term slut. The demonstration was one of many around the world sparked by a statement on January 24 from a representative of the Toronto Police to a group of students. The officer shared insight into the police force’s view of sexual assault by stating, “women should avoid dressing like sluts in order not to be victimized.” 
Red, a participant in the Peace Camp 2010 protest against the 
