Courtesy of Glen Shaller

The California Central Coast has one of the highest concentrations of immigrants in the nation. According to research by UC Santa Cruz sociologist and veteran immigration reform activist Paul Johnston, approximately 80,000 people live and work without documentation in the Central Coast.

Immigration has become a hot button issue in 2013. Both the White House and a bipartisan senate commission have floated proposals for nationwide immigration reform.

“One thing we do know is that people tend to assume that comprehensive immigration reform will solve our problems,” Johnston said. “We have to be prepared for continuing human rights challenges for years to come.”

Activists have started immigration reform movements in Monterey, San Benito and Santa Cruz Counties in the past few years to give voice to communities of undocumented immigrants and to obtain rights for immigrants that are equal to those with citizenship.

Action groups that organized demonstrations and events to promote immigrant rights were created by the Santa Cruz County Community Coalition to Overcome Racism. These action groups later became the Coalition for Immigration Reform/Central Coast, a collective of 12 organizations in Santa Cruz County. Through involvement with a national union — the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) — the local coalition intends to pressure California state senators for fairer policies in the upcoming comprehensive immigration reform bill.

“We’re just at the beginning phase of organizing and mobilizing,” Johnston said. “It’s a movement that is erupting.”

The number of meetings and demonstrations planned by these organizations in the coming months will lead up to May Day, otherwise known as International Workers’ Day. According to Johnston, May Day became a date for national immigrants’ protests starting in 2006.

The first event — a solidarity march sponsored by the United Steel Workers — will be held on March 24 at the Cesar E. Chavez Park in Salinas. The march will bring together local and national unions, activists who support the immigrant-education enabling Dream Act (DREAMers) as well as other immigration reform activists, said Teamsters 890 representative and 2012 UCSC alumna Veronica Diaz.

“I think it’s great that these [groups] are finally merging,” Diaz said. “It goes to show that it’s not just a cross-cultural thing — it’s across the ages. It’s about time DREAMers are united with the labor movement.”

In another step toward reform, the Santa Cruz County Immigration Project (SCCIP) is helping eligible local immigrants who are undocumented obtain Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Passed in 2012, DACA allows undocumented immigrants to apply for the rights to obtain a license, a California identification card and permission to stay in the United States with a work permit. Although this application does not guarantee citizenship, the program covers a range of immigrants from ages 15 to 31, who came to the United States before the age of 16, before June 15, 2007, who have no more than three misdemeanors and have continuously lived here for two years, said SCCIP program director Doug Keegan.

Even with the SCCIP’s efforts to hold forums and application workshops for those who are eligible for the program, there are still disparities between the number of those who are eligible and those who are signing up.

“Some people are fearful. They may fear that [Homeland Security] uses it to arrest them or deport them,” Keegan said. “But it’s a struggle to continue to live without any type of legal status, so we strongly urge people to register.”

According to Johnston, Santa Cruz County is one of the top 10 counties in the state in terms of the number of immigrants deported. Consequently, deportation is a commonly feared problem the coalition wants to fix by pressuring the sheriff and County Board of Supervisors to change their policies, said Santa Cruz Immigration Action Group team leader Tomas Alejo.

“We don’t want to be in the top ten,” Alejo said. “I think that’s wrong, especially in a county that calls itself liberal.”

The Immigration Reform Coalition is working in conjunction with the SEIU to bring local issues to a state and national level.

“I think this is a first step to try to open the path to citizenship. We can sit back but it will take a really long time,” Alejo said. “Being at the table, we can constantly remind [state leaders] that [immigration reform] isn’t to be forgotten.”

Courtesy of Chris Danzer

Chris Danzer and Jake Thomas had a plan that was as daring as it was difficult: to walk the 91-mile-perimeter of Santa Cruz County, without stopping, in an effort to raise awareness about child hunger in the Santa Cruz community.

The trek began on March 1 at 9 p.m. Twenty-nine hours and 70 miles later, Danzer was forced to stop. Thomas, despite being hit by a car, was able to continue the grueling walk and made it to West Cliff Drive — the end of the journey — at about 10:30 a.m. on Sunday.

The trek had a two-fold purpose: to raise money to donate to anti-hunger organizations and to attract widespread attention to their cause by performing a grueling feat of endurance.

Danzer and Thomas are also attempting to start an endowment fund that would pay to feed hungry children in Santa Cruz County. They hope to attract a celebrity or other wealthy benefactors to help kickstart the endowment fund.

“We’re trying to start an endowment fund and with the right support from one big player, it could start with one pen stroke,” Thomas said. “We’re trying to get as many people as possible to like our Facebook page and share that video. It’s going to take us a little while to get the endowment fund set up, but it’s also going to take some time to reach the big players we want to reach.”

Danzer and Thomas both said child hunger in Santa Cruz is a problem that, while daunting, is easier to solve than many other worthwhile causes.

“The community has to take care of itself,” Danzer said. “We can’t depend on other people to take care of us. When we defined the number and did the math, it’s a very solvable problem. Instead of just trying to keep feeding kids, we can set up an endowment fund and the money they would give to kids every month for food is a definable amount.”

Danzer and Thomas trained for the trek with a series of increasingly long practice walks. They faced both physical problems — including sore feet and dehydration — and mental struggles.

“The pain that comes from your joints and muscles that are seizing up is a constant pain and every step you take is a constant reminder that this hurts,” Danzer said. “It’s very difficult mentally because you’re fighting the cold, you’re fighting how long you’ve been out.”

Donations to the effort will be given to Grind Out Hunger, a Santa Cruz organization that aims to empower young people to lead efforts to stop child hunger and malnutrition, according to the organization’s mission statement.

Danzer and Thomas said the Santa Cruz community supports their effort.

“We’ve been given an incredible amount of press and community support is high,” Danzer said. “They wanted to do something for us, they’ve supported us in many ways.”

Danzer said the issue of child hunger is ever present and the community of Santa Cruz must be willing to fight against it continually.

“This is not just a problem of today,” Danzer said. “This is a problem of generations past and present.”

Illustration by Maren Slobody

A controversial gun-control measure drew hundreds to downtown Santa Cruz’s administrative building on Jan. 15, where a public forum resulted in the enactment of a 45-day moratorium on firearm sales in Santa Cruz County.

The most recent chapter of the national weapons regulation discussion was brought about in reaction to a new gun store applying for space in the Live Oak Shopping Center early this January. The depot’s permit application was denied without explanation, and the case was forwarded to Santa Cruz’s County Board of Supervisors.

First District Supervisor John Leopold proposed the 45-day gun moratorium formally before the public a week later on Jan. 15 with “urgent” status — requiring an 80 percent majority to pass. It passed unanimously. The legislation aimed to suspend the sale of firearms and ammunition retailers in the unincorporated areas of Santa Cruz County.

“The moratorium is not about banning weapons, or taking advantage of the political moment,” Leopold said.

The aim of the temporary suspension would focus instead upon developing uniform gun regulations between the districts, Leopold said.

Still, many county residents voiced adamant complaint regarding the suspension. Highlighting the economic and civil repercussions was Boulder Creek resident Gordon Stewart. Stewart was convinced the process had been handled in ill faith.

“It’s not just victim disarmament… The board illegally denied [the new gun store] a business permit, when they should have offered guidelines for readmission to the process,” Stewart said.

Many citizens shared Stewart’s standpoint and other gunshop owners substantiated his fear regarding the economic setbacks.

“Our store sells to local firefighters, policemen throughout the county, and concerned UCSC professors,” said Wes Holst, co-owner of Santa Cruz Armory, “Victim disarmament is not the only issue here.”

Santa Cruz Armory is one of nine ammunition depots within Santa Cruz County’s unincorporated area that will be affected by the proposed legislation.

As a result of the recent influx of violence in schools, the murders at Virginia Tech and Sandy Hook the most notable of which, many citizens in attendance of the forum were stirred emotionally by the proposal. There was a fundamental divide that pervaded most of the debate, one between Second Amendment supporters and citizens who represented family values.

The most common point of contention among the public was the belief that the board sought to regulate the possession of guns or encroach upon federal jurisdiction. Supporters argued that the board merely sought a period of hiatus in order to develop more reasonable regulation for the community.

“The county has no widespread regulation [regarding gun control],” said Jeremy Ray, member of the Live Oak School Board. “It’s our responsibility to take the time to make some.”

Ray was one of several civic leaders standing in favor of the moratorium.

“[There are] certain things that Santa Cruz provides to its citizens that the state and federal government cannot,” said Michael C. Watkins, Santa Cruz County Superintendent of Schools. “This is not the Second Amendment issue people are making it out to be.”

Watkins said the point of the ballot was to tie up loose ends regarding public safety. To him, the legislation was specific to Santa Cruz County’s lack of regulation more than any political sentiment.

The public forum drew a multiplicity of perspectives from work last Tuesday morning, with some from outside the county in attendance.

Sunnyvale recently declared a moratorium on marijuana dispensaries, a 45-day proposal that had been extended for a near two-year period after the initial ratification. Many were afraid the Santa Cruz Board of Supervisors may abuse its right to keep business suspended in light of this precedent.

In response, all five members of the board made reference to the substantial research process that remained to be undertaken in order to implement successful regulations.

“This is the first step of many,” said Zack Friend, Second District Supervisor.

The board assured the public that all necessary provisions would be taken to get business up and running again in a timely fashion. They said they would be working directly with crews from city departments to unify the district as quickly as possible over the coming months.

Emma Hawkins. Courtesy of Rebecca Starks Photography.

The Queer Youth Leadership Awards (QYLA) celebrated queer youth throughout Santa Cruz County in light of the awards’ 15th annual anniversary, which took place at Shoreline Middle School.

On May 12, the QYLA congratulated the awardees and nominees for the 2012 Queer Youth Leadership Awards. There were three award categories: the Queer Youth Leadership Award, the Ally to Queer Youth Award and the Organizational Ally to Queer Youth. The awards aim to honor today’s queer youth leaders and their allies across the city and county of Santa Cruz and have done so since 1998.

The Queer Youth Leadership Awards is composed of the Santa Cruz County Task Force for LGBTIQ Youth. The Task Force, also known as the Queer Youth Task Force (QYTF), is an affiliate of the Diversity Center, a community center which serves the LGBT community of Santa Cruz County.

Soquel High School Senior and QYLA awardee Emma Hawkins was awarded “The Queer Youth Leadership Award” for reviving the Gay-Straight Alliance on her campus by positively engaging not just LGBT youth, but all students.

Hawkins said she was motivated to engage herself in GSA as well as many extracurriculars to support students who struggled like her.

“I was never really accepted by other kids,” Hawkins said. “After being a part of GSA, I felt like I could be myself and embrace it. I wanted the same for other people who were on the edge and felt like they don’t matter. I felt like I made a difference even though this was just my first year of being involved.”

QYTF chair Stuart Rosenstein said he hopes the awards have a wide effect.

“We want to inspire parents and grandparents who have closeted kids. It’s important for them to know it’s OK to be openly gay,” Rosenstein said. “We don’t always get the opportunity to highlight most of these kids, straight kids too. We don’t even know who they all are. I wish we could identify everyone who is involved.”

Rosenstein said that in highlighting young, open members of the LGBTQ community and their allies, it’s important to address how in celebrating these active members of the community, there are still members who live in fear regardless of their sexuality. He said though discrimination may come in different forms, it causes the same negative effects in alienating people.

Rosenstein experienced firsthand the disconnection caused by prejudices.

“When I was in middle school I was bullied,” Rosenstein said. “Now as an adult I have the opportunity to move into a community that has done the work in fighting for LGBT rights. I was able to pick up and follow in the footsteps of this community.”

UCSC alum and QYLA coordinator Lex Beatty was inspired to partake in the community after being a victim of a hate crime in January.

“The healing process was ugly, but I made it,” Beatty said. “I had an emotional recovery, not to make it dramatic. I saw how intense this was. I wanted to give queer youth something to believe in. We’ve come a long way, but the reality is that we are still having a push back and it comes down to our kids. They pay the price.”

The QYLA hopes to expand in the near future to other cities, hoping to mark the lives of more young leaders and allies.

“The QYLAs are what I call a legacy event,” Beatty said. “We have not had a shared history that you’ve been able to make a legacy or young leaders shape Santa Cruz, but with these kinds of events you are building the future.”