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On Wednesday, April 9th, the Olympic Torch came to San Francisco. The Olympics will be taking place between August 8th and 24th in Beijing, China. Many human rights groups are concerned that China is cracking down on dissidents ahead of the games. Some pro-Tibetan organizations have called for a boycott of the Olympics, and organizations such as Amnesty International are upset with China's involvement in the crises in Darfur and Burma. Thousands of people gathered in an Francisco to either cheer or protest, but few saw the torch as the relay did not go along the announced route and the closing ceremony was cancelled. One torchbearer tried to display a Tibetan flag but the SFPD quickly took the torch from her and pushed her onto the sidewalk.

On April 6th, 7th and 9th,, filmmaker Simón Sedillo will lead bilingual multi-media presentations in San Francisco, Berkeley and Santa Cruz that include scene selections from three films, "El Enemigo Común" (2005), "El Machete" (2007) and "Paz Sin Justicia" (2008), in order to illustrate neoliberal atrocities and community based resistance to them in Oaxaca, Mexico.

The second public meeting to save the Beach Flats Community Garden took place on April 3rd. At the meeting, the gardeners put forward a bilingual plan for the garden to be managed by the gardeners. Reyna Ruiz of the Beach Flats Community Center said that the plan was something that she could work with and present to the Santa Cruz City Parks and Recreation as well as the Seaside Company which claims ownership over the land. The gardeners asked Brent, a supportive neighbor of the garden, to accompany Reyna when she presents the plan to the Santa Cruz City Parks and Recreation Department.

A groundbreaking independent report prepared by the Environment and Human Rights Advisory outlines 23 international human rights that may be violated by the aerial spraying program conducted by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) for the Light Brown Apple Moth. These are in addition to other potential violations of US and California constitutions and state statutes.

In the fall of 2007, workers at Lakeside Organics in Santa Cruz County filed numerous complaints against their employer, including denied breaks and unpaid overtime totaling more than $10,000, sexual and discriminatory harassment, unsafe working conditions, lack of medical compensation for job related injuries, and "dumping" injured workers. Long drawn-out legal efforts to hold Lakeside Organics accountable for its labor abuses have highlighted the discrepancy in legal resources between the laborers and the corporation. Traditional legal support systems for migrant laborers such as California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA) have been systematically targeted and de-funded by corporate interests that the government has come to represent.

At 9:45 in the morning of March 31st, a large force of Yolo County Sheriffs stormed the buildings at D-Q University, battering their way into the hallway of the large dorm with guns drawn, and arresting 18 students, community supporters, and elders. In a similar incident on February 20th, Sheriff's deputies came onto the sovereign campus and arrested three students. The students arrested on February 20th have their court date on Wednesday, April 2nd at 7:30am at the Woodland Courthouse and they have put out a call for supporters to attend. The court date for the 18 people arrested on March 31st is not yet known.

The international network demanding accountability for the murder of US journalist Brad Will released secret documents detailing proposed military support for Mexican security forces implicated in murder, torture and continuing arbitrary detentions.

Fighting between Iraqi government forces and militias loyal to Moqtada Sadr erupted March 25th in Basra. Fighting quickly engulfed Baghdad's Sadr City and spread to other towns. On March 28th, US planes bombed alleged Mehdi Army positions both in Basra and in Baghdad. Despite the US intervention, government troops were unable to pierce Mehdi Army defenses or over-run their positions. The police force in Basra suffered numerous mutinies. On Sunday, March 30th, Sadr called on followers to cease offensive operations in an apparent deal with Maliki's political party negotiated in Iran without Maliki's own support.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against a new trial for Mumia Abu-Jamal. The court has called for a sentencing hearing that would result in either an execution or life in prison without parole; the hearing will be scheduled within 180 days. A San Francisco demonstration and press conference was held at 5:00 pm at the federal courthouse at 7th and Mission on Friday, March 28th. In Oakland, protesters gathered at 14th and Broadway from 4:30-6:30 pm on Friday. National protests are being planned for April in San Francisco and in Philadelphia.

The Beach Flats Community Garden has had its ups and downs over the years, constantly reminded that the land is leased, rather than owned, that at any point the land might be taken back. This year, the threat of eviction is a bit more real. The City has created a new garden plot, maybe one twentieth the size of the Community Garden, and has asked the gardeners to give up their keys and stop planting.

Michael Martin of Tainted/Compassionate Medicinal Edibles faces a Change of Plea Hearing in Oakland on Wednesday, March 26th. He plans to accept a plea deal that was offered by the US Attorney. As he is unable to speak freely about the medicinal nature of Tainted's products in his defense, the alternative would be a jury that could assign him a ten year mandatory minimum sentence. Michael is hoping that the community will go to court to show support for him. The hearing will take place on Wednesday at 2:30pm in Judge Wilken's courtroom at 1301 Clay St. in Oakland.

On Wednesday, March 19th, the California Supreme Court decided not to review last year’s landmark return of property decision in Garden Grove v. Superior Court. By affirming the appellate court’s decision, the Supreme Court has made protection against seizure of medical marijuana by law enforcement legally binding throughout the state of California.

The 4,000th US soldier was killed in Iraq on March 23rd. Vigils and actions were held at the Military Recruiting Centers in Capitola and Berkeley on March 24th to express grief over so many senseless deaths in Iraq. In San Francisco, a vigil was held in Civic Center Plaza. CodePink shut down the Marine Recruiting Station in Berkeley by conducting a direct action inside of it.

The Army recruitment site GoArmy.com is one of the most heavily advertised web sites on the planet. It's a slick marketing effort to make enlisting look like the perfect job opportunity: a stable, safe way to make money and serve America. On March 19th, NoArmy.com was launched to present the facts missing in the Army sales pitch and show potential recruits what they can really expect if they enlist.

Every March, anarchists from around the Bay Area and the Americas come together for a week in which they celebrate anarchism with a number of different kinds of events. 8 Days of Anarchy begins and concludes with discussions at the Long Haul in Berkeley. The Anarchist Cafe will return to San Francisco on Friday night, March 21st. The Anarchist Bookfair will again take place on both Saturday and Sunday. The BASTARD Conference will be held at UC Berkeley on Sunday, March 24th.

The battle to shut down the Marine recruiting station in Berkeley continued on March 19th, the fifth anniversary of the start of the Iraq war. Hundreds, including many Berkeley High school students, took part in actions during the day to shut down the recruiting station in Berkeley and to stop the war in Iraq. Several students spoke powerfully to why the marine recruiters should be considered "unwelcome intruders" in Berkeley.

Outraged over the undemocratic nature of the University of California Board of Regents and the Regents’ continued management of the national nuclear weapon labs, on March 19th, students from the Coalition to Free the UC took nonviolent direct action at the UC Regents meeting at UCSF Mission Bay campus in an attempt to obstruct their ability to meet. Over 100 students from five UC campuses participated in the day of action as part of March 19th Direct Action to Stop the War.

March 19th saw a revival of the direct action movement in the Bay Area. Independent media activists came together to broadcast a radio station and DASW had a webcam broadcasting video. Volunteers provided legal assistance. Affinity groups came back together for another day in the streets, putting their bodies on the line to remind the world that torture has been a way of life for the Bush administration.

Teachers at the San Francisco Institute of English will go on strike starting Monday, March 17 at 8:30 am to demand livable wages and the return of health care benefits. The English as a Second Language (ESL) teachers have not had a cost-of-living adjustment in 12 years and have been without health care benefits since 2004. The strikers are asking for community support on the picket line and for their strike fund.

On March 15th, activists and community members protested the war in Iraq, environmental racism and global warming by blockading the Chevron oil refinery in Richmond, CA. A coalition which includes health, environmental and anti-war organizers had called for people to shut down the Chevron refinery for the day of Saturday, March 15th in support of community efforts to stop Chevron from expanding its Richmond refinery. An expansion will increase pollution and cause asthma, cancer and rising death rates in surrounding communities. 25 activists were arrested for taking part in the blockade.

Maestra writes, "The Pajaro Valley Unified School District board of trustees voted to send pink slips to 201 teachers, nurses, and school support staff. In a desperate move to balance a budget and save their own jobs, the administrators of PVUSD have decided not to trim the fat from the top of the pyramid, rather preserving their high salary positions while instead removing a possible 130 teachers from the classroom. What does this look like for students? Larger class size, for one."

In 1971, Vietnam veterans held a conference that they called the Winter Soldier Investigation, to speak out about what was really going on in the Vietnam War. 37 years later, Iraq War vets held their own Winter Soldier: Iraq & Afghanistan, at which US veterans testified about their experiences in Iraq and Afghanistan. The conference took place from March 13th through 16th in Washington, D.C. A group of Vietnam vets from Portland stopped in Fresno on the way to Winter Soldier. KPFA radio suspended its regular programming over several days in order to broadcast the proceedings.

On March 11th, hundreds of protesters gathered in San Francisco, calling for the state to prioritize California's children and their education and demanding job security for educators. Governor Schwarzenegger's 2008-09 budget proposes a $4.8 billion cut in state education funds. Preparing for this eventuality, the San Francisco Board of Education sent out 535 pink slips to teachers and administrators this week.

On January 24th, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Secretary Chuck Conner announced the availability of $74.5 million in emergency funding to combat the light brown apple moth (LBAM) "infestation" in California. President Bush's recent budget proposal sent to Congress sets aside $330 Million to eradicate plant pests, like the LBAM. It is unprecedented to design a long term plan to spray chemicals on people, which are untested for safety.