Surf City Revolt writes: "There is something deeply troubling about the events in Seattle over the past couple of days. 26 comrades, anarchists of all kinds, were arrested. The first night was in what seems to be a coordinated attack by the police during a social gathering at a private residence. The second in a solidarity noise demonstration in which friends and comrades of those arrested the night before stood strong outside of the jail their friends were stuck in, making noise to show that those locked behind bars were not alone."

The Silicon Valley Independent Living Center (SLIC) drew people from up and down the West Coast to its second annual Disability Parade and Festival in San José on July 23rd. Several hundred parade participants walked and rolled down N. First St. on Saturday morning, many with signs decrying proposed government budget cuts to social services. In the afternoon bellydancers, breakdancers, and inspirational speakers enchanted the audience. Festival attendees wore purple t-shirts with the slogan "Disabled and Proud".

Santa Cruz Indymedia & SubRosa are pleased to present Ryan Harvey from Baltimore, MD, an engaging folk singer, incredible story teller, organizer and writer. He will be joined by Nomi, a fabulous folk from the Bay. This event is a record/CD release tour for Ryan Harvey's new album "Ordinary Heroes." It starts at 8pm on Wednesday, July 27th at SubRosa in downtown Santa Cruz. Ryan and Nomi are also performing on Thursday in San Francisco at a benefit event called Operation Recovery.

Protests took place over week in Manteca, Sacramento, and Stockton around incidents of police brutality and murder. On July 19th, family, friends, and community members marched on the Manteca City Council, demanding answers concerning the shooting death of Ernesto Duenez Jr. In Sacramento on July 20th, people rallied against Sacramento police who brutality beat one man while responding to a fight. On July 22nd in Stockton, family members, friends, and supporters demonstrated against the brutal shooting death of James Rivera in 2010. Protesters rallied outside of the Stockton Police Department HQ and then proceeded to march through downtown to the DA's office.

On July 23rd, about twenty people rallied and marched in downtown Santa Cruz in solidarity with prisoners at Pelican Bay who have ended their hunger strike and declared it a success. Their act of refusing to eat for four weeks has put the issues of torturous isolation units and California's debriefing program in the international and national media, boosted a growing movement for the rights of prisoners, and is unifying prisoners of different racial groups for a struggle against their real and shared enemies: the unfair policies and practices of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR).

Nineteen year-old Kenneth Harding was approached by San Francisco police officers doing fare inspections on the Muni platform at Third and Palou on Saturday, July 16th, 2011. Within a half block of running from police through a plaza, he was shot down on Oakdale Street and left to bleed to death as police offered no medical assistance and crowd-control police arrived to hold back a growing mass of angry residents well before any emergency paramedics reached the area. Numerous gatherings, marches, rallies, and vigils have challenged SFPDs evolving version of events and protested police who continue to kill with impunity. Bayview activist Debray Carpenter was arrested by SFPD late last week and he was finally released on July 26th with no charges.

Oscar Grant’s best friend, Johntue Caldwell, 25, was shot dead on July 15, 2011. He was the godfather of Oscar Grant’s daughter, Tatiana, and was one of the young men on the Fruitvale BART platform on January 1st, 2009 when Oscar Grant was killed. Johntue Caldwell was unarmed and killed at a Hayward gas station at around 5:35 p.m., when “someone” walked up to his car and fired several times at him. His assailant has not been identified or located yet. He leaves behind two young sons.

On the evening of July 3rd at the Civic Center BART station in San Francisco, two as of yet unidentified BART police officers shot and killed Charles Hill with three rounds to his chest. BART's police chief Kenton Rainey declared that he is "comfortable" with the shooting. On July 11th, at least 150 demonstrators converged at the very same station to protest the killing, to demand that the officers be held accountable and that the BART police department be shut down. Protesters had promised to disrupt the Bay Area Rapid Transit system's business as usual and BART PR spokesman Linton Johnson was forced to concede, "They succeeded."

serf city revolt! writes: News of "Predictive Policing" first surfaced around the new year. Hailed as the next generation of policing, it seeks to direct police resources to "times and places" where there is a greater likelihood of crime being committed. We emphasize the unstated significance of predictive policing and point towards ways to frustrate, antagonize, or just operate within a town that will try to predict your crime before you commit it.

UPDATE 7/12: Hunger Striker’s Health Rapidly Deteriorates | 7/14: Vigil to support the Prisoner Hunger Strikers

Thousands of California prisoners have come together in solidarity with the prisoners at Pelican Bay SHU. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s own figures acknowledge 6,600 prisoners participated in the hunger strike across 13 prisons in California this past weekend. The first solidarity actions were held on July 1st on both sides of the SF Bay. Further solidarity actions were held in Oakland on July 8th and San Francisco on July 9th.

Bad Cop writes: "Bad Cop focuses on police accountability, know your rights education, and the dissemination of effective tactics to utilize while documenting police in Santa Cruz County. We seek to document the abuse of authority and highlight the double standard that some grant to those with badges. By documenting police actions – whether they are illegal, immoral or just a waste of time and resources – we encourage transparency and hold police accountable."

A "Welcome to Palestine" campaign scheduled for July 8th through July 16th has begun at Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv. It is intended to draw attention to the Israeli blockade on the West Bank. As part of the campaign, hundreds plan to arrive in Tel Aviv and openly declare their intentions to travel to the West Bank to support peaceful Palestinian efforts for human rights. Already, dozens of activists and journalists have been denied entry to Israel after having been blacklisted or have been deported once they truthfully state their intentions.

Homes Not Jails took over the former Hotel Sierra at 20th and Mission streets in San Francisco on July 4th. The Hotel Sierra has been vacant for nearly 20 years. Almost 50 rooms have been empty on the building’s second floor. The action began in the afternoon with a rally in Dolores Park, then a march right into the Hotel Sierra, which had its doors wide open. There was music, food, sunbathing on the roof, and dancing in the streets. Police reportedly assaulted and hauled away one man without provocation.

UPDATE July 19th: The MV Juliano was detained in Crete by Greek authorities who refuse to let the boat sail. The last remaining Flotilla II boat, the French boat Dignite/Al Karama, was stopped by the Israeli navy about 40 miles off of the coast of Gaza.

The 2011 Stay Human Freedom Flotilla has faced repeated threats and admonishments from the U.S. and Israeli governments, the pullout of the Turkish contingent, meddling from Zionist law firms, sabotage to the propellers of the Greek and Irish boats by underwater divers, and an order from the Greek government banning the flotilla from embarking on the journey to Gaza from Greece. At this point, it remains uncertain how many boats will be able to set sail for Gaza.

Prisoners in the Security Housing Unit (SHU) at Pelican Bay State Prison in Crescent City, California announced that they are beginning an indefinite hunger strike on July 1st to protest the conditions of their imprisonment, which they say are cruel and inhumane. An online petition has been started by supporters of the strikers. Key demands include the elimination of group punishments, modification of active/inactive gang status criteria, and the provision of adequate food.

The City of Orlando, Florida is being sued in court over a city law that has effectively made it illegal for any group to feed more than 25 people at a time in downtown parks without a permit. Over the past month, more than 20 members of Food Not Bombs, including Keith McHenry who helped found the organization, have been arrested for providing free meals to the poor and homeless. Acting in defense of First Amendment rights, in solidarity with Keith McHenry, and to end the criminalization of poverty, Food Not Bombs-Santa Cruz organized a free meal and overnight vigil on June 30th outside Santa Cruz City Hall.

Three San José Council Members and Mayor Chuck Reed are pushing for a bill that would strip city workers of benefits and take away their collective bargaining rights. Activists say the proposed bill is similar to the attacks on workers' rights that were recently rammed through Wisconsin’s legislature by an anti-labor governor. On June 23rd, they called for an end to the city's union-busting tactics in a loud rally in front of City Hall.

Modesto Solidarity Network has launched a campaign to defend renters who are victims of unscrupulous landlords. The Network's first action was against EXIT Realty, a company with offices in Modesto and elsewhere in Northern California. The dispute was centered around the illegal lockout of a renter from her apartment. In California, an illegal lockout refers to the practice of landlords changing locks and harassing tenants until they leave their homes even though they have not legally been given 30 days notice. Since this is a frequent practice in Modesto, this first Network action may be a harbinger of more to come.

A Bradley Manning Pride Contingent joined the SF Pride parade on Sunday, June 26th. Dedicated to equal human rights, Army Private Bradley Manning stood openly against Don't Ask Don't Tell, and now is imprisoned as the alleged WikiLeaks whistle-blower. Bradley faces life in prison, and even the death penalty, for sharing the "Collateral Murder" video and files pertaining to the Iraq War, Afghanistan War, and Guantánamo.

Joshua Hart, Director of Stop Smart Meters! was arrested on June 21st after blocking the entrance to the Capitola PG&E payment center in protest of PG&E’s illegal “smart” meter installations in the County. The County of Santa Cruz, as well as the Cities of Capitola and Watsonville, have adopted urgency ordinances prohibiting the installation of wireless “smart” meters within their jurisdictions. Forty-three local governments throughout the state have formally demanded a halt to the program because of concerns about health, privacy, accuracy, and fire safety.

Bay of Rage writes Last Friday [June 17th], we marched on downtown banks behind a bloc of book shields in an anti-capitalist defense of the Oakland libraries. Tensions were high throughout the afternoon and the action quickly escalated into a showdown with police that took many off guard. We started assembling at Broadway and Telegraph in downtown Oakland at 3pm last Friday. There were about 60 of us. It was immediately clear that OPD had been monitoring the Bay of Rage website and was out in full force to crush the march.

On June 10th, homeless activist Gary Johnson — repeatedly ticketed and arrested in the 3-month long Peace Camp 2010 protest against the Sleeping Ban at the Santa Cruz County Courthouse — was sentenced to six months in jail and taken there in chains for violating California's 'anti-lodging' law (647e). Activist-attorney Ed Frey, who initiated, supported, and was arrested during the protest, was jailed at the same hearing. Judge John Gallagher refused to suspend sentencing pending appeal and denied a motion for a new trial after several jurors complained of juror misconduct.

Hundreds of people turned out at San Francisco City Hall on Friday, June 17th, to participate in the "Communities Rising to End the Drug War and Mass Incarceration" rally and march to protest the 40-year "war on drugs" and continued criminalization of the poor, the addicted, and communities of color. The protest then marched to the state and federal buildings nearby.

After six months of organizing rallies and actions behind the "redwood curtain" protesting CalTrans' plan to expand Highway 101 through Richardson Grove State Park, Richardson Grove Action Now took the fight to the state capital in Sacramento, where they carried out a flash mob action. The highway expansion plan threatens some of the last 2% remaining ancient redwoods on Earth.

On June 17th, about 75 LGBT activists protested outside the San Francisco International LGBT Film Festival, which accepted Israeli government sponsorship and financing for the second year in a row. The Brass Liberation Orchestra was on hand to provide a spirited soundtrack. QUIT! launched the campaign to get Frameline to divorce the Israeli Consulate in 2007. In 2008 and 2009, the festival did not accept Israeli sponsorship, after having done so for years. But last year, under pressure from the consulate, the new festival director and executive director renewed their partnership with the Israeli government.

On the morning of June 16th, the front pages of Spanish newspapers carried stories of demonstrators for democracy performing acts of violence. Amateur footage exposed that police infiltration was to blame, but YouTube blacked out some of the videos because they allegedly violated the privacy of the infiltrators. The incident happened just days before an announced nationwide protest against economical austerity measures to be imposed by the government.

Dozens of Bay Area activists rallied on June 16th in front of the Federal Building in downtown Oakland to “resist government attacks against activists”. On May 17, 2011 the SWAT Team of the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department and members of the FBI raided the home of Carlos Montes, a long time Chicano activist and active member of the Committee to Stop FBI Repression. Courage to Resist activists joined the rally to support Bradley Manning Support Network organizer David House who refused to answer questions from a Grand Jury in Virginia on June 15th.

CODEPINK Activists confronted GOP presidential candidate Tim Pawlenty on his anti-gay and anti-reproductive rights stance at the annual America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP) conference in San Francisco on June 16th. Showering the GOP presidential candidate with pink glitter and confetti, they shouted, "Where's your courage to stand up for gay and reproductive rights? Welcome to San Francisco, home of gay hero Harvey Milk!" Outside the Moscone center demonstrators rallied for a single payer healthcare system and satirical Billionaires for Wealthcare aped the wealthy who benefit from the insurance industry's huge profits.

The National Lawyers Guild filed a class action lawsuit against the Oakland Police Department on June 13th, in the United States District Court. The lawsuit asserts constitutional violations stemming from the November 5, 2010, mass arrest of 150 peaceful protesters following the sentencing of Johannes Mehserle, the BART police officer who killed Oscar Grant. The lawsuit seeks injunctive relief as well as monetary damages for those 150 people who were unlawfully corralled by police and incarcerated in overcrowded holding cells for up to 28 hours.