Luis Alberto Quinonez Enciso, Buena Vista Elementary 4th grade student, holds sign on the steps of City Hall to protest policy 8.12 of the San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department. RAMSEY EL-QARE / THE GUARDSMAN

By Alex Emslie and Greg Zeman
OPINIONS AND EDITORIALS EDITOR AND STAFF WRITER

A 2008 immigration policy instituted by Mayor Gavin Newsom is being challenged by the Board of Supervisors.

The legislation authored by District 9 Supervisor David Campos would amend the policy, providing greater protection from deportation for undocumented juveniles accused of criminal conduct. Seven other supervisors co-sponsored the legislation introduced Aug. 17.

The San Francisco Immigrant Rights Defense Committee is a diverse coalition of over 65 community organizations, unaffiliated with the board, that support the amendments which they say “restore due process rights to immigrant youth.” The committee accentuated the fact that many undocumented juveniles, particularly those from Latin America and the Caribbean Islands, come to the United States fleeing extreme poverty and gang warfare.

“I’m here now representing 130 families who have been destroyed by this new policy by Gavin Newsom,” said the mother of one juvenile facing deportation. “It is an unjust process for young people, and I want him to know this.”

The unidentified woman was addressing a sympathetic crowd at an Aug. 18 press conference on the steps of City Hall. Roughly 200 people encircled the woman, some waving signs reading “No human is illegal,” or “Ningun ser humano es ilegal!”

San Francisco’s Asian Law Caucus was instrumental in writing the legislation and organizing the press conference. African, Filipino, Arab, Asian and Latino American groups were all represented there, demonstrating that immigration issues affect a diverse population in this country.

“The reason why many of us are wearing black today is because we are mourning the fact that there are 130 undocumented youths who are facing deportation,” said Rachel Ebora, Director of Community Engagement at the Bernal Heights Neighborhood Center.

San Francisco passed the City and County of Refuge Ordinance — or Sanctuary Ordinance — in 1989. The ordinance bars city departments and employees from aiding the federal government in immigration enforcement efforts. “The ordinance is rooted in the sanctuary movement of the 1980’s, when churches across the country provided refuge to Central Americans fleeing civil wars in their countries,” according to

San Francisco’s official government Web site.
In 2008, the mayor altered the city’s long-standing policy of passive noncompliance with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Under policy 8.12 of the San Francisco Juvenile Probation Department, San Francisco law enforcement is required to report suspected undocumented juveniles arrested for a felony crime to ICE.

“The existing practice reports children the moment they are booked for something, irrespective of whether they did it,” Supervisor Campos said.

Once approved by the Board of Supervisors, the new amendments to the Sanctuary Ordinance will be passed on to the mayor’s office, though it remains to be seen whether Newsom will approve the legislation. Eight of 11 supervisors are needed to override a veto from the mayor and there are currently eight supervisors who support the ordinance. If one supervisor backs down from support of the ordinance, the board’s veto-proof majority could be shattered.

“I actually don’t know where he stands on it. It’s just insurance,” District 11 Supervisor John Avalos said about the board’s veto-proof majority. “I’m hoping he’ll be supportive and we’ll have his signature on this legislation.”

Avalos added that Newsom could have simply ended policy 8.12, but the board of supervisors was forced to draft the amendment.

“It’s a sanctuary city with lots of holes in the policy,” Avalos said.

In the past, Newsom has re-affirmed San Francisco’s sanctuary city policies, going as far as to institute a city identification card. The card identifies the holder as a San Francisco resident, eligible for access to all city services, regardless of their immigration status. However, the mayor has publicly criticized the board’s pending legislation.

“The supervisors are putting at risk the entire Sanctuary City Ordinance, which we’ve worked hard to protect,” Newsom told the Chronicle Aug. 20. Newsom and the city attorney’s office are worried that returning to pre-2008 sanctuary policies would leave the city open to federal legal challenges.

The mayor’s more stringent policy concerning ICE notification was enacted in response to public outrage surrounding the triple homicide of San Francisco resident Tony Bologna and two of his three sons in June 2008. Bologna and his sons were brutally gunned down three blocks from their home in the Excelsior district. Bologna’s surviving son, who witnessed the incident, identified undocumented El Salvadoran immigrant Edwin Ramos as the shooter.

The criminal investigation revealed Ramos was arrested multiple times prior to his arrest for the Bologna homicide — twice as a minor — but the Sanctuary Ordinance kept officials from reporting his immigration status to ICE for those offenses. The new policy is an attempt to avoid any repetition of the Ramos incident.
Campos and his coalition feel that Newsom went too far with juvenile probation department policy 8.12, to the point of compromising the due process rights of juveniles.

“What this legislation does is it tries to strike the right balance between two extremes,” Campos said. If the new legislation is passed, San Francisco will report juveniles to federal immigration officers, but only after they have been afforded due process and convicted of a crime.

Guardsman Staff PHotographer Ramsey El-Qare contributed to this story.

By Alex Emslie
Opinions and Editorials Editor

“I find it quite alarming and in some ways disrespectful,” said District 11 Supervisor John Avalos of the proposed San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency budget passed by the Board of Supervisors May 27.

The SFMTA’s $128.9 million deficit projected for fiscal year 2009-10 caused the agency to include a 50 cent hike to MUNI fares and a $10 increase to fast pass prices which took effect on July 1. Cuts and reroutes of bus services are scheduled for mid-October. The board approved the budget in a contentious 6-5 vote at the special meeting.

“I do feel that this could be much better,” District One Supervisor Eric Mar said. “It’s still an unbalanced and unfair budget that doesn’t share the burden with riders and drivers.”

Dissenting supervisors wanted to see more revenue from parking fee increases and less from MUNI fares. SFMTA Executive Director Nathaniel Ford acknowledged that more money could come from parking fees and said the agency would revisit that source over the next 90 days.

City College student and MUNI operator Emanuel Andreas, who recently founded the Bay Area Transportation Advisory Committee to act as a mediator between operators, their union and the SFMTA, said he would like to “completely reject” the budget and “start from scratch.”

“We don’t want the same type of thing next year; coming up asking for more money from working class people,” Andreas said. “The deficit is not going to go away until there is a structural change within the organization.”

The BATAC would like to see administration shoulder some of the burden of the fiscal crisis. “We want them to cut down at least five percent from management,” Andreas said.

“The fact that you may be adding services to other lines that are around it misses the underlying point,” said District Nine Supervisor David Campos to Ford, “which is that people who live in [Alemany] projects are now going to have to transfer to get to the supermarket.”

Campos was referring to the 67 line, which services parts of Bernal Heights, Alemany Blvd. and Mission Street. The western portion of the 67 loop is scheduled to be cut. Although Mission Street would still be served by the 14, eliminating half of the 67 loop ends direct service from Alemany Blvd. and Bernal Heights to the Mission.

“This is the only bus that runs by here,” said MUNI patron Naz Romero, as the 67 began its descent from the top of Bernal Heights. “This bus has always been in my neighborhood.”

“[The 67] runs sparse as it is. For those of us who live on the top of the hill, that’s a pain,” said Paul Wilson, another MUNI rider. “It’s terrible,” he added about the cuts.

Board of Supervisors President David Chiu said San Francisco’s $500 million deficit would “make this debate look like child’s play,” before voting to approve the SFMTA budget. “This is not the last word of this body on MUNI,” he added.

Information on MUNI service cuts and fare increases can be found at www.sfmta.com
Information on the BATAC can be found at www.baytac.org

By Alex Emslie
STAFF WRITER

Members of Bay Area Coalition of Welcoming Congregations lead the march from Church Street to Civic Center Plaza in San Francisco On May 26 in support of overturning Prop. 8. RAMSEY EL-QARE / THE GUARDSMAN

Supporters of same-sex marriage gathered in force early Tuesday morning at St. Frances Lutheran Church and marched chanting and singing to hear the state Supreme Court’s decision on the fate of Proposition 8. The cautiously optimistic crowd erupted into boos and shouts of, “shame on you,” when the decision was announced at approximately 10:03 a.m.

Of the three arguments before California’s highest court, two challenged the constitutionality of Prop. 8’s denial of marriage to same-sex couples. In a 6-1 vote, those constitutional challenges were rejected, and the amendment to the state constitution stating “only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California,” was upheld.

The third argument before the state Supreme Court, raised by attorney’s representing The Official Proponents of Proposition 8 and asking for the annulment of roughly 18,000 same-sex marriages conducted before the passage of the amendment, was unanimously denied by the court. Common supreme court practice denies the retroactive application of new laws unless the legislation contains specific language requiring it. Prop. 8, as it was presented to voters, contained no such language.

Protester of the state Supreme Court's decision on upholding Prop.8 being arrested for blocking the intersection of Van Ness Avenue and Grove Street in San Francisco on May 26. RAMSEY EL-QARE / THE GUARDSMAN

After the announcement, angry protesters moved to block the intersection of Grove Street and Van Ness Avenue, just outside City Hall. San Francisco Police Department Lieutenant Slade said, one platoon — or about 60 officers — were present at the civil disobedience following the announcement. According to sfexaminer.com, 175 protesters were arrested and released.

“This is a great demonstration between community activists and local clergy who are really outraged by the decision of the Supreme Cxourt to uphold Proposition 8,” said Rev. Roland Stringfellow of The Center for Lesbian and Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry. He said despite the Court’s decision not to nullify previous same-sex marriages, many protesters still saw the ruling as a defeat. “That is why we’re out on the streets today to make our voices heard and also put our bodies on the line.”  Rev. Stringfellow was arrested roughly 30 minutes later.

United Methodist Minister Israel Alvaren, who helped to coordinate about 40 clergy members with the organization One Struggle, One Fight, said he had cooperated with the SFPD to stage the protest. “Yes. We had a liaison,” an SFPD Leiutenent said. “We’re going to give them their time to express their opinions and differences, possibly for about an hour. At that point, we have to restore order.”

Proponents of Proposition 8 also made a smaller appearance Tuesday, hoisting signs reading “‘Gay’ = Perverted” and “Marriage is still one man and one woman.”

“Our social fiber is based upon the relationship between a man and a female,” said Steve Macias, student body president of Sacramento City College. “That is the beginning of the family; the beginning of society. [The] ruling upholds the right way to conduct society. Without this, we have a degradation of society.”  He also said the state Supreme Court’s decision against nullification was “politically motivated.”

Frank Parish, who said he had worked for Barack Obama’s presidential campaign, was outside the Supreme Court building collecting signatures for an initiative to strike down Proposition 8. He said more than 700,000 signatures would be required, since some would disqualified. Rev. Stringfellow said they would, “get marriage equality back on the ballot hopefully as soon as 2010 and, if not, 2012.”

“As a person of faith I would just say that the fight is not over; that we struggle in the tradition of the leaders of the civil rights leaders of the past,” concluded Alvaren. “This is a civil rights issue. For those who are on our side, let them have hope that this will, in the end, be a triumph for justice and equality.”

Ramsey El-Qare contributed to this story

By Greg Zeman
CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

“The document speaks for itself,” is a phrase popular with the few City College officials willing to comment on the more than $60,000 settlement reached between the San Francisco Community College District and Jews for Jesus.

Jews for Jesus is a religion-affiliated organization founded in San Francisco, which was officially founded in 1973.

The lawsuit grew from the arrest of a Jews for Jesus employee by campus police for leafleting without a permit.

“They [Jews for Jesus] said it was unconstitutional and they were right,” said Board of Trustee President, Milton Marks III.

“We don’t do a lot of commenting. I think the judgment speaks for itself,” said Ronald Lee, City College legal counsel.

Skip Fotch, dean of student activities, said the document outlining the new policy was available to The Guardsman, but declined to comment “pending completion of the suit.”

The revised policy on outside organizations at City College eliminates permit approval requirements and expands the area where groups can solicit literature to include Ram Plaza, the Cloud Science Mall and the Wellness Center amphitheater.

I moved to San Francisco from Napa in December 2006, yet I am still only marginally familiar with the city. My original plan was to spend at least one day per week drifting through the city with hopes of discovering my new home town. That obviously didn’t pan out as well I’d hoped.

San Francisco is one of the most interesting cities in the country with its different neighborhoods, people, and rich history making it a fixture of diversity. I wanted to visit every inch of San Francisco. I wanted to become intimate with the city. I wanted it to be like an old friend.

Although San Francisco is only seven miles across, there is still a lot to discover. Each neighborhood has its own unique characteristics, which contributes to the allure of “the City by the Bay.” With this in mind, I decided not start at one point and work my way through, but instead to pull out a map, close my eyes and randomly select a place to visit.

Each issue I’ll take you to a different place and share my experiences.

Alamo Square

Alamo Square is a large park at the Hayes Valley border. This park, which is surrounded by Hayes, Steiner, Scott and Fulton Street is home to residents, canines and tourists.

While I was there, a bus unloaded tourists to take photos of the “Painted Ladies” – beautiful Victorian homes lining Steiner Street. If you have ever watched the television series “Full House,” you are familiar with the view from Alamo Square. During the opening sequence of the show, you’d see four or five Victorian homes, which overlook the financial district. You too, can see this view from the top of hill while facing Steiner Street.

But Alamo Square is much more than a tourist attraction. The view of the city is different everywhere you stand. The park also has a playground for kids. If you’re a tennis lover, it offers a few courts to get your game on. Most importantly, the sun casts a beautiful golden shadow across the park at sunrise.

The next time you’re planning a picnic or just want to toss around the ol’ pig skin: give Alamo Square a visit.

However, if there is anything at Alamo Square worth seeing, it’s the view.

Expo-goers test drive iLife 09 and iWork 09 at the Apple booth, which was announced during the keynote at MacWorld Jan. 5-9. JESSICA LUTHI / THE GUARDSMAN

By Jessica Luthi
Editor in Chief

Thousands of people from around the world come to San Francisco every year for the biggest gathering in matters of all things Apple. IDG’s MacWorld Expo and Conference at the Moscone Center from Jan. 5. to Jan. 9, has become the the company’s platform to unveil many of its popular consumer electronics, including the iPhone and the MacBook Air.

Apple announced in Dec. 2008, it would be pulling of out the popular trade show in 2010.

Phillip Schiller, senior vice president of worldwide product marketing, spoke at this year’s keynote address, which has become a major highlight for the show. “I can’t tell you how personally excited I am to be the one to deliver MacWorld 2009’s keynote to you,” Schiller said at the keynote.

Rumors began circulating after the Apple’s initial announcement that CEO Steve Jobs would not be delivering the annual keynote. “Unfortunately, my decision to have Phil deliver the Macworld keynote set off another flurry of rumors about my health, with some media outlets even publishing stories of me on my deathbead, ” said Jobs in a letter to the Apple community.

Even though Jobs wasn’t present for the first time in nearly a decade, the show went on.

This year, Apple released a slew of new updates to its software packages iLife and iWork, as well as the addition of 17-inch MacBook Pro to the Mac family. Although Apple did no major unveiling of new, trendsetting electronics, many expo-goers managed to get excited about the upcoming changes to iTunes.

iTunes currently includes music from major music labels — Universal Music Group, Sony BMG, Warner Music Group and EMI. But one of the biggest changes is that all music available on iTunes will now be DRM-free via iTunes Plus, beginning with eight million songs this month and the final two million plus songs by the end of Apple’s current quarter. After April 1, songs can also be purchased in three tiers – $.69, $.99, $1.29, which Schiller said will be a benefit for consumers.

Music, in combination with iTunes, has been a signature product for Apple. Many songs have become popular after being used in Apple ads,  including Feist’s “1,2,3,4″ and Coldplay’s “Viva la Vida”. “Now we’re ending on music … I think it’s fitting to end our last MacWorld keynote with an artist who really has some amazing music,” Schiller said before introducing Grammy award-winning artist, Tony Bennett, who ended with the “The best is yet to come.”

Thousands of protesters gathered in San Francisco's Civic Center Plaza on November 15 to protest the passing of the California ballot initiative Proposition 8. GRAHAM HENDERSON / THE GUARDSMAN

By Lauren Tyler
Staff Writer

Thousands of protesters gathered at San Francisco’s City Hall on Nov. 15 to protest the recent passage of Proposition 8, which bans same-sex marriage in California.

Several speakers presented their views on Proposition 8 and gave the crowd fuel and strategy about how to possibly overturn the proposition.

California state assemblyman Mark Leno compared the passing of Proposition 8 to the ballot initiative Proposition 22 in 2000, which prevented the recognition of same-sex marriage. Proposition 22 received eighteen more points than Proposition 8 did this in election.

“We picked up eighteen points, they [the supporters of Proposition 8] lost eighteen points. We have the momentum and they are hanging on by a thread,” Leno said.

Leno also questioned the motives of religious groups supporting Proposition 8, saying that the proposition denies citizen of their basic civil rights.

State Sen. Carol Migden told protesters their gathering presents “the fuel, the substance, the momentum … that we will use to propel from this day forward.”

Migden also spoke about the position taken by many religious organizations against same-sex marriages in their churches. “I’ll take it [same-sex marriage] through City Hall. You don’t want us in your church? I don’t go to your church,” Migden said.

From the opposite end of the political spectrum, the Rev. Amos Brown, head of the San Francisco chapter of the NAACP and a devout baptist from Mississippi said, “I am heterosexual … though I am a baptist, I am not a bigot!”

He questioned the beliefs of the conservative religious right and the persistence on keeping marriage from same-sex couple when the divorce rate is highest in the bible belt.

Same-sex couples and their children also spoke to the crowd gathered at the Civic Center Plaza.

Join the Impact, the group that organized the protest, coordinated simultaneous protests in 150 U.S. cities, as well as international protests against Proposition 8.

Check back with The Guardsman for any post-updates updates from Nov. 15 Proposition 8 protests that are happening around the Bay Area, and specifically at San Francisco’s City Hall.

View Guardsman staff writer Lauren Tyler’s story on San Francisco’s Prop 8 protest: Thousands gather in Civic Center Plaza to protest Prop 8.

Follow The Guardsman on Twitter via sfbreakingnews for any breaking news in San Francisco, or at City College.

By Alex Luthi
Editor

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The San Francisco LoveFest took over the city’s financial district on Oct. 4, with an estimated 70,000 festival goers in attendance, according to LoveFest officials.

With its beginnings as Loveparade San Francisco, LoveFest has become San Francisco’s yearly electronic music parade that travels down Market Street each fall, beginning at 2nd and Market Streets and ends at the Civic Center Plaza, where the parade route ends and each float takes up a position around the plaza late into the evening.

This year 28 floats surrounded the Civic Center Plaza, both featuring local and international talent. Fans anticipating big names like Benny Benassi, Lee Burridge, Dave Dresden and Armin van Buuren had to wait for Saturday evening’s sold-out afterparty, with tickets going for $80 at the door.

Things change quickly in San Francisco – design and legislature change, leading us in bold new directions. Neighborhoods adjust to the influx of new people and ideas, causing parts of the city to look different and unfamiliar.

In an effort to keep you excited about the city where you study, New Additions will showcase a few of Frisco’s freshest spots.

We owe it to ourselves to check out what new developments this city has to offer and integrate ourselves into the city President Taft once called, “the city that knows how.”

Potrero Del Sol Skateboard Park

Officially opened in July, San Francisco is now home to a skatepark designed by professionals with the true interests of skateboarders in mind.

Skaters are no longer limited to the ditch vert of Crocker Amazon as the only legal and approachable spot to skate in San Francisco.

The good people at Grindline, who have molded other notable parks in Oregon, such as Orcas Island, have blessed the Mission District with the concrete gem it deserves.

The Potrero park offers more flow to a “street” section than many parks in the Bay, making it a good place to find lines to keep your speed and cover the whole park.

“Groms” love the euro-gap; “Barneys” will dig the four-to-ten foot bowl with a better waterfall than the one in San Rafael, as well as a difference in vert from the park in Pacifica.

Pads are not enforced and you can always brown bag it on “Heckle Hill” in-between runs.

It’s awesome to see the older generation of skaters (over twenty-one) coming out of the city’s woodwork to collide with beginners still learning park etiquette.

Potrero del Sol Skatepark recently hosted the annual Toad and Salmon’s Chili Bowl Cook-off, making it the official skatepark of San Francisco.