Voices

FIRST-PERSON ESSAYS LINKING THE PRIVATE TO THE PUBLIC

January, 1998 until the present

Click here for older Voices articles.

Updated: Fri, 09 Jan 00 10:06:40 -0700 (PDT)

A Hat Is Not Just Something You Put On Your Head
By Raphael Tompkins And Tom Turpel
Date: 01-09-01
Count the baseball cap out, at least among San Francisco's young people, and look instead for a complete variety of headgear fashion statements. PNS contributor Raphael X. Tompkins is a 23-year-old student. Tom Turpel is a 22-year-old independent filmmaker, and journalist. Both write for YO! Youth Outlook, a publication by and about Bay Area youth published by Pacific News Service.

Jewish With A Korean Face
By Adam Rosen
Date: 12-21-00
A "mixed-up" kid finally comes to terms with the confusing circumstances of his life and uncovers a clear path to his future. Adam Rosen is a contributor to YO! Youth Outlook, a publication by and about Bay Area youth published by Pacific News Service.

Bush Presidency -- Young People Express Fear And Rage
By Andre Baca, Angelika Gomez, Nelson Tam and Swan Gant
Date: 12-14-00
The editors and staff members of YO! Youth Outlook gathered reactions to the end to the deadlock over the presidency. Andre Baca, 21, is a writer, performance poet with Youth Speaks and a screenwriter. Angelika Gomez, 18, is a college freshman, outreach coordinator for YO!, a writer and photojournalist. Nelson Tam is a junior in college, majoring in philosophy, and a documentary filmmaker. Swan Gant, 16, is an aspiring rap artist. YO! Youth Outlook is a monthly publication by and about Bay Area youth published by Pacific News Service.

My Life As Special Ed
By Edward Nieto
Date: 12-13-00
Edward Nieto, 22, began writing for YO! in August of 2000. His byline has appeared in the San Francisco Examiner, YO! Youth Outlook, NCMonline.com, and has been distributed via the Pacific News Service.

The Pigeon
By Hazel Tesoro
Date: 12-13-00
Sometimes people in the big city seem like flocks of birds trying to make it in a crowded cage. Hazel Tesoro is on the staff of YO! Youth Outlook, a publication by and about Bay Area youth published by Pacific News Service.

It's Time To Junk Law That Equates Political Spending With Free Speech
By Jennifer Rockne
Date: 12-11-00
Despite remarkable progress in every sort of endeavor, women are still woefully underrepresented in Congress. The basic problems here are money and incumbency, which are intimately entwined, and changes in that situation are unlikely under current law. PNS commentator Jennifer Rockne is the assistant director of reclaimdemocracy.org.

Democrats Risk Future By Ignoring The Disenfranchised
By David Bacon
Date: 11-13-00
Amid the confusions of the election, it is easy to overlook the fact that the percentage of eligible voters showing up at the polls was the lowest ever recorded. This both explains and reflects choices made by the Democratic Party and there is little sign those choices will change. PNS associate editor David Bacon writes widely on immigrant and labor issues.

Bush's Court Action Conceals A Killing Irony
By Michael Kroll
Date: 11-13-00
The picture of states' rights champion George W. Bush asking the federal courts to interfere with a state following its own laws is ironic, even amusing. But his argument involves a serious contradiction with the position he has taken as governor with respect to judges' actions in the continuing stream of executions in his state. PNS associate editor Michael Kroll is a veteran death penalty abolitionist and founder of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, D.C.

Once Again, Democrats Owe Blacks Big Time
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 11-09-00
In Florida particularly, but also in other key states, black voters turned out in force, and 80 percent or more voted Democratic, despite the fact that vice president Gore generally stayed away from black communities. This voting pattern goes back at least 35 years, and it's time for the party to show it deserves such loyalty. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the president of the National Alliance for Positive Action. e-mail: ehutchinson@natalliance.org. Website: www.natalliance.org

For Youngest Voters, The Issue Is Education And Victory Is Sweet
By Liz Gonzalez and Russell Morse
Date: 11-09-00
An initiative measure on the California ballot this year (Prop. 38), establishing a school voucher system, was resoundingly defeated (70 percent voted no). The youngest voters, those most familiar with the public schools, suggest some compelling -- and somewhat optimistic -- reasons for this. Liz Gonzalez, while admitting some self-interest, shows genuine concern for those in the public schools; Russell Morse sees the defeat of this measure and the victory of Prop. 36. mandating treatment rather than prison for some drug offenders, as indications of a change of heart on both issues. Both are contributors to YO! Youth Outlook, a monthly news magazine by and about Bay Area youth published by Pacific News Service.

Bush's DUI -- Is It That Easy To Forget?
By Joe Loya
Date: 11-03-00
Republican presidential candidate George W. Bush expects voters to forgive the "past mistakes" he has vaguely admitted. Indeed, his campaign expects the exposure of his arrest for drunken driving 20 years ago to blow over. Not so fast, says PNS commentator Joe Loya. Loya is a California writer currently writing a memoir on his experience in prison. His e-mail address is buddhalobo@aol.com.

Haircuts And The Apocalypse -- The Middle East Is Next Door
By Kevin Weston
Date: 10-25-00
Americans are well known for their lack of interest in events anyplace else in the world. But in many communities, recent news from the Middle East has an immediate significance. The American Jewish community immediately comes to mind, but fundamentalist Christians feel a powerful identification with events half a world away. PNS commentator Kevin Weston is a Generation X survivor, writer, youth advocate, activist, and hip hop entrepreneur. His byline has appeared in the L.A. Times, The San Jose Mercury News and The S.F. Examiner. He is the Verses Editor for the San Francisco Bayview and an editor at YO! Youth Outlook Magazine.

What The Heavens Say About Gore Vs. Bush
By Andrew Lam
Date: 10-25-00
In times of uncertainty, humans have always looked to the skies for signs of what might happen next. Many find that this produces only a sore neck, but a few, a very few, can read the past and future. PNS commentator Andrew Lam, a journalist and short story writer, shares his divinations.

Young Voters In Silicon Valley Size Up Gore And Bush
By Raj Jayadev
Date: 10-19-00
Young people have the lowest voter turnout of any population group. The conclusions of some who gathered to watch the last presidential debate could explain why. PNS correspondent Raj Jayadev is the Silicon Valley/Digital Divide editor for YO! Youth Outlook, a monthly newspaper by and about Bay Area youth published by Pacific News Service.

Missing Voices In Pundit Reactions -- Youth Weigh In On Debate Forum
By Russell Morse, Swan Gant, and Charles Jones
Date: 10-04-00
Rarely heard in the reactions to the first presidential candidates' debate were the voices of young people -- perhaps because youth have the lowest voter turnout of any population group. YO! Youth Outlook offers a sampling of perspectives from San Francisco and Oakland youth whose preference for Gore reflects the traditionally liberal democratic voting trends of the Bay Area but is at odds with overall poll findings showing American youth favoring Bush. The second debate will feature youth reporters who work in Silicon Valley. The third debate will be covered by youth reporters from the Bay Area's bedroom communities.

Grandmother's Last Lesson -- Seeing Time As A Trick Of The Mind
By Andrew Lam
Date: 09-29-00
A senile grandmother in a California rest home imagines herself to be 17 back in her homeland of Vietnam. For her grandson, her confusion promises a serenity enjoyed only by the very young and the very old. PNS Editor Andrew Lam is a short story writer and a journalist whose commentaries air regularly on National Public Radio. Another version of this story appeared in the Sacramento Bee.

Eternal Flame
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 09-15-00
As the Summer Olympics opens in Sydney, writer Richard Rodriguez reflects on a certain ambivalence he feels about this "most pagan of celebrations." Rodriguez, an author and essayist, is a regular contributor to PBS' The News Hour with Jim Lehrer.

All Together Now: Why We Need A Million Family March
By David Muhammad
Date: 08-29-00
Since I participated in the Million Man March nearly five years ago, I have been married and we have had a daughter. I returned to my community with the spirit of wanting to live up to the pledges given that day on the National Mall in Washington. Now my family and I plan to return to the Capitol, along with my father, my wife's parents and several other family members for the Million Family March.

City Living In A Dilemma -- Boomtown With No Room
By Andrew Lam
Date: 08-24-00
Long-time residents of San Francisco hear themselves saying "good-bye" a lot recently, as friends light out for more affordable spots. It's the price of success, maybe, but that doesn't make it any sweeter. Andrew Lam, a commentator for National Public Radio, writes short stories and reports for New California Media, PNS' ethnic media web site at www.NCMonline.com.

My Mother, The Democrat -- And Why She Still Loves Bill Clinton
By Rene Ciria-Cruz
Date: 08-21-00
Sure the Democrats revere the Kennedys, and they let their nostalgia for America's ill-starred royal family wash over the second evening of their convention. But it's still Bill Clinton's legacy -- thousands leapt to their feet and many wept openly during his fighting farewell on opening day -- that's fueling their enthusiasm. Al Gore, who's trying hard to distance himself from the president, can't afford a complete disconnection. PNS correspondent Rene Ciria-Cruz is an editor of New California Media (www.NCMonline.com) and an associate editor of the San Francisco-based Filipinas magazine. His e-mail address is reneccruz@pacificnews.org.

Charged With Being Ethnic Chinese
By Theodore Hsien Wang And Victor Hwang
Date: 08-18-00
In the eight months since Dr. Wen Ho Lee was first arrested and imprisoned, what was presented as a case of "Chinese espionage" has fallen apart. Instead, there is mounting evidence that the government singled out Dr. Lee as a suspect because of his Chinese ethnicity, making his case of paramount importance to all Americans concerned about racial profiling. Theodore Hsien Wang is the Policy Director of Chinese for Affirmative Action and Victor Hwang is the Managing Attorney for the Asian Law Caucus.

Convention Wisdom: Day Two -- More Television Than Vision , Les Pep Than Sausage
By Rene Ciria-Cruz
Date: 08-16-00
As the Democratic convention continues, our keen eyed observer, a newly naturalized U.S. citizen from the Philippines, finds himself looking for things that may not be there. And in the midst of the hullabaloo he recalls an intimate political experience in his homeland. PNS correspondent Rene Ciria-Cruz is an editor of New California Media (www.NCMonline.com) and an associate editor of the San Francisco-based Filipinas magazine. His e-mail address is reneccruz@pacificnews.org.

Presidential Debates Should Serve -- Not Subvert -- Democracy
By Jeff Milchen
Date: 08-14-00
Perhaps the most significant, if least noted, takeover in recent years involves the presidential debates -- now run by a corporation which is "nonpartisan" but has rigged the rules so only members of the two major parties are eligible. This is a disservice to the idea and practice of democracy. PNS commentator Jeff Milchen is the founder of ReclaimDemocracy.org, a non-profit group dedicated to reviving American democracy and revoking illegitimate corporate power over civic society. His e-mail address is jeff@ReclaimDemocracy.org.

A New Citizen Views The Convention -- an Only-In-America Experience
By Rene Ciria-Cruz
Date: 08-14-00
Party conventions these days seem to combine utter predictability and a complete departure from normal reality to those of us who watch from a distance. Close up, a sharp-eyed observer, especially a newly naturalized citizen from the Philippines, can see that at heart the Democratic Convention is an only-in-America experience. PNS correspondent Rene Ciria-Cruz is an editor of New California Media (www.NCMonline.com) and an associate editor of the San Francisco-based Filipinas magazine. His e-mail address is reneccruz@pacificnews.org.

New Culture Wars -- Struggling To Unite, Not Divide
By Emil Guillermo
Date: 08-02-00
Whatever its virtues, the Republican Party has not been particularly successful in reaching nonwhite voters over the years. An attempt to change that image has brought some new faces to this year's convention -- though the road ahead seems rocky indeed. Emil Guillermo is host of New California Media TV, a weekly talk show featuring the voices of California's ethnic media, and a reporter for Grassroots.com.
Meet The New GOP -- One Happy Family Of Brotherly Love Wannabes
By Emil Guillermo
Date: 08-02-00
Whatever its virtues, the Republican Party has not been particularly successful in reaching nonwhite voters over the years. An attempt to change that image has brought some new faces to this year's convention -- though the road ahead seems rocky indeed. Emil Guillermo is host of New California Media TV, a weekly talk show featuring the voices of California's ethnic media, and a reporter for Grassroots.com.

A Doctor's Dilemma -- Facing Aids With Empty Pockets
By Dr. Somnuek Sungkanuparph
Date: 07-26-00
Nothing is more painful and frustrating to a doctor than knowing how to treat a patient but lacking the resources to do so. But that is the everyday reality for physicians in Thailand, where an estimated million of the country's 60 million have AIDS. PNS commentator Dr. Somnuek Sungkanuparph is with the Infectious Disease Unit, Department of Medicine, Ramathibodi Hospital, Bangkok, Thailand
Escape From San Francisco
By Katie Baggot
Date: 07-18-00
Every summer, thousands of young American travel abroad. For many, the trip is more than a vacation, it's a rite of passage inspired by a deep discomfort with home and their search for identity. Katie Baggot, 17, writes for YO! Youth Outlook from the road. YO! Youth Outlook, a publication by and about Bay Area Youth, is published by Pacific News Service.
Should Wen Ho Lee Cop A Plea? Making A Deal Would Be A Disservice To All Americans
By George Koo
Date: 07-17-00
The facts in the Wen Ho Lee case get more and more curious as time goes by. Recently, the judge has suggested the prosecution negotiate with Lee's lawyers on questions of bail, which raises the possibility of a plea bargain -- a possibility that PNS commentator George Koo finds unsavory indeed. Koo is a business consultant and a member of Committee of 100, a national organization of prominent Chinese Americans.
The View From West 43rd Street
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 07-12-00
As America creates the world's first truly global society, its "newspaper of record" -- the New York Times -- assures readers they remain at the center of our national life, observes PNS editor Richard Rodriguez. Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation: An Argument with my Mexican Father."
Mississippi Hanging Exposes America's Oldest Taboo
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date:
The word "lynching," seldom heard in recent years, has been used to describe the death by hanging of a 17-year-old in Mississippi. Such a charge may be groundless in this case, but those who bring it have strong, historic reasons for their fears. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the author of "The Disappearance of Black Leadership." His e-mail address is ehutchi344@aol.com.
Meet A Whirlwind American Sensei
By Eve Pell
Date: 07-07-00
Stanford is about to study the theory, but when it comes to practice George Leonard is hard to beat. At 76, he is comfortably a master of aikido, and convinced it is the key to health. PNS contributor Eve Pell is formerly the number one ranked woman road runner over 60 in the United States, and writes a regular column on veteran athletes for Pacific News Service.
Filipino Ex-Hostage Tells Harrowing Tale
By Rene Ciria-Cruz
Date: 06-23-00
The kidnapping of 21 foreign tourists by self-styled Muslim rebels in the Philippines two months ago has come into the news again with the Filipino government's announcement that it is considering paying the $21 million ransom they demanded. Evidently unnoticed in the midst of all this, a lone hostage held by the same group has emerged with a detailed account of the experience. PNS editor Rene Ciria-Cruz interviewed ex-hostage Andres Amante soon after he was freed. Photo available; e-mail slouie@pacificnews.org for details.
Infanticide, Bride Burnings, Suicides: Dowries The Root Cause Of Abuse Of Women In India
By Sarita Sarvate
Date: 06-16-00
The flood of numbers that passes by our eyes every day often seem to blur more than they reveal. But one recently published statistic for one observer provides a window into a very unsettling reality about the treatment of women in India. PNS commentator Sarita Sarvate, born and raised in India, is an award-winning essayist for the San Jose, CA-based monthly India Currents and a regular commentator on National Public Radio.
One Man's Reunification
By Katherine Cowy Kim
Date: 06-15-00
As the high drama of a summit meeting between North and South Korea commands attention on front pages, one Korean-American is thinking hard about the possibility of returning to his homeland. After 50 years of determined assimilation, and myriad changes on both sides, the choice is not a simple one. PNS editor Katherine Cowy Kim is a Bay Area freelance writer and works with YO! Youth Outlook.
Corcoran Ruling May Escalate Crime Wave By Enforcers
By Joe Loya
Date: 06-14-00
Right in the middle of a historic national eight-year decrease in crime, those entrusted to enforce the law are experiencing a crime wave of their own. Last week's acquittal of eight California prison guards of federal charges of violating prisoners' civil rights may accelerate the trend. PNS associate editor Joe Loya is working on a memoir about his years in federal prison. His e-mail address is buddhalobo@aol.com.
Ode To The Hand Written Letter
By Andrew Lam
Date: 06-08-00
A writer is brought up sharply by a long-lost friend who opines that their exchange of e-mail can hardly be called "staying in touch." Where is the intimate exchange of reflection -- let alone the art of narration -- that came with the handwritten letter? And what happens to a culture when the art of literacy is lost? PNS associate editor Andrew Lam makes his living by writing. (lam@pacificnews.org)
My Neighborhood's 15 Minutes Of Fame
By Rene Ciria-Cruz
Date: 06-02-00
For a flicker of media time, much of the world was transported to a run-down section of Manila as the unlikely setting for the most up to date of crimes -- sending a "computer virus" over the Internet. The correspondents and investigators have moved on, but they could have learned a few things. Pacific News Service editor Rene Ciria-Cruz reports from the Philippines and is also a longtime editor of Filipinas Magazine.
Momentum Builds In Movement To Demand Reparations For Slavery
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 05-31-00
As a people, as a country, the United States stands squarely against even the idea of slavery. But when the question of providing some sort of monetary compensation for those most damaged by slavery arises, a host of complications and objections appear. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson is a nationally syndicated columnist and the director of the National Alliance for Positive Action. His e-mail address is ehutchi344@aol.com.
Clampdown On Internet Music Providers Is Shortsighted
By Scott S. Louie
Date: 05-25-00
To a lone music lover delighted at the chance to grab some sounds for free, the moguls of the music industry are not exactly considered giants of generosity. But their attacks on Internet music providers -- and the providers' militant response -- suggest they are both missing a major opportunity. PNS commentator Scott S. Louie writes on arts and culture trends for New California Media, PNS' ethnic news media collaborative and web site (www.NCMonline.com).
Environmental Refugees Still Fleeing Hurricane Mitch
By Isabel Alvarado
Date: 05-18-00
As thousands of environmental refugees continue to flee to the U.S. some 18 months after Hurricane Mitch struck Honduras, INS has just extended Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for one year to Honduran migrants in this country -- but only those who came before December 1998. Isabel Alvarado, who sells socks in the Fifth Street Market in Tegucigalpa, sees the dangerous and illegal journey north as her only escape route from the hurricane's devastation. PNS/NCM editor Mary Jo McConahay transcribed and edited her account as a first-person essay. Photographs are available on request. E-mail slouie@pacificnews.org.
Roots Of Philippine Hostage Crisis Too Deep, Too Old For Purely Military Solutions
BY RENE CIRIA-CRUZ, PACIFIC NEWS SERVICE
Date: 05-11-00
There's still no end in sight to the suffering of hostages seized by a band of Muslim guerrillas in Southern Philippines. The government of President Joseph Estrada hesitates to invite foreign diplomatic mediation and is still drawn to a military solution -- an approach that sadly resonates among many Filipinos blinded by centuries-old prejudices. Pacific News Service editor Rene Ciria-Cruz is also a longtime editor of Filipinas Magazine. THIS ARTICLE CAN BE RUN IN TWO PARTS.
Freedom Can Be A Hard Train To Ride
By Damian Eckhout And Rex
Date: 05-02-00
It's the season for conferences on youth and adolescents -- this year's topics will no doubt include school performance and violence, and draw many worthwhile contributions. But few will include presentations by the objects of their attention -- young people themselves. Rex (no last name) and Damian Eckhout offer two different accounts of the joys and costs of being free. Alaska native Eckhout, after being clean for two months, died of a heroin overdose shortly following completion of his piece. He was 22. Rex, 18, considers himself a nomadic train-hopper. Both contributed their articles to the Freedom Manual, a project of Pacific News Service by and about homeless young people living outside the system.
Feds Should Act On Proof That Drug Policy Is Racist, Wasteful -- And Totally Ineffective
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 04-27-00
Federal prisons are packing in record numbers of inmates, most of them young and African American for crimes involving small amounts of crack cocaine. Since young African Americans play at best a minor role in cocaine trafficking, it is becoming clear that current drug policy is racially biased as well as ineffective. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the author of "The Disappearance of Black Leadership." E-mail him at ehutchi344@aol.com.
U.S. Customs Applies A Double Standard In Two Directions At Once
By Linn Washington Jr.
Date: 04-27-00
Black travelers who go abroad, especially women, are far more likely than other travelers to be stopped and searched by U.S. Customs according to a recent Government Accounting Office report. The bad news is that this practice can be seen as simply the extension of policies within the agency itself. PNS commentator Linn Washington Jr. is a journalism professor at Temple University and a graduate of the Yale Law Journalism Fellowship who writes extensively on inequities in the criminal justice system.
Elian -- The First Cause That Could Unify Hispanics
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 04-24-00
Alone among Hispanics, Cuban Americans never identified themselves as a "minority" in America -- their grievance was with Cuba. Today, their fierce resistance to America's national will over Elian could finally unify them with other Hispanic Americans. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Hunger of Memory" and "Days of Obligation: An Argument with my Mexican Father."
Staying In Place, Staying In Motion -- A Refugee Returns To Hue
By Andrew Lam
Date: 04-21-00
On the anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, a returning Vietnamese refugee sees the citadel city of Hue not as the site of the great battle, but the place he realizes one true outcome of the century's conflicts: the creation of global villagers -- refugees -- who long to be rooted in place. PNS associate editor Andrew Lam is a journalist and short story writer.
Only The Survivors Can Grasp The Meaning Of Columbine
By Kathy Dobie
Date: 04-18-00
Distance in time and space may help us reach some understanding of events that cannot be explained in any usual way. Looking at Columbine from New York City after a year of trying to know what it was all about, PNS commentator Kathy Dobie has come to realize that the meaning of the incident will be decided only by how the survivors -- mothers and fathers, sisters, brothers, teachers, cops -- lead their own lives in the wake of the tragedy.
How Globalism Became Public Enemy Number One For Both Left And Right
By Franz Schurmann
Date: 04-14-00
Until recently, the left saw capitalism as its ideological enemy while for the right it was socialism. Today both left and right see globalism as their main enemy. PNS editor Franz Schurmann argues that there is more to this coming together than semantics. Schurmann is a professor emeritus of history and sociology at UC-Berkeley and author of numerous books on global politics.
An Immigrant's View: Cuban Exiles Are No Empowerment Role Models
By Rene Ciria-Cruz
Date: 04-07-00
Coverage of the sound and fury generated by Florida's Cuban exile community over the fate of a six-year-old boy has focused on the immediate human aspects of the story. But observed in a somewhat broader context, these actions tell a more significant, and more worrisome, tale. Pacific News Service editor Rene Ciria-Cruz is also a longtime editor of Filipinas Magazine.
Old General And Mystic Is Key To Mideast Peace -- And End To Oil Crisis
By Franz Schurmann
Date: 03-29-00
While the "oil crisis" and attempts to fashion a peace agreement in the middle east are usually treated as separate topics, they are in fact intimately linked. Moreover, the fate of both may rest in the hands of one man. PNS editor Franz Schurmann, professor emeritus of history and sociology at UC-Berkeley, is author of numerous books on foreign affairs and reads widely in the Arab language media.
Oscar's Moral View -- Underneath The Tinsel, Hollywood Reflects A Darker Picture Of America
By Joe Loya
Date: 03-27-00
It's no longer just glamour and good guys -- the Academy Awards more and more reveal not only ambiguity but outright ugliness. This reflects changes in our attitude toward the world -- and changes in the world itself. PNS commentator Joe Loya is a California writer currently writing a memoir on his experience in prison. His e-mail address is buddhalobo@aol.com.
Pray Brown Is Not Trapped By Bygone Fantasies Of Violent Revolution
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 03-24-00
The arrest of Jamil al-Amin, once known as H. Rap Brown, on charges of killing one deputy sheriff and wounding another, calls to mind the rhetoric of violence which marked Amin's career as a Black Panther some 30 years ago. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson reflects on the way violence obliterates good work in the public mind. Hutchinson is the author of the forthcoming, "The Disappearance of Black Leadership" ( Middle Passage Press, Los Angeles, April 2000). Order Information: 323-298-0266. E-mail: ehutchi344@aol.com.
Starving For Dignity
By Eduardo Stanley
Date: 03-21-00
Workers at the Spanish-language Univision station KFTV-21 in Fresno have been on a hunger strike to protest the company's lack of "good faith" in negotiating a labor contract. KFTV reportedly earns more than $8 million annually, has excellent ratings and a constantly growing audience. Yet, the workers say, they are being paid starvation wages. PNS commentator Eduardo Stanley is a freelance journalist based in the San Joaquin Valley who worked at KFTV for six years.
Indians Have Long Loved America -- Can Clinton Make This A Mutual Affair?
By Sarita Sarvate
Date: 03-21-00
President Clinton's trip to India should highlight how much in common Indians share with Americans -- and how much America needs India rather than the other way around. PNS contributing editor Sarita Sarvate writes for India Currents, a monthly based in San Jose, Ca.
Chandlers Go The Way Of All Family Dynasties In California
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 03-14-00
Family dynasties have always been beside the point in California -- the most famous Californians this state celebrates were born elsewhere. With the sale of the family-owned Los Angeles Times to the Chicago Tribune, the most famous family name in Los Angeles passes into history. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez, author of the forthcoming "Brown," is an essayist for the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the Opinion section of the Los Angeles Times.
The Other Vote -- Homeless -- Homeless Voter: Picking The Cleanest Of The Dirty Socks
By Raendi Beamer
Date: 03-09-00
Although it is now possible for some homeless citizens to vote, they do not find the choices have much to do with their lives. At least one first-time voter sees the ballot as a confusing example of some peculiar ideas. Pacific News Service and NCM contributor Raendi Beamer, 23, is a writer for YO! (Youth Outlook) and lives with her dog, Sheba, on the streets of San Francisco. (photos are available).
Brother Amadou
By Lance Johnson
Date: 03-06-00
Lance Johnson is a 24-year-old college student living in the Bronx, New York. "Recently I have been angered and a bit confused by the acquittal of the four NYPD officers in the shooting death of Amadou Diallo, an unarmed black man," Johnson said. "My frustration prompted me to write about the fear I and many other African American men all over the country feel because of this outcome."
Vietnamese Americans: McCain Is Popular But Not A Shoo-In
By Hoai Phi
Date: 03-02-00
Vietnam War hero Sen. John McCain has an obvious edge over Gov. George W. Bush among Vietnamese American voters during the primaries. However, politics in the generally conservative community are starting to evolve, reports Hoai Phi, a correspondent for New California Media <http://www.NCMonline.com>, an ethnic news media collaborative of Pacific News Service.
Important Candidates' Voices...But Will We Hear Them?
By Jeff Milchen
Date: 03-02-00
Post-primary presidential debates are controlled by a privately-funded corporation which virtually excludes candidates who are not Democrat or Republican. Commentator Jeff Milchen says the barrier to challenging two-party politics is undemocratic and unfair to voters hungry for an independent voice. Milchen is the director of ReclaimDemocracy.org, a non-profit organization dedicated to restoring democratic authority over corporations.
Thou Shalt Not Love
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 02-28-00
For all the animosity that supposedly separates Roman Catholics from fundamentalist Protestants like those at Bob Jones University, in their public elaboration of "family values," the Catholic Bishops and the faculty of Bob Jones U. sound alike. The great sin for both -- and the preoccupation of American churches throughout history -- has been crimes of love, not crimes of hate, as is evident in their current support for the Knight Initiative. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation," an essayist for PBS' "News Hour with Jim Lehrer," and a regular contributor to the Los Angeles Times Sunday Opinion.
A Homeboy Salutes Santana -- One Of "The Essential Ones"
By Roberto Lovato
Date: 02-25-00
After sweeping the Grammys, Carlos Santana is now enjoying saturation coverage--to the great satisfaction of one San Francisco Mission District homeboy who generally eschews digital age icons. PNS commentator Roberto Lovato now lives in Los Angeles where he coordinates the Central American Studies Program at Cal State-Northridge.
A Vote For Prop. 21 Is A Vote Against The Future
By Joe Loya
Date: 02-16-00
Backers and opponents of California's Proposition 21, which proposes harsher treatment of young offenders, throw statistics at each other with abandon. But the real argument, writes PNS associate editor Joe Loya, has much less to do with the number of teen-age felons than it does with the hearts of voting-age civilians. Loya is working on a memoir about his years in federal prison. His e-mail address is buddhalobo@aol.com.
Remembering Estevanico, America's First African ExplorerR
By Jeff Biggers
Date: 02-11-00
Most histories of African-Americans begin not long before the Mayflower, but one amazing story, buried like so many others, begins in 1527 and involves the first non-indigenous person of any color to enter what is now the southwestern United States. PNS correspondent Jeff Biggers is a writer based in Tucson whose work has appeared in The Atlantic Monthly, USA TODAY, Bloomsbury Review and Utne Reader/Web Watch Daily.
Paying The Price Of Privatization -- A Bolivian Town Goes To War Over Water
By Jim Shultz
Date: 02-08-00
The doctrine of privatization moves so swiftly across the underdeveloped world that there is rarely a chance to see what is actually going on. But when the government of Bolivia sold off the public water system of Cochabamba to foreign investors who then spiked the cost of water by $30 a month, town residents went into open revolt. PNS correspondent Jim Shultz, a resident of the town, reports from the eye of the hurricane on the water wars of Cochabamba. Shultz writes for The Democracy Center. His e-mail address is info@democractctr.org".
Public Support Weakening -- But The Death Penalty Will Be Slow To Die
By Michael Kroll
Date: 02-07-00
In a time when polls are said to drive all political action, a governor who suspends the death penalty is significant news. But just such a move by Illinois' governor Ryan may reflect a deep, if slow, change in public attitude. PNS associate editor Michael Kroll is a veteran death penalty abolitionist and founder of the Death Penalty Information Center in Washington, D.C.
Regret To Mis-Inform
By Andrew Lam
Date: 01-25-00
The lesson American documentary film makers have yet to learn about Vietnam is that Vietnam is not fourteen years old. Barbara Sonneborn's film "Regret to Inform" is no exception, writes PNS editor Andrew Lam, who found the film bore little resemblance to his own Vietnamese memory of the war. Lam, a commentator for National Public Radio, writes short stories and reports for New California Media, PNS' ethnic media web site at www.ncmonline.com.
Sanford Gottlieb, Is McCain Big Enough To Scale Down The Pork Mountain?
By Sanford Gottlieb
Date: 01-24-00
Serving constituents, for many members of Congress, means bringing big-time government projects into their home districts. Spending on these now exceeds $1 billion a month, most of it going to military projects the military itself did not request. PNS commentator Sanford Gottlieb is author of "Defense Addiction: Can America Kick the Habit?" published by Westview Press.
Elian's Plight
By Joe S. Loya
Date: 01-21-00
A writer whose mother died when he was nine reflects on the plight of Elian Gonzalez, and on why the majority of Americans believe the boy should be returned to his father in Cuba. PNS editor Joe S. Loya is working on a memoir about his years in federal prison.
First-Person Essay -- A Tibetan Refugee Trades Antiques On The Border Of Her Homeland
By Yingza Lama
Date: 01-14-00
When a 14-year-old boy lama defected from China to India last week he joined a diaspora of Tibetan refugees that began in 1961, when China moved to take control of the region. Thousands of these refugees now live in Nepal, like 47 year old Yingza Lama, a mother of eight who sells antiques but is not allowed to own property or become a citizen. PNS editor Andrew Lam talked with Lama about her life over the last 40 years and her view of the world. He transcribed and edited the interview into the following first person essay.
Dennis Bernstein, Death Row Inmate's Last Words -- U.S. Leads The World In Use Of The Death Penalty For Minors
By Dennis Bernstein
Date: 01-11-00
The execution of Douglas Christopher Thomas in Virginia for a crime he committed when he was 17-years-old drew considerable attention because his co-defendant served only seven years for the same crime. He is the first of three death row inmates scheduled to die this month for crimes committed when they were minors. Thomas talked with PNS correspondent Dennis Bernstein about fairness and his fate three days before he died. Bernstein is executive producer of the Pacifica radio daily news show "Flashpoints."
For The Uninsured, America's Medical System Specializes In Negleget
By Wendy Johnson, M.D.
Date: 12-17-99
A doctor who treats the uninsured and underinsured in America becomes a practitioner in a niche with few medicines or tests and no high-tech studies -- a medical system that specializes in neglect. PNS commentator Wendy Johnson, M.D., is a family practice physician working in a public health clinic in Cleveland, Ohio. Her e-mail address is wendyj@igc.org.
Who Is The "Little Man?"
By Mark Schurmann
Date: 12-07-99
In the battle to draw up battle lines, individual lives and names are lost in favor of large abstract political causes. So the "little man" becomes the focal point for activists campaigning for the challenger in San Francisco's mayoral runoffs -- and for protesters at the WTO meetings in Seattle. But one of the realities of the global era is that the "little man" no longer exists, and maybe never did. Commentator Mark Schurmann, an ex-barback and boxer, teaches writing in PNS' Beat Within program in Bay Area juvenile halls. This is the first of several articles by teenage and twenty-something writers exploring the political landscape at the end of the century.
Other Voices -- Saga Of A Vietnamese Jeweler In A Cambodian Market Takes Stock Of Life
By Thien Tran, Pacific News Service (As Told To PNS Editor Andrew Lam)
Date: 12-03-99
No one knows for sure how many Vietnamese there are in Cambodia -- estimates range from 100,000 to a million. But it's obvious that Vietnamese and Chinese dominate in commerce. Thien Tran, once a soldier, is now a successful 32-year-old businessman with a Cambodian wife and children. He is also one of hundreds of millions of migrants whose search for a better life are melting borders around the world. He is part of the human engine fueling the global economy just as much as the growth of multinations and the spread of communications technology. This piece is culled from an extensive interview with PNS associate editor Andrew Lam. Lam can be reached at psilobin@hotmail.com.
An Amputee From America's Success Story
By Charles Jones
Date: 12-07-89
Lamont, Squirt and Cerj -- young African American men in their early twenties -- feel no progress in their lives, even though they all now have jobs, a change in status from four or five years ago. Charles Jones is a 22-year-old father of two who writes for YO! Youth Outlook, a monthly newspaper by and about young people published by PNS. One in a series of commentaries by writers in their teens and early twenties looking at America's political landscape at the end of the century.
Giuliani's Message To Homeless -- No Room For You On City's Streets
By Robert Lederman
Date: 11-23-99
Last week, New York City's Mayor Rudolph Giuliani announced that the police would begin arresting homeless people as part of a public safety campaign. PNS commentator Robert Lederman, a street artist who has been homeless and arrested for disorderly conduct, is President of A.R.T.I.S.T. (Artists, Response to Illegal State Tactics).
Colonialism, Courage: Thoughts On Bringing Pinochet To Justice
By Alfonso Serrano F.
Date: 10-21-99
Following Augusto Pinochet's arrest in London last year, many observers feared possibly dangerous consequences for Chile's transitional democracy. But a year after the former dictator's detention, argues PNS associate editor Alfonso Serrano F., Chile is neither paralyzed nor polarized. Serrano, a native of Chile, is a San Francisco-based journalist.
Reports Showing U.S. Deliberately Bombed Chinese Embassy Deliberately Ignored By U.S. Media
By Yoichi Shimatsu
Date: 10-20-99
Investigative reporters for two prominent newspapers in England and Denmark, working together, have published an account of the May 7 NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy was not a "mistake," as the U.S. has claimed. In fact, they argue convincingly that the action was deliberate and planned. PNS commentator Yoichi Shimatsu, former editor of the Japan Times Weekly in Tokyo, is the Hong Kong-based author of a forthcoming report on the media coverage of the bombing.
Kashmir, Fundamentalism: Post-Coup Thinking Must Include The View From Pakistan
By Ras H. Siddiqui
Date: 10-15-99
In Pakistan, Washington's views have always been decisive -- perhaps until this week. Now, argues Ras H. Siddiqui, post-coup thinking in Washington must include the view from Pakistan to ensure the region's stability. PNS correspondent Ras H. Siddiqui is the publisher of California-based Pakistan Link.
Is There A Role For Literacy In The Information Age?
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 10-12-99
The extraordinary amount of attention being paid to new forms of communication -- "the information superhighway" -- seems inconsistent with a general disappearance of literacy in this society. But the two may in fact be interconnected, writes PNS editor Richard Rodriguez, and driving us toward a world where everyone can communicate but no one has anything to say. Rodriguez, author of "Days of Obligation" and an essayist for the PBS "News Hour with Jim Lehrer," writes regularly for the Los Angeles Sunday Times "Opinion."
A Letter To A New Inmate -- Prison Hate Is Contagious
By Joe Loya
Date: 10-08-99
How is it that prisons have become such powerful incubators of hate -- not only racial hate but all kinds of hate? PNS associate editor Joe Loya served seven years in federal prison where he became, in his words, a racist. In a letter to a younger friend about to serve two years in prison, he explains how hatred permeates life behind bars. Loya is working on a book about his prison experiences.
Charlie's Eyes -- New Laws On Juvenile Crime Show Willful Blindness To Needs Of Children
By Amy Clay
Date: 10-05-99
Two bills calling for harsh treatment of juvenile offenders, including incarceration with adults, are now being considered by the US Congress. They represent a complete abdication of responsibility, according to PNS commentator Amy Clay, who draws on her own life experience to show what's wrong with this approach. Clay is a student at George Washington University in Washington, D.C. and an intern with the Child Welfare League of America.
A Hotel Housekeepers' Manifesto -- Why 15 Rooms Is One Too Many
By Consuelo Barrera
Date: 09-15-99
They may work out of sight, but they are determined to make themselves visible. Hotel room cleaners in San Francisco -- where tourism is the number one industry -- are prepared to strike if employers do not reduce the daily load. PNS commentator Consuelo Barrera, a member of the negotiating committee of Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Local 2, has been a room cleaner for more than 20 years.
Unmasking The East Timorese Militias
By Caty Greene
Date: 09-07-99
The chaotic situation in East Timor, which has led to the imposition of martial law and calls for international intervention, is widely seen as the work of forces that are pawns of the Indonesian government. A first-hand observer, however, finds a more complex mix of motives and goals. PNS correspondent Caty Greene, who has traveled widely in the region for many years, was a member of the Carter Center delegation; her opinions are not necessarily those of the Center.
Should Kids Be Kept Away From TV? Three Young People Weigh In
By Kate Baggot, Escalet Cordoba, and Stanley Joseph
Date: 08-18-99
A report recently issued by the American Pediatrics Assn. recommends keeping children away from the television set. We asked three young writers for YO! Youth Outlook what role television played in their childhoods, and got three distinct answers suggesting the problem may be more complex than it first appears to be.
Black America Is In A Bad Mood -- And Not Without Reason
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 09-13-99
By most indicators, African-Americans are doing better than ever. Yet there is a feeling in the black community that racism is still very much a part of every day, and PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson examines some of the reasons for that feeling. Hutchinson is the author of "The Crisis in Black and Black."
The Estate Tax Should Be Enforced And Raised--Not Killed
By Roy Ulrich
Date: 08-17-99
The tax bill now making its way to President Clinton calls for eliminating the estate tax on the wealthy. In force for 83 years, this tax has never worked as intended but there are good reasons to argue that its loopholes should be closed, and the tax itself significantly raised. PNS commentator Roy Ulrich is a public interest lawyer and consumer advocate who sits on the Board of Directors of the California Tax Reform Association.
Day Trading Firms Thrive On Addictive and Impulsive Behavior
By Gregory J. Millman
Date: 08-05-99
Day trading can't be stopped, and there are sound economic reasons why it should not be. But just as bartenders who ply drunken customers with drinks should be held responsible for the consequences, day trading firms should be held to the same standard. PNS commentator Gregory J. Millman is the author of "The Day Traders," forthcoming from Times Books. Millman's previous book, "The Vandals' Crown -- How Rebel Currency Traders Overthrew the World's Central Banks" (Free Press, 1995), was translated into nine languages and became a Business Week best seller.
Nation's Oldest Public Station Under Arrest
By Dennis Bernstein
Date: 07-28-99
The streets of Berkeley are back in the news, but this is no flashback -- the players and the issues are very much of the late 1990s. Although the immediate focus is one radio station, writes PNS commentator Dennis Bernstein, the outcome of this battle will affect us all. Bernstein, a journalist at KPFA, was ordered arrested by Pacifica management on July 13 when he broke the story of the potential sale of the station. He can be reached at www.flashpoints.net.
Discrimination is Still Alive and Well in Corporate America
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 07-27-99
Despite everything -- including a $175 million fine -- corporate America continues to operate in a sort of apartheid atmosphere. There may be a few more black faces, writes PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson, but white males are still calling all the shots. Hutchinson is the author of The Crisis in Black and Black. email:ehutchi344@aol.com
Beware the Man Who Wants to Own the Internet
By Roy Ulrich
Date: 07-26-99
Internet access is a hot topic in a number of cities these days. One major player turns out to be none other than AT&T, now the nation's largest cable company, driving hard under its present chief. PNS commentator Roy Ulrich thinks this represents a real danger to the public. Ulrich is president and founder of the Institute for the Study of the Public Sector, a Washington-based think tank. He recommends visiting http://www.nogatekeepers.org for more information on this topic. One of two articles presenting opposing views on this question.
Don't Slam the Door to Internet Access
By Jeff Murai
Date: 07-26-99
A fight over who holds the keys to the Internet is brewing in several major cities. PNS commentator Jeff Murai argues that the city should keep its hands off AT&T, which has the experience and expertise to offer Internet access to the community. Murai, president of Market Garage, Inc. in San Francisco is past-president of the Nikkei Lions Club in San Francisco and an active volunteer in the Asian community. One of two articles presenting opposing views on this question.
Kennedy Tragedy Evokes an Old World Understanding
By Mark Schurmann
Date: 07-22-99
The Kennedy family conducted private funeral services for John F. Kennedy, Jr., but his death remains unavoidably public, especially in his New York City neighborhood. There the response evokes memories of how tragedy was understood in the villages our grandparents may have come from. PNS commentator Mark Schurmann lives and writes in New York City.
Death of a Crown Prince -- Hunger for Royalty Transforms Personal Tragedy into Public Event
By Andrew Reding
Date: 07-19-99
The intensity of coverage accorded to the disappearance of an airplane carrying John F. Kennedy, Jr., his wife and sister in law cannot be explained in terms of Kennedy's own accomplishments in the world. Rather, it is his place in the mythic Kennedy-Camelot kingdom Americans have created. Pacific News Service associate editor Andrew Reding is a senior fellow of the World Policy Institute in New York.
The Unbearable Lightness of Being... White
By Kathy Dobie
Date: 07-16-99
Benjamin Smith, whose killing spree in Indiana and Illinois early in July was only one in a recent series of highly publicized massacres by young white males, was a man with nothing left to say. Not only did he single out individuals of color as his targets, he went after anyone who believed -- in God, in family, in the rightness of their own existence. And anyone who belonged. PNS associate editor Kathy Dobie is a New York-based journalist whose work has appeared in Vogue, Village Voice and Vibe.
Free Speech Strangled in the Name of Diversity
By Dennis Bernstein
Date: 07-14-99
The nation's oldest public radio station, founded in 1948 in Berkeley, California, has entered into a full-scale battle with its board of directors in Washington, DC. The board claims it is acting to ensure diversity, but PNS commentator Dennis Bernstein says their actions are decimating the free speech which is the essence of the station's existence. Bernstein has been a producer for Pacifica Radio and is an award winning investigative reporter.
Freedom Means More Than Nothing Left to Lose
By Joe Loya
Date: 07-01-99
This is a time of year when public spaces resonate with the word of freedom. But how to get free and how to be free are very different issues, as one former prison inmate has learned. PNS associate editor Joe Loya is a California writer currently writing a memoir.
Our "Be Your Own Person" Culture Through a Chinese Lens
By Dorothy Chin
Date: 06-25-99
Parents worry deeply these days about the son or daughter closeted in the bedroom obsessed with the Internet. But in a culture where the relentless message is "be your own person," or "do it on your own," adolescent rebellion is encouraged if not inevitable. PNS commentator Dorothy Chin is a psychotherapist and writer living in southern California.
My Father's Army Uniform
By Andrew Lam
Date: 06-17-99
Father's Day evokes powerful memories of a father's warrior passions which his son, a writer, did not inherit. Yet is not writing itself a passionate effort to re-invoke the past -- if only to take leave? PNS editor Andrew Lam is a short-story writer and journalist. A longer version of this article appeared in the San Jose Mercury News.
A Punishment Worse Than Hell -- Life Sentence Too Harsh for Cops Who Sodomized
By Joe Loya
Date: 06-15-99
When ex-NYPD officers Charles Schwarz and Justin Volpe can receive the same sentence for raping Abner Louima as for killing him, we have lost our perspective. As horrible as the crime was, we still need to think about civilized gradations in our punishments. Even Dante's Inferno had gradations. PNS associate editor Joe Loya is a California writer currently writing a memoir.
Illusion Vies With Reality on Both Sides of Border -- Talk Show Host's Murder Reveals Magic's Seductive Hold
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 06-14-99
The recent murder of Mexico's TV talk show host and the reactions it provoked reveal the growing disjunction between illusion and reality in Mexico. In that way, Mexico is becoming more and more like the rest of North America where the border between fiction and non-fiction, North and South, is blurring. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez, author of Days of Obligation and essayist for the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer, writes for the Los Angeles Times Sunday Opinion section where a longer version of this article also appears.
In the Name of Protecting Diversity -- U.S. Once Again a Whaling Nation
By Steven Zak
Date: 06-11-99
On May 17 the United States officially became a whaling nation, having granted a "cultural exemption" to the international ban on whaling to a tribe that until that day had not hunted whales since 1926. In a land of many subcultures, we ought to respect diversity, but not at the cost of flouting society's most fundamental values and policies. Steven Zak is an attorney and writer. He has written about animals and the law for many publications including The Atlantic Monthly and The New York Times.
Cox Report May Doom America's Technological Preeminence
By George Koo
Date: 06-08-99
The Cox Committee Report, detailing a long and intricate history of Chinese spying on U.S. nuclear weapons programs, could do considerable harm to the country's technological capacities. This is all the more distressing, writes PNS commentator George Koo, because the report itself is basically without substance. Koo is an independent business consultant, former Chairman of Silicon Valley based Asian American Manufacturers Association, a Human Relations Commissioner of Mountain View, Ca. and a member of Committee of 100, a national organization of prominent Chinese Americans.
Stereotypes in a Distant Galaxy -- Racism Reaches Outer Space
By Lee Hubbard
Date: 06-03-99
Enthralling action, breathtaking special effects, and skillful promotion are drawing crowds to the most recent "Star Wars" offering. But very near the surface of all this dazzle are some familiar -- and ugly -- stereotypes which do not belong in any universe. PNS commentator Lee Hubbard is a writer on the staff of the San Francisco Bay View. His e-mail address is superle@hotmail.com.
The True Cause of High School Violence Embedded in the 'Jock' Culture of Conformity
By Andrew Reding
Date: 05-24-99
The search for explanations of the recent shootings at high schools has avoided the difficult and troubling fact that they are only the most visible symptoms of a deep rift in the lives of teenagers. This in turn reflects a tendency to overvalue conformity and athletic activity according to PNS commentator Andrew Reding. Reding, vice mayor of Sanibel, Florida, is an associate editor of Pacific News Service and director, North America Project, World Policy Institute
Power of Humiliation -- School Shootings May Bespeak Not Godlessness But Misguided Godliness
By Joe Loya
Date: 05-24-99
Among the responses to the rash of shootings in high schools have been calls for a return to a more God-centered education. But that may be a most unfortunate choice under the circumstances, according to PNS Associate Editor Joseph Loya. Loya is a California writer currently writing an autobiography.
"Sport" Hunting Belongs on the List of Suspects in Public School Shootings
By Steven Zak
Date: 05-21-99
Measures calling for gun control are often defeated in the name of the "sport hunter." In reality, only about 15 percent of all Americans do any hunting -- but the culture of hunting has effects on the wider culture which may help explain incidents like the recent shooting at Littleton. Steven Zak, an attorney and writer, has written about animals and culture for many publications including The Atlantic magazine and The New York Times.
Stroke! The Undaunted Ladies of the Lake
By Eve Pell
Date: 05-19-99
In the stories of King Arthur and his court, the Ladies of the Lake appear from time to time -- a shadowy sisterhood capable of considerable magic. In the far less mystical setting of downtown Oakland, California, the Ladies of the Lake are capable of a more prosaic but no less wonderful sort of enchantment, as PNS senior sports commentator Eve Pell discovered. Pell is formerly the number one ranked woman road runner over 60 in the United States, and writes a regular column on veteran athletes for Pacific New Service.
Riverside VS. Brooklyn -- Last Chance for Justice Lies With Feds
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 05-07-99
Police shootings in Riverside, California and Brooklyn, New York have inflamed public opinion but produced opposite results. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson explains why and concludes the only hope for justice lies with the Feds. Hutchinson is the author of "The Crisis in Black and Black."
Littleton Signals Death of the "Public" School
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 04-26-99
America's "public" schools were meant to be places where children, growing up in a highly individuated culture, would learn to regard themselves as people in common. But after Littleton, Colo., the most balkanized region of America may well be the high school. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez, author of "Days of Obligation" and an essayist for the PBS "News Hour with Jim Lehrer," writes regularly for the Los Angeles Sunday Times "Opinion."
African-Americans Are Deafeningly Silent on Kosovo
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 04-19-99
One topic not on the list of African Americans, including their leaders, is the U.S. action in Kosovo -- a striking contrast to that community's opposition to recent U.S.military ventures. PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson explores some of the many reasons for this silence, and finds them wanting. Hutchinson is the author of "The Crisis in Black and Black."
Bombs, Bits and Bytes-- A Cyber War That Reaches Us Through Cyberspace Is Hard to Grasp In Human Terms
By Katherine Cowy Kim
Date: 04-13-99
News of the U.S.-NATO action in Serbia reaches us through television and computer networks -- and is, to a great extent, fought with the same technology. This makes a personal response more difficult, especially for young people who rarely respond on any other terms. PNS commentator Katherine Cowy Kim, a 27 year old writer in San Francisco, is an editor of YO! (Youth Outlook), a monthly newspaper by and about young people published by Pacific News Service.
Elian -- The First Cause That Could Unify Hispanics
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 04-24-00
Alone among Hispanics, Cuban Americans never identified themselves as a "minority" in America -- their grievance was with Cuba. Today, their fierce resistance to America's national will over Elian could finally unify them with other Hispanic Americans. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Hunger of Memory" and "Days of Obligation: An Argument with my Mexican Father."
Staying In Place, Staying In Motion -- A Refugee Returns To Hue
By Andrew Lam
Date: 04-21-00
On the anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War, a returning Vietnamese refugee sees the citadel city of Hue not as the site of the great battle, but the place he realizes one true outcome of the century's conflicts: the creation of global villagers -- refugees -- who long to be rooted in place. PNS associate editor Andrew Lam is a journalist and short story writer.
Only The Survivors Can Grasp The Meaning Of Columbine
By Kathy Dobie
Date: 04-18-00
Distance in time and space may help us reach some understanding of events that cannot be explained in any usual way. Looking at Columbine from New York City after a year of trying to know what it was all about, PNS commentator Kathy Dobie has come to realize that the meaning of the incident will be decided only by how the survivors -- mothers and fathers, sisters, brothers, teachers, cops -- lead their own lives in the wake of the tragedy.
Letter to a Young Refugee From Another
By Andrew Lam
Date: 04-06-99
The picture of a child in a sea of refugee faces spurs memories of exile for a writer forced to flee his homeland 24 years ago. PNS editor Andrew Lam is a journalist and short-story writer based in San Francisco.
Springtime in Europe
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 04-02-99
The myth has long been that the calamities threatening global peace spring from the Third World, the "undeveloped" world. Yet at century's end it is Europe, once again, that poses the most ominous threat -- as is has posed twice before since the century began. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and the forthcoming "The Color Brown." He is a regular essayist for the News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the Los Angeles Sunday Times.
Bombing the Seeds of Democracy Out of the Soil of Yugoslavia
By Veran Matic
Date: 03-31-99
From Belgrade, underneath the bombs, the effects of NATO bombing seem to be diametrically opposed to its stated objectives. The one weapon that can help resolve the conflict is information -- on every side, according to PNS commentator Veran Matic. Matic is editor-in-chief of Belgrade's banned Radio B92 and a leading peace activist. He has won many international awards, most recently MTV Europe "Free Your Mind" award. Radio B92 is continuing is working as much as the circumstances of war permit, continuing to broadcast news on the Internet at http://www.b92.net through a large number of radio stations around the world.
Where Have All the Churches Gone?
By Dave Cullen
Date: 03-30-99
The brutal murder of a gay man in Colorado last October brought denunciation from almost all elements of the community, including organized religion. However, since that time churches have been, for the most part, silent on the issue -- a silence which has been the rule for too long, according to PNS commentator Dave Cullen. Cullen is a Colorado-based novelist, currently writing "In A Boy's Dream," a memoir.
First Americans in the Arts -- A Wannabe Oscar for American Indians
By Jacqueline Keeler
Date: 03-19-99
You may be forgiven if you did not know that Melrose Place temptress Heather Locklear, blonde and blue-eyed, is an American Indian. Yet she definitely fits Hollywood's criteria of preferred actresses, which may be why the First Americans in the Arts -- the wannabe Oscars for American Indians -- awarded her Best American Indian Actress on TV this year. PNS associate editor Jacqueline Keeler, a member of the Dineh Nation and the Yankton Dakota Sioux, is a Bay Area writer.
Ignorance Fuels Media, Government Charges of Spying by China
By George Koo
Date: 03-15-99
Accusations that China has stolen nuclear technology from the United States and the firing of a Chinese American official have brought a storm of accusations. But a calm look at the realities of technological change suggest that these charges are completely without substance. PNS commentator George Koo is an independent business consultant, former Chairman of Silicon Valley based Asian American Manufacturers Association, a Human Relations Commissioner of Mountain View, Ca. and a member of Committee of 100, a national organization of prominent Chinese Americans.
Boon for Indophiles: "Indian Ink"-- A Play Written in Colonial Blue
By Sandip Roy-Chowdhury
Date: 03-11-99
Indian actors are thrilled to be appearing in Tom Stoppard's play "Indian Ink," which just opened in San Francisco. But their deepest hunger is for scripts that reflect their contemporary lives -- not the age old stereotypes of the British Raj. PNS commentator Sandip Roy-Chowdhury is a film critic and contributing editor at "India Currents," a Bay Area magazine.
Being Careful, Being Lucky, Being Alive
By Eve Pell
Date: 03-08-99
These days, careful attention to exercise and diet is considered basic to good character, but the facts of life and death rarely play out in straightforward ways. Thinking about a friend who is dying even though she obeyed all the rules brings PNS commentator Eve Pell to some understandings about living. Pell is the former the number one ranked woman road runner age 60-64 in the United States, and writes a regular column on veteran athletes for Pacific New Service.
A World of Minorities-- Rising Above the Confusion of Not Belonging
By Russell Morse
Date: 02-25-99
The term "minority" is being redefined, especially in California, in contentious ways. But however the lines are drawn, for an individual, minority status can be a source of pain, confusion, and self-doubt. PNS commentator Russell Morse, 18, a student and a writer, has contributed to YO! (Youth Outlook), a newspaper by and about young people produced by Pacific News Service.
There's No Fair Trial For Any Kurd in Turkey
By Vera Saeedpour
Date: 02-19-99
The real story about Kurdish leader Ocalan's hand-over to Turkey is not the intrigues behind his capture. Rather it is the anger erupting from thousands of mostly poor Kurds in dozens of different countries. Theirs is the longest struggle for freedom in the world. And once again they have been betrayed by the powers that be. PNS commentator Vera Saeedpour, who has written widely on Kurdish issues, is director of the New York-based Kurdish Library.
Killing of Amadou Dillou -- One Mother Hears Another Mother's Cry of Pain
By Mae Jackson
Date: 02-17-99
Accounts of the death of Amadou Dillou, an immigrant from Guinea, killed by four police officers in New York City, have focused on the extraordinary fact that 41 bullets were fired at an unarmed man standing in a door way. For PNS commentator Mae Jackson, the only possible response is rage, a rage she must try to put aside long enough to write about it and not go crazy. Jackson is a poet and community activist who lives in Brooklyn, New York.
Getting Real-- NAACP Image Awards Need to Improve Their Image
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 02-10-99
The "Image Awards" offered by the NAACP are supposed to honor those who have done something to promote an honest image of the black community. Instead, according to PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson, they have become yet another celebration of celebrity. The 30th NAACP Image Awards take place Saturday, February 13th and Sunday, February 14th in Pasadena. The two-hour telecast is tentatively scheduled to air March 4th on the Fox Network. PNS contributor Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the author of "The Crisis in Black and Black."
From Six Million Dollar Man to Lara Croft and the IMac -- What Dolls Can Teach Us
By Jacqueline Keeler
Date: 02-05-99
The new candy-colored iMac may seem a far cry from the Six Million Dollar Man. But for children raised on techno-play in the late 20th century, it's not a difficult leap to imagine cyborgs who are human beings evolving into machines -- let alone human beings who "lust" for firewire I/O ports. This is new terrain for the human psyche -- and evokes nostalgia in one American Indian writer for the dolls of her ancestors. PNS associate editor Jacqueline Keeler is a Bay Area writer.
Part Time Purgatory-- The Loneliness of an Adjunct Professor
By Chris Cumo
Date: 02-01-99
As universities have turned more and more to models of management based on such concepts as "cost cutting," they have expanded the use of teachers who are paid by the hour or by the student, and are not granted tenure. The lack of standing and perquisites can make a bitter mix according to PNS commentator Chris Cumo, a teacher and writer lives in Northern Ohio.
Running Against the Clock -- Something Old Can Very Well Be Something New
By Eve Pell
Date: 01-20-99
So unhappy are we with the idea of being old that the word itself has taken on a poisonous air. Yet age has its distinct and unique delights, especially for those engaged in competitive sports. PNS correspondent Eve Pell is the number one ranked woman road runner over 60 in the United States, and writes a regular column on veteran athletes for Pacific New Service.
In the Land of the Individual, Sports Is No Longer King
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 01-11-99
Reactions to the settlement of the pro basketball dispute show that our society has moved beyond sport as a communal, connected enterprise. Instead, we have placed individual effort at the center of attention -- both in our fascination with celebrity and in our very definition of definition of sport itself. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and the forthcoming "The Color Brown." He is a regular essayist for the News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the Los Angeles Sunday Times where a version of the article also appeared.
Family Tie Can Keep the World Together
By Tiffany Johnson, as Told to Nell Bernstein
Date: 01-07-99
At 22, Tiffany Johnson is a vocational coordinator and teacher at the Independent Living Skills Program of San Francisco, an organizer with the foster youth advocacy group California Youth Connections, and a student at California State University at Hayward. From age 10 to age 15 she lived together with her three younger sisters in a group home.
A Child's View-- Watching Bombs, Hearing Bombs in Memory
By Andrew Lam
Date: 01-05-99
For someone who grew up amidst the sound of bombs, television coverage of the missile attack on Iraq -- or anywhere -- brings vivid childhood memories to mind. These in turn lead to questions about what possible justification there could be for bombing children. PNS editor Andrew Lam is a journalist and short-story writer based in San Francisco.
From Prison-- Looking at the New Year Through the Pain of Loss
By Joe Loya
Date: 12-28-98
What does it mean to wish a happy new year to someone whose new year will be exactly like the old one -- facing prison walls? The question stretches the conventional language of the holiday season according to PNS commentator Joe Loya, who has been on both sides of those walls. Loya, an associate editor at PNS, spent seven years in federal prison on bank robbery charges and is writing an autobiography.
The Trouble With the Messiah Complex
By Joe Loya
Date: 12-22-98
In times like these, the moral hue and cry across the land assumes Old Testament proportions and men act like prophets in the hard wilderness. But if political leaders are going to use the Bible as their moral barometer, they would do well to acknowledge that the Good Book supports mercy as well as sanction. PNS Associate Editor Joe Loya is a California writer currently writing an autobiography.
Immigrants See Washington Scandal as Modern Morality Tale
By Sarita Sarvate
Date: 12-16-98
The gravest mistake Americans could make right now is to dismiss the need for a national soul-searching over our social mores as a whim of the religious right. Sarita Sarvate is a writer who was born and raised in India. A longer version of this piece appears in India Currents, a monthly published in San Jose, Ca.
A Christmas Wish for the Undocumented
By Rodolpho Carrasco
Date: 12-15-98
By any standard, Luis has been a success in his new home -- for himself and for his family. But he is troubled because he is in this country illegally, and believes he can -- and must -- resolve that situation now. PNS commentator Rodolpho Carrasco is associate director of Harambee Christian Family Center in Pasadena, Calif. and a columnist for the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group, where an earlier version of this story first appeared.
Life Support -- With No Spare Parts
By Mark O'Brien
Date: 01-10-98
Advances in technology, in particular miniaturization and computers, have made a powerful difference in the practice of medicine, especially with respect to medical appliances. But this progress can have very unhappy effects as PNS correspondent Mark O'Brien discovered on Thanksgiving Day. Author of two books of poetry and a forthcoming autobiography, "How I Became A Human Being" (Kadansha Press, 1998), he is the subject of the 1997 Oscar-winning documentary "Breathing Lessons" (Inscrutable Films in collaboration with Pacific News Service). A photo of Mr. O'Brien is available from PNS. Call George Gundrey at (415-438-4755).
A Lesson in Community for the Holidays
By Dorothy Chin
Date: 12-08-98
It's a time of lists -- of those who get cards, or presents, or a telephone call, a season when people try to think in terms of a community. But for Americans of an older generation, community represents a much more regular current. PNS contributor Dorothy Chin is a psychotherapist and writer living in southern California.
Time to Speak Out Against a Pervasive Moral Stupidity
By Peter Marin
Date: 11-23-98
Increasingly squeezed between policies that deny them shelter and laws that criminalize their efforts to shelter themselves, the homeless are something of a moral blind spot in many communities. The problem, according to PNS commentator Peter Marin, is not lack of knowledge, but lack of will to speak out. Marin is a writer living in Santa Barbara who has spent much of the last 15 years advocating for the homeless.
Denied Voting Rights -- Ex-Prisoners Like Ghosts Inhabiting a Citizen's Space
By Joe Loya
Date: 10-23-98
While politicians urge Americans to do their civic duty and vote, three million former felons seeking a way to reconnect to civic life are barred from the ballot box. PNS associate editor Joe Loya, who spent seven years in federal prison on bank robbery charges, is writing an autobiography. A longer version of this essay appeared in the San Jose Mercury News.
From a Hero to a Zero -- When Injury Sidelines the Older Athlete
By Eve Pell
Date: 10-22-98
What happens when an award winning over-60 athlete wears down a tendon and gets sidelined? Eve Pell, who runs for the Impala Racing Team of San Francisco, is currently the top-ranked road runner in the women's 60-64 division. She writes a regular column on veteran athletes for Pacific News Service.
This High School Teaches Indifference and Practices Neglect
By Kevin Weston
Date: 10-21-98
Students at one troubled California high school have been locked out of the library. At a time when the state is far more eager to lock young people up than to provide the opportunity to learn, this gesture is far from symbolic. PNS commentator Kevin Weston is the AntiVerses Editor for the San Francisco BayView newspaper and a Bay Area journalist.
My Heterosexual Dilemma
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 10-16-98
The brutal murder of Matthew Shepard reminds us that, for all our talk about sex, we know little about the mysteries of sexuality -- let alone why a gay wink in a bar unleashes a murderous rage. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and an essayist for the Los Angeles Times, Harper's and "The News Hour with Jim Lehrer."
The Pounding of My Heart is Real, Not Imaginary
By Mimi Nguyen
Date: 10-14-98
Sometimes the news carries a message more profound and disturbing than any recitation of facts. For PNS commentator Mimi Nguyen, accounts of the murder of a college student 1000 miles away stirred memory and determination. Nguyen is a 'zine publisher and a graduate student at UC Berkeley.
The Gay Word -- Dare We Say It, Dare We Not
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 10-13-98
Words play an essential part in the dance between the individual and society, particularly when it comes to behavior that is not universally accepted. This meditation on the role of language by PNS associate editor Richard Rodriguez was written prior to the murder of Matthew Shepard in Wyoming, and aired on "The News Hour With Jim Lehrer," where Mr. Rodriguez is a regular contributor.
A Sitcom That Gets It Wrong -- Dismembering History for Laughs
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 10-07-98
A new television series depicting a black man acting as an advisor to President Lincoln during the Civil War provides a gross distortion of both Lincoln's ideas and the actual situation of blacks at the time. This is done in the name of comedy, but in reality presents just another example of a generalized contempt for black life and history. PNS commentator Dr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the author of "The Assassination of the Black Male Image" and "The Crisis in Black and Black."
Lewinsky War Claims First Casualty -- Why One Reporter Wouldn't Stoop to Conquer
By Jonathan Broder
Date: 10-06-98
Anything's fair in love and war, goes the adage. But when the on-line magazine Salon decided to match "ugly times" with "ugly tactics" by printing a report about Congressman. Henry Hyde's inappropriate love affair 30 years ago, one staffer objected -- publicly -- that it was crossing a journalistic threshold he didn't want to cross. PNS commentator Jonathan Broder recently resigned from Salon. A former foreign correspondent, Broder is filling in as an editor on the foreign desk at National Public Radio.
Impeach of Not -- The Voters Can Decide on Nov. 3
By Michael Kroll
Date: 09-29-98
It is exceedingly rare in American electoral politics when one's vote for his or her congressperson can have an immediate and predictable result over a momentous question. But come this Nov. 3, Americans will have the opportunity to determine whether President Clinton is impeached or not. PNS associate editor Michael Kroll spells out the high stakes in the upcoming House of Representatives election.
Interference! NCAA Reaching Down to High Schools -- With Unhappy Results
By Joe Nathan
Date: 09-23-98
The National Collegiate Athletic Association, plays an important and valued role as the official regulating body of college sports and sponsor of major tournaments. But as gatekeeper of college athletics, it has taken on a policy of interference which has angered students, parents, and educators. PNS commentator Joe Nathan is a senior fellow at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.
What We See Is What We Get
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 09-22-98
The latest round in the continuing saga of the president, the public, the press, and the prosecutor may say more about media than malfeasance. Indeed, it is surprising that the Republican Party apparently did not see this coming, since one of their own was among television's first victims. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and the forthcoming "The Color Brown." He is a regular essayist for the News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the Los Angeles Sunday Times.
Time to Recognize the Real Home Run Champ
By Lee Hubbard
Date: 09-21-98
Breaking records is always the stuff of headlines, and breaking baseball records even more so. But amidst the ballyhoo of this year's home run derby, it is instructive to look at the story of the real champion -- a champion who did not make the headlines. PNS commentator Lee Hubbard is a writer on the staff of the San Francisco Bay View.
Crime and Therapy
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 09-15-98
Grand themes are in the air -- sin and repentance and forgiveness -- but Americans seem willing to settle for soggy confessions and therapy. We may yet pay the consequences for the moral vacuity in the land. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and the forthcoming "The Color Brown." He is a regular essayist for the News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the Los Angeles Sunday Times.
Starr's Version of the Truman Show Leaves Viewers Wanting to Escape
By Ronald Takaki
Date: 09-14-98
The fuss in Washington has the flavor of a movie -- but that movie is not "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" or "Being There" but "The Truman Show" which features an elaborate, made-up world. PNS commentator Ronald Takaki thinks viewers will find this script less satisfying, and the hero less likable than in the movie. Takaki is author of "A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America." One of a series on the crisis from the "new California."
For Himself, For the Country-- Clinton's Only Chance for Redemption is to Resign
By Hasan Zillur-Rahim
Date: 09-14-98
The president's problems -- now our problem -- go far beyond questions of perjury and impeachment. Clinton has in effect undermined the office of the president, and this can have devastating effects on young people, and hence on the future of politics in the United States. Hasan Zillur Rahim, a PNS commentator, is also the editor of Iqra, a national Islamic magazine published by the South Bay Islamic Association of San Jose, CA. One of a series on the crisis from the "new California."
Tupac Still More Alive Than Many Who Can Still Draw Breath
By Ri'Chard Magee
Date: 09-10-98
For many young people the words and music of Tupac Shakur -- who died two years ago at age 25 -- still have a resonance that has never been equaled. Near the anniversary of his death, PNS commentator Ri'Chard Magee explains the lasting power of this artist. Ri'Chard Magee is on the staff of YO! (Youth Outlook), a newspaper by and about young people produced by Pacific News Service.
Time to Get Back on the Bus
By Peter Y. Sussman
Date: 08-25-98
It may difficult to realize, 35 years after the fact, the sheer surprise of the success of the first March on Washington. PNS commentator Peter Sussman, who was there, remembers that feeling, the words of one speech -- and some lessons apparently unlearned. Sussman, a San Francisco writer and editor, is co-author with Dannie M. Martin of "Committing Journalism" (W.W. Norton). Sussman is a former editor of the San Francisco Chronicle, where this article will appear.
What Arabs and Muslims Hear in Clinton's Terrorism Speech -- Lies About Yet Another Troubled Relationship
By As'ad AbuKhalil
Date: 08-21-98
C. Wright Mills called the quintessential tools of American Politics "deception, flattery and entertainment." For the Arabs and Muslims, Mills' words ring true as they dissect Clinton's speech on terrorism. As'ad AbuKalil is associate professor of political science at California State University, Stanislaus and Research Fellow at the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at University of California, Berkeley.
Hillary Clinton Owes an Explanation to Women of the Third World
By Sarita Sarvate
Date: 08-21-98
Many women of the Third World took heart from Hillary Rodham Clinton's message of personal liberation at the Beijing Women's Summit. Now they feel confused, even betrayed, by what they see as personal capitulation to the demands of realpolitik. PNS commentator Sarita Sarvate, a Bay Area writer who trained as a physicist, was born and raised in India.
Where's the Justice? He Gets an Approval Rating, She Gets a Rep
By Nell Bernstein
Date: 08-18-98
A family man once again, and fiercely so, President Clinton vows to protect his privacy even as Monica Lewinsky's has been irrevocably shattered. That's what happens when the man -- typically -- gets to control the story, say what it didn't mean. Nell Bernstein is a Bay Area journalist and editor of YO! (Youth Outlook), a newspaper by and about young people published by Pacific News Service.
Devaluing Black Life: The Murder of Sherrice Iverson
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 08-18-98
In one of those cases that seem particularly compelling because they are particularly horrible, a 7-year-old girl was raped and murdered in�a Nevada casino last year allegedly by a 19 year old man. Yet the story has drawn little attention, for reasons that PNS commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson finds all too painfully familiar. Hutchinson is the author of "The Assassination of the Black Male Image" and "The Crisis in Black and Black."
Fairy Tales East and West-- Must the Global Fairy Tale Have a Happy Ending?
By Andrew Lam
Date: 08-13-98
The tales we tell our children pass along an understanding of the world, and that understanding is not always a cheerful one. But the entertainment industry, while it seems increasingly open to diversity, may be reluctant to include unhappy endings. PNS editor Andrew Lam is a journalist and short-story writer based in San Francisco. A longer version of this essay appeared in the San Jose Mercury News.
Little White Lies
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 08-06-98
What's in a lie? Do lies matter? PNS editor Richard Rodriguez writes that even though lying is the first sin mentioned in the Bible, and that lies invariably self-destruct, Americans don't take lying very seriously. Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and "Hunger of Memory," and an essayist for the Los Angeles Times Sunday Perspective page and the PBS "News Hour with Jim Lehrer."
Caught in the Web of Punishment
By Hector Gallegos
Date: 07-23-98
Hector Gallegos is locked up in the Security Housing Unit (SHU), the maximum security cell block at Pelican Bay State Prison, California's most punitive prison. He offered this excerpt from a larger piece he is working on to "The Beat Within," a publication directed at young people in juvenile halls, with the comment "I thought it would be something that would give them a bit to chew on -- where it all ends for the lot of us when we continue to lead that 'Careless, reckless, thug lifestyle."'
The Game All the World (Almost) Loves to Play
By Mark Jacks
Date: 07-09-98
By almost any measure, the United States can be called the center of "globalism" -- the new supranational approach to almost everything. But there is one glaring exception -- the universal, and universalizing, game known everywhere else as football, here as soccer, writes PNS correspondent Mark Jacks. Jacks is a radio producer and journalist.
Why I Love Lilith -- No Such Thing as Women's Music
By Alexandra Moe
Date: 07-09-98
The number one summer concert tour of 1997, the Lilith Fair, has hit the road again -- with three stages and a rotating lineup of 60 bands. As the name implies, all the musicians are women, but this is most definitely not a case of special interest -- as the striking number of non-female fans makes clear. PNS commentator Alexandra Moe writes and sings her own songs in San Francisco, and is a member of Brave New Word, a Pacific News Service-based coalition of writers in their twenties. (The Fair goes looping through the midwest and south through July, into the mid Atlantic and northeast in early August, then back through the inter mountain west and into western Canada.)
For Young Asian-American Women, "Mulan" is a Multi-Faceted Mirror
By Katherine Kim, Andrea Quong and Marian Liu
Date: 07-02-98
With high marks from the critics, and some $55 million in ticket sales in its first two weeks, the new Disney animated feature "Mulan" seems to have found a place in the sun. This 36th animated feature from Disney Studios is the first with an Asian theme -- the story tells of a Chinese woman who leads an army into battle and saves her country. Here three Asian-American women discuss the film as a window into our own world. Katherine Kim, Andrea Quong, and Marian Liu are members of Brave New Word, a Pacific News Service-based coalition of writers in their twenties.
Young Voices-- What It Means to Be an American
Compiled by Mark Jacks
Date: 07-01-98
A week before the Fourth of July, YO! Radio producer Mark Jacks went into the streets of San Francisco to talk to teenagers about what America means to them. Without further comment, we share their answers with you.
A.M.E.R.I.C.A.N. -- The Breakdown
By Josue Rojas
Date: 07-01-98
Here is a poem in honor of America's birthday by Josue Rojas, a 17-year-old high school senior whose parents came to California from El Salvador. Rojas is a spoken word artist and an illustrator for YO! Youth Outlook, a monthly newspaper by and about young people published by Pacific News Service.
Why U.S.-China Relations Matter to All Chinese Americans
By George Koo
Date: 06-22-98
Any sign of a stable, secure relationship between the United States and China should be most welcome to all Americans. But such an arrangement has particular significance for Chinese-Americans, writes PNS commentator Dr. George Koo, especially in a time of widespread anti-Chinese feeling. Koo is an independent business consultant, former Chairman of Silicon Valley based Asian American Manufacturers Association, a Human Relations Commissioner of Mountain View, Ca. and a member of Committee of 100, a national organization of prominent Chinese Americans. PART III OF IV OF A SPECIAL CHINA SERIES.
Bashing China for India's Tests and Clinton's Campaign Scandal
By Ling Chi Wang
Date: 06-22-98
The recent nuclear bomb tests in India and Pakistan came just as a wave of China-bashing seemed to be cresting again in the United States -- pushed forward relentlessly by left and right with the help of the media. Indeed, India's readiness to call the tests a response to a perceived threat from China could be a ploy designed to take advantage of anti-Chinese sentiment in the U.S. PNS commentator Ling Chi Wang is head of ethnic studies at University of California Berkeley and an expert on Asian-American affairs. PART II OF IV OF A SPECIAL CHINA SERIES.
Speaking American
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 06-19-98
Debates about multiculturalism these days are driven by the question, "What does it mean to be American?" But even as Americans worry about the loss of common ground, both newcomers and native born end up speaking "American. " Our language proves America exists. PNS commentator Richard Rodriguez, author of "Days of Obligation," is an essayist for the PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer.
An Issue of Space as Well as Skin Color -- U.S. Prisons Incubators of Racism
By Joe Loya
Date: 06-15-98
The brutal murder of a black man in Jasper, Texas has drawn particular attention as a "hate crime" -- Jessie Jackson has called on the President to go there on the anniversary of the "conversation on race" and talks of a deep seed of racism. But the bigotry that inspired the crime grew out of a prison culture Americans need to address if they are to take an inclusive approach to eradicating racism. PNS Associate Editor Joe Loya is a California writer currently writing an autobiography.
In Their Own Words-- Distance Cannot Ease the Anguish for a Kosova Albanian Far From Home
By Isuf Hajrizi
Date: 06-09-98
The flat, black and white, impersonal buzz of e-mail cannot mask horrific news from home. For Isuf Hajrizi, an Albanian from Kosova now living in New York, knowing, but not knowing, creates an almost unbearable tension -- and prompts a cry for action. Hajrizi is an editor of the Albanian-American newspaper Illyria published in New York.
In Their Own Words-- An Indonesian Calls on Indonesians to End Campaign Against Ethinc Chinse
By Ida Sohimbing
Date: 06-09-98
This report, posted on CNN discussion boards on the Internet, provides a first person account of the plight of Ethnic Chinese in Indonesia. In tone, it combines confession and accusation in a distinctive way; articles in the Australian press confirm that rights monitoring groups in Indonesia have received many accounts of women of Chinese descent being raped and abused during last month's rioting in Indonesia. PNS correspondent Ida Sohimbing is a writer located in Palembang.
Where's The Monster? New Godzilla Gains Gloss, Gives Gravity
By Patrick Macias
Date: 06-01-98
To grow up with Godzilla was to recognize the nightmare possibilities of " the atomic age." But the most recent version, according to PNS commentator Patrick Macias, is rich in production values and woefully thin in understanding. Macias, who has seriously embraced the lizard's lessons, is on the staff of YO! (Youth Outlook), a publication by and about Bay Area youth produced by Pacific News Service.
Long Distance Racism-- Blatant Discrimination Fails to Draw Protest from Anti Affirmative Action Forces
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 05-19-98
Opponents of affirmative action programs, who claim a principled opposition to any race-based discrimination, have enjoyed considerable success in recent years. Yet not one of them, notes commentator Earl Ofari Hutchinson, has spoken out about the highly public and explicitly discriminatory rules adopted by many road race sponsors. Hutchinson is the author of "The Crisis in Black and Black."
A 'Sex Worker' in Bangkok Tells His Own Story
By Chai Sathaporn, as Told to Andrew Lam
Date: 05-15-98
News of turbulent times in Southeast Asia tends to focus on one major crisis after another. Here PNS associate editor Andrew Lam offers the voice of one survivor reflecting on his life, that of Chai Sathaporn a go-go dancer at a gay bar in the Patpong area of Bangkok -- one of an estimated 60,000 sex workers in that city. PNS editor Andrew Lam, a journalist and short-story writer, just returned from a two month trip to East and Southeast Asia.
Why Indians Cheer Yet Fear Bomb Tests
By Sarita Sarvate
Date: 05-14-98
Raised to believe in the transformative power of technology, Indians are proud of their country's nuclear capabilities. The nation of Buddha, the Vedas, and Mahatma Gandhi wants to be recognized as a technological giant. PNS commentator Sarita Sarvate explores this seeming paradox through the lens of her own experiences. Trained as a physicist, she is now a consultant and writer for India Currents Magazine, and a recent recipient of 1998 New California Media award for best essay in the ethnic press.
Soul Gone Home
By Marvin X
Date: 05-07-98
The media may have passed on to other obituaries, but the death of Eldridge Cleaver still has a particular resonance for intellectuals of his generation in the black community. We offer two pieces, one a memoir the other a poem, that seem to capture the respect -- and confusion -- that greet his life and work. PNS commentator Reginald Major is the author of numerous books including "The Panther is a Black Cat," on the origins of the Black Panther Party. Marvin X is the author of a just released autobiographical history of the black liberation movement, "Somethin' Proper," published by BlackBird Press.
Soul on Ice Never Melted
By Reginald Major
Date: 05-07-98
The media may have passed on to other obituaries, but the death of Eldridge Cleaver still has a particular resonance for intellectuals of his generation in the black community. We offer two pieces, one a memoir the other a poem, that seem to capture the respect -- and confusion -- that greet his life and work. PNS commentator Reginald Major is the author of numerous books including "The Panther is a Black Cat," on the origins of the Black Panther Party. Marvin X is the author of a just released autobiographical history of the black liberation movement, "Somethin' Proper," published by BlackBird Press.
Visiting Mothers, Visiting Memory
By Dorothy Chin
Date: 05-06-98
Flowers and candy and sentimentality aside, mothers can be pretty terrific people -- and so can their mothers. PNS commentator Dorothy Chin recently visited her mother and her mother's mother, a visit that crossed lines of time, place, and memory. Chin is a psychotherapist and writer living in southern California.
Prison Blend -- Where Low Coffee is the High Point of the Day
By Joe Loya
Date: 04-29-98
With the mushroom-like spread of gourmet coffee shops, each offering more exotic blends than the last, it's possible to forget how good it is to just have a cup of coffee. PNS commentator Joe Loya recalls a most ordinary brew leading to most extraordinary pleasure. Loya is a California writer currently writing an autobiography.
Eulogy for a Graffiti Writer
By Spie
Date: 04-17-98
In cities all across the United States and many suburbs as well, young people announce themselves, proclaim their views to an uncaring adult world, through graffiti, the most ubiquitous medium of youth communication. And all over the United States adults respond with angry denunciations, rarely knowing how to interpret the messages. On March 18, an 18-year-old graffiti writer in San Francisco named Jonathan See Lim, AKA TIE ONE, was shot and killed outside a building by a resident who told police he thought the young man was trying to break in. Other "writers" who knew and admired his work insisted he was no intruder -- he was climbing the fire escape in search of a canvas for his aerosol art. The following eulogy offers a unique perspective on the passions that motivate and sustain graffiti writing. Spie, the author, lives and "writes" in San Francisco.
Growing Up With Crank
By Alisa Moore
Date: 04-14-98
Endless numbers of books and articles have explored the impact of crack cocaine on America's urban culture, particularly black culture. By contrast, far less is known about how speed (methamphetamine) has affected white, blue-collar culture. As speed replaces cocaine as the drug of choice in many metropolitan regions, PNS special correspondent Alisa Moore writes of her own experiences growing up in a household dominated by crank. Due to family privacy concerns, she is writing under a pseudonym.
A Son Defends Dad Against Senators' Smear Campaign
By James C. Hormel Jr.
Date: 04-03-98
President Clinton's nomination of James C. Hormel to be U.S. Ambassador of Luxembourg has languished for six months due to opposition by four senators who argue he will promote a gay rights agenda. Last week, Sen. Majority Leader Trent Lott rejected pleas from 42 senators to lift holds that four senators have used to block the nomination. In the following editorial, Hormel's son, James C. Hormel, Jr., argues why his father deserves to be confirmed. Hormel lives and works in San Francisco.
A Diminished View of Manhood Underlies Black Fears of Gays
By Earl Ofari Hutchinson
Date: 03-31-98
Recent remarks by Green Bay Packer star Reggie White calling homosexuality a sin, and the cause of much of the nation's troubles, have brought an angry response from a number of quarters. White's remarks are particularly troubling, writes PNS commentator Earl Ofari Huchinson, because they reflect a widespread homophobia in the African American community that needs some examination. Dr. Earl Ofari Hutchinson is the author of "The Assassination of the Black Male Image" and the forthcoming, "The Crisis in Black and Black."
What's Wrong With Our Adults?
By A. Clay Thompson
Date: 03-26-98
When major tragedies erupt, people ask questions -- as when two boys under 14 in Arkansas allegedly go on a killing spree. But focusing on what's wrong with young people today won't necessarily tell us what we need to know. The better question is what's wrong with adults? PNS associate editor A. Clay Thompson is a freelance journalist and co-editor of The Beat Within, a weekly writing program for incarcerated youth run by Pacific News Service.
Something Un-American About the Boy Scouts of America
By Richard Rodriguez
Date: 03-25-98
The Boy Scouts of America is variously described as one of America's venerable organizations. In truth, for a culture that venerates Huck Finn and Beavis and Butthead, there has always been something vaguely un-American about the Scouts. The irony, according to one ex-Scout, is that the organization now typifies a moralistic culture that has lost its moral center. PNS editor Richard Rodriguez is author of "Days of Obligation" and the forthcoming "The Color Brown." He is a regular essayist for the News Hour with Jim Lehrer and the Los Angeles Sunday Times.
Running Past the Rules -- Marathon Winner Races Against Attitudes as Well as Otehr Runners
By Eve Pell
Date: 03-24-98
Running races as a woman over 60 involves a challenge to conventional wisdom as much as to legs and lungs. With the Boston Marathon less than a month away, PNS columnist Eve Pell recounts her own passage from worst runner in the third grade to a championship cup in the Marathon. Pell, who runs for the Impala Racing Team of San Francisco, is currently the top-ranked road runner in the women's 60-64 division. She writes a monthly column on veteran athletes for Pacific News Service. An earlier version of this article appeared in Runner's World magazine.
On Sexual Harassment 20-Something Women Fend for Themselves
By Ka