A Roundup of Our Region
If you rely on our Community Calendar to keep track of future happenings, this newsfeed will keep you abreast of what’s happened in the recent past! Here, you’ll get timely intelligence from the frontlines of Ventura County’s progressive movement, along with commentary powered by our expertise and experience as advocates.
(Blue indicates a calendar event. Red indicates a story about JFAVC. Orange indicates the month’s best articles.)
🌺 April 2024
Red Dress Day: Beautiful event hosted by Julie Lynn Tumamait-Stenslie’s group and art by the amazing Weshoyot Alvitre. It’s an honor to have a flyer made by this AMAZING artist. Thank you, Weshoyot, for finding the time.
2024 Fresh Start Free Legal Clinics: Don’t miss the Ventura County Public Defender’s upcoming FREE LEGAL CLINIC April 24th! This is one of four clinics being offered this year, focusing on expungements and homeless court support.
March 2024 🌷
Staying above water (mpacorn.com)
Heritage Language Teaching as Critical Language Arts: Check out this great opportunity at CLU to learn about the educational needs of heritage language learners.
Our History Begins With Health Watchdogging: CFROG is celebrating its 10th Anniversary this year! As part of our ongoing celebration, we’ll be sharing stories from 10 Wins across 10 Years!
Women in the Water: Check out this fantastic new organization based in Santa Barbara! If you are a woman who loves water activities or make your living around water issues, this might be for you!
Letters to the editor: Joint effort needed on climate change; questioning Proposition 1
Senior Nutrition Farm Volunteers Needed: Come volunteer at the Senior Nutrition Farm in Oxnard! The farm gives community members of all ages and abilities the opportunity to collaboratively grow fresh fruits and vegetables for Ventura County’s older adults and people with disabilities.
Spread of organic farms may prompt use more pesticides – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com): “To help California fight climate change, air quality regulators would like to see 20% of the state’s farmland go organic by 2045. That means converting about 65,000 acres of conventional fields to organic practices every year.”
Led by Its Youth, U.S. Sinks in World Happiness Report – The New York Times (archive.is): “Each year, it’s no surprise that Finland tops the annual World Happiness Report. And this year was no different, marking the country’s seventh consecutive year doing so — though some Finns have bristled at the title.”
Facing Down Fentanyl: Oxnard Town Hall: JOIN THE CONVERSATION! Learn more about the dangers of Fentanyl. Ask questions and hear local perspectives. Secure your spot.
Ventura Earth Day Festival 2024: The MERITO Foundation is proudly hosting Ventura Earth Day Festival 2024 in downtown Ventura, in collaboration with the City of Ventura Sustainability Division. Join us in celebrating and appreciating Earth’s natural environment and showcasing local environmental organizations and like-minded businesses dedicated to environmental protection, sustainability, and green technologies.
How to Fight the Climate Crisis & Militarism with Veterans For Peace: On Tuesday, March 26, noon ET/9 am PT, Veterans For Peace Climate Crisis and Militarism Project is presenting a webinar, “How to Fight the Climate Crisis and Militarism”, with one of the largest climate organizations, 350.org US. The presentation will focus on how US militarism and wars worsen the climate crisis, and how peace and climate activists can take action together, especially by participating in the No MAS (No Military Air Shows) campaign.
Ventura County VIRTUAL – March RaĂz Plática: Planned Parenthood of California’s Central Coast invites you to our virtual March RaĂz Plática on Saturday March 30th at 11:00 am PST/2:00 pm EST for a celebration of Women’s History Month.
Guest column: Election 2024 — What to look for in a president (vcstar.com): “The role of president of the U.S. is the most important position of leadership in the world. Given this, it’s important to pick the best candidate available. Unfortunately, the best candidates are unlikely to want the job, because it’s tough work made more difficult by politics. The best and brightest among us have no interest in being a target of intense scrutiny, derision, even threats of harm for a salary a fraction of what a good college football coach makes each year.”
All 52 Vote Centers Are Now Open: Voters can go to any Vote Center location in the County so pick whichever one is most convenient for you. Get the full list of locations, hours, and more election info at VenturaVote.org.
Book Talk – Strong and Resilient Women of Rancho Guadalasca: Another great event celebrating Women’s History Month in Ventura County! Join in!
🥶 February 2024
Comedy for Camp Hope: Sending kids to camp? Laughter? Local friends? This event has it all!
Wildfire Preparedness Town Hall: Join the Ventura Fire Department and the Ventura County Resource Conservation District to learn about essential wildfire preparedness đźš’
Conference for Social Justice in Education: There’s still time to register! This year’s theme is “Equity and Justice: Transforming the Educational Landscape.”
Status of CA Low-Income Women Four Years into the Pandemic: Women in California continue to see a systematic erosion of their well-being and economic status – and this trend has intensified since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, especially for low-income women and women of color.
Climate Change: It’s Here in Ventura County: Join us for this environmental justice event, with some new perspectives in conjunction with Ventura County Community Foundation! Event is in person at the VCCF building, 4001 Mission Oaks Blvd, Camarillo on Tuesday, February 13th from 11am-2pm. Lunch will be provided.
January 2024 ❄️
New Brennan Center senior advisor warns of the threat that Trump poses to democracy : NPR: “There was a time, if you were a reporter on the national security beat, that the name Barton Gellman would strike fear into your heart. This is because Gellman was almost certainly, on most days, in the process of scooping you. And yes, I do speak from firsthand experience.”
City of Ventura General Plan: The Jan 29th and 30th GPAC meetings will focus on the Draft Parks & Open Space Policy Framework and the Draft Environmental Justice Policy Framework. Check out the website for the draft plans and how you can get involved. 2024 is a year of action! Your intention to be involved can start here.
Rain or shine Women’s March organizers urge people to vote | News Channel 3-12 (keyt.com)
High School seniors encouraged to enter Young Activist Essay Contest | News Channel 3-12 (keyt.com)
8th annual women’s march set for downtown Ventura (vcstar.com)
Women’s rallies and marches planned for the Tri-Counties this weekend | KCLU
2024 Ventura County Women’s March: Rain is forecast for Saturday. We’re still planning on our RALLY and MARCH at this time. Check back later this week. In the meantime, please invite a friend and pull out that raincoat and umbrella. DEMOCRACY NEEDS US, RAIN OR SHINE! Community fair and ACTION tent open at 10am. Rally begins at noon.
Annual Women’s Rally & March in Ventura on Jan. 20 | News | ojaivalleynews.com
8th Annual Women’s Rally & March – Ventura Breeze
Native Plant Fest: Our January Program Meeting is transforming into a unique experience at the Oxnard Native Plant Fest on Saturday, January 13, 2024! Come by our booth to hear more about what our chapter offers!
Planting Seeds of Hope for 2024 | Atmos: “We are living through a time of conflict and hate, and so it often feels as though society is moving backwards, writes Atmos contributor Riley Black. But the looming dark in front of us can also be an opportunity to cultivate the world we wish to see.”
December 2023
A father’s quest to help his son with schizophrenia – Los Angeles Times (latimes.com): “As he gets ready for the meeting, Asael Roblero doesn’t need to look far to remember why he keeps going.”
October 2023
Scholastic Bows to Book Ban Pressure, Allows Schools to Exclude Diverse Titles from Fairs: Caving to the far right, Scholastic now allows schools to ban ANY book on Black Americans from its book fairs.
The Coming Supreme Court Power Grab: The Supreme Court’s unelected far-right majority is prepping to hear three cases that will enable it to seize even more rights from women.
New Doctors Are Avoiding States With Abortion Bans, Threatening More Maternal Care Deserts: Most OBGYNs are women. Those living in anti-choice states are EIGHT TIMES likelier to move out, to protect their own reproductive safety.
January 2021
The Work Continues – Pick Your Passion: “Pick Your Passion” was the theme of a virtual town hall that took place on Saturday, January 23, 2021.
The virtual town hall featured speakers from various organizations including Planned Parenthood, Ventura County Reproductive Rights Network, Climate Hub 350 and the Black Lawyers Association who will address pressing issues such as the threat to our environment, attacks on women’s and LGBTQ rights, the impacts of racism on our society, and the need for immigration and criminal justice reform.
September 2020
Homelessness in Ventura County: So excited about our latest interview with Judy Alexandre from Ventura Social Services Task Force. She has been a homeless advocate for 30 years and shares great information about the homeless population in Ventura County. Watch her interview with former JFAVC board member Ana Maria Enke.
Interview with The Acorn Project’s Junemarie Justus: Former JFAVC board member Ana Maria Enke and Junemarie Justus, founder of the acorn project, discuss women’s rights issues during this crucial moment in history for women.
JFAVC Board Member Carl Morehouse and John Krist CEO of Farm Bureau of Ventura County: JFAVC Board member Carl Morehouse and John Krist, CEO of Farm Bureau Ventura County, discuss the vital connection between immigration and the farming industry.