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A small world: How caste discrimination came to California

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

Like many recent arrivals to California, Prem Pariyar searched for work and a home within communities of fellow immigrants.So when coworkers at a South Asian restaurant in Davis refused to room with him in an apartment his employer provided, he was shocked by their reason: his caste. Not his race, religion or nationality, but the centuries-old social hierarchies still prevalent in some South Asian societies.Pariyar is Dalit, which means “broken” in Sanskrit and is considered the lowest-ranking caste, formerly known as “untouchables.” In Nepal, he said, his family faced violence and harassment.  He thought he had escaped that here.“I was speechless,” he said of his coworkers’ actions, which left him depressed, traumatized and living in a van for a month in 2015 until he quit the restaurant. “Why did these people practice these kinds of things here in the U.S.?”Today Pariyar, who won asylum and became a U.S. citizen, is one of California’s most vocal activists for a ban on caste discr...

Snake bites 7-year-old along Clayton hiking trail

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

CLAYTON — A 7-year-old child went by helicopter to a Walnut Creek hospital on Wednesday, after he was bitten by a snake, according to fire officials.Officials did not have an update on the boy’s condition Thursday morning.Contra Costa Fire Protection District units and the California Highway Patrol were called to the Bruce Lee Trail about 4 p.m., officials said. They could not confirm that it was a rattlesnake that bit the child.“There was definitely a snake bite, and all the symptoms were such that it could’ve been one,” fire spokesperson Steve Hill said. “We didn’t see the snake.”According to Hill, fire crews were dispatched for a “limited access rescue,” which Hill said generally means somebody needs help on a trail. As fire crews arrived, they found the child and the mother in the parking lot and the CHP landing a helicopter.“The mother carried the kid to the parking lot,” Hill said. “Our guys and the...

Single family residence sells in Palo Alto for $3.6 million

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

181 Lois Lane – Google Street ViewA house located in the 100 block of Lois Lane in Palo Alto has new owners. The 1,427-square-foot property, built in 1950, was sold on May 26, 2023, for $3,550,000, or $2,488 per square foot. The property features three bedrooms, two bathrooms, a garage, and one parking space. It sits on a 6,060-square-foot lot, which also has a pool.Additional houses have recently been sold nearby:A 1,998-square-foot home on the 100 block of Walter Hays Drive in Palo Alto sold in March 2023, for $3,858,000, a price per square foot of $1,931. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Lois Lane, Palo Alto, in May 2023, a 2,069-square-foot home was sold for $3,820,000, a price per square foot of $1,846. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In October 2022, a 1,632-square-foot home on Walter Hays Drive in Palo Alto sold for $3,650,000, a price per square foot of $2,237. The home has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.Related ArticlesHousing | Detached house sells...

GOP performs 180 pivot on early voting, mail ballots

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

By Christina A. Cassidy | Associated PressATLANTA — After years of criticizing mail voting and so-called ballot harvesting as ripe for fraud, Republicans at the top of the party want to change course.They are poised to launch aggressive get-out-the-vote campaigns for 2024 that employ just those strategies, attempting to match the emphasis on early voting Democrats have used for years to lock in many of their supporters well ahead of Election Day. The goal is to persuade voters who support GOP candidates that early voting techniques are secure and to make sure they are able to return their ballots in time to be counted, thus putting less pressure on Election Day turnout efforts.It marks a notable shift from the party’s rhetoric since 2020, when then-President Donald Trump was routinely sowing doubt about mail voting and encouraging his voters to wait and vote in-person on Election Day. As recently as last year, Republican activists peddling the stolen election narrative were te...

BMX star Pat Casey dies in crash at Southern California motocross park

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

BMX professional rider Pat Casey died in an accident Tuesday at a motocross park in San Diego County, the county medical examiner’s office confirmed.Casey, 29, crashed while riding a motorcycle at a private track known as the Slayground, in the hills above Ramona. Paramedics who were called to the park at 2:30 p.m. found him without a pulse. After resuscitation attempts failed, he was pronounced dead, the medical examiner’s report said.A California Highway Patrol spokesman told the San Diego Union-Tribune that Casey was thrown while attempting to land a jump and that the motorcycle landed on top of him.Casey, who lived in Riverside, had been a top bicycle motocross competitor since his teen years, going professional at age 16 and winning his first X Games medal at 18.In 2021, the BMX competition for a pandemic-curtailed X Games was held literally in Casey’s backyard: on the course he called the Dreamyard that he had built behind his home. He won a gold medal in the...

San Francisco couple has history of blazing trail for LGBTQ+ rights

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- For the past 10 years, John Lewis and Stuart Gaffney have lead lectures on LGBTQ +struggles and successes in Japan as well as other countries."Here in Japan, there are no laws," Lewis explained.On Feb. 12, 2004, the couple was one of first same sex couples to get married in San Francisco, when then Mayor Gavin Newsom made his landmark move. Bay Area county denies motion to fly Pride flag at county admin building "SF was a beacon that day for so many. It was radical and revolutionary," said Lewis.The couple was also one of the hundreds to see their marriage nullified when then Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger accused Newsom of overstepping his boundaries and the state filed a lawsuit wiping out same sex marriages."We lived out the moment and we lived to see a better day, full equality for all," Gaffney said.Those challenges ultimately lead to years of legal battles. Victories started to trickle in. In 2015, the United States Supreme Court historically ruled in fa...

San Francisco man charged with anti-LGBTQ+ hate crimes after Castro attack

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- Hate crime charges were filed against a San Francisco man accused of throwing glass at victims in the Castro neighborhood.Muhammed Abdullah, 20, followed two men, ages 40 and 58, shouted aggressive anti-LGBTQ+ language at them, and threw a glass object that struck the 40-year-old man, according to police and prosecutors. The incident happened on the afternoon of June 5, on 18th and Hartford streets. Officers found Abdullah in Dolores Park and arrested him after a foot chase. Prosecutors charged Abdullah with assault with a deadly weapon, battery, violation of a person's civil rights, and special allegations for hate crimes.The alleged hate crime occurred while San Francisco is celebrating Pride Month and an LGBTQ+ flag is displayed at City Hall. "San Francisco is a safe haven for LGBTQ people," District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said Thursday. "Our city is proud of our diversity and for being an open and welcoming beacon to all people, especially those who have...

San Joaquin County denies motion to fly Pride flag at county admin building

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

(BCN) -- The commemorative Pride flag will not be flown at the County Administration Building in Stockton after a motion to do so was denied by the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday. Listed on the agenda for the meeting was Supervisor Paul Canepa's recommendation to fly the Pride flag for five consecutive business days in support of Pride month. The Pride flag is a multi-colored flag that symbolizes the LGBTQ+ community. The motion was denied in a 3-2 vote with Supervisors Tom Patti and Steven Ding voting in opposition. In order for the motion to pass, a four-fifths vote was required. What happened to Frank Somerville? A timeline of events "I cannot support an alternate flag since our (American) flag represents freedom, liberty and opportunity for all," Patti said. "I think our American flag flies high and proud as is." He suggested to the board a motion to table the discussion item and not have a yes or no vote. However, Canepa said that because Pri...

Volvo Car Scandinavian Mixed Scores

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

ThursdayAt Ullna G&CCStockholmPurse: $2 millionYardage: 6,819; Par: 72First RoundNiklas Norgaard Moller, Denmark33-32—65Yannik Paul, Germany30-35—65Trichat Cheenglab, Thailand34-32—66Louis De Jager, South Africa33-33—66Frederic Lacroix, France32-34—66Dale Whitnell, England32-34—66Angel Hidalgo, Spain32-35—67Soren Kjeldsen, Denmark34-33—67Nicolai Von Dellingshausen, Germany35-32—67Justin Walters, South Africa32-35—67Elin Arvidsson, Sweden35-33—68Olivia Cowan, Germany34-34—68Gavin Green, Malaysia36-32—68Nuria Iturrioz, Spain34-34—68Alexander Knappe, Germany38-30—68Tapio Pulkkanen, Finland34-34—68Richie Ramsay, Scotland36-32—68Carmen Alonso, Spain36-33—69Sofie Bringner, Sweden38-31—69Kristoffer Broberg, Sweden34-35—69Gabriella Cowley, England36-33—69Emma Grechi, France34-35—69Julien Guerrier, France34-35—69Leonie Harm, Germany34-35—69James Morrison, England35-34—69Renato Paratore, Italy34-35—69Antoine Rozner, France35-34—69Paul Waring, England31-38—69Matthew Baldwin, England36-34—7...

Panthers hand first-team reps over to rookie QB Bryce Young

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 15:20:55 GMT

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — Bryce Young’s time is now in Carolina.The Panthers have given Young the first-team reps in practice this week, a move that coach Frank Reich called the next step in the rookie quarterback’s progression.Reich anticipates Young will continue to get first-team reps “for now” as the Panthers prepare for their mandatory minicamp session next week and training camp at the end of July. Reich stopped short of naming Young the team’s starting quarterback this season, saying there is plenty of time to make that decision.“Not yet,” Reich said. “But he has shown everything you want to see. You don’t make a decision until you have to make it. We will just keep giving him the opportunity to get better and earn that starting role. So far he and a lot of guys have taken the steps needed to earn that spot, but we don’t have to make that decision yet. So we will keep chugging along.”Young, the No. 1 overall pick in this year’s draft, took over first-team...