Positive Images, 200 Montgomery Dr c, Santa Rosa, CA 95404, USA
Join us for art activities at our first hang out of 2023! Materials and snacks provided! This group is BIPOC only and will be happening the 1st Monday of every month. It is meant to be a social hangout space for Black, Indigenous, Queer, and Trans people of color (18+). Se habla español! For questions please reach out to marian@posimages.org
Immigrants here in the wine country have been on edge ever since Donald Trump was elected president in November, given his campaign promises to deport everyone in the U.S. who hasn’t been able to obtain legal residency status. But it wasn’t until a surprise federal immigration raid down in Bakersfield on Jan. 7 — one day after the election results were certified, but two weeks before Trump’s actual inauguration — that the panic wheel really started spinning. CalMatters reported that Border Patrol officers took local farmworkers by surprise that day, showing up to businesses where they’re known to hang out. “They were stopping cars at random, asking people for papers,” a spokesperson for the United Farm Workers labor union told the news outlet. “They were going to gas stations and Home Depot where day laborers gather. It’s provoking intense anxiety and a lot of fear in the community.” More from the story:
On social media, Gregory K. Bovino, the Border Patrol chief in El Centro, called the sweeps “Operation Return to Sender.”
“We are taking it to the bad people and bad things in Bakersfield,” the El Centro Border Patrol said in response to a comment on its Facebook page. “We are planning operations for other locals [sic] such as Fresno and especially Sacramento.”
In the end, at least 78 people were arrested during the three-day Kern County raid, according to the Border Patrol division responsible for the raid. And while that immigrant roundup was real, it has set off a chain of false rumors about additional roundups across the state — including here in the North Bay. According to multiple local organizations tracking this panicked phone tree, there have since been false reports of immigration raids at the Home Depot locations in Santa Rosa and Rohnert Park, as well as the Foodmaxx in Santa Rosa’s Roseland neighborhood and Manzanita Elementary on the east side of town. More from the PD:
Vikki DuRee, lead dispatcher at the 24-hour hotline run by the North Bay Rapid Response Network, said she’s been extremely busy over the past two weeks taking calls from worried residents. “I haven’t kept a tally today, but we’re getting about 25 calls a day right now, mostly people who are worried about rumors that they’re seeing on social media and anecdotally in the community,” DuRee said Thursday afternoon. For one person, all it took was a Trump sticker on a black Escalade to spark fear that immigration officers were on the road, she said.
“People who call with a rumor, they’re frightened that either they or people they care about are at risk,” she said. This rapid response network mentioned by the PD is an arm of the North Bay Organizing Project, a Santa Rosa-based organization that has come to the forefront since Trump’s election. Org leaders have been posting all sorts of information for immigrants — as well as tips to avoid spreading fake news of raids — to their Facebook and Instagram pages. They’re also encouraging people who think they notice signs of la migra to reach out to their hotline first (at 707-800-4544), so they can verify the info before blasting it wide. “Together we can transform our fear and anxiety into power and action!” they say. If you want to volunteer to join the North Bay Rapid Response Network and help with this work, you can apply online.
Here in Healdsburg, another well-known local nonprofit called Corazón Healdsburg is leading the charge on arming immigrants with critical info. Org leaders told me recently that me they’ve been handling raid rumors on an almost daily basis. So on Jan. 16, “our dedicated staff and volunteers… knocked on 712 doors in Windsor, Healdsburg, Geyserville and Cloverdale,” the org said on social media. Door-knockers were handing outlittle red and yellow cards with simple instructions about what to do if you encounter immigration officials. “Knowledge is power,” Corazón says. “Our goal is not to spread fear, but to empower our community. By staying informed and united, we can create a network of support and resilience.”
The red and yellow cards that Corazón Healdsburg staffers have been passing out around town. (Photos: Corazón Healdsburg via Instagram)
Still, the thought of what actual localimmigration raids would meanfor community and industry here in the North Bay are haunting us all right now — some more than others, of course. School officials are worried that the children of immigrants will stop coming to class, especially now that Trump has reportedly “put an end to a longstanding policy that restricted federal agents from making immigration arrests at sensitive locations like churches, hospitals and schools.” And much like in Kern County, where farm owners said immigrants didn’t show up to work after last month’s raid, wine-industry bosses in our area — who are already fighting an uphill battle against the sober movement, and dealing with labor shortages as it is — say they’re not sure their businesses would survive if something similar happened here. A recent headline in the Daily Mail reads: “Upscale Napa Valley wineries fear Trump’s migrant raids could finish them.” Other local food and hospitality businesses — and consumer prices — would feel the burn too, naturally. (Rolando Herrera, who owns Mi Sueño Winery in St. Helena with his wife Lorena, tells the PD: “If this administration really wants to ‘make America great again,’ they should put a program together that registers these important workers and gives them a temporary work permit. That’s what they really want.”)
A long list of local government agencies and police departments across Sonoma and Napa counties have vowed they won’t enforce Trump’s calls for mass deportation. Still, many activists have been urging police and politicians to go even further by explicitly cutting off all ties with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and declaring Sonoma County an official “sanctuary county” for undocumented immigrants. And although county leaders have issued some strong statements of their own in support of immigrants, they’ve stopped short of using the word “sanctuary,” the Press Democrat reports — partly because that might put “a target on Sonoma County, doing more harm than good.” And as the San Francisco Chronicle points out, none of these declarations are enough to “stop federal bodies like the U.S. Border Patrol from conducting raids.”
In the meantime, looks like we’ll have to rely on local networks of concerned civilians to keep each other safe. In the words of Corazón Healdsburg: “Help us build trust in our community, spread knowledge and empower families.” You can follow them and the North Bay Rapid Response Network on Facebook for ways to get involved.
Please join us on the virtual porch for our regular Sunday Afternoon Delight to see where the Mystery takes our conversation. Drop in for a few moments or stay the whole time, whatever works for you. If the conversation on the porch doesn’t draw you in, feel free to wander off to a breakout room with a friend and talk about whatever you’d like.
Are you interested in a more focussed discussion? We offer you the opportunity to create your own themed breakout room. If you’d like to host one in the future, please let us know and we’ll be happy to schedule and promote it for you.
Are you interested in a more focussed discussion? We offer you the opportunity to create your own themed breakout room. If you’d like to host one in the future, please let us know and we’ll be happy to schedule and promote it for you.
If you are new to The Billys, please be our guest the first couple times you join us at an online Heart Circle or Sunday Afternoon Delight. If you regularly attend any of these, they will remain free for all who need them to be,though as you are able please strongly consider supporting these by donating to our General Fund.
Glaser Center, 547 Mendocino Ave, Santa Rosa, CA 95401, USA
Social time 1:00 – 1:30 PM; facilitated discussion 1:30 – 3:00 PM
Join us for lively discussions, mutual support, sharing information, and all the while celebrating who we are. Everyone is welcome; there is no charge. Whether you’re in the closet or out, you are welcome!.
Our LGBTQIA+ familia and friends, especially our beautiful trans community, are being treated unjustly. Do you feel like you want to help, take action, but don’t know how?
Join us in community on February 20th at 6p via zoom and learn about:
1. Amor Para Todos (APT) and our programs and resources.
2. How our resources and programs can help you support LGBTQIA+ youth and adults at your school and in your community.
3. Learn about opportunities to volunteer to make change.
4. Feel supported, empowered, and united to take meaningful action.
Register via our QR code or with the registration link below which is also in our bio:
This training is open to school teachers/staff/administrators, parent guardians, secondary students, all family members, allies and anyone else who wants to take meaningful action and be a part of positive lifesaving change for our trans familia and those in the LGBTQIA+ community, while simultaneously fostering allyship. Please share with all who you think would like to join.
Nuestra familia y amigues LGBTQIA+, especialmente nuestra hermosa comunidad trans, están siendo tratados injustamente. ¿Sientes que quieres ayudar, tomar acción, pero no sabes cómo?
Únase a la comunidad, regístrese para nuestro evento Zoom a continuación el Jueves 20 de Febrero a las 6 p.m. y aprenda sobre:
1. Amor Para Todos (APT) y nuestros programas y recursos.
2. Cómo nuestros recursos y programas pueden ayudarlo a lograr cambios para los jóvenes LGBTQIA+ en su escuela y en su comunidad.
3. Conozca las oportunidades de voluntariado.
4. Sentirse apoyado, empoderado y unido para tomar medidas significativas.
Regístrese a través de nuestro código QR o con el enlace de registro a continuación y en nuestro bio:
Esta capacitación está abierta a maestres/personal/administradores de la escuela, padres tutores, estudiantes de secundaria, todos los miembres de la familia, aliados y cualquier otra persona que quiera tomar medidas significativas y ser parte de un cambio positivo que salve vidas para nuestra familia trans y aquelles en la comunidad LGBTQIA+, al mismo tiempo que fomenta la alianza. Por favor comparte con todos los que creas que quisieran unirse.
What: Full Spectrum with exception of surgical services
When: Thursdays 8am – 11am
Who: All are welcome. You do not have to be a current patient of our clinic. All ages welcome.
Services Provided: -Consultation -Hormone Therapy -Referral to surgical options -Mental Health Services/ Referrals -Paperwork for name and gender change
Rainbow Cattle Company, 16220 Main St, Guerneville, CA 95446, USA
www.queersteer.com Giveback Tuesdays. Each week a local charity will be choosen. 10% of the sales for that Tuesday will be donated to the charity directly by us. The more the community supports the Rainbow on a given Tuesday, the more the charity will get. If you want to nominate a local charity for consideration for a Giveback Tuesday, email us. This has turned out to be such a wonderful event, and a number of very deserving charities have received money. Since it’s start in late November of 2005, over $115,000 has been given to the local charities from the Rainbow directly. This does not include all of the money raised by the actual charities during events on each and every Tuesday. It’s impossible for us to say exactly how much money was raised in total, but it’s safe to say it’s in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. We are very pleased with how the community has pulled together to make this an amazing weekly event, and so much good has come from all of the donations and money raised.
I am a volunteer coordinator with two immigrant support organizations in Sonoma County. I have been on the Steering Committee of NBRRN North Bay Rapid Response Network for 8 years and was a founding member of QAA Queer Asylum Accompaniment in 2019. These organizations provide strong support for immigrant individuals and families in Sonoma County impacted by immigration enforcement.
Secure Families Collaborative has been the prime source of funding for the legal needs of the same individuals and families that our organizations have been working with and supporting for these last few years. Secure Families Collaborative just hosted 6 free legal clinics with lawyers (some of whom they fund) who they gathered to give free legal consultations to hundreds of immigrants twice in Petaluma and as well in Cloverdale, Sonoma, Sea Ranch and at SRJC.
I have worked with Margaret Flores McCabe for the last 5 years and have attended Secure Families Collaborative partners meeting multiple times and have found her support of Sonoma County’s immigrant community to be cooperative, inclusive and absolutely vital.
At a time when our county may be attacked for supporting our immigrant population and when our immigrant friends, family and neighbors are suffering REAL attacks under the Trump Administration we should be working strongly together to disperse needed funds quickly to grow and strengthen the existent support organizations who have been doing this work in the last few years. People should not be wasting any of our time or energy attacking one of the most effective funding sources at work for immigrants here in Sonoma County.
Please continue to do what you can to protect the smooth process of financial support from our Secure Families Collaborative.
Join us for eventsthroughout the month of February, from storytelling workshops to West African rhythm and movement. All events are free and you don’t need a library card to attend; registration is required for select events.
Kids
West African Rhythm and Body MovementCelebrate the rich cultural traditions of West Africa with local educator Tyehimba Kokayi! Explore engaging rhythms, songs, and energetic dance moves. Recommended for grades K-6. At six libraries: Healdsburg, Petaluma, Northwest Santa Rosa, Central Santa Rosa, Sebastopol, and Sonoma Valley.
Family is a Rainbow StorytimeJoin us for a special storytime celebrating family, diversity, and community. Parents, caregivers, and guardians are welcome to bring their children for an hour of stories, crafts, and exploring what it means to be a family. Recommended for ages 3-8. At four libraries: Guerneville, Cloverdale, Rincon Valley, and Roseland.
Teens
Peptoc Poster WorkshopJoin the creators of the viral Peptoc hotline (707-8PEPTOC) and book, You Are Amazing Like a Rocket, to spread joy and kindness. Ask yourself, “What could you say or do for someone having a hard day?” and create a poster with your own words and drawings. All materials provided. At three locations: Central Santa Rosa and Northwest Santa Rosa libraries, and the Petaluma Community Center.
Pop/Rock Band WorkshopLearn how to play in a band in this three-part series for beginners. Taught by local musicians Elizabeth and Alex of Honey Disposition. Instruments provided. Grades 7-12. At two libraries: Rohnert Park Cotati and Guerneville.
Adults
Flower & Song: A Storytelling WorkshopPreserve personal and family narratives with poet and musician Nicolás R. Valdez, who will guide you through the power of performance art. At three libraries: Sebastopol, Healdsburg, and Northwest Santa Rosa.
Celebrate Black History Month this February—and all year long!—with Sonoma County Library, where celebrating our community is more than a month. From free year-round events to librarian-recommended book lists, there’s something for everyone. Explore books for kids, teens, and adults at sonomalibrary.org/StaffPicks.
Thank you for being a member of the Sonoma County Library community. Visit us online or in person at one of our libraries. Be sure to check out open jobs at Sonoma County Library here. Questions? Please call your local library or click here to send us a message. Eventos en febrero Acompáñanos a disfrutar los eventos de febrero, desde talleres de cuentacuentos hasta clases de baile, ritmo y movimiento de África occidental. Todos los eventos son gratuitos y no necesitas una tarjeta de la biblioteca para asistir; se requiere inscripción para eventos seleccionados.
Niñes
Ritmo y movimiento Corporal de África Occidental ¡Celebra las ricas tradiciones culturales de África occidental con el maestro local Tyehimba Kokayi! Explora ritmos interesantes, canciones y movimientos de baile llenos de energía. Recomendado para los grados K-6. En seis bibliotecas: Healdsburg, Petaluma, Northwest Santa Rosa, Central Santa Rosa, Sebastopol y Sonoma Valley.
La familia es un arcoíris Acompáñanos a escuchar cuentos sobre la importancia de la familia, la diversidad y la comunidad. Damos la bienvenida a familiares, cuidadores, tutores y niñes a una hora de historias, manualidades y exploración de lo que significa ser una familia. Recomendado para edades 3-8. En cuatro bibliotecas: Guerneville, Cloverdale, Rincon Valley y Roseland.
Jóvenes
Taller de pósters PeptocAcompaña a las creadoras de la línea directa viral de Peptoc (707-8PEPTOC) y del libro, You Are Amazing Like a Rocket, para difundir alegría y bondad. Si te preguntas, “¿Qué podría hacer o decir a alguien que está teniendo un mal día?” puedes crear un póster con tus propias palabras y dibujos. Todos los materiales serán proporcionados. En tres ubicaciones: Central Santa Rosa, Northwest Santa Rosa y el Centro Comunitario de Petaluma.
Taller de bandas pop/rockAprende a tocar en una banda de música en esta serie de 3 partes para jóvenes principiantes. Impartido por los músicos locales Elizabeth y Alex del grupo Honey Disposition. Los instrumentos serán proporcionados. Grados 7-12. En dos bibliotecas: Rohnert Park Cotati y Guerneville.
Adultos
Flor y Canto: Un taller para contar historias ¡Conserva las historias personales y familiares con el poeta y músico Nicolás R. Valdez! Desde narración de cuentos hasta ejercicios de movimiento en grupo, Valdez te demostrará y guiará a través del poder del arte escénico. En tres bibliotecas: Sebastopol, Healdsburg y Northwest Santa Rosa.
Do you feel like you want to help, take 