Kimi’s Super Duper Spaghetti Sauce with Italian Sausage

In 2016 we were able to get most of the produce needed for spaghetti sauce from our own garden plot. Well, let’s be honest – from Ivan’s garden – since he does most of the work to make it work. And believe me, it takes plenty of work to make this kind of abundance happen, beginning with setting up the community garden, which Ivan helped with.


Herbs, tomatoes, eggplants, scallions, we had it all in 2016. 2017 was pretty much a bust for growers though, all across our region in northern New Jersey. Rain persisted for weeks into the early summer and then it stayed cold for a while! Tomatoes don’t like cold and apparently, a lot of other veggies don’t either. read more

Join John Legend in the conversation to FreeAmerica

John Legend invites you to join Free America
John Legend invites you to join FreeAmerica
Join the conversation with John Legend on his listening tour of American prisons for the FreeAmerica project.

“FreeAmerica is a multi-year culture campaign initiated by John Legend to change the national conversation about our country’s misguided policies and transform America’s criminal justice system.”

Its ambitious goal is to end mass incarceration in the United States of America. Get involved.

Youth incarceration
Source: freeamerica.org

The North: a new collection of interactive multimedia stories of Newark that “must be told”

The NorthAuthor of Unfinished Agenda: Urban Politics in the Era of Black Power Dr. Junius Williams introduces The North multimedia storytelling project with these words:

THESE STORIES MUST BE TOLD
Sometime ago, those of us who entered political movements for change walked on our first picket line or marched in our first demonstration. At some point we got hooked on concepts like “Freedom”, “Direct Action” and “Resistance” to get rid of Jim Crow racism. Eventually we came to learn how to spend time in jail, survive police and vigilante violence; to organize poor and working class black people; to extract perks and building blocks from federal programs and build coalitions among unpredictable community groups; to fight city hall; to negotiate agreements that produced opportunities and skill development for community development; and to manage campaigns to elect black politicians. read more

Julián Castro en Passaic Oct 28 para apoyar a Phil Murphy

Foto Julian Castro
Julian Castro Source: Julian Castro

El sábado 28 de octubre el líder demócrata Julián Castro viene a Passaic, New Jersey para unirse a la campaña del candidato a gobernador Phil Murphy.

Castro se desempeñó como Secretario de Vivienda de los Estados Unidos durante el mandato del Presidente Obama. La manifestación se efectuará:

El sábado 28 2017 a las 6pm
Mt. Carmel Hall
10 St. Francis Way
Passaic NJ

Castro ganó su bachillerato de la Universidad de Stanford y su doctorado de Harvard Law School en el 2000. En 2001 a la edad de 26 años Castro se convirtió en el concejal más joven en la historia de San Antonio, Tejas. Cuando lo elijieron alcalde en el año 2009 los líderes del partido Demócrata le consideraron a Castro como uno de los más prominentes líderes del partido. En 2014 se unió al gabinete del Pres. Obama. read more

Foro educativo en español Oct 28 en Rutgers Newark: logrando el grado universitario

Rutgers college forum en español

En el 28 de octubre 2017 de 3:00-9:00pm, Rutgers y El Grupo Latinoamericano de Cónsules en New Jersey (GLACO) auspiciarán su tercer foro educativo en español para informar estudiantes y sus familias sobre las vías asequibles para obtener el grado universitario en New Jersey. Asistentes aprenderán de panelistas expertos y recibirán consultas legales confidenciales acerca del estado migratorio de individuales estudiantes y sobre las nuevas políticas DACA. Consejeros de admisión y de asistencia financiera de varias universidades estatales estarán disponibles para contestar preguntas y ayudar con navegar el proceso de admisión. read more

Kim Guadagno is an immigrant hate machine echoing 45’s rhetoric

Immigrants
Steve Rhodes via Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Gubernatorial candidate Kim Guadagno released a TV ad on October 12 reiterating her statement from the first gubernatorial debate referring to undocumented immigrants as “murderers and rapists”, using disparaging language like that of Donald Trump.

“Phil Murphy was very clear in the debate that he condemns murderous acts committed by anyone and that the people who commit those crimes should be prosecuted,” said Chris Estevez, President of the Latino Action Network. “Guadagno’s Trump-like approach paints all immigrants and Latinos as murderers and rapists.” LAN has condemned Guadagno’s statement. read more

San Juan mayor responds to 45’s genocidal tweets: without help we will die

Mayor Cruz

The Nation reported on October 12, “San Juan Mayor Carmen Cruz woke up to Trump’s vindictive tweets on Thursday, and she texted a long message to Representative Luis Gutierrez of Chicago, who shared it with reporters.”

Follow Mayor Cruz on Twitter


Here’s the body of the Mayor’s message:

Puerto Ricans have suffered greatly in the past month. Two hurricanes devastated our homes and our electrical infrastructure leaving us without the essentials to survive: drinkable water, food and medicine. But perhaps more frustrating has been the devastating actions, time after time, by a President whose tweets, comments and actions seem to be taken out of a book on “how to add insult to injury” rather than a book on “how to help during a humanitarian crisis”. He is simply incapable of understanding the contributions, the sacrifices and the commitment to democratic values that Puerto Ricans have shown over decades. His actions are unbecoming of a leader of the free world. read more

Phil Murphy apoya a Puerto Rico en su hora de necesidad

Photo Phil Murphy, Puerto Rican Convention Sept 30
Fuente: Roberto Bustamente
Elizabeth – El candidato demócrata para gobernador de New Jersey Phil Murphy prometió trabajar mano a mano con los puertorriqueños en New Jersey para superar los estragos del Huracán María y reiteró su solidaridad con miles de familias, ancianos y niños afectados en la isla.

“Yo siento la misma preocupación de ustedes, porque la crisis humanitaria nos afecta a todos”, dijo el líder demócrata durante la Convención Anual del Congreso Boricua en Elizabeth, en la cual se rindió un minuto de silencio en la memoria del lider puertorriqueño Eliu Rivera, ex -director de la agencia PACO fallecido el 30 de septiembre. read more

Nick Cannon kills it in ‘Stand for What’ video

Source: Nick Cannon Stand for What
Nick Cannon’s Stand for What via YouTube
Published Sep 24, 2017


Stand For what?!
You want me to stand for a song that continues to remind me of all the harms that have done me wrong?
Stand for what?!
For your Army that none of our sons truly belong
Stand for what?
The 100 years it took them to convince Congress to become the anthem after 40 failed attempts
Stand for what?
Your forefathers who really just Pimps.
Stand for What?
A song about War, not freedom
That’s how you want to lead them
Brainwash your people? that’s how you want to treat em
Slavemasters whips to Cops night sticks, that’s how you continue to beat em.
Stand for what
the beginning of Slavery in 1619
Or the end of those Black Marines of 1814
That’s really what the lyrics are about
They may have taken the word slave out
but they forget to remove the slave connotations from their brains and they mouth The mentality to make America Greater than your imagination is how you pout
Hating because we burned down their White House
Gave proof through the night, that its light out
For the old elitist white man thinking
Drunk off they ass with power at baseball games singing and drinking read more

Safe channels for giving to Hurricane Harvey victims and other help resources

Worker rescues Asian vic of Hurricane Harvey
Texas National Guardsman rescues Hurricane Harvey victim Source: US DOD

Here are organizations that reliable sources have vouched for as safe for receiving donations for Hurricane Harvey victim relief. Providers of other types of help are listed too. I’ll continue adding to this list as I find more outlets.

Safe Organizations for Financial Donations

  • The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation recommends the Hurricane Harvey Relief Fund of the Greater Houston Community Foundation
  • National Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster lists trusted organizations for making donations
  • read more

    National Brotherhood Week (parody sung by Tom Lehrer)

    Tom Lehrer via YouTube
    Tom Lehrer via YouTube

    Tom Lehrer performs his parody about National Brotherhood Week – that difficult week in February when Americans, “…are supposed to stop whatever we’re doing … burning, killing, whatever and love everybody else … and it’s really quite a strain.”

    Some of Tom’s lyrics:

    Oh the Protestants hate the Catholics and the Catholics hate the Protestants, and the Hindus hate the Moslems and everybody hates the Jews!

    But During National Brotherhood Week, National Brotherhood Week, step up and shake the hand of someone you can’t stand. You can tolerate him if you try … It’s only for a week so have no fear. Be grateful that it doesn’t last all year! read more

    Why an American in England cried in the rain next to a statue of Abraham Lincoln

    Statue Lincoln in Lancashire
    Source: Lily Seville

    Lily Seville posted this story on Facebook August 18 and made it publicly available so it can be shared.

    I haven’t told any stories from England since I got home but it seems like maybe we could all use a good story about a civil war statue, a good story about an American President, and a good story about the power of the common people against the rich and powerful, so I’m going to start with this one. It’s probably for the best that you’re reading this here because I haven’t managed to tell this story in person without crying. read more

    Sen Gill urges Secretary of State to reject Trump commission request for NJ voter data

    What Trump Commission has asked for
    Screenshot from report by Lauren Weinstein
    Senator Nia H. Gill (D-Essex, Passaic) today called on the New Jersey Secretary of State to reject a request by President Trump’s election commission to turn over state voter data. The commission was established to investigate unsubstantiated claims of widespread voter fraud.

    The commission, chaired by Vice President Mike Pence and Vice Chaired by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, sent letters to 50 states and the District of Columbia last week asking for information, including names, addresses, birth dates and party affiliations of registered voters in each state. It also sought felony convictions, military statuses, the last four digits of Social Security numbers and voting records dating back to 2006, according to published reports. To date, 44 states have already refused to comply, according to a story published today on CNN.com: read more