In 1996, California voters approved a citizen-sponsored initiative—Proposition 209—that added the following words to the California Constitution: “The state shall not discriminate against, or grant preferential treatment to, any individual or group on the basis of race, sex, color, ethnicity or national origin, in the operation of public employment, public education or public contracting.”
Since I have no school-age children or grandchildren, I’ve watched the debate over school openings from afar. But every American has a stake in the discussion over how, when and if to bring kids back to school. Pandemic-driven closures last spring affected 62 million pre-primary, primary and secondary school students, along with parents and teachers.
Sadly, the debate is taking place at a divisive time—the 2020 presidential election, as our country experiences unprecedented civil and economic unrest and a rise in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths.
When COVID-19 shut down businesses, Inside Sacramento created TAKE THE 100% LOCAL PLEDGE, a campaign to encourage Sacramentans to buy from local businesses—be it food, products or services—to help them stay afloat in the tenuous economy.
When Bryce McKernan noticed his favorite farmers markets in Midtown and Oak Park experiencing similar struggles, he decided to make buying local even easier. He created Marketbook, a virtual marketplace that brings locally made products and produce to the Sacramento community via an online platform modeled after e-commerce site Etsy.
It’s a clever maneuver to help solve a problem that has bedeviled Sacramento politicians for decades.
Struggling to make good on a 2016 campaign promise to end the scourge of homelessness, Mayor Darrell Steinberg has widened the field and press-ganged the Sacramento City Council into action.
From Pocket to North Natomas, Steinberg wants to spread the homeless pain.
“I have asked my eight colleagues on the City Council to all commit to providing at least a minimum of 100 additional beds for triage shelters for the homeless in each of their districts,” Steinberg said at a City Hall press conference.
If you’re all in for a night of poker to benefit the community, bring your sharpest card shark skills to the All In for Arden-Arcade Celebrity Poker Tournament on Saturday, March 16, at 4:30 p.m. at Mercedes-Benz of Rocklin.
