California
Asian American groups push for federal action on guns following California mass shootings
Asian American and Pacific Islander group advocates referred to as on politicians to reform gun legal guidelines following two mass shootings in AAPI communities in California.
Members of the AAPI Towards Gun Violence steering committee held a press convention Wednesday to induce motion and schooling on how gun violence within the U.S. impacts Asian Individuals.
The committee held the convention following a Jan. 21 taking pictures that left 11 folks lifeless and 9 injured throughout Lunar New 12 months celebrations in Monterey Park, California and a taking pictures that killed seven folks and left one injured in Half Moon Bay, California on Monday.
Po Murray, chairwoman of the Newtown Motion Alliance, defined that whereas California has sturdy gun management legal guidelines, its bordering states don’t. Murray highlighted the necessity for federal laws to scale back gun violence.
Sens. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) re-introduced a pair of payments to lower the prevalence of assault weapons. The Assault Weapons Ban invoice would ban assault weapons, high-capacity magazines and different high-capacity ammunition feeding units. The Age 21 Act would elevate the minimal age to buy assault weapons from 18 to 21.
Rep. David Cicilline (D-R.I.) may also introduce a model of the primary invoice within the Home of Representatives, in response to a launch from Feinstein’s workplace.
Murray stated motion from the Home is essential for stopping gun violence.
“Nobody coverage or modest insurance policies sort out this challenge. Due to this fact we’ve been pushing for a complete technique to finish this disaster,” Murray stated.
Murray praised President Biden’s assist for gun reform, including that the administration meets with a coalition of gun violence prevention leaders each different week.
AAPI group advocates stated that a rise in anti-Asian hate for the reason that begin of the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated a historical past of violence focusing on Asian Individuals.
“The truth is that anti-Asian American rhetoric elevated in the course of the COVID 19 pandemic,” Varun Nikore, government director of the AAPI Victory Alliance, stated. “As Asian Individuals, we in fact are a uniquely various group, however we’re united in our concern about gun violence.”
The group leaders inspired organizations and policymakers to advocate for extra schooling, outreach and analysis surrounding gun security and anti-Asian violence.
“Each life misplaced to gun violence was preventable,” Refujio “Cuco” Rodriguez, chief fairness and program officer for the Hope and Heal Fund in California, stated.
Rodriguez urged organizations to repeatedly present assets to victims’ households and communities within the aftermath of mass shootings.
He famous the significance of philanthropic assist for communities affected by gun violence and that this help ought to be equitable and ongoing.
“Assist for impacted communities ought to go effectively past the time of the incident,” Rodriguez stated.
California
Prop. 22: California Supreme Court takes up gig worker dilemma
SAN FRANCISCO – The California Supreme Court on Tuesday will hear arguments on a case that could determine the future of the state’s gig economy.
Prop. 22 was passed in November 2020 by nearly 60 percent of voters.
It classifies rideshare and delivery drivers for companies lke Uber,Lyft, Door Dash and Instacart, as independent contractors, not employees.
As contractors, drivers are supposed to have more flexibility with their work schedules.
But it also means they’re not legally entitled to things like a minimum wage, overtime or sick leave.
Now, some rideshare drivers and state union representatives are challenging the legality of Prop. 22.
Their argument: some worker rights, like making sure people are paid a minimum wage, should be determined by state law, regardless of what voters decide.
As the justices hear the arguments, a group of drivers with an organization called the “Gig Workers Union,” plan to rally outside the courthouse.
California
More than $450K recovered for Half Moon Bay mushroom farm workers at sites of deadly shootings
HALF MOON BAY, Calif. — The owners of two Northern California mushroom farms where a farmworker killed seven people in back-to-back shootings last year will pay more than $450,000 in back wages and damages to 62 workers, the Labor Department announced Monday.
The owners of California Terra Gardens and Concord Farms in Half Moon Bay will also pay $70,000 in civil penalties for illegally deducting money from the workers’ pay for housing them in cramped cargo containers, garages, dilapidated trailers and a moldy greenhouse infested with insects and surrounded by trash, the department said in a statement.
Half Moon Bay mushroom farms cited for workplace safety violations after Jan. mass shooting
Chunli Zhao, who worked at California Terra Gardens and had worked at Concord Farms, was charged with seven counts of murder and one count of attempted murder in the Jan. 23, 2023, shootings that stunned the small coastal community about 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of San Francisco. He has pleaded not guilty.
Authorities said Zhao opened fire at California Terra Garden, killing four co-workers and wounding another one. They said he then drove about 2 miles (3.2 kilometers) to Concord Farms, a mushroom farm he was fired from in 2015, and shot to death three workers.
‘Hidden Crisis: Tragedy in Half Moon Bay’ | Watch full special
The mass shooting in Half Moon Bay exposed the deplorable living conditions that some farmworkers endured. Now, officials are looking for a solution.
California Terra Gardens, Inc.’s owners, Xianmin Guan and his wife, Liming Zhu, illegally deducted money from workers’ pay for substandard housing, federal officials said. Federal investigators discovered 39 workers housed in cramped cargo containers, garages and dilapidated trailers furnished with filthy mattresses, the department said.
At Concord Farms, owner Grace Tung housed workers in moldy, makeshift rooms inside a greenhouse infested with insects, federal officials said.
MORE: Timeline: An in-depth look at the Half Moon Bay mass shooting that killed 7
The families of three Half Moon Bay shooting victims speak out as one described the feeling when they were told his brother has died.
Emails from The Associated Press seeking comment from the farms’ owners were not immediately answered Monday.
“Our investigators found workers at California Terra Gardens and Concord Farms housed in sickening conditions, forced to sleep near garbage and with insects all around,” said Wage and Hour Division Assistant District Director Alberto Raymond in San Francisco.
If you’re on the ABC7 News app, click here to watch live
Copyright © 2024 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
California
Whole Orchard Recycling in Kern County with the Healthy Soils Program — California Climate Investments
Grower John Gless owns a citrus orchard in Kern County, California, which has greater citrus production than nearly any other county in the state. In 2020, Gless was looking to replace his old orchard and improve the orchard’s soil health through the conservation management practice of whole orchard recycling. With whole orchard recycling, orchard trees are chipped and spread back into the field evenly. Once chips are incorporated into the soil, the field can be replanted with a new citrus orchard. This practice improves soil health, nutrient levels, soil structure, and water retention, resulting in healthier orchards.
Gless applied for the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Healthy Soils Program Incentive Grants, funded through California Climate Investments, and received an award of $94,825 to implement whole orchard recycling in his 110-acre orchard. In addition to greenhouse gas reduction benefits, estimated at 26 metric tons of CO2 equivalent for this project, using whole orchard recycling serves as an alternative to burning orchards, preventing the release of particulate matter that otherwise would harm health.
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