Items

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  2020-03-19

  EXECUTIVE ORDER N-33-20

  This is the executive order from California Governor Gavin Newsom that introduced California's shelter-in-place on March 19, 2020. The executive order orders Californians to stay at home and only leave home for necessities (buying food, health care, etc.) or for working in certain industries.
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  2021-08-11

  Sorry, Not Sorry. Vaccines Are Necessary.

  In two years of everything under the sun becoming political, it’s not a shock that vaccines are yet another unnecessarily politicized topic. Of course, unlike masks, which were not a part of our daily routine prior to 2020, vaccinations and anti-vaxxers are not new. And honestly, if my two elementary aged kids could be vaccinated I would care a lot less about anti-vaxxers. I think they’re selfish, but for the most part, they’d be hurting themselves (and the immuno compromised that cannot be vaccinated.) But my kids can’t be vaccinated and I have been trying to stay positive knowing next week they’re walking into a classroom with only a mask for protection. I asked my mom “what is their teachers are unvaccinated?” I mean, every unvaccinated person poses a risk - what is the adult in charge is an anti-vaxxer and anti-masker? So it was with complete and utter shock and total relief to get the official word that teachers in the state of CA must be vaccinated. It’s a shame that this seals the fate on governor Newsom’s recall. I don’t love the guy, but I sure as heck want him more than a DeSantis and considering the last time CA recalled a governor, we ended up with the Terminator in charge…well. With Florida’s teachers being threatened with losing their pay over mandating masks, I am relieved to live in a state taking the opposite approach. Call us Commiefornia, I don’t care. Like I’ve been saying for a year and a half, this is a public health crisis. This isn’t about politics, it’s about an invisible virus that is continuing to mutate and spread. And as a teacher, I truly believe it’s my responsibility to do anything to help mitigate the spread.
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  2021-04-18

  What made California’s vaccine rollout so difficult?

  The Golden state only recently received news that “50% of all eligible Californians have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine." It’s progress and it’s most certainly hope. What gives people even more hope is how they expanded vaccination eligibility to 16 and over as of April 15. Schools are already reopening, but this is good news for those who are still hesitant to return — and for good reason. What made California’s vaccine rollout so difficult? One of the most obvious answers is the size of the state. Its population was recorded to be over 39 million in 2020. Even with an increase in vaccines, with roughly 2.4 million doses in the first week of April alone, it was not enough to accommodate even the 50-64 age group — a population of roughly 7.2 million. Santa Clara County Executive Officer, Jeff Smith, was also quoted to have cited the state's governor for perpetuating the pandemic — that his pandemic approach was “disorganized and petulant.” Although affordable healthcare services is a nationwide pandemic in and of itself, California also deals with fragmented healthcare responsibilities. Distribution is “split up among 58 county governments.” Issues in communication, planning and transportation of vaccines are all major factors impacted by the overwhelming lack of unified leadership. https://twitter.com/CAgovernor/status/1383132361148100609 https://www.gov.ca.gov/2021/04/01/as-california-expands-covid-19-vaccine-eligibility-to-all-californians-50-governor-newsom-receives-vaccine-in-los-angeles/
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  2021-01-16

  To stop digital ‘redlining’ and help students, make the internet an essential utility

  Last year, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 98 to help ensure that all of our children are able to successfully continue their education virtually through the Internet. Unfortunately, although this requirement on our educators came with significant funding, the California State Legislature did not couple it with any requirements for internet service providers to actually provide service. We have seen this problem manifest acutely in the many school districts around the state that are scrambling to keep students connected. California’s surge in COVID-19 cases means remote education will continue to be the safest way to continue learning for many students in the weeks and months ahead. But the need for connectivity will not end after the pandemic. If we truly want to level the playing field for students in California — to ensure all students have access to the technology and tools that not only help them access their learning remotely but will be needed for success the rest of their lives — we cannot rest until the internet flows like electricity.
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  2021-03-21

  A Year Into COVID-19's Impact on California's Education

  A comprehensive timeline of all the major events that occurred related to California's education; K-12 to college-level. It starts on March 4, 2020 with the latest entry at March 11, 2021.
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  12/09/2020

  Salvador Tumamait Ambriz Oral History, 2020/12/09

  The following submission is a brief statement on the experiences of myself and the thoughts I had until the end of the year. It will show the progression within one area devastated by the virus.
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  2020-11-19

  California Governor Announces Curfew

  California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a limited stay at home order on Thursday that would require non-essential work and gatherings to stop between 10 pm and 5 am in counties with high rates of COVID-19. The order is set to take effect on Saturday at 10 pm and will last for one month.
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  2020-07-12

  California becomes the second state with more than 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases

  California became the second state to reach one million known COVID-19 cases on Thursday. On Wednesday, Texas became the first state to reach this milestone. The US in total has surpassed 10 million infections.
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  2020-10-15

  Surviving the Apocalypse

  I live in nice town in the Eastbay about twenty miles from San Francisco. Its population is around 70,000 and its downtown is home to dozens of restaurants and high-end retail stores. On the afternoon of March 16th of this year Governor Gavin Newsom ordered all non-essential businesses shutdown and locked down. The next morning I took a walk downtown only to find that the normally busy streets were deserted. It felt like I was one of the last people on earth. The normal sounds were all but gone and it sort of felt like an episode from the Walking Dead. For the next couple weeks and eventually months I walked downtown every day and sat on a bench reading a book. The business that I used to work at was deemed non-essential, so I was initially furloughed. Over time people gradually began venturing out and some of the familiar sounds returned such as people talking and the noise of traffic. Two months into the pandemic almost all of the businesses in my town were still closed. On my daily walk one afternoon I noticed something odd. As I looked up from my book, I noticed a large convoy made up of dozens of vehicles racing into the retail shopping district. Once there the drivers parked their cars and people began pouring out. Within a few minutes there were a couple hundred people breaking into and looting the closed retail stores. The towns relatively small police force was caught by surprise and within a half an hour almost every high-end retail store in town was cleaned out. There was no protest involved it was simply a coordinated raid. The next day on my walk downtown I noticed that every business in town had been boarded up and all the people were gone again. A little later in the pandemic the California wildfires began. I continued my walks with the constant smell of smoke in the air. On many days the sun was completely blocked out by smoke. The massive fires created a weird atmospheric condition. The smoke hovered at about 5,000-10,000 feet and it was as dark as night on some days but there was relatively little smoke at ground level. Now about seven months after the lockdowns began things are returning to normal and I still walk downtown every day.
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  2020-06-30

  California Reinstates Stay at Home Order

  Here in California, the coronavirus has been hitting our state particularly hard. Although things were initially looking up after our efforts as one of the earlier states to impose quarantine. As we began our reopening, there has been an explosion of new cases. Specifically in Orange County, resistance to wearing masks and a rush to return to normal means that just a few weeks after progress, we seem to be back to square one. This item was added TAGS v6.1.9.1. I originally searched under the hashtag #california. Within that search, I have chosen to add the following tweet because it is from a local news source/local reporter that multiple people rely on. Furthermore, it brings state governmental voices into the conversation. (Main article link): https://abc7.com/health/watch-today-gov-newsom-to-give-covid-19-closures-update/6292422/
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  2020-06-18

  Californians must wear face masks in public under coronavirus order issued by Newsom

  It is now required to wear masks in California. I finally broke down and bought a sewing machine to make masks for my family. Most masks are fairly cheap right now. Going for about $5-$10 each for a homemade one and about $20 for nicer manufactured ones. I was able to buy enough supplies to make masks for everyone I know for the price I would have spend to purchase me and my family enough to wear and wash for the week. I watched a tutorial on how to make the masks and by last night I am now able to bake a mask in under ten minutes. I am bummed about the mask mandate but it does not affect me much as I was already wearing them. Masks are making life difficult for people like me who are Hard of Hearing. I worry what next year will look like when the schools open and I go back to teaching.
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  2020-06-18

  100 Days of Coronavirus in the Bay Area

  Today I discovered the beautiful visual essay produced by the San Francisco Chronicle. The visual essay, entitled 100 Days of Coronavirus in the Bay Area, includes moments from the earliest days of the pandemic in the region. The visual essay is a collection of photographs and short videos, punctuated with small explanatory paragraphs, that beautifully captures the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic in the San Francisco Bay Area. While there are a number of notable moments included, the image of the original cruise ship carrying suspected COVID-19 patients entering the Bay and the shot of an almost entirely empty Bay Bridge are striking. I remember the day the cruise ship docked in Oakland. It felt like I was the only one I knew registering the gravity of impending pandemic. Submitted for the #sanfranciscobayarea collection. Contributed by Shanna Gagnon, curatorial intern for Arizona State University, HST 580.
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  05/19/2020

  Attempts to End California's State of Emergency

  Representative Kiley has introduced legislation to end the State of Emergency in California. In his release, he claims that Governor Newsom has overstepped his constitutional powers, and cites various grievances with the actions that have been taken by the Governor to face the pandemic.
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  03/17/2020

  Finding Alternative Ways to Exercise

  As the pandemic first began to spread and garner attention, gyms in Orange remained open. At the beginning of March, I first began to notice that the number of people in the gym during peak hours was beginning to decline. Hours were still the same, but the staff also took up the practice of roaming throughout the gym with disinfectant and paper towels, trying to clean down each machine after it was used. On March 17th Governor Newsom declared a statewide stay at home order, and when I tried to get one last workout in I came across this sign. *Original text in Creator: Fitness-19 posted the sign *Original text in Contributor: Joey Dorion took the photo
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  2020-05-17

  Evolving Views on Government and Politics

  In this story, I talk about how my involvement in politics as an American citizen have evolved and have been shaped by this crisis. I discuss it from my viewpoint, coming from Northern California under Governor Gavin Newsom. I address how certain stat orders have influenced by views on government intervention.
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  2020-04-20

  A Conflicting Agenda

  This image portrays two women in downtown Sacramento in protest of the shelter-in-place lockdown that Governor Gavin Newsom implemented. One women is seen holding a sign that portrays Governor Gavin Newsom as part of the Nazi regime or compared with Adolf Hitler. Another woman is seen in the foreground carrying a child on her back with another sign declaring that “All Businesses Are Essential”. Both women are protesting against business closures, unemployment, and being unable to return to the workforce. While with some jobs work is almost guaranteed like those who work for the state, other private and small businesses are suffering. On the other hand, while having the freedom to assemble and speak openly comes with its benefits, the sign depicting Gavin Newsom as a Nazi is quite extreme. The level of ignorance present in this photograph equates its offensive demeanor and deeply undermines the experiences of Holocaust survivors and the other millions of lives lost. For me fellow Sacramentans, seeing signs and descriptions such as these make me feel less proud of the town I live in. I thought the pandemic would help us realize our insensitive words and unnecessary slurs but it’s only reminded many people of a troubled past. The pandemic has truly brought a side of the American people that I have never seen and as a young student seeing adults act with rational thought makes me wonder where our world will be in the next few decades. If the world changes, so do we. Some people have a hard time overcoming adversity and the pandemic has exposed triggers amongst the American people. One of them being economic downfall. The image clearly represents what some individuals believe to be most important and valued in life. It seems that we have reached a point through this pandemic that we no longer prioritize the lives of each other but rather how much money is in the bank. In many ways, this is a reflection of what America was built off of.
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  2020-05-13

  The Life of an Essential Worker

  A personal allegory about my experiences working as an assistant manger at Jamba Juice. This talks about the rapid change in the workforce and how lit changed as I became an essential worker.
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  05/06/2020

  Joslyn Barragan Oral History, 2020/05/06

  This recording is the life changes I have had to go through due to COVID 19. Not only has my life changed but American society as well. This health crisis has brought lots of fear to lose in high risk of being affected. So staying at home has become the new normal for me and most Americans. #CSUS #HIST15H
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  2020-05-03

  My pandemic political views

  #CSUS #HIST15H
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  04/29/2020

  Oliver Kaplan Oral History, 2020/04/29

  Oliver Kaplan begins this recording by stating how the monologue is for a college assignment in their “China in the world” class. They then speak about how they were aware of the virus well before its spread across the world, due to the class they were taking. Initially Oliver thought the virus would be contained in China, but realized that it was going to become a larger issue when he noticed anti-Chinese sentiments at his college in Maine. Oliver then describes how shortly after that his school shut down and he returned to his home in California. Oliver concludes this recording by talking about local political policies in Los Angeles and hopes the lockdown will end soon.