Tag Archives: California

Monday, October 1, 2012

Buenas tardes,

On October 8th, 2012, President Obama will travel to Keene, California to announce the establishment of the César E. Chávez National Monument.

Cesar E. Chavez’ grave site and Memorial Garden at the National Chavez Center. (Photo courtesy of the National Chavez Center)

See the full press release below.

As always, please share with your networks and please send any supportive statements to Latino@who.eop.gov!

Julie Chavez Rodriguez Associate Director White House | Office of Public Engagement

Read the Full Press Release

THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE October 1, 2012

President Obama to Establish César E. Chávez National Monument

On October 8th, 2012, President Obama will travel to Keene, California to announce the establishment of the César E. Chávez National Monument. Years in the making, the monument – which will be designated under the Antiquities Act – will be established on the property known as Nuestra Señora Reina de la Paz (Our Lady Queen of Peace), or La Paz. The La Paz property is recognized worldwide for its historic link to civil rights icon César Estrada Chávez and the farm worker movement. The site served as the national headquarters of the United Farm Workers (UFW) as well as the home and workplace of César Chávez and his family from the early 1970’s until Chávez’ death in 1993, and includes his grave site which will also be part of the monument.

“César Chávez gave a voice to poor and disenfranchised workers everywhere,” said President Obama. “La Paz was at the center of some of the most significant civil rights moments in our nation’s history, and by designating it a national monument, Chávez’ legacy will be preserved and shared to inspire generations to come.” From this rural headquarters in the Tehachapi Mountains of Kern County, California, Chávez played a central role in achieving basic worker protections for hundreds of thousands of farmworkers across the country, from provisions ensuring drinking water was provided to workers in the fields, to steps that helped limit workers’ exposure to dangerous pesticides, to helping to establish basic minimum wages and health care access for farm workers.

The National Chávez Center, in consultation with the United Farm Workers of America, the César Chávez Foundation and members of César Chávez’s family, offered to donate certain properties at La Paz to the federal government for the purpose of establishing a national monument commemorating César E. Chávez and the farmworker movement. This designation will represent the culmination of a process that has been underway for several years.

The César E. Chávez National Monument will encompass property that includes a Visitors’ Center containing César Chávez’s office as well as the UFW legal aid offices, the home of César and Helen Chávez, the Chávez Memorial Garden containing Chavez’s grave site, and additional buildings and structures at the La Paz campus.

The monument, which will be managed by the National Park Service in consultation with the National Chávez Center and the César Chávez Foundation, will be the fourth National Monument designated by President Obama using the Antiquities Act. He previously designated Fort Monroe National Monument in Virginia, a former Army post integral to the history of slavery, the Civil War, and the U.S. military; Fort Ord National Monument in California, a former military base that is a world-class destination for outdoor recreation; and Chimney Rock, which is located in the San Juan National Forest in southwestern Colorado, and offers a spectacular landscape rich in history and Native American culture. First exercised by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1906 to designate Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming, the authority of the Antiquities Act has been used by 16 presidents since 1906 to protect unique natural and historic features in America, such as the Grand Canyon, the Statue of Liberty, and Colorado’s Canyons of the Ancients.

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Spanish Translation

El Presidente Obama establecerá el Monumento Nacional a César E. Chávez

El día 8 de octubre de 2012, el Presidente Obama viajará a Keene, California, para anunciar el establecimiento del Monumento Nacional a César E. Chávez. Este monumento, que lleva varios años en proyecto y será designado bajo la Ley de Antigüedades, se establecerá en la propiedad conocida como Nuestra Señora Reina de la Paz, o La Paz. La propiedad de La Paz está reconocida en todo el mundo por su conexión histórica con el ícono de los derechos civiles César Estrada Chávez y el movimiento de los trabajadores agrícolas. Este lugar ha sido la sede nacional de la Unión de Trabajadores Agrícolas (UFW, por sus siglas en inglés) así como la casa y centro de trabajo de César Chávez y su familia desde principios de la década de 1970 hasta el fallecimiento de Chávez en 1993, e incluye su tumba, que también será parte del monumento.

El Presidente Obama comentó que, “César Chávez les dio una voz a los trabajadores pobres y despojados en todas partes. La Paz fue el punto de partida de algunos de los movimientos de derechos civiles más significativos en la historia de nuestra nación y, al designársele como monumento nacional, se preservará y se compartirá el legado de Chávez para inspirar a las generaciones futuras”.

Desde esta sede rural en las Montañas Tehachapi del Condado Kern en California, Chávez desempeñó una función clave para lograr las protecciones básicas para cientos de miles de trabajadores agrícolas en todo el país, desde disposiciones que garantizaban que se les proporcionara agua potable a los trabajadores en los campos, hasta medidas que ayudaron a limitar la exposición de los trabajadores a pesticidas nocivos, hasta ayudar a establecer los salarios mínimos básicos y acceso a cuidado médico para los trabajadores agrícolas.

El Centro Nacional Chávez, en consulta con la Unión de Trabajadores Agrícolas de América, la Fundación César Chávez y miembros de la familia de César Chávez, ofreció donar ciertas propiedades en La Paz al gobierno federal con el fin de establecer un monumento nacional para conmemorar a César E. Chávez y el movimiento de los trabajadores agrícolas. Esa designación representará la culminación de un proceso que lleva varios años en movimiento.

El Monumento Nacional César E. Chávez comprenderá propiedad que incluye un centro de visitantes que contiene la oficina de César Chávez así como las oficinas de ayuda legal de UFW, la casa de César y Helen Chávez, el Jardín Conmemorativo Chávez que contiene la tumba de Chavez, y otros edificios y estructuras en el recinto de La Paz.

El monumento, que estará bajo la administración del Servicio Nacional de Parques, en consulta con el Centro Nacional Chávez y la Fundación César Chávez, será el cuarto monumento nacional designado por el Presidente Obama bajo la Ley de Antigüedades. Él designó previamente el Monumento Nacional Fort Monroe en Virginia, una antigua posta del ejército que fue integral a la historia de la esclavitud, la Guerra Civil, y las Fuerzas Armadas de EE.UU.; el Monumento Nacional Fort Ord en California, una antigua base militar que es un destino de clase mundial para recreación al aire libre; y Chimney Rock, que está ubicado en el Bosque Nacional de San Juan en el suroeste de Colorado, y ofrece un panorama espectacular repleto de historia y de cultura americana nativa. La autoridad de la Ley de Antigüedades, que fue ejercida por primera vez por el Presidente Theodore Roosevelt en 1906 para designar el Monumento Nacional de Devils Tower en Wyoming, ha sido usada por 16 presidentes desde entonces para proteger las características naturales e históricas exclusivas en EE.UU., tales como el Gran Cañón, la Estatua de la Libertad, y el monumento Canyons of the Ancients en Colorado.

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A deadly proposal

09/21/2012 Nativegrl77

An energy company in California has proposed deadly seismic testing in a California marine reserve.
Take Action

Help save whales and tell the California Fish and Game Commission to block PG&E’s reckless plan.

The blue whales, humpback whales, sea otters, dolphins and porpoises living off of California’s central coast are at serious risk of coming under attack from deadly seismic testing.
An energy company called Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) is trying to get approval to continue operating a dangerous nuclear power plant that sits at the intersection of multiple earthquake fault lines. It is hoping a map of the Shoreline Fault’s deeper regions will help with the approval process.
The testing proposal calls for powerful air cannons to shoot deafening underwater explosions every 13 seconds for 42 straight days to create a map of the sea floor in an area that California has set aside as a marine reserve. According to one local official, the testing would “cleanse the Point Buchon State Marine Reserve of all living marine organisms.” We can’t let that happen.
There’s a public forum happening on Monday to discuss this issue. Greenpeace will be there and we want you to join us. Help us collect 40,000 messages of support from around the country for protecting all these amazing marine creatures by taking action today.
Tell the California Fish and Game Commission to block PG&E’s reckless seismic testing plan and to protect the blue whales, humpback whales and other creatures that call the Pacific coast of the United States home.
We know the horrible effects this kind of testing has on marine life. It’s been done before. Each underwater blast will be at a volume level that will instantly deafen and possibly kill everything unfortunate enough to be in its path in the most barbaric way imaginable.
PG&E knows what this testing will do. The company has already offered compensation to local fishermen who rely on the area for their livelihood. But the impacts of this testing would go on for years and its impossible to put a pricetag on the loss of a species like the blue whale.
Humpback and blue whales have actually just begun appearing in amazing, pre-hunting numbers in the area to feed on krill for the winter. We’ve been waiting decades for this. These whales and other marine life don’t need to die so that an energy company can profit by continuing to operate a dangerous nuclear power plant on top of earthquake fault lines.
This is your chance to speak out against PG&E’s crazy plan. Make your voice heard and take action today to save the marine life off the coast of central California from deadly seismic testing.
Sincerely,
Phil Kline Greenpeace Oceans Campaigner

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STOP DIABETES …

08/30/2012 Nativegrl77

More Promotions that Give Back

August 2012

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This Week’s Top 3 On ThinkProgress: The GOP Platform Edition

08/29/2012 Nativegrl77

ThinkProgress has three important stories you may have missed:

1. GOP Approves ‘Most Conservative Platform In Modern History’

2. 7 Birthers Speaking At The Republican Convention

3. Major Victory For Voting Rights Advocates As California Legislature Approves Election Day Registration

Best,

Igor Volsky Deputy Editor, ThinkProgress

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President’s vision for a more secure energy future

08/20/2012 Nativegrl77

Friday, August 16, 2012

Top 10 Things You Didn’t Know About WindThe Department of Energy put together a list of the top ten things most people don’t know about wind energy. Check it out:
10. Human civilizations have harnessed wind power for thousands of years. Early forms of windmills used wind to crush grain or pump water. Now, modern wind turbines use the wind to create electricity. Learn how here.
9. A wind turbine has as many as 8,000 different components.
8. Wind turbines are big. A wind turbine blade can be up to 150 feet long, and a turbine tower can be over 250 feet tall, almost as tall as the Statue of Liberty.
7. Higher wind speeds mean more electricity, and wind turbines are getting taller to reach higher altitudes where it’s even windier. See the Energy Department’s website to find average wind speeds in your state or hometown.
6. Most of the components of wind turbines installed in the United States are manufactured here. Facilities for building wind turbine parts are located in more than 40 states, and the U.S. wind energy industry currently employs 75,000 people.
5. The technical resource potential of the winds above U.S. coastal waters is enough to provide over 4,000 gigawatts of electricity, or approximately four times the generating capacity of the current U.S. electric power system. Although not all of these resources will be developed, this represents a major opportunity to provide power to highly-populated coastal cities. See what the Energy Department is doing to develop offshore wind in the United States.
4. The United States generates more wind energy than any other country except China, and wind accounts for 35 percent of all newly installed U.S. electricity generation capacity over the last four years.
3. The United States’ wind power capacity reached 47,000 megawatts by the end of 2011 and has since grown to 50,000 megawatts. That’s enough electricity to power over 12 million homes annually — as many homes as in the entire state of California — and represents an 18-fold increase in capacity since 2000.
2. Wind energy is affordable. Wind prices for power contracts signed in 2011 are 50 percent lower than those signed in 2009, and levelized wind prices (the price the utility pays to buy power from a wind farm) are as low as 3 cents per kilowatt-hour in some areas of the country.
1. As much as 20 percent of our nation’s electricity could come from wind energy by 2030 but continued support for clean energy tax creditsis critical to achieving this target. That’s why President Obama is calling for an extension on the Production Tax Credit — to support wind producers in the U.S. and continue to help drive the wind industry’s growth.Get Updates

To learn more about the President’s vision for a more secure energy future and sign up to get updates, please visit: WhiteHouse.gov/energy.