Last year brave marchers participated in the annual Cesar Chavez march under rainy skies. This year it did not rain on their parade and a larger number of marchers participated on Saturday, April 6. Participants gathered at the Southside Park Amphitheatre, near the corner of 7th and T streets. Marchers eventually paraded towards the Capitol Mall and advanced to Cesar Chavez Plaza that remains closed due to renovations. This was the 13th year the march has taken place in Sacramento. This year many of the marchers also marched to demand legislation to give undocumented residents a path to the always controversial issue of citizenship for illegal immigrants. A White House Presidential P

Saturday’s rainy day kept many people indoors. Several hundred people however gathered at Southside Park in Sacramento to celebrate Cesar Chavez Day. Marchers braved the rain as they marched from Southside Park’s to Cesar Chavez Plaza and back. On Saturday, March 31 marchers of all ages commemorated Cesar Chavez Day a state recognized holiday. The 12th annual march continues to be held in Sacramento rain or shine. The march began at 10 in the morning with several speakers, entertainers and live music performers on hand to keep the spectators’ spirits alive as rain poured down at Southside Park. Aztec dancers led the procession and their enthusiasm was not dampened as many marched an

Several hundred honored Cesar Chavez's memory marching to Southside Park in Sacramento today during a downpour of rain. Represented were labor groups, immigation issues and even Trayvon Martin, the Floridian killed wearing a hoodie. Chavez, died at the age of 66 in 1993. He fought to bring awareness to the plight of farmworkers by organizing marches and hunger strikes. Once the marchers arrived at the park Aztec dancers went into motion. Here are some photos I shot of the event:

After two years of planning and organization, renovations will begin on Feb. 6 for the Cesar Chavez Memorial Plaza. Since its construction 150 years ago, the park has been renovated many times to maintain it and adapt it to the new needs of the public. “It’s a prominent public space, and I’m looking forward to giving it a facelift,” said J. P. Tindell, park planning and development manager of the Sacramento Department of Parks and Recreation. Lisa Martinez, marketing director for the Downtown Sacramento Partnership (DSP), also said that she looks forward to the “beautification efforts” on the park. The DSP is known for holding many events in the park, including Friday Night Concerts in t

Occupy Sacramento participants once again stood their ground at Ceasar Chavez Park in Downtown Sacramento. At midnight, an hour after the park is officially closed, dispersal orders were given and 4 (including one in a wheel chair) were arrested peacfully. 

My name is Brendan Bishop and I am 27 years old. I have no college debt, my house has not been foreclosed on and I have a job, but I too am part of the 99%.  This movement is about everyone,  not about me.  I was born in San Francisco and have lived in Sacramento for 3 and ½ years. The Occupy Wall Street movement that is quickly spreading throughout the world and here in Sacramento has the potential to actually change the way Wall Street gamble’s our money. It is not that we hate corporations; the issue is that we do not like how they are unfairly treated as a person, with the same rights as a human being. The media claims Occupy Wall Street is disorganized with no message, plan of action

Wednesday evening was filled with poetry, music and activism when Rafael Jesús González (poet, professor, artist and bilingual studies innovator) read to a full house at La Raza Galería Posada. He was accompanied by flautist and Rooted in Community co-director Gerardo O. Marín and artist and activist Colin Miller. The event was hosted by Los Escritores del Nuevo Sol / Writers of the New Sun and opened with local writer JoAnn Anglin. She spoke of the group’s founding in 1993, its monthly writing group, monthly readings and of the group’s anthology, “Voices of the New Sun: Songs and Stories / Voces del Nuevo Sol: Cantos y Cuentos.”  González was introduced by Dr. Fausto Avendaño, a retire

In advance of Saturday’s annual march commemorating Cesar Chavez' birthday, the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors presented a resolution honoring him Board of Supervisors Chambers this morning. “We want to honor Cesar Chavez on behalf of the citizens of Sacramento County, my father, and all of the hard work that continues to be done in improving the working and living conditions of farm workers in California,” said Phil Serna, District 1 Supervisor. Supervisor Serna awarded the principal resolution to Becky Chavez, (above) Cesar’s niece, who has lived through the United Farm Workers’ movement her uncle championed.   "Phil has always admired Cesar’s strength and courage as he fought

Roseville, CA – The Robert C. Cooley Middle School will be ground zero for one of the largest youth education forums in Northern California. Close to 1,000 elementary, middle and high school students will converge on the Cesar E. Chavez Youth Leadership Conference and Education Fair on Saturday, March 19, 2011 in Roseville, CA. For over a decade, this event has provided guidance to youth seeking to pursue higher education and grant information. This unique educational forum allows 6th to 12 grade students and their parents an opportunity to learn how to pursue secondary educational and grant opportunities. College recruiters will be available to answer student questions. There will also b

Here it is, folks. Your very last chance to catch Friday Night Concerts in the Park at Cesar Chavez Plaza! This finale, outdoor, all-ages concert features The Phantom Jets and This Luxury and Headliners The Brodys. The music and festivities begin at 5 p.m. and run till 8 p.m. The concert features local rock and punk bands. In its 19th year, Friday Night Concerts in the Park still attracts huge crowds from all walks of life. Interesting vendors, delicious food stands, great live music and the ever-popular beer garden make for a fun and inexpensive summer evening for the whole family. Stop by The Sacramento Press booth and pick up a free balloon for the kids, enter a raffle, and sign up f

Friday Night Concerts in the Park at Cesar Chavez Plaza is about to meet this season's end Aug. 13. Join The Sacramento Press for the second-to-last installment of this free, all-ages outdoor concert series featuring The Golden Cadillacs, Light Rail, and Johnny Guitar Knox & the Soothers. The music and festivities begin at 5 p.m. and run till 8 p.m., and the concert features local bands specializing in folksy, bluegrass music In its 19th year, Friday Night Concerts in the Park still attracts huge crowds from all walks of life. Interesting vendors, delicious food stands, great live music and the ever-popular beer garden make for a fun and inexpensive summer evening for the whole family.

  This evening kicks off the first of the seasons'  Friday night  'Concert in the Park'  series right in the heart of downtown Sacramento. Starting at 4 p.m.,The Sacramento Press will provide live streaming video of all the action including interviews of the local bands and footage of each bands' performance. This free outdoor concert series, which runs May 7 - August 13 is the hottest summer spot every Friday night downtown. The shows feature local artists representing a range of genres including rock, pop, punk, blues and folk. Music addicts and happy hour junkies fill up Cesar Chavez Plaza at 10th and J streets to enjoy live music, fresh air, good food, and the famous beer garden.

 The Sacramento Press is excited to be using live, streaming video as a new media tool. We hope that by streaming the events we go to live, it will enhance the connection we have with our current readership, engage the community at these events and encourage new readership not just in downtown and Midtown, but all neighborhoods in the Sacramento area. Our first live streaming video experiment at the de Vere's Irish Pub's St. Patrick's Day block party was a big hit with The Sacramento Press' readers. St. Patrick's Day allowed us to realize that live video really helps us to showcase the great events happening in our neighborhoods and entice Sacramentans to get out and explore our communit

Saturday morning, Cesar Chavez Park came alive with 1,500 marchers participating in the 10th Annual Cesar Chavez March. Cesar Chavez Park marked the finishing point for the marchers, who initially began at Arteaga's Supermarket in West Sacramento. Al Rojas, first vice president of the California State Employees Association and executive board member for the Sacramento Labor Council for Latin American Advancement, said he believes the march had "a lot more enthusiasm, spiritually, compared to last year." The march has local significance dating back to 1965, when Chavez led grape pickers on a 340-mile march from Delano, Calif. to Sacramento. Jobs, education and immigration reform were some

On Tuesday, at the Citizen Hotel in downtown Sacramento, a benefit reception was held for the UFW Foundation Joe Serna Civic Participation Fund. The event was a salute to the life and work of former Mayor Joe Serna, Jr. and honored Senate President Pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg for his work on behalf of farm workers. In addition, the event was held to recognize and support the work of the UFW Foundation. The UFW Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Its mission is to empower and improve the lives of farm workers and other low-income and migrant workers through civic engagement, community education, research, and implementation and enforcement of equitable public policy. The o

When thinking of Mumbo Gumbo's gig this Friday, the word "regulars" comes to mind. This year marks the 16th year in a row the band will play at Concerts in the Park. As the name suggests, the New-Orleans-flavored septet blends many genres to create its sound. From soul to Zydeco and from ballad to boogie, the band has covered the gamut in its nearly 20-year history, during which the members have produced eight albums. They have been a big part of the Northern California concert scene. Many of the band members have even formed successful side projects over the years. Guitar player Jon Wood, sax player Reggy Marks and bass player Lynn Michael Palmer recently formed The Nibblers. The seven

Monday, June 8 Noon-2 p.m. A filming for a Cesar Chavez documentary by Discovery Channel, Eyeworks and Cuatro Cabeza Productions will take place on the West Steps of the Capitol. A small crew of five people is expected. 12:15-1 p.m. Near the new vegetable garden next to the Capitol Park insectary building on 13th and L Streets, Steve Poinzer will be holding his "Steve Poinzer for Governor" photo shoot with a crew of five people. Tuesday, June 9 10-11 a.m. Freedom 2 Care is, according to their webpage, a "coalition organized by the Christian Medical Association to bring together organizations and individuals who recognize the value of preserving historic American civil rights and freedo