The Lumberjack



Students Serving The Cal Poly Humboldt Campus and Community Since 1929

Tag: Arcata Plaza

  • Activist calls out Humboldt community for limited BIPOC support

    Activist calls out Humboldt community for limited BIPOC support

    By Liam Gwynn

    Nikki Valencia hosts a protest in the Arcata Plaza with a group of supporters on the last Thursday of every month. These protests are meant to raise awareness for the problems facing the BIPOC and LGBTQ communities and March’s protest had an emphasis on Women’s History Month. Despite Valencia’s poster gaining traction ahead of time online, only a handful of people showed up for the actual protest.

    The first hour of the protest consisted mostly of a few people meandering around the plaza while Valencia and her group of supporters sat at booths handing out flyers and selling art created by Valencia. After a few more people arrived, Valencia took out her megaphone and gave an impassioned speech to the twenty or so people who had gathered.

    The protests around these issues weren’t always so small in Humboldt County. In previous protests, during the peak of the Black Lives Matter movement, the community rallied and supported the causes in a far more substantial way.

    Valencia is a Cal Poly Humboldt student and she organized her first protest in McKinlyeville in 2020 and over three hundred people showed up.

    “A lot of supposed allies fell off,” Valencia said. “When I had my protest in 2020, you know, I had three hundred people, all these people cared and it was easy to care because black death you know, it doesn’t take much for that.”

    The problem activists are facing now is getting people to still care and be active when there isn’t a sensational story playing through social media constantly.

    “What I learned from a lot of people is a lot of that (community support) was outrage and outrage runs out fast and then you see who’s really there,” said Valencia.

    Valencia thinks a lot of these problems stem from students lacking intersectionality in their social circles. They said that people will post infographics on their Instagram stories but that doesn’t actually mean they’re attending protests or even connecting with people outside of their race and social circle.

    “People can hide behind their infographics and say that they’re progressive by like sharing something and they don’t have to really read it, apply it or really like care about that,” said Valencia, continuing. “It takes no energy to do that and a lot of people can barely do that.”

    The best way that Valencia thinks allies can show their support for these issues is by diversifying their social circle and embracing intersectionality, educating themselves on topics so others don’t have to do it for them, and finally showing up for events and protests that support BIPOC and LGBTQ communities.

    For more information regarding future protests, follow Nikki Valencia on Instagram @soulbunni. The protests are held in the Arcata Plaza the last Thursday of every month from 3-5 pm.

  • Arcata Plaza hosts a Halloween car parade

    Arcata Plaza hosts a Halloween car parade

    Arcata plaza adjusts to a new, safe way for families to trick or treat on Halloween.

    Arcata has adapted to COVID-19 guidelines in order to host a Spooky Plaza car parade in support of a social distant Halloween. Arcata Main Street is a non-profit organization hosting this year’s COVID-19 friendly, Halloween in Arcata Plaza.

    The car parade will be hosted at Arcata Plaza on Oct. 31 from 7 to 11 p.m. All the spooky features and characters can be seen while inside the vehicle.

    Each part of the inner sidewalk of the plaza will have a different theme with characters and decorations. The event was thought of in late August and planned through September.

    Rose Shoshanna Anthony a consultant and volunteer with Arcata Main Street assured people it will be safe to participate as long as community members follow guidelines and protocols.

    “The event is to substitute for our usual Trick or Treat on the Plaza that gathers several thousand people over the course of several hours,” Shoshanna said. “So this time we have a decorated plaza with a limited number of volunteers being characters on the plaza and then people drive around.”

    To discourage people from the outer sidewalks from walking over the barricades into the plaza spooky area, monitored volunteers and traffic control have been implemented to make sure the event stays in accordance with COVID-19 protocol.

    The drives starts on the corner of the Tri County bank and finishes by exiting at the Jacoby Storehouse.

    Ceva Courtemanche, board member and vice president for Arcata Main Street, stated that the non-profit organization was determined to host a Halloween event.

    “We wanted to not fully give up on Halloween but we wanted to make sure it was gonna be safe for everybody,” Courtemanche said.”So, we put together a plan of doing an open spooky haunted house where participants will be driving in their vehicles around the plaza.”

    Lee Lazon, a volunteer for Arcata Main Street, has been working on graveyard and spider props for the haunted drive-by.

    “This year has been anything but normal and this is a favorite event for a lot of people and families,” Lazon said. “So, I think a lot of people are very interested just because there’s an opportunity to bring back at least a little bit of normal.”

    For more information about the Spooky Plaza car parade visit Arcata Mainstreet.com and check out their Facebook for info on signing up to volunteer.

  • Anti-Immigration Graffiti Found In Arcata Plaza

    Anti-Immigration Graffiti Found In Arcata Plaza

    Anti-immigration graffiti was spray painted outside the corner of Cafe Brio and The Heart Bead store in the Arcata plaza.

    “Trump 2020” as well as “Get out of America” were plastered around the sidewalks just outside of Cafe Brio and Heart Bead. It was reported to APD by Heart Bead store owner, Kim Alveraz, on Aug. 16 and the graffiti was later washed off on Aug. 18.

    APD sergeant, Brian Hoffman, said that the anti-immigration messages were not a hate crime. The APD said that they are not able to open an investigation until suspects are reported. If anyone does witness vandalism or have information on a possible suspect(s), it can be reported to APD at 707-822-2424.

    Photos by Carlos Holguin

  • Protestors Make Themselves Heard in Arcata

    Protestors Make Themselves Heard in Arcata

    A photo essay of the Arcata protests: fists high and voices raised

    • An activist addresses the crowd at the Arcata Plaza during a Black Lives Matter demonstration on Monday, June 1. The demonstration is one of hundreds to occur nationwide after the killing of African American man George Floyd by a white police officer on May 25. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • A protester holds up a sign that states “Black Lives Matter” during a demonstration held at the Arcata Plaza on June 1. The demonstration is one of thousands held to protest the killing of African American man George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis on May 25. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • An activist addresses the crowd at the Arcata Plaza during a Black Lives Matter demonstration on Monday, June 1. The demonstration is one of hundreds to occur nationwide after the killing of African American man George Floyd by a white police officer on May 25. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • A protester looks on during a Black Lives Matter demonstration held at the Arcata Plaza on June 1. The demonstration is one of thousands held nationwide to protest the killing of African American man George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis on May 25. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • An activist addresses the crowd at the Arcata Plaza during a Black Lives Matter demonstration on Monday, June 1. The demonstration is one of hundreds to occur nationwide after the killing of African American man George Floyd by a white police officer on May 25. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • Protesters gather and raise their fists in solidarity in the Arcata Plaza during a Black Lives Matter demonstration on Monday, June 1 in Arcata CA. Nationwide protests have occurred since the killing of African American man George Floyd by a white police officer in Minneapolis on May 25. | Photo by Elliott Portillo
    • Demonstrators stand and sit outside of Arcata City Hall in protest of police brutality and racism on June 1 following the death of George Floyd while in custody of Minneapolis police. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Demonstrators listen to community members speak at the Arcata Plaza while protesting against police brutality and racism on June 1 following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • A demonstrator takes a moment to reflect while listening to speakers from the community at the Arcata Plaza protesting against police brutality and racism on June 1 following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Demonstrators listen to community members speak at the Arcata Plaza while protesting against police brutality and racism on June 1 following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Demonstrators sit and stand in front of Arcata City Hall while protesting against police brutality and racism on June 1 following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. | Photo by Thomas Lal
    • Signs calling for an end to police brutality and racism sit are carried by demonstrators outside of Arcata City Hall on June 1 following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis police custody. | Photo by Thomas Lal
  • Photos Show Life Around Arcata in the Time of COVID-19

    Photos Show Life Around Arcata in the Time of COVID-19

    A photo series from the end of spring break

    Photographer and Sports Editor Thomas Lal captured these scenes from around Arcata on March 21 at the end of spring break at the beginning of Humboldt County’s shelter in place order.

    The storefronts on the Arcata Plaza look out on mostly empty streets.
    An employee sits at a computer while a sign advertises that the business is still open during the first week of a shelter in place order.
    The shelves in the Arcata Safeway.
    The Humboldt State Library.
    A lone person walks through the mostly empty parking lots at Humboldt State University.
    The Humboldt State Library.
    The Humboldt State Library.
    A single person works at the Humboldt State Library.
    A carton of eggs sits on the shelves at the Arcata Safeway.
    A lone person stands just off of the Arcata Plaza.
    An employee puts up a sign in the door of the Jitter Bean on the Arcata Plaza.

  • Hypnotic Halloween at Arcata Plaza

    Hypnotic Halloween at Arcata Plaza

    Theremin player gets spooky on Halloween

  • Letters to the Editor: Vote No on Measure M and Remove McKinley

    Letters to the Editor: Vote No on Measure M and Remove McKinley

    One reader shares his opinion on Arcata’s statue of William McKinley

    The fight to remove the McKinley Statue from the Arcata Plaza has been a long fought battle. The McKinley Statue represents William McKinley, the 25th President of the United States, who gave birth to U.S. imperialism through genocide and colonized over 7,000 islands in both the Pacific and Caribbean by instigating the Spanish-American War and the Philippine-American War. Domestically, McKinley had a similar impact among the Native American community through breaking up several tribes, abandoning the African American community during times of race riots, and driving the U.S. into a depression.

    The current movement to remove the McKinley Statue was launched by Seventh Generation Fund for Indigenous Peoples because the Arcata Plaza is the same site where indigenous peoples were sold into slavery. Grassroots activism, led by the Historic Justice Alliance, successfully pressured Arcata City Council to vote to remove the McKinley statue on Feb. 21, and began the removal process. Following the vote, a small group of reactionaries organized a petition to keep the McKinley Statue, which was approved for the Nov. 6 ballot as Measure M.

    So what does Measure M do? If Measure M goes to a “Yes” vote it would do several things. First, it would overturn the Arcata City Council decision and keep the statue. Second, it would prevent any future modification of the statue. Third, it prevents Arcata City Council from having any future say on the McKinley Statue despite being the original body that erected the statue. Lastly, if the statue comes down before Nov. 6 then the Arcata City Council is legally obligated to put it back up.

    For students, this means that the next step in removing the McKinley Statue is going to the local polls where we have the power to influence the policies that affect future students. Currently, the Vote No on Measure M campaign is endorsed by more than 40 community organizations, including the Wiyot Tribal Council. Students are encouraged to vote “No” on Measure M on Nov. 6 by registering to vote by Oct. 22 in Arcata at https://registertovote.ca.gov.

    Nathaniel McGuigan

    Regional Mecha Co-Chair Northern California Minister of Communication

    Humboldt PSL Email: nam449@humboldt.edu

     

  • Humboldt Pride

    Humboldt Pride

    Humboldt Pride took place in the Arcata Plaza this year. Leading with the Pride Parade and culminating in the town square for a free open-mic, a drag lip-sync performance, live music, and other presentations. While a smaller event then previous years, it was still lively and filled the square with color.

  • Arcata Plaza shooting suspect identified

    ArcataShooting_Web
    Arcata Plaza | Photo by Don Forthuber

    By | Robert Brown

    While investigating a report of a fight in downtown Arcata, Saturday morning at 1:27 a.m., officers from Arcata police and Humboldt State University police approached 26-year-old Erwin Eugene Sweat, Jr., who was sitting in a nearby car.

    A dash camera recorded Sweat getting out of the car and firing two shots at the officers, one hitting University police officer Louis Altic in the right leg. Both officers Altic and Arcata police officer Matthew O’Donovan shot back, firing nine rounds, hitting Sweat.

    Officer’s immediately performed CPR on Sweat, Arcata ambulance took him to Mad River hospital where he died of his wounds. Officer Altic was taken to Mad River Hospital, was treated and released. Both officers have been placed on administrative leave, which is the protocol for officer involved shootings.

    A multi-agency team of local law enforcement agencies known as the Humboldt County Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT) is leading the investigation.

    Anyone with any information about this case, please call the Arcata Police Department at (707) 822-2426.