The opposite of ‘racist’ isn’t ‘not racist’

“The only way to undo racism is to consistently identify and describe it — and then dismantle it,” writes professor Ibram X. Kendi. "That is the essence of antiracism: the action that must follow both emotional and intellectual awareness of racism." In his international best-seller... Continue

‘Parent Project’ for dealing with out-of-control kids

Starting on Tuesday, April 5 (in English) and Wednesday, April 6 (in Spanish), Sonoma Valley Youth & Family Services will offer The Parent Project, a 10-week program for parents of strong-willed, out-of-control children and adolescents, aged 11 to 18. Parents learn how they can best influence... Continue

Planning Commission maps out housing recommendations

Sonoma’s Planning Commission, the seven-member, City Council-appointed body that reviews and approves development applications, recently completed its recommendations for housing on new Commercial and Mixed-use zoned projects in the City of Sonoma. The result removes subjective language from the zoning code, and will likely put... Continue

The future of community collaboration

When the Portrait of Sonoma County report was published in 2014, it presented an unvarnished analysis of the dire circumstances which many of our Valley's residents endure. The areas in which people were underserved included housing, food, access to health care, and mental health care.... Continue

Good night and thanks for coming

The debate (and endless meetings) over the future of the Sonoma Developmental Center continue as the County of Sonoma moves into the environmental review phase. Ultimately the County will hand the final, absolutely final, site plan to the state, which owns the property. But after... Continue

War, peace & toilet paper

I passed Cap'n Snark on the Plaza recently and made the mistake of nodding “hello.” Immediately he restrained me by the elbow and launched into one of his high-decibel rants. “Them rules about humane war is messin' up this Ukraine thing!" “OK .... Continue

SV School District loses associate supertintendent

Bruce Abbott, the associate superintendent of business services for the Sonoma Valley Unified School District will leave the post effective August 1. The announcement, attributed to Superintendent Adrian Palazuelos, Ph.D., was made Tuesday in his weekly 'Update to the Community' email newsletter. His complete statement... Continue

Scenes from a film fest

The VIP tent was one of the hot tickets for the Sonoma International Film Festival, the 120-film, multiple-venue extravaganza that wrapped on March 27. Artistic Director Kevin McNeely (left) presented actress Jacqueline Bisset, here with Kelly Amormino and Rosemary McNeely, with the SIFF Cinematic Excellence... Continue

The day they sailed Glen Ellen

Bright sunny day, a gentle breeze, two feet of water… It was a beautiful day for a sailboat race on Sonoma Creek. [caption id="attachment_118750" align="aligncenter" width="420"] Spectators line the shore.[/caption] Sunday saw the return to Glen Ellen of the Jack to Jack Yacht Race, as... Continue

Kudos for Katy

Katy Byrne's recent piece, Make it stop!, was brilliant. As a psychotherapist myself, I appreciate her clarity -- that the invasion of Ukraine has us "staring at the shadow of humanity" even as we would ignore or deny our own darkness and that of others. At... Continue