Arts are embedded and integral in every culture, in our spiritual practices and in our community traditions. When we talk about supporting arts and culture, one of the things we are talking about is empowering the culture bearers and artists who preserve our traditions, capture our yearnings, help us find meaning in the inexplicable and...
Op-ed: No downtown Santa Clara, no Super Bowl dollars
For the second time in a decade, the city hosting the Super Bowl — Santa Clara, California — was entirely ignored during the official Super Bowl 60 news conference. At the kickoff event on Feb. 10, there was no speech from Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gillmor. Instead, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan took center stage,...
Paz-Cedillos: We must tell our stories
In a time of utter chaos — where civil rights are under siege, inhumane immigration policies are tearing families apart and state-sanctioned violence is on the rise — we must tell our stories. Last week, Amigos De Guadalupe led a rapid response training for my team. As stewards of the Mexican Heritage Plaza, we bear a...
Collins: Gas water heater ban begins in 2027
On March 15, 2023, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District banned gas water heaters starting in 2027 and gas furnaces beginning in 2029. This will affect the majority of homeowners in the area, so we as an association are actively trying to inform homeowners of the upcoming changes. While your gas water heater and...
From the CEO: Get ready for impactful reporting from Washington, D.C.
San José Spotlight is one of the first newsrooms across the U.S. to join a landmark initiative to bring impactful nonprofit reporting from Washington, D.C. to our local Silicon Valley audience, according to an announcement today. The Washington Bureau Initiative is powered by the Allbritton Journalism Institute — the brainchild behind NOTUS, a leading news...
Editorial: San Jose misses the mark with functional zero
To bring homelessness to “functional zero,” San Jose will need to commit hundreds of millions of dollars in the coming years to be able to say the number of people exiting homelessness is greater than those becoming homeless — unless city officials rethink their approach. Building more temporary shelters, tiny homes and safe parking and...
Op-ed: Santa Clara County’s most vulnerable children deserve better
On Dec. 19, 2023, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors held an unprecedented hearing in response to the tragic death of Baby Phoenix from a fentanyl overdose. The tragedy became headline news as details emerged suggesting it could have been prevented had the county’s Department of Family and Children’s Services (DFCS) removed Baby Phoenix...
Silver Taube: Trump makes unprecedented moves at federal labor agencies
The new presidential administration has made unprecedented changes at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and the National Labor Relations Board. On Jan. 27, President Donald Trump removed Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) Commissioners Charlotte A. Burrows, whose term was set to expire July 1, 2028, and Jocelyn Samuels, whose term was set to expire July...
Bramson: Don’t wait for the other shoe
The wildfires in Los Angeles last month burned more than 12,000 homes and structures, displacing 100,000 people. This happened over the course of just a few devastating weeks. Around the same time on the other side of the country, the federal government briefly issued an executive order that froze funding for more than 2,000 programs...
Philbrick: Transit is crucial for emergency preparedness
Dozens of San Jose firefighters have headed south to help contain the wildfires raging across Los Angeles County, while San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan has called on local officials to evaluate efforts to protect our city from a similar disaster. As climate-driven events like wildfires, floods and earthquakes grow more frequent and severe and hit...