Last month, the VTA board unanimously approved the Visionary Network, a bold vision for transit service in Santa Clara County that aims to bring service levels up to what’s appropriate for today’s market. The vision includes 83% more service than what’s currently offered, including more frequent service on all routes, longer hours of operation and...
Editorial: Education equity is the answer to affirmative action in Silicon Valley
California scrapped affirmative action from its public university landscape, decades ago, making last week’s Supreme Court ruling a moot point. The state’s private colleges, however, were able to keep the program in place. Now that’s changed. The state’s private institutions may be looking to their public counterpoints for solutions, as they struggle to level the diversity playing...
Collins: Political discourse is out of control
On June 7, more than 30 protesters from LUNA, the Affordable Housing Network of Santa Clara County, Unhoused Response Group, Working Partnerships USA, South Bay Community Land Trust and other San Jose-based nonprofit organizations trespassed on private property, harassed, terrorized and even verbally assaulted an employee at the Santa Clara County Association of Realtors. What...
Robinson: Presidential scrutiny and false equivalence
Webb Hubbell, former assistant attorney general under President Bill Clinton, tells an interesting story about meeting with then Sen. Joe Biden, who chaired the Judiciary Committee, before his confirmation. Hubbell served prison time for the Rose Law billing scandal. He said Biden had warned him before he took the job that he would be investigated...
Sandoval: Reflections on homelessness, complex realities and simple truths
Over the last two years, it’s been an honor to connect with San José Spotlight readers on the critical issue of housing. This column has been a collective effort of many PATH colleagues equally committed to highlighting a diverse range of topics that intersect with homelessness—racial justice, LGBTQ+ rights and structural causes of this crisis, to...
Stroll: Santa Clara County voter guide should facilitate, not hinder elections
The county voter information guide aims to help registered voters pick candidates. For some races, it facilitates this. For others, however, it’s an impediment. The problem is the steep cost to appear in the guide for certain candidates, including candidates for Congress, the state Legislature and a plethora of local offices. Only the independently wealthy...
Slater: Older adults need our help managing mental health
The number of older adults with mental health disorders is expected to nearly double by 2030. One factor exacerbating this is isolation, which more than doubles the risk of depression compared to those that do not or rarely feel lonely. The issue has become so prevalent that in May, the U.S. Surgeon General proclaimed a...
Dewan: Social media and digital literacy for youth
Humans are naturally social beings. Socialization, companionship and healthy relationships are essential to our overall well-being and to thrive in life. The strength of our connections has an impact on our feelings of happiness, and our physical and mental health. Connecting with others eases stress, anxiety and depression and prevents loneliness. Many people have come...
Op-ed: Redefining our housing crisis
When a problem is sketched out on a piece of paper, it’s easy to feel as though it’s manageable. The housing crisis is not one of those problems. It’s complicated, with different problems that seem to exist in separate silos—each on their own piece of paper—and each with seemingly different solutions. Some of the solutions...
Silver Taube: Domestic workers seek dignity and labor rights
Economic, social and gender inequalities, as well as war, climate change and violence, are forcing millions of people into migration for employment in domestic work every day, according to the International Domestic Workers Federation. Human Rights Watch says domestic workers in private households are among the most exploited and abused workers, and one of the most...