North Bay For KPFA / Sonoma County Joins the Fight for KPFA

<BODY BACKGROUND="http://www.freestone.com/background1.gif" TEXT="#000000" BGCOLOR="#FFFFCC" LINK="000000" VLINK="#663300" ALINK="#663300"> <FONT SIZE=+1> <BR Clear=All> <CENTER> <FONT SIZE=+4><I><B><FONT COLOR="#660000">Sonoma County Raises It's Voice... <BR> Free KPFA!</FONT></B></I></FONT> <HR WIDTH="375"> <FONT COLOR="#CC3300"><B>To be added to the Sonoma County e-mail list for updates on KPFA, e-mail: <A HREF="mailto:zenekar@sonic.net">zenekar@sonic.net</A></B></FONT> <BR> <HR WIDTH="250"></CENTER> <P> <FONT SIZE=+2>The Pacifica Foundation must cease the affront to all who hold dear the ideals of Free Speech, return the station to the staff and volunteers and acknowledge Listener-Sponsored Radio belongs to the KPFA Community. </FONT> <P> On Sunday, July 18th, Sonoma County residents gathered in Sebastopol's Ives Park to gather our resources to fight for KPFA and Free Speech. <BR> 275 or more people came together, aligned themselves in affinity groups, planned tasks, new meeting times and re-affirmed solidarity with the struggle for KPFA. <BR> Affinity groups have formed as labor, faith groups, media, web-workers, food & water supplies, street theater, and the many localities. Contact names and e-mails will follow soon. <BR> There will be a Sonoma County Demonstration Saturday, July 24th. We will meet at PROVO Park (Alston & Martin Luther King) at 11:30 and MARCH at noon according to the latest information..... <BR> There is a PRESS CONFERENCE and BANNER PAINTING on Thursday at 1 p.m. at Courthouse Square. We are painting a banner that says "North Bay for KPFA" Some posterboard and markers will be available for folks to make there own signs, bring more posterboard if you are able..... Have a sound bite ready for the Press.There are hopes many will join Camp KPFA Friday night. <BR> <B>CARPOOL</B> <BR> 9:30 am in front of Sebastopol Vets on High St. <BR> 10:00 a.m. at Cotati Park and Ride (near Hwy 116 and Old Redwood Hwy) <BR> 10:30 a.m. at Lakeville Park and Ride (Lakeville and Hwy 101) <BR> <B>For more carpool information, call 523-1229</B> <P> <B>Wednesday July 21: </B>-- Call-in Show on Pacifica Crisis to be broadcast around the country. In Bay Area tune to <B>KALW 91.7 FM at 4:00-6:00pm PST</B> <P> CAMP KPFA LIVES! Yesterday at Camp KPFA, a full line-up of genuine (as opposed to the ersatz, non-political, pre-recorded, locked-out, boarded up, toned down, scab spun myuzak being played inside KPFA...) KPFA programming was broadcast from outside KPFA, in the heart of downtown Camp KPFA. From 7:00 am to 7:00pm those gathered in front of the station or tuned in to 87.9 FM, or listening on the internet at live.freekpfa.net were able to hear the familiar voices of Chris Welch, Philip Maldari, Larry Bensky, Susan Stone, Dennis Bernstein, Layna Berman, and many others. Camp KPFA needs a continuous presence in front of the station to maintain our claim to KPFA and keep arrests at a minimum. Come by to show your support! If you can't spend the night, come visit for a few hours, bring food for the folk camped there, lend tents or sleeping bags, or help out in any way you can think of. There are events planned everyday this week. Please see the calendar. <P> <B>Transmitter Pickets Needed</B> <BR> Dear Friends, Message has come in for anyone available to please go up to the KPFA transmitter to support the CWA picket there. Pickets needed from 8 am - 5 pm. <BR> Continuous CWA Union Picket Line is needed at the Transmitter to prevent scab signal from being connected to KPFA transmitter. Also, we need to write and let KPFK's workers know that Pacifica management has plans to use their voices to scab on the KPFA staff and community! To get there, go up Claremont (road behind the Claremont Hotel), turn right at Grizzly Peak, go for 1/2 - 1/3 mile to the access road on the left. Parking is right there by the side of the road. Dress warmly! Thanks to all! -- John Sheridan <P> <B>Tuesday, July 20, 1999</B> <BR> <B> CAMP KPFA LIVES!</B> After the benefit concert last night, hundreds of people walked over to Camp KPFA carrying candles. There was some singing, some talking, some information given out, and a moment of silence with fists raised high. Camp KPFA needs a continuous presence in front of the station to maintain our claim to KPFA. Come by to show your support! If you can't spend the night, come visit for a few hours, bring food for the folk camped there, lend tents or sleeping bags, or help out in any way you can think of. <P> <B>FAIR NEWS RELEASE: July 16, 1999</B> <P> <FONT SIZE=+2> <B> Pacifica Leadership Should Step Down for Good of Network </B></FONT> <P> As a media watch group supportive of independent voices in a media environment dominated by conglomerates, FAIR has watched in agony the deepening crisis at Pacifica (and KPFA). Over the years, FAIR had been sympathetic to national board efforts to professionalize the network and give it a stronger national identity. We believe such improvements could have been made within the context of a more accountable board structure. During the current crisis, we've closely monitored the conflict and all public pronouncements -- and we've consulted privately with many of the players, including employees, managers, local advisory board members and national board members. FAIR believes that the clearest path out of the crisis, the clearest path toward restoring Pacifica's credibility as an independent journalistic force, is for the leadership of the national board and the executive director to resign. We offer this conclusion with great sadness, in view of the talents and historic accomplishments of these individuals. In recent events at Pacifica, however, their persistently errant decisionmaking has polarized and escalated the crisis, and threatened the future of this unique media institution. <P> Contact: Steve Rendall <A HREF="mailto:SRendall@fair.org">SRendall@fair.org</A> <P> <CENTER><HR WIDTH="375"></CENTER> <P> <P> <A HREF="mailto:rowinsky@alumni.princeton.edu">Drop a note to post...<IMG SRC="http://www.freestone.com/emailed.gif"></A> <P> </BODY>