By Karen Pearlman
Photo: Rabbi Scott Meltzer said his synagogue in San Diego has twice been vandalized with antisemitic graffiti.
March 26, 2025 (El Cajon) -- The El Cajon City Council took a step toward condemning hate by unanimously voting for a resolution to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s Working Definition of Antisemitism.
By Miriam Raftery
March 12, 2025 (El Cajon) – Four members of El Cajon’s City Council yesterday voted to send letters of support for H.R. 1680 to its author, Colorado Republican Gabe Evans, and ask local Congressman Darrell Issa to co-sponsor the bill--even though the text of the bill has not yet been released.
The only description on the Congressional website states that the measure will “amend the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 to expand the prohibition on State noncompliance with enforcement of the immigration laws, and for other purposes.” But according to Congress.gov, no text of the bill has yet been submitted to the Legislative Analyst. So we don’t know how the bill would affect immigrant enforcement locally, nor what “other purposes” might be included.
Two members of the public spoke, both opposed to the action.
Rebecca Branstetter called the bill “a pig in a poke” since there’s no text on the Congressional website yet. “If we can’t read and understand the text of the bill, we can’t know what Council is asking for in its letter to Darrell Issa.” She asked that the measure be tabled until text is available for residents and Councilmembers to review.
By Miriam Raftery
March 12, 2025 (El Cajon) – By a unanimous vote, El Cajon’s City Council yesterday voted to adopt an ordinance prohibiting the sale of vaping or e-cigarette devices disguised as other products.
By Miriam Raftery
Photo: Doris Bittar, a Lebanese-Palestinian woman with a Jewish husband, wants a resolution that protects everyone equally without infringing on free speech rights.
March 12, 2025 (El Cajon) – El Cajon’s City Council once again waded into contentious waters at yesterday’s meeting, weighing a resolution to condemn antisemitism, with the Council majority refusing to remove a definition of antisemitism that has drawn controversy.
Council fields questions and concerns regarding County’s project planned on Caltrans property
Story and photos by Karen Pearlman
March 6, 2025 (Lemon Grove) – The controversy and concerns surrounding a planned interim housing project at Troy Street and Sweetwater Road continues to drive a wedge between residents and members of the Lemon Grove City Council -- and looks to be headed for discussion in a future closed session.