FREE SPEECH
The Stanford Law School chapter of the conservative Federalist Society hosted an event with Judge Stuart Kyle Duncan from the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on March 9. Before his 2018 judicial appointment by then-president Donald Trump, Duncan was the lead attorney for Hobby Lobby stores in the 2014 Supreme Court ruling allowing for-profit corporations to deny birth control coverage to women because of the owners’ religious views. Early during the event, he was interrupted by members of the campus LGBTQ group OutLaw, angered by Duncan’s stated opposition to same-sex marriage, among other issues. Duncan responded, calling one an “appalling idiot.” After the heckling started, Tirien Steinbach – the school’s associate dean for diversity, equity and inclusion – took the podium and told Duncan that for the protesters, some of his rulings amounted to “an absolute disenfranchisement of their rights.” The school suspended Steinbach. Dean Jenny Martinez said administrators “should not insert themselves into debate with their own criticism of the speaker’s views” or suggest the speaker reconsider if “what they plan to say is worth saying.”
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
“There is always something I can find in common with someone.” - Jason Remynse, unanimously approved by the Carmel Unified School District Board on Friday, March 31, to fill a vacancy left by Tess Arthur who resigned in February. (See story on mcweekly.com.)
GOOD WEEK / GREAT WEEK
GOOD:
There’s good news for commuters and those traversing under their own power. The California Transportation Commission allocated $4.6 million to fund four projects in Monterey County that are designed to improve traffic flow, safety and routes for biking and walking, the Transportation Agency for Monterey County announced on March 28. The projects include the Imjin Parkway widening project in Marina – part of the Marina-Salinas Multimodal Corridor – from Imjin to Reservation Road that services up to 39,000 vehicles per weekday. The project includes adding one lane each way and four roundabouts. Other projects receiving funds are the next segment of the Fort Ord Regional Trail & Greenway (FORTAG), a pedestrian project in North Monterey County on Las Lomas Drive and a Safe Routes to School project in Salinas on Harden Parkway.
GREAT:
The city of Gonzales got a prestigious nod when in March, the nonprofit National Civic League announced the city was one of 20 finalists for the All-America City Award, which will be awarded in June to 10 of the 20 finalists (which include much bigger cities like Charlotte, Dallas, New York City and San Antonio). Teams from each city – consisting of residents, nonprofits, businesses, government leaders and youth – will travel to Denver for a three-day event June 9-11 to tell the story of their work to a jury of civic leaders. The award, which the nonprofit has been giving out since 1949, is predicated on a city’s commitment to improving the well-being of youth in its communities, and involving youth in that process. (In the case of Gonzales, the city started a Youth Council in 2013, and they provide a voice in civic affairs.) The only city in the county to ever win the award is Salinas, in 2015.