Editorial Was Insensitive and Ignorant of the Facts

Dear Editor, The Editorial, “It’s CSU East Bay: Get Over It” by Chase Thomas from your February 7th edition, is both insensitive to the feelings of many and ignores the facts of what took place around the name change. I lived it and was part of the fight against the name change from Cal State Hayward to CSU East Bay. As an activist, at the time, I didn’t feel it was the most important issue to be focusing on,...

“Lack of Editorial Objectivity in Recent Articles”

To the Editors, I started reading the Pioneer on a semi-regular basis in the Summer of 2011. What initially captured me was the unique and developing stories of our community in terms of local sports, politics, the arts, and East Bay culture. As the front page seemed to grab me more and more each week, the Pioneer, along with the East Bay Express and Metro Weekly, came to be my preferred sources of alternative news in the East and South Bays....

Green Shutter Hotel Has No Long Term Facilities

Sir/Madam: Your article ”… Green Shutter…Woes” is missing several salient points. A 87 year old building is higher maintenance than a bleach blond. Regan opened the gates of the asylums. Brown et al closed the Redevelopment Agencies for personal profit. City of Hayward grossly misused RA funds when obtained. Green Shutter is structured as a transient hotel with no facilities for long-term residence. Many of the residents have been there for several years. Food and bath facilities are grossly...

My Experience with the Green Shutter Hotel

I moved into the Green Shutter Hotel in downtown Hayward five years ago. Before that, I had been living in a tent near Don Castro Lake by Grove Way and Hwy 580. The sheriff was beginning to roust me out and my budget was able to support some rent, so I moved. It has been a step up in the world. I am still learning about how to function at this level, above a tent but below an apartment....

Prop 34 Article Reveals Inaccuracies

Dear Mr. Thomas and Ms. Wong: I am an inmate at San Quentin State Prison. I am also a graduate of CSUH with a BA in mass communication. The CSUEB staff has been gracious enough to provide me with a subscription of The Pioneer. This helps to keep me informed about what is happening with my alma mater and my former community. Recently I read your piece titled “Californians Oppose Prop 34 Polls show.” In the event no one...

CSU Should Not Switch to Semester System

I write to contest your editorial on  moving to semesters.  There are numerous flaws in your arguments. First and foremost, Cal State Online is not tied to the campuses in the way you suggest.  CSU East Bay offers numerous online courses for students already.  Many, if not most, of these courses cost the same as the courses you take on campus.  Cal State Online is being run through “self-support” (sometimes called “continuing education” or “extended education”) mechanisms.  That means students...

I want to thank you for writing about the Tibetan strike in The Pioneer. It’s an issue that is very personal for me as it has affected by family who are from Tibet and have always been supporters of this movement. This topic doesn’t get reported a lot in mainstream media, so I appreciate with great earnest your article and photos giving voice to my people and how people in the Bay Area are vocalizing dissent. I look forward to...

Dear Ms. Aldana, I read your piece in The Pioneer dated Oct. 4, 2012 regarding California’s Three-Strikes. I was impressed with the fact that you have clearly done your research on this issue. You know more about this draconian law than some who have been serving a 25-to-life sentence under this law for the last 17+ years. Your voice will certainly make a difference by informing the voters on the nature of Proposition 36. Like you, I too am...

CSUEB Theatre & Dance Dept. Play about Chinese People Does not Employ Asians

Mr. Jay Chee, a student in the cast of the production, was dropped from the cast of the production, because he refused to engage in the creative work required of any actor in serious theatre, not because of anything he said or wrote. Further, Mr. Chee wasn’t the only Asian in the cast. The cast is exceptionally diverse and includes Filipino, African-American, Hawaiian/Chinese and Latino actors among others. The Good Person Of Setzuan is not about China, Chinese history, culture or...

CSUEB Theatre & Dance Dept. Play about Chinese People Does not Employ Asian

Play about Chinese has no Asians. In an era post civil rights, “Good Woman of Setzuan” is a play set in China but, no one associated with the production: actors, director, costumers is Chinese. The only Chinese cast member was fired for asking for cultural sensitivity in the play for Asians. If this were a play about Africa and the only Black person in the cast was fired for asking for cultural sensitivity, would this be just as acceptable?