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Same Sex Marriages on Hold Pending 9th Circuit Appeals A federal appeals court put same-sex weddings in California on hold indefinitely Monday while it considers the constitutionality of the state’s gay marriage ban. The decision, issued by a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, trumped a lower court Judge Walker’s order that would have allowed county clerks to begin issuing marriage li-
Call 626.301.1010 Volume XV, No. XXXII
Community News, Arts & Opinions Since 1996
PUSD Schools Show Encouraging STAR Test Results…
censes to same-sex couples on Wednesday. Lawyers for the two gay couples that challenged the ban said Monday they would not appeal the panel’s decision on the stay to the U.S. Supreme Court. They said they were satisfied the appeals court had agreed to expedite its consideration of the Proposition 8 case by scheduling oral arguments for the week of Dec. 6.
Pasadena to CelebrateWomens' Right to Vote 19th Amendment Passes90 Years ago
Los Angeles County Schools Superintendent, Dr. Darlene Robles jestures enthusiastically that test scores are going up and State Superintendent of Schools, Jack O’Connell, concurs with a thumbs up at a press conference Monday at Cleveland School in Pasadena -Photos by Terry Miller
BY TERRY MILLER On August 26, celebrants of the passage of the 19th Amendment to the US Constitution granting women the right to vote will convene on Pasadena City Hall for a march around the iconic building . From 6-8pm. The Women’s Organizations of Greater Pasadena will hold rallies, speeches and entertainment as well as food in the courtyard following the march. The 19th amendment guarantees all American women the right to vote. Achieving this milestone required a lengthy struggle; victory took decades of agitation and protest. Beginning in the mid-19th century, several generations of woman suffrage supporters lectured, wrote, marched, lobbied, and practiced civil disobedience to achieve what many Americans considered a radical change of
the Constitution. Few early supporters lived to see final victory in 1920. Beginning in the 1800s, women organized, petitioned, and picketed to win the right to vote, but it took decades to accomplish this purpose. Between 1878, when the amendment was first introduced in Congress, and August 18, 1920, when it was ratified, champions of voting rights for women worked tirelessly, but strategies for achieving their goal varied. Some pursued a strategy of passing suffrage acts in each state—nine western states adopted woman suffrage legislation by 1912. Others challenged male-only voting laws in the courts. Militant suffragists used tactics such as parades, silent vigils, and hunger strikes. Often supporters met with fierce resistance. By 1916,
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California’s top executive educator, California State Superintendent of Schools Jack O’Connell, visited Cleveland Elementary School in northwest Pasadena Monday to observe that school’s improvements in English and mathematics scores as well as pronounce statewide gains in those par-
ticular subjects. O’Connell said the state has made strides in English and math scores at the same time local superintendents and school boards are grappling with a budget crisis quite unlike anything in recent history. “Even as schools struggle with the ongoing fiscal
Assistant Chief Vicino Accepts Offer at Riverside PD Chief of Police Phillip Sanchez announced that Pasadena Police Deputy Chief Christopher O. Vicino, 48, has accepted a position as the Assistant Chief of Police for the Riverside Police Department. Vicino, a 25-year veteran of law enforcement, will soon be leaving Pasadena to begin his new job in Riverside. Vicino, who had also been Interim Chief for a period of time, had long been considered number one in the running for the top cop position in Pasadena but was beat out when Phillip Sanchez was selected by City Manager Michael Beck a few weeks ago. “I am excited to have been selected for this job. There are many challenges ahead, but I am looking forward to each and every
crisis, it is impressive that we are seeing sustained growth in proficiency,” he said. Along with State Superintendent Jack O,Connell Dr. Darlene Robles, the Superintendent of Los Angeles County Schools spoke to the media and other educators about the significance of these positive results.
Each year, the state’s 2010 Standardized Testing and Reporting (STAR) Program assess public school students’ knowledge of English, math, social studies, and science in grades two through 11. About 4.73 million students took part in the
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John Veenstra Former Executive Director Monrovia Chamber Dies BY SUSAN MOTANDER
one of them. I will miss the outstanding employees of the Pasadena Police Department, along with the great city they protect, but I feel my job is done here and it is time for me to move on”, said Vicino. Vicino served as the Interim Chief of Police in Pasadena for ten months in 2008 and again for eight
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On August 10. John Veenstra, 71, of Temple City, died while visiting family in Iowa. Veenstra was the former Executive Director of the Monrovia Chamber of Commerce. The former executive was fully retired after working as a free lance marketing consultant after retiring from the chamber; however, he was considering returning to work at the time of his death. Veenstra had been in Jefferson, Iowa visiting his mother Ruth Veenstra and her new husband, Horace Hedges when he fell while getting the morning paper on August 3. In falling he hit his head and was taken to the hospital shortly thereafter, but slipped into a coma the
next day, according to family friends. Barbara Veenstra said that she and her husband had discussed end of life issues and were in agreement that it was the quality of life which mattered most to both of them. “There was severe brain damage and John would not have wanted to live if he wouldn’t be ‘John,’” she said. “We decided to let him die and to donate whichever of his organs could be used.” On August 10 he died, surrounded by his family, without regaining consciousness. According to Barbara they were able to donate several of his organs including
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