Old and New California

I had a great time at the Mechanics Institute. I was awed by the other speakers -- Elaine Elinson and Stan Yogi, authors of Wherever There's a Fight, had me totally excited about the history of civil rights in California Did you know in the 1860's an African American woman sued when she was forced off a bus in San Francisco and the case went all the way to the California Supreme Court?

Carl Anthony was incredible, speaking about the Urban Habitat Program, the oldest environmental justice program in the country, and his newest book, Breakthrough Communities.

And the stairs at the Institute are gorgeous.....