Crime may be a persistent issue across California, but residents in one city are enjoying a dip in criminal activity across multiple categories, and the police chief says he has an answer for why.
Fresno has seen its crime rate drop dramatically this year. Murders dropped 44% from 34 to 19 murders for January 1 to July 11 this year compared to the same period last year, <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/opinion/article277218023.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to Fresno police data.
Shootings are down 11%, rapes are down nearly 20%, robberies are down nearly 11%, commercial burglaries are down nearly 46%, residential burglaries are down 29%, and vehicle thefts are down nearly 26%, according to police.
Fresno Police Chief Paco Balderrama <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/opinion/article277218023.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told</a> Tad Weber of The Fresno Bee that the reason for the crime drop is simple: staffing.
The city has a record number of police officers in the field this year: The police department is currently authorized by the city council to have 900 officers, and 860 of those positions were filled as of July 7, according to the police chief.
“There are a lot of misconceptions going around the country saying more cops does not make a safer city,” Balderrama told the Bee. “That is not true. Since we have added, our crime rate has been significantly reduced. We can focus on certain violent groups, do more outreach, be on more beats. More people call us and give us information we can use to solve crimes.”
Balderrama said that when he took over as police chief in January, 2021, only 632 cops were on the force out of the 838 budgeted positions. On top of that, more than 100 officers were out because of illness during the COVID pandemic, the chief said.
&#8220;We were running the city with 530 cops,” Balderrama said.
California as a whole has dealt with rampant crime in recent years.
Violent crime is up 6.1% since 2021, property crime is up 6.2%, and robberies are up 10.2%, although murders have dropped slightly, <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/opinion/article277218023.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta&#8217;s 2022 crime report.
Other California cities also struggle with rising homelessness and open air drug use, which frequently comes with more crime.
In San Francisco, for example, overall crime is slightly down this year, but certain types of violent crime are up, <a href="https://www.sanfranciscopolice.org/stay-safe/crime-data/crime-dashboard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to police data.
Murders in San Francisco are up 10% to 22 murders so far. Robberies are up 15% to 1,150 robberies so far. Car thefts are up 5% to 2,889 thefts.
Meanwhile San Francisco&#8217;s homelessness and drug crises are <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/att-closing-flagship-store-in-downtown-san-francisco" target="_blank" rel="noopener">still raging</a>, although overdose deaths have dropped from their all-time high in 2020 during the thick of the pandemic.
In 2022, San Francisco <a href="https://sf.gov/news/accidental-overdose-deaths-decline-san-francisco-second-consecutive-year-fentanylopioid">saw</a> 620 fatal drug overdoses, down from 640 overdose deaths in 2021. In 2020, overdose deaths spiked to 725.
Homelessness in San Francisco has only gotten worse since before the pandemic. About 38,000 people <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/rising-crime-homelessness-leave-residents-of-san-francisco-and-oakland-on-edge" target="_blank" rel="noopener">are homeless</a> in the Bay Area on a given night, up 35% since 2019.
In Los Angeles, most types of crimes are down except theft, which is up nearly 15% since last year, <a href="https://lapdonlinestrgeacc.blob.core.usgovcloudapi.net/lapdonlinemedia/cityprof.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to police data.
However, homeless crisis in Los Angeles is up 10% in Los Angeles, <a href="https://www.lahsa.org/news?article=927-lahsa-releases-results-of-2023-greater-los-angeles-homeless-count#:~:text=LOS%20ANGELES%20%E2%80%93%20The%202023%20Greater,to%20an%20estimated%2046%2C260%20people." target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to the 2023 greater Los Angeles homeless count results.
In many California cities, violent crime spiked during the pandemic before starting to dip again.

TOPSHOT-US-ATTACKS-NEW YORK-NEW JERSEY

Crime Is Down In This California City. The Police Chief Says More Cops Are To Thank.

California

Crime

Fresno, California

Police

Democratic Governor of <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/california" target="_blank" rel="noopener">California</a> <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/gavin-newsom" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Gavin Newsom</a> and the Biden administration have pushed for name changes regarding the word &#8220;squaw,&#8221; but local communities are pushing back.
Last month, the Biden administration <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/us-completes-renaming-650-places-remove-derogatory-term-2022-09-08/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> it had finished taking “squaw” out of the names of federal land, which involved almost 650 locations.
Late last month, Governor Newsom signed AB <a href="https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billTextClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB2022">2022</a> into law, which will take the name out of California locations beginning in 2025.
Fresno County’s Board of Supervisors greenlit a resolution officially against the name change of the Squaw Valley community, as they claim that most of the Squaw Valley residents are against changing the name.
Supervisor Steve Brandau said the move is an attempt to tell those in D.C. and the state’s capital of Sacramento that “there’s an awful lot of dissent here in Squaw Valley” with the change in name, according to <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/news/politics-government/article267120896.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Fresno Bee</a>.
Brandau reportedly noted that he’s still not persuaded that the word is offensive, and he is planning to discuss with the county’s legal group about a potential official ballot vote for voters in Squaw Valley to make their voices heard on the change in name.
“Then, we would have probably more legal standing to support the local decision,” he said.
Some people are in favor of changing the name, but others don’t like the idea. All of this was discussed at a recent public commentary session involving people who live in Fresno County, as well as Squaw Valley.
“We’re proud of our community, we’re proud of our community name,” Lonnie Work, a resident of Squaw Valley and chairman of the Save Squaw Valley committee, said during a public discussion.
“Ignorance isn’t an excuse for staying in the same lane,” Fresno County resident Gloria Hernandez said.
The resolution doesn’t actually do anything to stop the renaming process, but it is the official response of the county to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names concerning the shift.
&#8220;What&#8217;s been lacking really over the course of the last two years is hearing from the community,&#8221; Fresno County Supervisor Nathan Magsig <a href="https://abc30.com/squaw-valley-renaming-racist-slur-derogatory/12257599/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> at the time. &#8220;I&#8217;ve been asking for individuals that have been interested in this name change to start first in the community and listen to residents.&#8221;
“The federal government has divided us … and yet we’re powerless to do anything,” Fresno Supervisor Sal Quintero, who did not vote in favor of the resolution, recently said. “We can give them our opinion and our thoughts, but they’ve made their decision.”

78A57414-9EC3-485E-93D2-093AC5D6B1EC_1_105_c

Local California County Supervisors Oppose Biden Administration, Newsom Efforts To Change Community Name

Fresno California County Supervisors Oppose Biden Administration, Newsom Efforts To Change Squaw Valley Name

Biden Administration

Gavin Newsom

Wokeness

A <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/california">California</a> woman doused a man with gasoline and then lit him on fire in a park in a horrifying scene caught on surveillance video, police said.
Police in Sanger arrested Patricia Castillo, 48, and a man suspected of giving her the fuel after the incident Thursday night and said the victim is expected to recover. It was not known what prompted the woman&#8217;s attack or if she knew the victim.
“The video shows Castillo approaching the victim and throwing a liquid from a cup onto him, and she and the victim appear to argue before Castillo sparks a lighter and lights the victim on fire. Further investigation revealed that Leonard Hawkins had provided the accelerant used to light the victim on fire to Castillo,” the police department said in a <a href="https://www.facebook.com/login/?next=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fsangerpolicedepartment%2Fposts%2F413490170804765">Facebook post</a>.
The video cuts off moments after the victim is engulfed in flames.
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GRAPHIC VIDEO: A man was rushed to the hospital after being set on fire in Sanger Park, police have arrested two people. MORE: <a href="https://t.co/2tW0b0kc8l">https://t.co/2tW0b0kc8l</a> (Video: Sanger PD) <a href="https://t.co/Il7f8VyWrI">pic.twitter.com/Il7f8VyWrI</a>
&mdash; FOX26 News (@KMPHFOX26) <a href="https://twitter.com/KMPHFOX26/status/1545627288883961856?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 9, 2022</a></blockquote>
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Castillo and Leonard Hawkins, 43, both of Sanger, were being held in the Fresno County Jail on charges of attempted murder, arson, and conspiracy.
“I don’t have an answer for motive at this time,” Lt. Joshua Johnson told <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/crime/article263311128.html">The Fresno Bee</a>.
The incident happened around 8:30 p.m. in Sanger Park. Sanger is a city of about 26,000, some 13 miles east of Fresno.
Police said they released the surveillance video to show that using taxpayer funds for cameras had paid off.
“It’s shocking,” Johnson acknowledged, “but an example of our taxpayers’ dollars at work, as that system was expensive and installed last year.”
Police believe they arrived in time to save the man, who was not identified.
“Due to the severity of the victim’s burns, EMS immediately transported him to an area hospital,” the Sanger Police Department wrote on Facebook.

Sanger, Calif. Police

GRAPHIC VIDEO WARNING: Woman Doused Man With Gasoline, Lit Him On Fire In California Park

Murder

A Madera, California, woman who received roughly $5 million from a settlement after police fatally shot her son was arrested after purchasing guns allegedly for another son and gang members.
Christina Lopez, 42, received $4.9 million last April following the 2017 death of her son, 16-year-old Isiah Murrietta-Golding.
Fresno County District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp stated, “Clearly, this family has been seasoned in this type of behavior,” as <a href="https://abc30.com/fresno-county-sheriffs-office-crime-gang-arrests-members-arrested/11100262/">ABC 30</a> noted. Smittcamp added, “She has continued now to take the money from her settlement that she received from the city of Fresno to buy a home where she lives in addition to spending thousands of dollars on guns that she has in turn given to her 14-year-old son.” ABC 30 stated, “Prosecutors say she bought guns and gave them to that son to distribute to gang members.”
“Lopez faces 22 counts of gun trafficking charges including conspiracy to provide firearms to a minor for the benefit of a street gang, child endangerment and conspiracy to provide a firearm to a gang member, police said,” the <a href="https://nypost.com/2021/10/10/california-woman-christina-lopez-paid-4-9-million-after-sons-death-bought-guns-for-other-sons-gang/">New York Post</a> reported.
Lopez’s attorney, Ralph Torres, protested that she had moved so her remaining children would not get into trouble, adding, “We have to see what they have and what type of concrete, physical evidence that we can look at so that would connect her.”
In October 2020, Smittcamp <a href="https://dailywire.com/news/fresno-da-thunders-to-ca-gov-newsom-the-blood-of-the-children-being-shot-by-out-of-control-gang-members-in-our-city-is-on-your-hands/">thundered a powerful message</a> to California Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom at a press conference dealing with the surge in violent crime caused by the release of criminals from prisons, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8dwPjgCSFY8">stating</a>, “Stop using COVID-19 to promote your political agenda. The blood of the children being shot by out-of-control gang members in our city is on your hands, and on the hands of every person who does not make public safety a priority.”
The press conference was held the same day as San Quentin officials were considering whether to appeal the state’s decision to release over 1,100 inmates.
Smittcamp stated, “The law enforcement agencies represented behind me are the ones fighting on the front lines to bring peace to our community. We are in some of the most violent times that we have ever seen … In the midst of this, our last two governors vowed to close state prisons. Governor Newsom announced that he will close the state prison facility on Tracy, California, on September 30, 2021.”
“Why is this relevant to why we are here today?” she asked rhetorically. “It is relevant because we are lacking bed space to house local criminals who are shooting up our cities and killing our children and each other.”
“His solution to COVID protection and prevention is letting them out of prison with no regard for their victims and the communities they will return to terrorize,” Smittcamp charged.
&#8220;This spring, the state expedited the release of 3,500 inmates because of the coronavirus, and in July it freed 2,345 others early. Thousands more are eligible for release, including at least 6,500 deemed to be at high risk because of medical conditions that make them especially vulnerable to COVID-19,&#8221; the <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-08-09/covid-19-california-releases-violent-crime-murder-prisoners">Los Angeles Times</a> reported in August 2020.
In late September 2020, Fresno City Council Member Luis Chavez <a href="https://gvwire.com/2020/09/24/were-in-the-middle-of-a-crime-wave-says-fresno-council-member/">stated</a> that 600 criminals had been released back into the city since April, adding, “We’re in the middle of a crime wave, and that is not a term that I use loosely because that’s how it’s being described here in our city. And we need to really step up and prioritize public safety.”
Fresno Council Member Garry Bredefeld echoed, “In our community I believe we’ve had 38 murders to date. We are far surpassing what occurred last year all across our city. I understand there’s been an 80 percent increase in shootings since April, and a 70 percent increase in stabbings. I mean, there is gunfire all over the place and we need to make our citizens safe. We need to continue to give the police the resources to deal with this.&#8221;
Smittcamp, controlling her fury, continued, “The last four or five women in this community, and the last four or five victims in this community have been killed or shot. Innocent women, innocent people caught in gunfire have been women of color. It is enough. Enough is enough.”

Lopez

Woman Gets $4.9 Million After Son Shot By Police; Now She’s Arrested For Allegedly Buying Guns For Other Son’s Gang

gangs

A confusing and messy situation occurred outside a Fresno, California Waffle Shop restaurant that had reopened despite local restrictions.
The Media Research Center <a href="https://www.mrctv.org/blog/fresno-ca-social-distancing-health-enforcers-turned-away-customers-restaurant-line-so-cops">reported</a> that the owner had placed restrictions on the number of guests he would allow into his restaurant even though he reopened against government wishes. Last Sunday, around 20 people were patiently waiting outside the restaurant to get a table when two uniformed state officials wearing masks and carrying clipboards approached and demanded to be let through. MRC reported the customers told the officials they had to wait in line like everyone else. The officials left.
Shortly after, they returned with a Fresno police officer and again demanded to be let into the restaurant. People in line again refused to let them through, with one man saying “no” multiple times.
“Some witnesses say the policeman pushed a woman, while the Daily News reports the officer ‘knocks into one woman, causing her to stumble,’” MRC reported.
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The New York Daily News <a href="https://www.nydailynews.com/coronavirus/ny-cop-clashes-with-crowd-at-waffle-house-defying-coronavirus-order-20200512-kwdanfxmhbgolabzodutizmhcu-story.html">published</a> body cam footage from the officer that shows him handcuffing the man who said “no” while people in line called the policeman a “stupid bastard,” “a**hole,” and “son of a bitch.”
Fresno Police Chief Andy Hall released the footage after a bystander had posted footage earlier showing the entire encounter. The footage from the bystander showed the officer politely asking people in line to let him through. “Hi folks, make a way,” he said. A women who was in line, who posted a third video of the incident, told the officer he had no right to be there.
The police offer then turns and “knocks into one woman,” as the Daily News reported.
“Moments later, he cuffs the man at the door and pulls out his yellow Taser, the video posted by Richard Tilley, a supporter of the Waffle Shop’s owner, shows,” the Daily News reported.
The man was taken from the crowd and briefly detained before being released and treated for minor injuries.
The bystander video shows the officer grab the man’s left wrist after he used it to block the policeman from entering the restaurant. The officer twists the man’s arm behind him and handcuffs him. The police bodycam footage appears to show the officer claiming he was “assaulted” by the elderly man.
Chief Hall said his department had been “placed in the middle of opposing political viewpoints on how the city operates during the COVID-19 pandemic” and was required to “enforce laws that are passed by your elected politicians,” the Daily News reported.
Hall added that the officer in question was told to get “voluntary compliance” and not to arrest anyone without prior approval. Hall still concluded the officer “was acting lawfully while assisting code enforcement.”
“The individual in this case did obstruct the officer in his duties. The officer’s detention of this individual allowed for code enforcement (officials) to complete their duties. As a result, the individual was only detained and was released without any further charges being filed,” Hall said.
“I am asking the public to always respect the authority of a police officer,” he added. “The men and women of the Fresno Police Department risk their lives every day for this community and will continue to do so during and after this crisis.”
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.

Protesters

WATCH: People Waiting To Get Into California Restaurant Refuse To Let State Officials Cut Line. Then Things Get Messy.

COVID

An incident caught on video has resulted in three misdemeanor battery citations against a Fresno City Council member after he got violent with a group of self-described independent journalists pushing back on the city&#8217;s extended &#8220;shelter-in-place&#8221; order.
&#8220;Fresno City Council President Miguel Arias was issued three citations for misdemeanor battery Tuesday evening after a group with strong ties to shelter-in-place protests showed up on his doorstep,&#8221; the <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article242690596.html">Fresno Bee</a> reports. &#8220;Members of the group pursued a citizens arrest after videotaping Arias apparently pushing at least one of them. No one was injured, said Fresno police Lt. Anthony DeWall.&#8221;
The incident took place at the council member&#8217;s apartment building at around 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, where a group of men and women appeared at the apartment to confront him about the damage done to people&#8217;s lives by the city&#8217;s &#8220;shutdown&#8221; orders, which Arias supports and which Fresno Mayor Lee Brand recently <a href="https://www.fresnobee.com/news/coronavirus/article242434251.html">extended</a> to May 31, prompting hundreds of Fresno residents to protest in front of City Hall last week.
As video posted on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/james.hoak.5/videos/3396021393775909/" target="_self" rel="Follow noopener noreferrer">Facebook</a> shows, a handful of men and women carrying cameras and microphones congregated outside Arias’s apartment. The group is &#8220;led by Ben Bergquam, who runs a media Facebook page called Frontline America and organized last week’s Freedom Rally protesting the shelter order,&#8221; the Fresno Bee notes.
Video shows Arias violently shoving Bergquam and at least one other member of the group, an African-American man. Below are two videos posted by Facebook user James Hoak:
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&#8220;Lt. DeWall said the group of men identified themselves as independent media,&#8221; The Fresno Bee reports. &#8220;Both Arias and members of the group called police, and officers arrived about 20 minutes later. There were three alleged victims. Arias was not handcuffed. A court date for Arias will be scheduled in 90 days, which is standard, DeWall said.&#8221;
“This is over the top,” Arias told the outlet afterward. “This is not the way you engage in civil discourse.”
Arias also accused Bergquam and the other protesters of &#8220;threatening the safety&#8221; of his family, saying his two young children were also in the apartment. &#8220;They went from making a political statement to physically threatening the safety of my own family, and that was not going to be tolerated,&#8221; he said, alleging that Bergquam has publicly threatened him in the past.
As highlighted by the Fresno Bee, Bergquam&#8217;s group posted a follow-up video about Arias getting violent with the group and denouncing claims that they were trying to break into his house, calling Arias a &#8220;liar&#8221; and predicting his position on the council is &#8220;done&#8221;:
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Protesters also appeared at Mayor Brand&#8217;s home on Tuesday. Brand says that he had a discussion with the group and they left peacefully.
Along with the Freedom Rally protest, a local restaurant, The Waffle Shop, reopened in defiance of the city&#8217;s mandate, resulting in one of the customers being handcuffed by police, though eventually released.
The Daily Wire, headed by bestselling author and popular podcast host Ben Shapiro, is a leading provider of conservative news, cutting through the mainstream media’s rhetoric to provide readers the most important, relevant, and engaging stories of the day. Get inside access to The Daily Wire by becoming a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/subscribe">member</a>.  
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Reopen Protest

WATCH: Fresno Official Gets Violent With Stay-At-Home Protesters; Gets Cited For Battery

Economy

A petition calling for the firing of a Fresno State professor who slandered former First Lady Barbara Bush as a racist in the hours after the announcement of her passing has blown up online, racking up over <a href="https://www.change.org/p/california-state-university-remove-randa-jarrar-from-fresno-state-university-for-racist-comments">38,000 signatures</a>.
In the hours after Mrs. Bush death, English professor Randa Jarrar tweeted that Mrs. Bush was an &#8220;amazing racist,&#8221; adding gleefully that she was happy &#8220;the witch is dead.&#8221; She followed up the distasteful and inaccurate tweet by bragging about how much money she makes as a professor and how she can&#8217;t be fired because of tenure.
&#8220;I work as a tenured professor. I make 100K a year doing that. I will never be fired. I will always have people wanting to hear what I have to say,&#8221; she boasted on Twitter.
&#8220;Remove Randa Jarrar from Fresno State University for Racist comments,&#8221; reads the heading of the petition, which was created by Patrick Hofsetter.
&#8220;Immediate termination of professor Randa Jarrar for racism and inflammatory comments regarding a former First Lady of the United States, Barbara Bush,&#8221; says the petition, adding a <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2018/04/18/outrage-as-california-prof-calls-barbara-bush-amazing-racist-and-says-shes-happy-witch-is-dead.html">link</a> to a Fox News post concerning Jarrar&#8217;s tweets about Mrs. Bush.
Fresno State administration distanced themselves from Jarrar and condemned her comments but stopped short of firing her.
Many free speech advocates have <a href="https://reason.com/blog/2018/04/18/fresno-state-dont-fire-a-professor-for-s">argued</a> that while Jarrar&#8217;s comments might be reprehensible, she shouldn&#8217;t be fired, including Daily Wire Editor-in-Chief Ben Shapiro.
&#8220;Jarrar has a right to speak, and setting the precedent that professors should be fired for saying gross, atrocious or impolitic things seems like a serious problem,&#8221; Shapiro <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29616/heres-why-nasty-fresno-state-professor-shouldnt-be-ben-shapiro">argued</a>. &#8220;The governing legal standard for punishing a professor on campus is from the Supreme Court case Pickering v. Board of Education (1968); in that case, the Supreme Court declared that they had to weigh the state&#8217;s &#8216;interest in promoting the efficiency of its employees&#8217; public services&#8217; against whether the employee was speaking as a citizen rather than an employee, and whether the employee was speaking on a &#8216;matter of public concern.&#8217; Both the Ninth Circuit and Fourth Circuit have supported broad rights for professors to speak on controversial issues.&#8221;
&#8220;If we&#8217;re going to call for freedom of expression on public university campuses, Jarrar&#8217;s speech is protected,&#8221; he added. &#8220;[D]umping her over a nasty tweet about Barbara Bush is beyond the scope of the First Amendment.&#8221;

Petition Calling For Firing Of Fresno Prof Who Bashed Late Barbara Bush BLOWS UP Online

Barbara Bush Jr.

Education

A newly uncovered video featuring Fresno State professor Randa Jarrar shows the far-left professor praising plane hijackers and calling for acts of domestic terrorism against specific individuals.
<a href="http://www.fresnobee.com/news/local/article209454829.html">The Fresno Bee</a> reports:
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In one clip featured in the video, Jarrar is discussing Fresno&#8217;s agriculture industry and says &#8220;a lot of the farmers now are Trump supporters and just f&#8212;ing stupid.&#8221; In another, she says she can&#8217;t stand &#8220;the white, hetero patriarchy.&#8221;
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Jarrar, who is currently under investigation by the university for recent tweets attacking the Bush family after the passing of Barbara Bush, is also seen in the video promoting &#8220;resistance fighters&#8221; who hijacked planes in the 1960s and &#8217;70s.
&#8220;I don&#8217;t give a f&#8212;. I&#8217;m buying guns. I&#8217;m an American. I&#8217;m buying guns,&#8221; Jarrar said. &#8220;The other side is, like, doing some stupid s&#8212;. I&#8217;m gonna do some stupid s&#8212;. I&#8217;m tired of, like, being the bigger person &#8212; literally am usually &#8212; but, like, I&#8217;m also just tired of the left being, like, f&#8212;ing stupid and being like, &#8216;No we have to like be gentle&#8217; &#8230; no, don&#8217;t be f&#8212;&#8212; gentle.'&#8221;
Later in the clip, Jarrar calls for attacks against someone named Spencer, asking why &#8220;Spencer&#8217;s house is still standing.&#8221;
&#8220;It needs to be f&#8212;ing broken into,&#8221; she said. &#8220;People need to f&#8212;ing throw grenades into it. I don&#8217;t give a f&#8212;.&#8221;
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.<a href="https://twitter.com/Fresno_State?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Fresno_State</a> professor Randa Jarrar praises plane hijackers, calls for acts of terrorism against someone named &#8220;Spencer.&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/BezwUETpaM">pic.twitter.com/BezwUETpaM</a>
&#8212; Ryan Saavedra (@RealSaavedra) <a href="https://twitter.com/RealSaavedra/status/987916672999739392?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 22, 2018</a></blockquote>
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WATCH: Fresno State Professor Praises Plane Hijackers, Calls For Acts Of Terrorism

California State University Fresno

Terrorism

The Fresno State professor who has received withering criticism for her <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29598/situation-involving-fresno-state-professor-gets-ryan-saavedra">racist tweets</a> as well as her <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/29564/fresno-state-professor-celebrates-barbara-bushs-ryan-saavedra">distasteful and offensive remarks</a> about the late Barbara Bush, wrote a <a href="https://www.salon.com/2014/03/04/why_i_cant_stand_white_belly_dancers/">column</a> in 2014 for Salon titled, &#8220;Why I can&#8217;t stand white belly dancers.&#8221;
Randa Jarrar decried white belly dancing for its &#8220;cultural appropriation,&#8221; commencing her attack by writing, &#8220;Google the term &#8216;belly dance&#8217; and the first images the search engine offers are of white women in flowing, diaphanous skirts, playing at brownness. How did this become acceptable?&#8221;
Jarrar continued by asserting that the term &#8220;belly dance&#8221; was a Western construction, as opposed to the Arabic &#8220;Raqs Sharqi.&#8221; She noted that back in the 1890s in the U.S., white women were featured belly-dancing. She added, &#8220;Many white women who presently practice belly dance are continuing this century-old tradition of appropriation, whether they are willing to view their practice this way or not.&#8221;
Jarrar recalled seeing a white woman belly-dance, disparaging her as a &#8220;white woman &#8230; in Arab drag &#8212; because that&#8217;s what that is, when a person who&#8217;s not Arab wears genie pants and a bra &#8230;&#8221;
But she then contrasted that with Arab belly-dancers that she preferred, acknowledging that one &#8220;used to dance in the expected bra and skirt but later danced mostly in robes that were somewhat shapeless and more traditional.&#8221;
Jarrar wrote:
<blockquote>
&#8220;It&#8217;s Arab face,&#8221; my friend Nadine once said, pointing at an invitation from a white acquaintance of hers. The invitation was printed on card stock and featured the woman and a dozen of her white friends dressed in Orientalist garb with eye makeup caked on for full kohl effect and glittery accessories. We wanted to call these women up and say, &#8220;How is this OK? Would you wear a dashiki and rock waspafarian dreads and take up African dance publicly? Wait,&#8221; we&#8217;d probably say, &#8220;don&#8217;t answer that.&#8221;
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Jarrar insisted that white belly dancers were doing harm:
<blockquote>
Women I have confronted about this have said, &#8220;But I have been dancing for 15 years! This is something I have built a huge community on.&#8221; These women are more interested in their investment in belly dancing than in questioning and examining how their appropriation of the art causes others harm. To them, I can only say, I&#8217;m sure there are people who have been unwittingly racist for 15 years. It&#8217;s not too late. Find another form of self-expression. Make sure you&#8217;re not appropriating someone else&#8217;s.
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She concluded:
<blockquote>
Arab women are not vessels for white women to pour themselves and lose themselves in; we are not bangles or eyeliner or tiny bells on hips. We are human beings. This dance form is originally ours, and does not exist so that white women can have a better sense of community; can gain a deeper sense of sisterhood with each other; can reclaim their bodies; can celebrate their sexualities; can perform for the female gaze. Just because a white woman doesn&#8217;t profit from her performance doesn&#8217;t mean she&#8217;s not appropriating a culture. And, ultimately, the question is this: Why does a white woman&#8217;s sisterhood, her self-reclamation, her celebration, have to happen on Arab women&#8217;s backs?
</blockquote>

Fresno State Professor Circa 2014: ‘Why I Can’t Stand White Belly Dancers’

This week, Professor Randa Jarrar of Fresno State made a horrific ass of herself publicly &#8212; she tweeted in the wake of Barbara Bush&#8217;s death, &#8220;Barbara Bush was a generous and smart and amazing racist who, along with her husband, raised a war criminal. F*** outta here with your nice words.&#8221; She then followed up that display of solid judgment by sending out a tweet of the Arizona State 24-hour emergency crisis line.
The university has stated that Jarrar&#8217;s comments were made as a private citizen, that she has been on leave for the semester, and that Jarrar&#8217;s tenure doesn&#8217;t mean she can&#8217;t be fired.
Now, the tweet featuring the Arizona State emergency line may be fireable &#8212; it&#8217;s arguably a breach of actual university policy. But her tweet about Barbara Bush falls squarely within the purview of free speech. It&#8217;s gross. It&#8217;s atrocious. But Jarrar has a right to speak, and setting the precedent that professors should be fired for saying gross, atrocious or impolitic things seems like a serious problem. 
The governing legal standard for punishing a professor on campus is from the Supreme Court case Pickering v. Board of Education (1968); in that case, the Supreme Court declared that they had to weigh the state&#8217;s &#8220;interest in promoting the efficiency of its employees&#8217; public services&#8221; against whether the employee was speaking as a citizen rather than an employee, and whether the employee was speaking on a &#8220;matter of public concern.&#8221; Both the <a href="https://www.thefire.org/ninth-circuit-professors-speech-protected-under-first-amendment/">Ninth Circuit and Fourth Circuit</a> have supported broad rights for professors to speak on controversial issues. Ken White, aka Popehat, got it exactly right regarding the Ninth Circuit case, as the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) points out:
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[H]ad the[] Ninth Circuit ruled the other way, then the state could fire professors at will if it didn&#8217;t like, for instance, the stance that a history professor took about a historical event, or a political science professor took about a political dispute, or any professor took about an issue of academic governance on a committee.
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If we&#8217;re going to call for freedom of expression on public university campuses, Jarrar&#8217;s speech is protected. That doesn&#8217;t mean tenure should exist in the first place, or that if her teaching is compromised by her politics, that she&#8217;s immune to being fired &#8212; if she&#8217;s a crappy teacher, she should go for that reason. But dumping her over a nasty tweet about Barbara Bush is beyond the scope of the First Amendment.

Here’s Why That Nasty Fresno State Professor Shouldn’t Be Fired For Her Gross Barbara Bush Tweet

A <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2017/11/10/pro-life-student-group-wins-settlement-after-professor-tries-to-kick-away-chalk-messages.html">win for free speech and pro-life</a> came courtesy of a California district court settlement, which ordered a professor to pay $17,000 after he tried to censor pro-life students drawing their message on the sidewalk with chalk.
Fresno State University public health professor Dr. Gregory Thatcher not only allegedly urged students from his class to erase the pro-life messages drawn by Fresno State Students for Life, he actually attempted to erase them himself.
After Thatcher&#8217;s students attempted to erase the messages, which urged students to look for pro-life health care options, he showed up and tried to bully the pro-life students by telling them they were outside of the free speech zone and thus had no right to write their messages.
One problem: the free speech zone on the campus has not existed since 2015.
Bernadette Tasy, the pro-life club&#8217;s president, confronted Thatcher, informing him that the pro-life group had permission from the university, but Thatcher remained obdurate, erasing the chalk with his shoe and snapping, &#8220;You have permission to put it down, and I have permission to get rid of it. This is our part of free speech. College campuses are not free speech areas. Do you understand? Obviously you don&#8217;t understand.&#8221;
Tasy told Fox News, &#8220;What the professor did was wrong, and the only permit a student needs to speak on campus is the First Amendment.&#8221;
Video of the confrontation between Tasy and Thatcher is here:
<div class="embed video fluid-video"><iframe loading="lazy" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/By6vJOiZv1U" width="560"></iframe></div>
Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) fought for the pro-life students, and won the $17,000 <a href="http://www.adfmedia.org/files/StipulatedInjunctionFresnoStateSFL.pdf">settlement</a>. Thatcher owes $1,000 to Tasy and $1,000 to another student, Jesus Herrera, as well as attorneys&#8217; fees. Thatcher was also ordered to take First Amendment training &#8212; provided by ADF.
Thatcher blustered that his insurance company would pay the fees, adding, &#8220;I did not, in any way, admit to any wrongdoing. I did agree to sit through a training seminar because I love to learn others&#8217; thoughts and opinions.&#8221;
Tasy got right to the point, saying, &#8220;The important thing is that Dr. Thatcher won&#8217;t be able to interfere with our expressive activities again.&#8221;
Travis Barham, ADF Legal Counsel, said that Thatcher&#8217;s machinations against the First Amendment put him &#8220;in a league of his own,&#8221; adding, &#8220;This is a particularly extreme case because you have a professor trying to wipe away the chalk himself. Far too often university officials try to play the role of speech police and try to restrict what can be said and where it can be said on campus.&#8221;
As the <a href="https://www.thecollegefix.com/post/38820/">College Fix</a> pointed out, Thatcher is still <a href="http://fresnostate.edu/chhs/public-health/faculty-staff/faculty/thatcher.html">listed as faculty</a> in the Department of Public Health.

YEAH, BABY: Free Speech And Pro-Life Win: California Professor Who Tried To Prevent Pro-Life Students’ Messages Ordered To Pay $17,000

Abortion

Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF)

Free Speech

Warning: Video contains graphic language.
On September 25, a California Highway Patrol officer responded to multiple calls reporting illegal street racing and a large crowd blocking traffic in downtown Fresno. When the officer got to the scene, he attempted a traffic stop on one of the reckless drivers. That&#8217;s when things took a disturbing turn.
According to <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2016/10/03/we-run-the-streets-video-shows-angry-mob-attacking-chp-patrol-car-with-officer-still-inside/?utm_term=.5aa88d87d9c1">The Washington Post</a>, as the CHP officer approached the vehicle, individuals in the crowd yelled out, telling the man in the car to drive away. The CHP officer subsequently got back in his car. Before he could give chase, the crowd around him became violent, pushing, and kicking his SUV.
A short video of the incident was posted on YouTube:
<iframe loading="lazy" allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/kaq4dUSD914" width="560"></iframe>
In the video, a man can be heard shouting &#8220;F*** the police, n*****! We run the streets, motherf***er! You hear me? Fresno, n*****!&#8221;
Fortunately, the CHP officer was unharmed. According to Capt. Craig Kunzler, despite the traumatic nature of the event, the officer &#8220;is doing fine, and he is back to work, and he is okay.&#8221;
<a href="http://abc30.com/news/arrests-made-in-chp-vehicle-attack-that-was-caught-on-camera/1533964/">KFSN</a>, a Fresno ABC affiliate, reports that three suspects, Federico Gonzalez, Gabriel DeAnda, and Milton Rodriguez, have been identified, arrested, and face charges of felony vandalism and inciting a riot:
<blockquote>
&#8220;One of the suspects was identified after his fingerprint was lifted off the car and another told officers during an interview he attacked the vehicle to get back at the CHP.&#8221;
</blockquote>
Six more suspects are being sought, including 19-year-old Guadalupe Gonzales. All told, the mob caused approximately $12,000 in damage to the CHP vehicle.
This could be an isolated event, or it could be a result of the rise in anti-law enforcement sentiment sweeping all across the country. In the last 60 days alone, riots have erupted in two major American cities. The riots came in response to several high-profile police shootings. Two shootings involved black cops shooting armed, non-compliant black men. The third shooting involved an unarmed, but allegedly non-compliant black suspect. The officer in that case, Betty Shelby, has been charged with first-degree manslaughter&#8212;though her attorney <a href="http://m.koco.com/news/tulsa-police-officer-betty-shelbys-attorney-enters-not-guilty-plea/41905984">entered a &#8220;not guilty&#8221; plea</a> Friday.
The riots in <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/09/22/riots-over-police-shooting-engulf-charlotte-for-2nd-straight-night.html">Charlotte</a> and <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/aug/15/milwaukee-protests-two-injured-tensions-police-shooting-sylville-k-smith">Milwaukee</a> resulted in property damage, looting, injuries, and at least two gunshot wounds.
As a result of anti-law enforcement aggression, many police departments have pulled back, leading to several major cities seeing a dramatic spike in crime. <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/aug-2016-chicagos-bloodiest-month-decades/story?id=41792681">ABC News</a> reports that &#8220;Chicago is on pace for its highest overall murder count since at least 2008, when 513 were recorded in the entire year.&#8221;
The Manhattan Institute&#8217;s Heather Mac Donald explained to <a href="http://ijr.com/2016/09/685151-after-police-pull-back-and-gangs-take-over-streets-murder-rate-in-chicago-blows-past-2015-totals/">Independent Journal Review</a>:
<blockquote>
&#8220;Pedestrian stops are down about 90% in Chicago. As the police union head told me last month, cops are just not &#8216;clearing the corners&#8217; anymore. Out of those groups of youth hanging out, loitering, often emerges drive-by shootings and other forms of gang violence.&#8221;
</blockquote>
As organizations like Black Lives Matter continue to embolden this kind of unrestrained, aggressive behavior against law enforcement, we continue to see it increase in frequency. Such high-profile hostility has the capacity to metastasize, possibly leading to events occurring outside the scope of post-police shooting riots.
The incident in Fresno may just be the beginning.

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