This is Elder Abuse Awareness Month.

What sorts of elder abuse cases do we see in Humboldt County? How many? What does local government do to combat elder abuse, and what can you do to help?

Keri Schrock of the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services’ Adult Protective Services’ division joins the Outpost’s John Kennedy O’Connor to talk about this things —

Video above, transcript below.

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O’CONNOR:

Well, welcome to another Humboldt Conversation. I’m really thrilled to say we’re here today with Keri Schrock, and Keri is the Adult Services Program Manager with the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services. That’s quite a long title, quite a long mouthful. But we’re here today to talk about a very important program that’s coming up that you’ve been working on recently, which is the Elder Abuse Awareness Month and the day that’s coming up on the 15th. Now, this is something that when you sent us your press release, I was really actually very disturbed to read about the number of cases of abuse that your department is dealing with almost on a daily basis and certainly within a month. It’s very, very worrying.

SCHROCK:

And actually the number of reports that we get is not the number of abuse cases that are actually happening. Because elder abuse is underreported kind of everywhere. And elders are the fastest growing population right now. And we get reports every day that social workers are answering to.

O’CONNOR:

Which is really kind of concerning, but I immediately thought of physical abuse and emotional abuse, but it’s not, it’s financial abuse and all sorts of different things, including sexual abuse, which really disturbs me.

SCHROCK:

Yes, and in addition to those, there’s also neglect, there’s self-neglect, and there’s also neglect by others like a caretaker. And when you mentioned financial abuse, we actually have seen a rise in that the pandemic really had an effect on the older population. COVID just increased isolation and loneliness for elders who, they were the ones pretty much most at risk of complications or death from the pandemic. And so that caused them to be even more isolated and targeted a lot by people who were committing fraud.

O’CONNOR:

Now, your department works with a number of different social workers but also I believe some volunteers as well who are out in the community. How do you respond when you get a call of abuse?

SCHROCK:

Well, we take calls that come in. Sometimes they meet criteria, sometimes they don’t. But if somebody is concerned or even has a suspicion of abuse, they can call our hotline. The number is 476-2100. And then a social worker takes the call, they screen it. The information goes to a supervisor who will review the report and assign it if it meets criteria. And then the social worker will make contact and do an investigation and provide services. And a lot of people think that there’s some fear that a social worker is going to come out and maybe do some intervention that they don’t want. But really, the goal of Adult Protective Services is to keep people safe in their homes and honor their right to make their own decisions and self-determination. So we’re really there to be helpful. And to help them remain independent. 

O’CONNOR:

Now, there is this month happening right now in June 2023, which is an Elder Abuse Awareness Month. What programs are in place, what is happening this month to help people become aware of this situation?

SCHROCK:

We are doing additional outreach. We have staff that are at the Arcata Farmers’ Market. We have a booth there where we have information. Social workers can answer questions. We have coloring pages for children. The coloring pages are also available at the Eureka Library, the Humboldt County Library. We have a banner that is hung up, that will be hung up in Eureka as well as one in Arcata that just it gives our phone number and just says to honor our elders because we do want the focus to be on the issues of elder abuse but also to put some emphasis on really honoring this this really important part of our community because everybody will hopefully be an elder one day or loves an elder or or somebody a friend or a family member is an elder that needs to be looked after.

O’CONNOR:

Now, of course the community is very important to supporting your work in many respects because not only are they the eyes and ears of what might be happening but they can also protect their own loved ones who may be vulnerable to other influences.

SCHROCK:

Yes, yes. So ideally people will just having us out and about in the community a little bit more, people will think about somebody that they know, maybe a loved one, maybe a neighbor, just check in on people, check in on your elders, give people a call, reach out. A lot of times the signs might not be not might not be super visible. When you hear about abuse, you might think of bruises or injuries, but there’s also signs of somebody maybe who used to be very vibrant and out and about, a neighbor that you saw all the time that was friendly that now you notice maybe there’s someone new living in the home and that person, the elder looks now kind of unkempt and doesn’t really come to the door or just changes in behavior are some of the indicators of abuse.

O’CONNOR:

And there’s a specific National Awareness Day, isn’t there, for the entire nation, that’s on the 15th? Yes.

SCHROCK:

June 15th. I know that our banner will be up that day. I actually off the top of my head don’t know what day of the week that is. So I don’t know that we are doing something. Wednesday I think. Okay, okay. So I don’t think we’re doing anything extra specific on that day. We do have these purple ribbons. Purple is the color for elder abuse awareness. So we have ribbons available several places in the community and we also have those at the places we’re tabling.

O’CONNOR:

Yes, and I actually saw them when I arrived here today. You’ve got a little basket full of them, which has a little booklet as well of the signs to look for.

SCHROCK:

Uh huh, and our phone number to call and so you can grab one on your way out. I will do that. And yes, so we have a really good dedicated team of social workers and support staff. We actually are, we actually have some vacancies for openings so if somebody is interested in a job you can call 476-2100 you can ask to talk to me, Keri. We have openings in our supportive services program as well as with adult protective services. Well, thank you.

O’CONNOR:

If anybody wants to reach out, that’s the number from Keri. We’ll also put that on the screen as well. Keri, it’s been a pleasure to talk to you. It’s not an easy subject to discuss. And I really appreciate the work that your team are doing here. And I think people, you know, during this month will become more aware of what’s going on in their community and how they can help actually support your services.

SCHROCK:

Great.

O’CONNOR:

Well, Keri, it’s lovely to meet you. Thank you so much. Thank you. Thank you so much for joining us for a Humboldt Conversation. And join us for another one again very, very soon.

Editor’s note: Today the Outpost is thrilled to launch the Internet’s newest feature — “This Fucking Thread.” Written entirely by artificial intelligence, This Fucking Thread seeks to keep you abreast of the many controversies that are roiling Humboldt County social media.

And now, without further ado — This Fucking Thread.

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McKINLEYVILLE, CALIFORNIA: A lively debate has erupted on local community platform Nextdoor.com regarding the recent implementation of a packaging charge by businesses in the City of Arcata. The discussion was ignited by Diane Higgins, a resident of McKinleyville, who expressed her dissatisfaction with being charged 25 cents for a small bag at Ramones in Wildberries.

Higgins shared her frustration, stating that the bag fee is a new rule or law imposed by the City of Arcata to reduce packaging waste. However, she voiced concerns about the ambiguity of where the money from the fee is allocated and questioned whether it benefits the city or the businesses themselves. She also raised the issue of inconsistency in charging for containers when purchasing soup at the Co-op.

Responses to Higgins’ post varied, with some community members offering solutions to the packaging dilemma. Patricia Dougherty suggested that the Co-op weighs empty containers to deduct their weight from the total when checking out. Another user, Sarah Hirsch, pointed out that the same practice applies to containers used for bulk food and soup at the Co-op.

Joanne McGarry, a resident of Downtown Arcata, expressed strong support for the packaging charge, emphasizing the environmental benefits of reducing unnecessary packaging waste. McGarry shared her personal commitment to using reusable containers for various items, advocating for the elimination of single-use packaging. This stance prompted a back-and-forth exchange with Higgins, who questioned whether consumers should be charged or if the responsibility should lie with manufacturers.

The discussion further expanded to include debates about personal virtue, the current state of California, and societal issues. However, some participants redirected the conversation back to the core topic, highlighting that businesses like Ramones and Wildberries already offer discounts to customers who bring their own bags or containers.

Brianna King chimed in, explaining that the City of Arcata aims to enforce the use of compostable packaging, which often comes at a higher cost for businesses. King also mentioned that local establishments are providing incentives, such as a 25 cent discount, for customers who bring their own cups or containers.

While some community members felt that the packaging charge was a small price to pay for environmental conservation, others expressed concerns about the additional financial burden on consumers. One user, Sammy Hemp, criticized the focus on the bag fee amidst what they perceived as more significant societal and political issues.

The discussion continues to unfold on Nextdoor.com, reflecting the diverse opinions of the community regarding environmental responsibility, consumer behavior, and the role of government in promoting sustainable practices.

As conversations around sustainability and environmental protection gain momentum, it is clear that finding a balance between reducing packaging waste and addressing the financial impact on consumers remains a complex issue.

PREVIOUSLY:

• Pedestrian Found Dead on Highway 101 Through Arcata This Morning; Hit and Run Suspected, California Highway Patrol Says

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Press release from the California Highway Patrol:

The deceased subject has been positively identified by the Humboldt County Coroner’s Office as 45-year-old Chad Macias of Reno, Nevada. Mr. Macias’ next-of-kin has been notified and the California Highway Patrol extends our sincerest condolences to them at this time.

Additionally, further analysis of vehicle debris near the scene has been identified as belonging to a 2015-2017 Audi A3, which will likely have damage to the driver side and be missing the driver side mirror. Anyone with information regarding this crash is urged to immediately contact the Humboldt Area CHP office at (707) 822-5981 during business hours, or (707) 268-200 after business hours. Information may also be emailed to Humboldt_Area@chp.ca.gov.

(A picture of a similar make, model and color vehicle is attached to this release).

Have you ever noticed that ship out on the Samoa Peninsula behind the Timber Heritage Museum? Did you know that World War II-era vessel – affectionately known as the USS LCI(L)-1091 – took part in the Battle for Okinawa in 1945, witnessed atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll and served as a medical lab during the Korean War to help prevent the spread of wartime disease? Neither did we!

In today’s episode of “Humboldt Outdoors” local documentarian Ray Olson takes us on a tour of the wartime ship and introduces us to the dedicated group of local veterans who are working to restore ol’ Ten-Ninety-One.

“There were a little over 1,000 of these ships built during World War II and as far as [we know], there are only two that remain,” Olson says. “What makes the  story even more remarkable is the small but dedicated crew of military veterans who have been volunteering their time over the last decade to keep this historic ship from collapsing into a pile of rust and scrap metal.”

Click the video above to find out how the WWII ship ended up in Humboldt Bay as a fishing vessel. 

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PREVIOUSLY:

Press release from the Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury:

Humboldt County Superior Court distributed a press release on April 26th to request interested members of our local community to submit applications for the 2023/2024 Humboldt County Civil Grand Jury. However, to date we have not received enough applications to proceed with our normal member selection process and timeline. We implore more members of our community to please apply to serve as a member in order for the important work of the civil grand jury - to investigate and review citizen complaints concerning the operations of city and county government as well as other tax supported and non-profit agencies and districts – to continue without interruption.

Based on the Civil Grand Jury’s reviews, they publish reports of its findings and may recommend constructive action to improve the quality and effectiveness of local government, which benefits our local community and county. The Humboldt Superior Court empanels 19 citizens to act as an independent body of the judicial system each year. The Humboldt County civil grand jury is seeking applicants for fiscal year 2023/2024 (term: July 1-June 30). The Court also encourages citizens to apply and serve as alternates if and when vacancies occur during the FY term of service. The Civil Grand Jury is currently meeting both in-person and occasionally via Zoom. The weekly time commitment ranges from 10-30 hours.

The civil grand jury does not consider criminal indictments, and members cannot be serving as an elected public official.

For more information and the application process, please complete and submit a fillable application on the Court’s web site at this link, or contact Administration at 269-1245. You may also request an application, complete/download, and email an application by emailing: GrandJuryApps@humboldtcourt.ca.gov. Or you may return a completed paper application to Jury Services in Room G03 (4th Street entrance). Thank you for your interest and support of our local community!

Like many recent arrivals to California, Prem Pariyar searched for work and a home within communities of fellow immigrants.

So when coworkers at a South Asian restaurant in Davis refused to room with him in an apartment his employer provided, he was shocked by their reason: his caste. Not his race, religion or nationality, but the centuries-old social hierarchies still prevalent in some South Asian societies.

Pariyar is Dalit, which means “broken” in Sanskrit and is considered the lowest-ranking caste, formerly known as “untouchables.” In Nepal, he said, his family faced violence and harassment. He thought he had escaped that here.

“I was speechless,” he said of his coworkers’ actions, which left him depressed, traumatized and living in a van for a month in 2015 until he quit the restaurant. “Why did these people practice these kinds of things here in the U.S.?”

Today Pariyar, who won asylum and became a U.S. citizen, is one of California’s most vocal activists for a ban on caste discrimination. After successfully pushing for California State University to adopt a ban in 2022, Pariyar, a social worker in the East Bay, is focused on getting protections for so-called lower-caste people into the state’s fair housing and employment laws.

Prem Pariyar, a Nepali Dalit activist who got CSU to include caste in its anti-discrimination policy, at his home in Richmond on May 16, 2023. Photo by Loren Elliott for CalMatters.

Legislation to do that is contentious. In April, it drew one of the largest public hearing turnouts for any bill before California’s Legislature this session. It would be the first statewide measure of its kind in the nation, although Seattle passed a similar ordinance in February.

While many Californians may never know anyone who experiences caste discrimination, or even what it is, for some, it’s both hidden and inescapable.

For many worshipers at Shri Guru Ravidass Temple on the outskirts of Sacramento, the issue is about their families’ futures: Will the discrimination they experienced as Dalits in India follow them to California? Will it stop their children from achieving the American Dream?

Followers of the Ravidass religion, which is related to Sikhism, belong to the Dalit caste but formed their distinct faith as a move against caste discrimination. On a recent Sunday, between services and a meal, members swapped anecdotes about discrimination they encountered, including in the U.S.

In social settings among other South Asians, they said, they’ve heard derogatory comments about Dalits. One man, a hospital janitor, believes he got tougher assignments because his supervisors and colleagues from upper castes played favorites.

Some said bosses, coworkers and classmates asked probing questions — about their last names, the temple they attended, their relatives’ jobs back home — that to an outsider may seem innocuous, but are common ways to discern someone’s caste background in India.

Several who spoke to CalMatters work as truck drivers. In many ways, they said, the legacy of the caste system had already shaped the trajectory of their lives, because it limits the jobs and education available to them both in India and now the U.S.

“It was really hard for our people to get up, to get a high-paying job and higher education,” said Raj Rohl, 40. “We struggled a lot. We don’t want that to happen here, so our kids struggle again here to get the education they want, to get the jobs they want.”

“Honestly, we don’t really deal with that many Brahmins here,” said Raj Vadhan, 50, referring to the highest caste classification. The bill, he said, would help more with “discrimination going on at the upper-level jobs, the higher-paying jobs.”

Priest Bhai Manhor Singh at the Shri Guru Ravidass Temple in Rio Linda on June 3, 2023. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters

South Asians on the other side of the debate say the bill is unnecessary — and unfair.

“To tackle discrimination, we have very strong existing laws and existing protections under categories of ancestry and national origin. They can, and should, be used to deal with any issues of caste-based discrimination as they arise — and they have actually already been used,” said Samir Kalra, managing director of the Hindu American Foundation, an advocacy group opposing the bill.

“Creating an entire separate category and law that only applies to minority communities is inconsistent with our constitutional norms.”

The bill’s historical roots

Sen. Aisha Wahab, a first-term Democrat from Fremont, wants to add caste as a protected category to the state Unruh Civil Rights Act, the California Fair Employment and Housing Act and the state policy that bans discrimination in public schools.

“As our state and country become more and more diverse, our laws have to go further and deeper and clarify more specifically, what is being protected,” she told CalMatters. “And caste discrimination is something that should not take place here in the United States, let alone in California.”

The Senate approved her bill, SB 403, on a 34-1 vote on May 11, but advocacy groups opposed to the measure will try again to kill or change it in the Assembly.

The concept of the South Asian caste system has been in the U.S. since at least 1965, when a federal immigration law overhaul resulted in immigrants from more Asian countries receiving visas. But because those visas focused on skilled labor, the legacy of caste discrimination in India meant upper-caste Indian immigrants were able to establish themselves in the U.S. decades before lower-caste Hindus.

The issue became more prominent recently, partly because the rise of the Hindu nationalist movement in Indian politics reinforced caste divisions as it sought to unify and strengthen the Hindu identity in India.

One of the earliest examples of caste making headlines in California: In 1999, federal prosecutors charged Berkeley real estate magnate Lakireddy Bali Reddy, as well as his brother, sister-in-law and sons, for smuggling Indian women into the U.S. for illegal sexual activity. Prosecutors said Reddy “took advantage of casteism and economic class to exploit these women.” He was convicted of sex trafficking and spent eight years in federal prison before dying in Oakland in 2021.

Caste issues have surfaced prominently in Silicon Valley, where Indian workers with bachelor’s degrees made up 27% of tech workers in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties in 2021. In April 2021, the Santa Clara County Human Rights Commission held informational hearings about caste discrimination.

In 2020, what is now the state Civil Rights Department sued Cisco, the San Jose-based networking and cloud management company, and two engineers after an employee filed a complaint alleging he received less pay and fewer opportunities because he was Dalit. He also said the defendants retaliated against him when he spoke out.

The two engineers denied the allegations, saying in court filings they reject caste hierarchies and recruited the employee to Cisco with competitive pay and stock options. The state dropped its case against the engineers, but continues the suit against the company. The state and Cisco are in mediation talks. Attorneys for the company and the two engineers did not respond to requests for comment.

Legislating conflict

While caste discrimination is difficult for corporations to navigate, it’s also a thorny issue for politicians.

Rohit Chopra, a professor of global media and cultural identity at Santa Clara University, said some politicians don’t want to be seen as targeting any community — including the Indian community, which has political clout. That gives the opposition a window of opportunity, particularly those in the “Hindu right,” he said.

“Whatever organizations are sort of spearheading this … they keep appropriating this right to speak for all Hindus and all Indians,” he said.

Wahab, the first Afghan-American lawmaker in the Legislature, is not South Asian, but represents a district that is home to many. In response to the bill, she said she has been the target of threats and derogatory comments about her identity, as well as a recall campaign led by congressional candidate Ritesh Tandon, a San Jose-area former Cisco engineer. He says his platform includes protecting Silicon Valley jobs, addressing climate change and ending racial preferences in hiring.

There are two South Asians in the Legislature: Democratic Assemblymembers Ash Kalra from San Jose and Jasmeet Bains from Bakersfield.

Bains, who represents a large Sikh population, signed on as a co-sponsor to the bill in mid-April, but did not respond to requests for an interview on her reasons. Kalra, who is not a co-sponsor and represents part of Silicon Valley, declined an interview. Neither has had to vote on the bill yet. Naindeep Singh, executive director of Jakara Movement, a community organizing group for Sikh Californians, said the group supports the bill because “while Sikh theology calls for caste abolitionism, still among some Sikh societies casteism is still practiced.”

While some opponents say the bill will make them targets for discrimination, Singh argues that much of the opposition is in bad faith. “The argument that the bill singles out South Asian communities is a canard,” he said. “It is rather simple: If you don’t discriminate against others based on caste, you have little to fear with SB 403’s passage.”

Kalra, of the Hindu American Foundation, pushed back on that argument.

“You’re already going to be assumed to be caste-ist just as a South Asian, so you are already facing suspicion. And if you are falsely accused, it’s a nightmare to go through that process,” he said.

The foundation has submitted amendments to the bill that would remove language such as “caste-oppressed,” which it says would result in racial profiling of South Asians, he said.

Amar Shergill, former chairperson of the California Democratic Party’s Progressive Caucus whose family is from India, said politicians have hesitated to discuss caste, but “thankfully, we are at that place now.”

“Let’s face it, this is a difficult issue to discuss,” he said. “Like so many issues of oppression within the community — whether it’s sex discrimination or child abuse or caste opppression — folks don’t want to talk about the pain in their own community.”

It’s a small world

The caste bill is the latest flashpoint as immigrants bring conflicts from their home country to California.

The state is home to 10.5 million immigrants — 23% of the foreign-born population nationwide, according to the Public Policy Institute of California. Nearly a third of California’s population is foreign-born, and almost half of California children have at least one immigrant parent. The fall of the Soviet Union, wars and other global conflicts touched off new waves of migration to California.

Included in those waves are Asian Americans, who make up about 15% of the state’s population, according to the 2020 Census. In 2021, nearly 1 million in California self-identified as South Asian — from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Sri Lanka, according to an analysis by the University of Minnesota.

Data on subgroups of immigrants, such as by caste, can be more difficult to track.

A 2016 national survey by the Oakland-based activist group Equality Labs found that two-thirds of Dalit respondents said they had been mistreated at work, one-third said they experienced discrimination during their education and one half said they feared being “outed.” In a 2022 research paper Pariyar co-authored while studying at Cal State East Bay, 24 of 27 Dalit Nepalis interviewed in the Bay Area said they had experienced some form of caste-based discrimination, including two who said they were forced out by roommates or landlords when their caste was discovered.

Opponents of the bill say caste discrimination reports are overstated in the Equality Labs survey. They point instead to a broader 2021 survey of Indian Americans in the U.S. by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in which only 5% of respondents reported experiencing caste discrimination — though the study notes that the majority of respondents who were Hindu and identified with a caste reported being from an upper caste.Scholars such as Audrey Truschke, a historian of South Asia and associate professor at Rutgers University, say California has set a precedent for addressing issues that affect even “micro-minorities.”

That may be due to California’s diverse population, which has long forced its lawmakers to confront broader issues.

Take, for instance, an international dispute between Armenian and Turkish people. Among California’s oldest and largest immigrant populations, Armenians first settled in Fresno as early as the 1870s and in larger numbers after World War I, following their deportation from what is now Turkey. Hundreds of thousands of Armenians died from starvation or disease during the forced expulsion in 1915 and 1916 to Syria and elsewhere, in what most scholars call a genocide.

California officially recognized the genocide in 1968. But the Republic of Turkey balked, acknowledging the deaths but denying what occurred was systemic. And due to its alliance with Turkey, the United States did not recognize the conflict as a genocide until April 2021.

Former Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian, who pushed for a 2022 law establishing Genocide Remembrance Day in California, said he wrote the bill in a way that would not just solely acknowledge the trauma of the Armenian community.

“It’s only respectful if we have a day of commemoration that every community can identify with,” he said. “No one’s trauma is at the end of the day greater than the others, or at least we should never treat it that way.”

A more recent example was in 2017, when then-Assemblymember Rob Bonta authored a bill to repeal a Cold War-era ban on communists working for the state, though it was rarely enforced. Bonta, now attorney general, said he pulled his bill out of respect for Vietnamese immigrants who had fled the communist regime in Vietnam.

Vincent Tran, organizing director for VietRise, an advocacy group for the Vietnamese community in Orange County, said many immigrants’ political activism is rooted in both the conflicts they fled and quality-of-life issues such as affordable housing.

“It’s part of the bigger plan to institutionalize the identity,” Tran said. “What does it mean to be Vietnamese American?”

In the case of caste, Dalit activist Thenmozhi Soundararajan of Equality Labs said the anti-discrimination bill is more than a statement on international politics.

“It’s not about, ‘We need to make a moral stand,’” she said, “It’s actually that California institutions, California workers and California renters are being impacted.”

Necessary, or duplicative?

At the heart of the state’s debate now: Does California already prohibit caste discrimination?

The Cisco case shows that the state can already act on allegations of caste discrimination, though the company in court filings has contended that caste is not a protected identity. California’s civil rights department said current law allows renters and employees to make caste-based discrimination claims under the state’s bans of discrimination based on race or ancestry.

The department could not say — out of the more than 10,000 annual complaints of racial or ancestry-based discrimination — how many mention caste. Nor would it comment on how adding caste to the law would specifically affect how it handles those complaints.

“Generally speaking, any effort to further strengthen existing civil rights protections may result in an increase in complaints filed with our office,” a spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement. “Should that occur, the Civil Rights Department will work with the Legislature to ensure any new workload is adequately resourced.”

But Jessica Ramey Stender, policy director with Equal Rights Advocates, which provides legal assistance to workers, said the bill is necessary to add clarity, despite existing protections.

“The key to a discrimination case, of course, is that you are treated differently or adversely based on a protected characteristic,” she said. “And so if the two workers who are being treated differently are of the same race, national origin or ancestry, they may not be able to establish a claim if (they’re) being discriminated against based on being of a different caste.”

Guha Krishnamurthi, an associate professor of law at the University of Oklahoma who has studied the bill, said he understands the “ever-present anxiety that one might worry about being sued.“You’re balancing the potential for frivolous cases against making sure people who are facing legitimate cases of caste discrimination have a way of remedying that,” he said. “As a lawyer who believes in the truth-finding function, I am not as worried about our system not being able to ferret out frivolous cases.”

He said that the bill also serves an educational purpose: “It tells managers and companies, don’t do this. But it also tells HR departments — be vigilant about this.”

Head priest Bhai Gurdeep Singh at the Shri Guru Ravidass Temple in Rio Linda on June 3, 2023. Photo by Miguel Gutierrez Jr., CalMatters

While state law could address discrimination in the workplace, it would be far more difficult to do so in other parts of daily life.

In interviews, several Californians of Dalit descent described experiencing how other South Asians had subtly divided them based on caste. Some said it came in the form of ostracism at school — sometimes by parents of their classmates who found out about their family background — and in university groups or immigrant social circles.

Pooja Singh, founder of Hindus for Caste Equity, one of the bill’s sponsors, said that when a health care colleague bragged about her family’s upper-caste background, she could see her promotion opportunities shrink because her boss was also from that upper-caste.

“When I found out you could go to HR, I just didn’t even take it, because nobody would understand that,” she said. “Americans see, like, Asians fighting Asians. They think it’s personal grudges or something. They don’t understand it’s a caste issue.”

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CalMatters newsletter writer Lynn La contributed to this story. CalMatters.org is a nonprofit, nonpartisan media venture explaining California policies and politics.

Press release from the California Highway Patrol:

On June 7, 2023, at approximately 7:05 AM, CHP Humboldt Communication Center received a call of a male pedestrian lying in the median of United States Route 101 (US-101), south of the 7th Street overcrossing, in Arcata. CHP, along with emergency medical and fire personnel, responded to the scene and located an unresponsive subject who had succumbed to blunt force injuries. Based on CHP’s preliminary investigation, it is believed the subject was crossing US-101 Northbound at approximately 9:00 PM on June 6, 2023 when he was struck by a vehicle that continued from the scene of the crash.

CHP is seeking the public’s assistance in locating the driver and vehicle involved in this crash. It is believed the involved vehicle sustained front end damage and may be missing its right (passenger) side mirror. Anyone with information regarding the crash is urged to contact the Humboldt Area CHP office at (707) 822-5981 during business hours, or (707) 268-200 after business hours.