Hello, District 6 residents! I hope you are all doing well. This month, I want to update you on recent developments in Richmond, including street sweeping enforcement, upgrades on McBryde Avenue, and upcoming research to save $117 million in our city’s budget.

¡Hola, residentes de Distrito 6! Espero que todos lo estén haciendo bien. Este mes, quiero informarles sobre los desarrollos recientes en Richmond, incluyendo la aplicación de barrido decalles, mejoras en la avenida McBryde, y la próxima investigación para ahorrar $117 millones en el presupuesto de nuestra ciudad.

Stronger Sanctuary City, Community Budget Meetings, Early Debt Repayment, and More

Street sweeping tickets will start again on April 15. Full story and helpful hints at the very bottom of this very long newsletter. Read the headlines as you scroll down!

Richmond, CA – On March 17, 2025, the City of Richmond filed a lawsuit against two major investment banks, JP Morgan Chase and Royal Bank of Canada, as well as against the city’s former financial advisors, Public Resources Advisory Group and The Majors Group. The lawsuit seeks to recover tens of millions of dollars in payments made on derivative contracts that did not comply with California law. The derivatives provided no benefit to the public and diverted critical city resources away from essential services.

"For the banks, the tens of millions of dollars that Richmond paid on these derivatives amounted to money for nothing," said City Councilperson Claudia Jimenez.

"Meanwhile, our residents have had to endure higher taxes and reduced public services." Mayor Eduardo Martinez said “We want JP Morgan Chase and RBC to make the City whole by paying back the money they took from the City in illegal payments.”

The City of Richmond to Vote on Strengthening Sanctuary City Protections

Richmond, CA – Richmond Mayor Eduardo Martinez and the City Council are set to vote on a Sanctuary City ordinance update, reinforcing the City's commitment to protecting immigrant communities. Scheduled for Council consideration on Tuesday, March 11, 2025, the proposed ordinance titled “An Ordinance of the City Council of the City of Richmond Limiting the Use of City Resources for Federal Immigration Enforcement,” seeks to further limit local involvement in federal immigration enforcement efforts.

The ordinance builds on Richmond’s existing Sanctuary City policies, Ordinance No. 29-90 and Ordinance No. 12-18, aligning with California’s State Senate Bill 54 (the California Values Act), which limits state and local law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration authorities, further safeguarding Richmond immigrant residents who may be vulnerable to enforcement actions.

Hello, District 6 residents! This month, I want to update you on important topics and issues around Richmond, including our ongoing efforts to support our immigrant community.

¡Hola, residentes del Distrito 6! Este mes, quiero ponerlos al día sobre algunos temas y problemas importantes en Richmond, incluidos nuestros esfuerzos continuos para apoyar a nuestra comunidad inmigrante.

There’s so much I want to tell you about, but I know most people don’t want to read a long email newsletter, which this is. I encourage you to use the headlines below to find the topics you care about and just skip the rest. I am also giving each update a spiciness rating—1 to 5 chile peppers—based on how controversial I think it is. If you want to read about the hottest issues, you can use the peppers to find them fast!

Mayor Eduardo recently sent out a helpful memo in which he articulated how our city’s budget process will be guided by the city’s strategic goals. They plan to garner community input, so we thought we might start that conversation in a Roundtable. The main budget categories include: 

• Improving housing, especially for low-income and the unhoused 
• Economic development—increasing revenue and advancing existing businesses 
• Social elements 
• Public safety enhancements 
• Our city’s infrastructure 
• The shoreline and ecological sustainability

By Kathleen Wimer

The Richmond City Council meeting was FABULOUS!

Discussion of dredging the port (Item N.2.) offered every reassurance that the DDT at the bottom of the target area will not be disturbed nor mixed with other environments, including the Bay, either in transport or disposal.

Many former students and colleagues celebrated the life and legacy of June Albonico (Item N.3.a) who taught swimming at The Plunge for 60 years. Pam Shepherd, who worked with June, reported the staff called themselves "The Plunge Family." Pam said June treated everyone the same, even back in the 50’s. She said, "Little kids five or six years old would jump off the diving board into deep water while their families cheered and June yelled, "Kick. Kick. Kick. You can make it." When they did, Pam said June wiped off each child’s face and gave them a kiss. Mayor Eduardo Martinez said, "You described that so well I saw it in my mind’s eye as if I was watching a movie."

No amount of tobacco use by children is safe because tobacco contains nicotine which has been established to be dangerous to health. Direct smoking and second-hand smoke result in poor health conditions and impair proper brain development in children.

Every year, transnational Tobacco Companies like Philip Morris International, British American Tobacco, etc.; spend billions of dollars in marketing, repackaging, and rebranding of tobacco products to appeal to the growing young population. 

According to the American Lung Association, in 2022, tobacco companies spent a total of $8.01 billion on tobacco advertising in the United States. Most tobacco advertisements are done at movies and entertainment theatres, at popular stores, and through price reductions and the use of coupons.

Weaponized Advertising

Aggressive advertising and marketing have been used to attract new young smokers as old customers are dying from tobacco-related diseases. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Prevention and Control [CDC] (2023), every 2,000 young people below 18 years of age begin tobacco use and 300 become smokers. According to the World Health Organization, tobacco kills 8 million people yearly and half of tobacco users die from tobacco-related diseases.

Reflections On A Recent Visit To Cuba from Tarnel Abbott

“La Amistad Es Un Rayo De Sol En Un Dia Gris—Gracias”

“Friendship Is A Ray Of Sunlight On A Gray Day—Thank You” (from a card given to me by a child)

While we are in the throes of a fascist Coup d'état by the billionaires and their minions sending us into immediate chaos—at a time when millions of people in the U.S. are facing imminent economic and other harms—it is important to remember how Cuba has survived 66 years of U.S.-imposed economic blockade.

Under the first Trump presidency Cuba was listed as a “State Sponsor of Terrorism” (SSOT) which caused enormous damage to the Cuban economy. In his final days in office, President Biden removed Cuba from the list. Now with a vicious Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Cuba is being hammered further:

• Re-listed on the SSOT 
• Western Union barred from sending remittances
• Expansion of the illegal prison in the U.S. Naval base at Guantanamo