Category: Civil Rights

By JW August / Special to the OB Rag

Billy Hunyady, a popular girls softball coach for nine years at Point Loma High School, has been fired by the school’s Associate Principal. Not only was Hunyady fired, but the entire girls’ softball coaching staff of nine individuals were abruptly fired on July 29.

A veteran coach with 28 years experience, Hunyady calls it an unjustified termination.  More concerning to him, though, he says, is the potential for gossip and speculation in the community and among his players and their families wondering about why he was fired on at the end of July. He worries that some may believe he was fired for “horrible actions, such as a secret relationship with a player or stealing money or abusing any of the athletes in any kind of way,” Hunyady told the OB Rag.

Unfortunately those kinds of actions are not entirely uncommon, but that isn’t why Associate Principal Monika Montiel Turner fired him and the others, says Hunyady.

Hunyady said Turner told him he was let go because there was “too much chaos going on” surrounding the girls softball program, involving players and fans.

Although there were some warning signs, the firing still came as a devastating surprise to the Hunyady. Recognized as the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) coach of the year in 2025, Hunyady is a graduate of Point Loma High, class of 1981, having played on the same baseball team as the school’s famous sports alumnus, pitcher David Wells, of New York Yankees fame.  “I was excited to be coaching  teams from my school, ” Hunyady said.

Junior varsity head coach Chris Ghio, who was a longtime friend of Hunyady, having graduated the same year from Point Loma High as Hunyady, said that when his friend told him the entire coaching staff of nine individuals was fired, “I thought he was joking. They had seen many administrations come and go, and “we have always been treated with respect and appreciation.”

Ghio said he thinks the entire community should be put on notice that they were “disrespected and discarded” by the current administration.

Neither the high school principal, Michael Santos, nor Turner have responded to numerous requests to tell us their side of the story.

By Michael Angelo

On day one of the second Trump administration, a flurry of executive orders were signed reshaping immigration enforcement in the country by declaring a national emergency at the southern border, redirecting military funds for border enforcement, and restricting asylum access to anyone engaged in a so-called invasion of the United States.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was also directed to immediately and aggressively escalate operations and surge arrests by establishing high daily quotas which management would be held accountable for missing (increasing the likelihood of non-criminal arrests).

Just shy of 600 days later, we can see the direct and harrowing results of these actions. A recent ACLU research report titled Agents of Chaos and Cruelty documents the widespread violation of civil rights being committed by ICE agents during the second Trump administration’s first year. Across eight states, the report found more than 400 of the over 1,200 ICE incidents examined involved misconduct by agents. The report also emphasizes no one was off limits, and found dozens of instances of agents detaining U.S. citizens, asylumsees, and people with disabilities.

Agents were also reported to have “targeted, used force and intimidation against, and arrested” legal/ community observers, protesters, journalists, elected officials and their staff, and even members of the clergy. This cruelty has resulted in the killing of at least seven people during enforcement operations including 23 year-old Colombian immigrant and father Johan Sebastian Duran Guerrero, whose car was allegedly rammed by agents before he was fatally shot through the windshield a little over a month ago, and 37 year-old intensive care nurse Alex Pretti, who was shot multiple times and killed by ICE agents back in January.

At the end of May, the Rag published an article titled ICE Capades in San Diego, compiling actions taken by ICE in recent months to explore how the agency has been conducting itself in America’s Finest City. Here is an update on recent events and articles involving ICE in San Diego:

Chaotic scene unfolds around Federal Agents in City Heights

Mayor Todd Gloria and other city leaders Wednesday announced the bathrooms at Mission Bay Park that were closed in early July due to budget constraints will reopen at the end of this week.

Gloria said 13 restrooms at one of the city’s most popular destinations will be back open starting Friday. He told the media that money from a state grant award and allocations from council office budgets is helping reopen the bathrooms.

The bathrooms will stay open until the end of the year, according to the mayor.

Editordude: Here’s a rather bland report from KPBS — full of bias — about how the city of San Diego wants the public’s input on the establishment’s new blueprint for the Mid-City communities plans updates. The draft calls for 30,000 more homes and 89,000 more residents over 30 years (see CBS8 report at end). There’s no mention of how activists from these Mid-City neighborhoods have resisted and opposed these updates over the last couple of years, or how the Planning Commission rode roughshod over their attempts to get the city planners to listen to their deep seated concerns. 

City News Service – KPBS / August 11, 2026

San Diegans are being asked to provide input on an update to the Mid-City Communities Plan draft released Monday, which would create capacity for an additional 30,000 homes over the next 30 years.

The update — the first of its scale for the area in 25 years — took two years to shape, featuring engagement with more than 3,000 city residents participating in more than 100 events and resulting in more than 9,300 comments.

Mid-City includes the neighborhoods of City Heights, Eastern Area, Kensington-Talmadge and Normal Heights.

City News Service – Times of San Diego / August 11, 2026

Following an attempt to inspect the Otay Mesa Detention Center in February, the county released a public report Monday detailing conditions in the facility.

The conditions during the inspection were generally within recommended state standards for detention facilities, areas of concern in the findings included an individual who was not provided a needed medical device 18 months after admission, as well as not having any vaccines in stock, the report reads.

Another major area of concern was lack of responsiveness with County Public Health to coordinate tuberculosis-related cases. Two tuberculosis cases “were not reported from the facility’s medical staff but were instead discovered through a facility vendor that provides medical testing services.”

The facility was unresponsive for several weeks before the facility finally cooperated with the communicable disease investigation.

“Tuberculosis requires immediate reporting and a coordinated response to identify exposed individuals, initiate appropriate treatment, and prevent further transmission,” said County Public Health Officer Dr. Sayone Thihalolipavan.

Feds Want to Begin ‘Review’ of How California Manages Our Coast

By Tammy Murga / KPBS / August 11, 2026

Public hearings this week could influence the future of oil production, rocket launches and other federal industrial projects off California’s coast.

The Trump administration is evaluating the state’s Coastal Commission and other coastal agencies. Depending on the outcome, the state could lose its authority to review and regulate projects that involve the coastline.

Coastal leaders and environmentalists across California, including San Diego County, said the results of the federal government’s new review are already predetermined.

“The current federal administration is behaving in an unprecedented way, and they are very excited to advance offshore oil drilling and other types of projects off the California coast,” said Jennifer Savage, the Surfrider Foundation’s California policy manager.

A routine review that the Biden administration largely completed last year showed favorability with the agencies managing the coast, she said.

In May, however, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said California “has repeatedly and unfoundedly obstructed spaceport development in bad faith.”

Spaceport development could include construction of infrastructure for spacecraft to launch and land. The Coastal Commission had rejected a request last year from the U.S. Space Force to increase SpaceX rocket launches off California’s coast due to concerns over beach closures and environmental and noise impacts.

Change Begins With ME Overpass Alliance Marks One Year of Weekly Bridge Activism For 52 weeks,

Change Begins With ME volunteers have returned to the bridge with changing messages and one enduring call: Pay attention. Stay engaged. Vote.

On Monday, August 10, 2026, Change Begins With ME (CBWM) will celebrate the one-year anniversary of its Overpass Alliance, marking 52 weeks of sustained grassroots activism above San Diego freeways.

Since August 11, 2025, volunteers have gathered every week at the I-5 overpass at Clairemont Drive, holding large-scale banners and handmade signs addressing some of the most consequential issues facing our country and communities.  Each week, those messages are seen by thousands of passing drivers—and thousands of potential voters—giving CBWM’s Overpass Alliance a unique opportunity to reach people where they are.

The messages change from week to week, responding to current events and issues ranging from democracy and immigration to civil rights, government accountability and the rule of law. One of our messages was picked up by Congressman Mike Levin on Instagram, taking it viral with Meidas Touch and Occupy Democrats!

By Jeff Zevely / CBS8 News / August 2, 2026

In Southeast San Diego, a non-profit machine shop called Rise Up Industries is offering a fresh start for former inmates, providing them with jobs and support as they transition back into society. Founded in 2013, the program aims to reduce recidivism and empower individuals with the skills needed for sustainable employment.

The shop manager, Ernie Garcia, who spent 28 years in prison for a triple murder, emphasizes the transformative power of belief. “I had people believe in me when I really didn’t believe in myself,” he said.
Garcia understands the challenges of being incarcerated. “I know what it is to live and not have hope,” he said.

After Garcia’s release, he found purpose in helping others at Rise Up Industries, where he believes in second chances.

Two things happened on last Thursday, August 6th, that affect you and your utility bill.

First, Sempra — the company that owns SDG&E — released its earnings report for the second quarter of 2026, from April thru June, and revealed it made nearly $800 million, a significant increase from the $460 million it earned during the same period last year. The earnings are Sempra’s consolidated profit across California, Texas and infrastructure businesses. SDG&) is a regulated subsidiary and owned utility of Sempra.  SDG&E provides energy for 3.7 million people across San Diego and Southern Orange County.

While Sempra stock holders are reaping it in, San Diego utility customers are having a difficult time paying  their bills. A March 2026 report from the Public Advocates Office at the California Public Utilities Commission found that nearly one in five San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) customers is behind on their bills. The average past due balance for these customers is around $500, reports CBS8.

The OB Rag holds one fundraiser every year and it’s that time again. It’s the second week of August and here we go!!

Please help us reach our goal of $3,500 over the next two weeks. We do have bills — just our annual server bill alone is $900, plus hopefully you’ve noticed, but we have added new writers. And miracle upon miracle, we do pay them a small amount, usually $50 an article, plus we have subscription bills and utilities to pay. It costs us more than $3,500 to run the Rag for a year, but that’s what we’re asking.

Over these last three years, the Rag has become the online platform for whole groups of dissatisfied residents besides Ocean Beach and Point Loma – fellow citizens who are upset with the leadership of the city, the mayor’s Bonus ADU program, the so-called Complete Communities plan  – not to mention the Midway Rising and NAVWAR massive redevelopment projects.

Residents across the city are having trouble gaining traction about their travails from the mainstream or other online media and press. So, increasingly, they look to the Rag for support.

As the Rag is a platform of and for citizen journalists, we are often there for them.

So, help us keep it going.

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By Lynne Miller

PREFACE: In 2023/24 a small article was posted in the OB Rag by the editordude, Frank.  It alerted my neighbors that 4705 Pt.Loma Ave was moving forward with building plans.  Without the OB RAG, the city would have built the project, unchallenged.  The City was using the ministerial law embedded in Complete Communities, that does NOT require public notification.

Thanks to the Rag and its years of sleuthing, neighbors found out, fought the project and won. The only way to beat the City corruption which smells like the wetlands in Imperial Beach, is to unite, and take action. Since 2023 many organizations have started individual battles against the unhinged power of the City and State. In order to defeat the billionaire driven machine of builders and government collusion we must unite!

The title of this article is not intended to be just cute, it is based on a scientific reality about the Midway land.

Saturday, I attended a meeting held by SDUC (San Diego United Communities.  Their website is sandiegounitiedcommunities.com.

This is one of several groups who are fighting for the Finest City.  It is worth the fight, and it will take you, your friends, and their friends to unite in the common and urgent cause, Save San Diego.