About Us What's this all about?

CLAUDIA MELENDEZ SALINAS | Founding Editor | claudia@vomb.org
JULIE REYNOLDS | Founding Editor | julie@vomb.org

VOICES OF MONTEREY BAY | PO Box 547, Salinas CA 93902
CONTACT US | admin@vomb.org

Our collective

Founders

Claudia Meléndez Salinas

Some years ago, by pure chance I stumbled into the book “The Children of Soledad” which tells the story of how a group of Soledad parents fought to end discriminatory practices in California schools that classified Spanish speaking children as dumb. The feeling I had when I read was both rage, when learning about the education condition these children had to live with, and exultation, when the story resolved in their favor. Most importantly, the peace and serenity I felt when I was reading about local people was indescribable. It was as if the mountains were whispering their secrets in my ears, as if the sun was shining on my face and these lands were blessing my steps.

Stories have the power to connect us to one another, to remind us of our humanity and our collective purpose. Stories can inspire us into action, move us into creating a better world. I really believe in the power of storytelling, and I believe mainstream media is doing a poor job of bringing forth those stories that help us develop a thriving democracy, a strong sense of connection among neighbors, and ultimately, a strong fabric for our society.

In this day and age of racial turmoil, I also know voices of people of color are needed more than ever. Latinos and Blacks and Asians have failed to see accurate representations of who they are for centuries, and Voices is well positioned to improve on that representation.

Julie Reynolds

I was part of a group in Salinas that met over the years to drink and complain about local media. We were all journalists, all trying to find or create something better. Someplace where we could do the kinds of stories our former bosses always said took too much time or too many inches — or maybe should be in another language (like Spanish). We also wanted to see and hear from the voices that hardly made it into the dailies or TV news — high school kids, people in prison and jail, service workers, the homeless, Indigenous people and more. 

I’ve always been very cynical about for-profit media, even more so in this era of hedge fund ownership. I love that Voices is nonprofit, because as critical sources of news and information, we serve our readers, not shareholders. I’ve always seen Voices as a kind of mini New Yorker for the Monterey Bay Area — but bilingual, bicultural, and more grassroots and irreverent. I love that we function as a collective and that I get to work with this passionate and talented group.

Contributors

George B. Sánchez-Tello | Staff writer

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Royal Calkins | Investigative reporter

Charlotte is a freelance journalist who covers education, criminal justice, housing, and politics. She is a member of the Education Writers Association and was a 2019 Kiplinger Fellow.

Isaac Alberto González Díaz | Young Voices reporting intern