For progressives and liberals, many smaller newspapers and newsletters exist that tackle specific issues of social and economic justice, environmental concerns, civil rights, and concerns of minority communities. This tradition of progressive smaller papers and newsletters can be traced to past papers like I.F. Stone's Weekly, a 4 page weekly newsletter started by radical journalist I.F. Stone that ran from the 1950s to the 1970s and reported on the civil rights movement, the McCarthy excesses, and the true state of the Vietnam War. The library that I work with receives many small newspapers and newsletters that are looking for audiences. Here are some newspapers and newsletters that may interest readers of various interests.

The Catholic Agitator is the newspaper of the Los Angeles Catholic Worker House. Like all the Catholic Worker places throughout the country, The Catholic Agitator shows a strong concern for pacifist and poverty issues. When compared to the Catholic Worker based in New York, the Catholic Agitator is much more in-your-face confrontational in tone, from the articles to the artwork. In the February 2010 issue, for instance, the Agitator takes Obama to task for accepting the Nobel Peace Prize while pursuing an expanded war in Afghanistan. The newspaper lives up to its title, as it represents a radical Catholic leftist view of the world.

The Street Spirit is an Oakland, California publication of the American Friends Service Committee (AFSC). In keeping with the Quaker spirit, The Street Spirit deals with homelessness, economic inequality, welfare issues, human rights issues and the struggle for social justice. For the past decade, Street Spirit has devoted itself to empowering the poor and homeless people in Oakland and giving an alternative to panhandling and a voice to the voiceless.

Across the bay, in San Francisco, The Street Sheet focuses on similar issues as The Street Spirit of the problems of homeless people in the city, and on issues of poverty and housing. Founded on 1987 from the group The Coalition on Homelessness, San Francisco, the Street Sheet is one of the oldest street newspapers in the United States and currently has a circulation of 32,000 papers distributed monthly. Through Street Sheet, the Coalition hopes to defend the rights of the homeless and low income people, and to foster their participation in fighting the root causes of homelessness and poverty. James Clark had an informative article for City on a Hill Press on the Street Sheet and The Street Spirit.

Voces Unidas is the magazine of the SouthWest Organizing Project, a multi-racial community organization founded in 1980 in New Mexico that works for social and economic justice issues and works to give people direct responsibility in the running of their communities and the right to control their own resources. Voces Unidas has been concerned with the effects of the current recession on the poor and to combat anti-immigration policies. As a January 2010 Voces Unidas wrote:

"It's a brutal moment in a capitalist system going through one of its 'dips'. The Great Depression of the 1930s taught power brokers that a capitalist system has to be managed in order for it to survive. A vital lesson from that period is that social programs are absolutely necessary to pick up the slack for an indifferent economic system that doesn't care about food, shelter, education, or health care."

Open Space Views is a newsletter of the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District that works for the preservation of a greenbelt of open space in the San Francisco Bay Area, to restore the natural beauty of the area and to educate the public on the area's ecological treasures. It highlights the various parks and trails in the Bay Area, advertises classes on the local animals and plants, and highlights political efforts to help the environment. In the Spring 2010 edition, for instance, the Open Space Views mentions the efforts of Representative Mike Honda, Representative Zoe Lofgren, and Senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein in securing funding for the cleanup of the former Almaden Air Force Base on top of Mt. Umumhum in the Sierra Azul Open Space Preserve. This means that the area will be cleaned of toxins like asbestos and lead paint so that in the future, hikers will be able to visit the area and enjoy the natural beauty of the mountain's peak.

The Pakistan Link is the largest circulating Pakistani-American newspaper in North America that offers news and commentary on Pakistan and the Pakistani-American community. At a time when Afghanistan and Pakistan play a large part in the national security concerns of our country, the paper offers much needed news to help readers understand the situation in that area. The latest issues have highlighted the efforts of American and Pakistani military forces to defeat the Taliban in the Afghanistan border, reports on the often tense relationship between Pakistan and India, and explains on the political situation of the Pakistani government. Pakistani artists, poets, actors and athletes are also highlighted, and their editorials often comment on the state of Islam in the country and argue for religious tolerance.

Poetry Flash is a western magazine that highlights poets and poetry events in the western U.S. This paper offers reviews, interviews, and submissions and contests for poets, which is needed, as nonprofit literary magazines and community-based arts organizations have declined in number as the federal government has cut its funding over the years.

The San Jose Post Record is a local paper that profiles lawyers, judges and other members of the legal profession, and describes relevant court cases in the San Francisco Bay area. It is a nonpartisan newspaper, favorably reviewing the careers of liberal and conservative litigators. What I like most about this paper is how it describes the legal arguments on many controversial issues that are being argued out in the courts today. In the February 9, 2010 edition, for instance, the paper described a womens' activists celebration in San Francisco of the 37th anniversary of the Roe versus Wade Supreme Court decision and its ramifications on other women's rights issues, on the current health care reform debate, and on the rights of the LGBT community. The January 14, 2010 edition spells out the legal argument for the right of gay marriage in a court trial in San Francisco.

La Oferta is popular and highly honored bilingual newspaper that covers the Hispanic community in the San Jose, California area. It covers Hispanic political, educational, atheletic and artistic achievements, and highlights issues that affect the Hispanic community.

India West celebrates the achievements of the Indian American community in the same way La Oferta and the Pakistan Link celebrate their community. The Indian American community has made great inroads in the American community, with Governor Bobby Jindal in Louisiana and actor Kal Penn of the Harold and Kumar movies being two of the most visible examples. In relating to news in India, India West sometimes reflects the hostility between India and Pakistan.