i'm cheryl jennings. know, communities across the bay area are facing issues of hunger every single day. it affects children, seniors, people with steady jobs, and so many more. according to the five bay area food banks, almost 800,000 people use their services every month. now, overall, these food banks distribute more than 170 million pounds of food to those in need every year. it's interesting to note that more than half of the total pounds of food distributed is actually fresh produce. i am proud to say that abc7's parent company, disney, is committed to fighting hunger. this past year disney donated $1.5 million to the feeding america network of food banks, and this means that each of our local fd

i'm cheryl jennings. we have a special round table edition today celebrating our hispanic community. the united states census reports that hispanics make up more than 54 million people in the country, or about 17%. california has the largest overall population of 14.7 million, or nearly 40%, and since 2000, births in the united states have been the primary driving force for the increase. abc7's lyanne melendez is here now with some local leaders to talk about some of the current issues in our bay area's hispanic communities. >> and thank you, cheryl. gracias. before we begin our discussion today, let's learn a little bit about a recent big shift in california's population. it's now official. latino residents have surpassed whites as california's largest racial or ethnic groups. now, demographers had expected the shift for decades. abc7 news reporter chris nguyen took a look at the shift throughout the state when the numbers were released in july. >> at the dia de pesca restaurant in san jose, xavier sanch

i'm cheryl jennings. you know, communities across the bay area are facing issues of hunger every single day. it affects children, seniors, people with steady jobs, and so many more. according to the five bay area food banks, almost 800,000 people use their services every month. now, overall, these food banks distribute more than 170 million pounds of food to those in need every year. it's interesting to note that more than half of the total pounds of food distributed is actually fresh produce. i am proud to say that abc7's parent company, disney, is committed to fighting hunger. this past year disney donated $1.5 million to the feeding america network of food banks, and this means that each of our local food banks in the network received $15,000 from disney and abc7 to continue their important efforts. right now we have a local story of a young person making a difference. the city of san jose is teaming up with a south bay teenager to fight hunger. kiran sridhar founded waste no food, a website and an app

i'm cheryl jennings. we're always so inspired when we find california connections changing the world. we met a number of them over the past few months and want to bring you their stories. they're people who are working to make a difference, whether it's the arts, architecture, or agriculture. we had the rare opportunity to meet the new young minister of agriculture in afghanistan. he graduated from cal state, east bay in hayward. minister assadullah zamir visited uc davis as part of a nationwide tour to learn about the best practices to take home to his country. it is a huge honor to welcome minister assadullah zamir. he is the minister of agriculture, irrigation & livestock, or mail for short. and you're in charge of everything there. >> well, agriculture is life. it's the backbone of our economy. it's a huge responsibility for me. >> it is a h-- and you're the youngest member of president ghani's cabinet. >> that's right. >> so no pressure at all. >> well, that added responsibility because 75% of our po

i'm cheryl jennings. joining us right now is somebody who has dyslexia, the lieutenant governor of california, gavin newsom. >> thanks for having me. it's fun. >> thank you for being so open about this. >> yeah, no, it's interesting. the response has been interesting. i've always been pretty honest about the fact i have dyslexia, but no one really paid much attention to it until i became mayor. and actually, one of the first things i did as mayor, the first public events, was visiting kids with dyslexia in the school, and everyone was shocked to know that i had this learning disability, which if i look back, was probably the best thing that's ever happened to me. >> except a lot of kids would hear that and go, "for me, it's the worst thing. >> it was, and it was terrible growing up. >> well, take me back. >> i think, for me, i think it was two things. one, it was very difficult for me, in terms of my own academic experience. school was a terrible and terrorizing experience. i'll just be candid with you. s

i'm cheryl jennings. we are talking about an extremely difficult subject today, so i have to warn you, some of the stories you'll be hearing will be extremely disturbing. we're talking about rape in the military. we've heard the horrifying statistics about women being raped, but this next fact is equally horrifying. you may not know that more men are raped in the military than women. i want to show you a clip of one veteran who had the courage to tell his story. >> i was knocked unconscious from behind. and when i came to, uh... i was being held down by two individuals. and someone was pulling my pants down, and i was raped, sodomized. >> and that brave man in the video is here with us in the studio today with his partner and his wife, michael matthews and geri lynn matthews. it is so good to see you in person. thank you so much for being here. >> nice to see you, cheryl. >> all the way from albuquerque, new mexico? >> yes. >> we met each other first by satellite about three years ago as i recall. >> yes,

i'm cheryl jennings. the drought in california is a crisis affecting every one of us here in the bay area where we live. it is such a desperate situation that bay area mayors are reaching out to sacramento lawmakers, asking for help in using reclaimed water. abc7 news reporter david louie has the story. >> all eyes are on quadrupling the $72 million facility that purifies wastewater. it's a demonstration project that opened last year. elected officials would like to speed up the regulatory process. >> we simply need the state of california to get the regulations out of the way so we can move forward with the most important environmentally sustainable project of the decade. >> the plan is to inject the triple-treated wastewater into the underground aquifer through a pipeline system from north san jose to a sight near mineta san jose airport and to two other spots to the south. >> it's gonna take probably three years to five years to get that system in place. we're looking at moving this as quickly as possi

i'm cheryl jennings. our goal today is to raise awareness about child abuse and how to prevent it. child abuse, sadly, is a year-round problem, and the effects of child abuse can last a lifetime and can happen to anyone. the perpetrators may be people you know. one of the important things to consider is what will you do if you find out about the abuse? what should you do? abc7 news reporter tiffany wilson talked recently with a woman who is suing an easy bay school district, accusing them of not doing anything about the abuse she says she suffered from a coach she trusted. >> newspaper clippings capture sherinne wilson on the court, but her memories of high school are buried in these journals. >> i lived with shame. i thought it was my fault. >> wilson says her basketball coach, leland sandler, started a sexual relationship with her when she was 16, often giving her drugs and writing notes like this to excuse her from class. >> he was a person in authority, and we're still taught, you know, that you listen to people in authority and you respect them, and that's what i did. >> event

. >> as cheryl jennings reports a technique can help solve without surgery. >> heather ryan credits her smile to adult braces she wore in her late 20s but she began to notice a different issue. her gums had begun receding. >> i didn't notice it. and could feel sensitivity to cold. >> she turned to her in laws, san francisco dentist. he says the traditional surgical treatment involved grafting tissue. he recommended an alternative called pin hole. >> so propping the tissues up over the roots. >> instead, he makes a tiny hole in the gum to reach the soft tissue which is not connected to the facial bones over the next hour he'll move tissue using collagen implants. >> that is going to go aways your body of breaks it down. we tuck the collagen underneath the gums, covering the roots of the teeth. >> he says the goal is to cover and protect the exposed roots. which can cause the pain heather experiences. >> the tissue is looking good. >> beyond pain relief, he says it can also improve the look of the gum line. >> the big cosmetic issue you'll see is the roots being covered. >> heather is hop

. >> as cheryl jennings reports a technique can help solve without surgery. >> heather ryan credits her smile to adult braces she wore in her late 20s but she began to notice a different issue. her gums had begun receding. >> i didn't notice it. and could feel sensitivity to cold. >> she turned to her in laws, san francisco dentist. he says the traditional surgical treatment involved grafting tissue. he recommended an alternative called pin hole. >> so propping the tissues up over the roots. >> instead, he makes a tiny hole in the gum to reach the soft tissue which is not connected to the facial bones over the next hour he'll move tissue using collagen implants. >> that is going to go aways your body of breaks it down. we tuck the collagen underneath the gums, covering the roots of the teeth. >> he says the goal is to cover and protect the exposed roots. which can cause the pain heather experiences. >> the tissue is looking good. >> beyond pain relief, he says it can also improve the look of the gum line. >> the big cosmetic issue you'll see is the roots being covered. >> heather is hop