South LA opposition to Measure J

October 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Emmanuel Martinez and Melissa Runnels

Listen to an audio story from Annenberg Radio News

Members of the Bus Riders’ Union, Beverly Hills Unified School District, the Crenshaw Subway Coalition and other groups held a small rally Tuesday at the corner of Crenshaw and Slauson to protest Measure J.

image />The measure, which is on the November ballot, would extend the half-cent county sales tax until 2069 and generate $90 million for the Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA). Sun-Young Yang, of the Bus Riders’ Union, sees Measure J as a $90 million imposition that won’t improve the bus system she depends on: “MTA has actually no plans to expand bus service and in fact they plan to raise fares and cut bus service.”

Yang also believes MTA has already failed to deliver on promises regarding the recent light-rail expansion. “The rail lines that they have built out so far did not deliver half of the ridership that they promised. When you have $1 billion per-mile price tag, that means we should get ridership that we see in Seoul, Korea, and other metropolises that have not a thousand riders, but millions of riders,” she said.

The rail expansion is a touchy subject for Damien Goodmon of the Crenshaw Subway Coalition. Goodmon says MTA simply cannot be trusted. “ This is not an agency that plans well. This is not an agency that responds well to community concerns.”

imageFile photo: Damien Goodmon

Measure J would extend Measure R—a similar measure passed in 2008. Goodmon believes MTA’s record since then speaks for itself. “We passed Measure R just four years ago and in that period of time, they have ignored the concerns of a cross section of community groups, from the Boyle Heights to Baldwin Hills to Crenshaw to the Bus Riders’ Union,” he said.

However, it’s difficult to ignore the success of Measure R. MTA completed the extension of the Orange Line in three years and also started two light-rail projects.

If Measure J is approved, the 15 projects already in the works won’t necessarily get stuck in neutral. The tax extension could jumpstart work on projects like the Subway to the Sea, more soundwall construction, and improvements to the 5, the 405, and the 110 freeways.

The measure needs a two-thirds super-majority to pass. Current polling shows 67 percent in favor, 27 against—which means approval isn’t guaranteed. With about three weeks before the election, the tide could shift either way.

Filed Under: Politics Tagged With: , , , , ,

OPINION:  The cancer battle

October 16, 2012 By Leave a Comment


By Martha Sánchez

imageTourists taking pictures in front of the White House that it is illuminated pink in honor of cancer victims. Official White House Photo by Sonya N. Herbert. Oct 1, 2012

“Think Pink Young Americans” says the electronic message that I received from the White House to commemorate the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month to honor all women and men affected by such terrible disease. Through this message, United States President Barack Obama proclaims October as the National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, emphasizing that this year “tens of thousands are expected to lose their lives to the disease.” In addition to that, he highlights more than 200,000 women that will be diagnosed with breast cancer the upcoming year. (The White House Office of the Press Secretary, Presidential Proclamation—National Breast Cancer Awareness Month 2012. October 1, 2012. However, those numbers are just a small representation from the total of people diagnosed with cancer.

According to the National Cancer Institute, the term “cancer” refers not to one disease but many diseases that are grouped in many categories. (National Cancer Institute. Cancer Trends Progress Report – 2011/2012 Update, National Cancer Institute, NIH, DHHS, Bethesda, MD, August 2012) Actually, there are more than one-hundred types of cancer, and despite the significant progress achieved by research institutions, the exact causes of breast cancer remain unknown. For that reason, the Obama Administration stands with the mothers, daughters, sisters, aunts, and friends affected by such terrible disease. And there is no reason to doubt his words, considering that his mom lost the battle against ovarian cancer.

imageMartha Sánchez with her children, Gonzalo and Catherine Romero.

Although I openly acknowledge his positive remarks and his personal commitment to eradicate this “social epidemic” through his well-known “Affordable Care Act,” in my humble opinion, I truly believe that his plan only addresses one branch of the problem while ignoring its roots. In other words, honoring those who we have lost to cancer, lending our strength and praying for them is never enough and it doesn’t address the roots of the problem. Frankly, educating people and providing psychological intervention programs for cancer victims, only insults my intelligence.

Sincerely, I don’t feel compelled by looking at this picture. In fact, I feel upset with most cancer campaigns. And why I shouldn’t be upset if that picture represents another well-coordinated effort to encourage citizens, governmental agencies, private businesses, nonprofit organizations, and all other interested groups to join in activities that will basically increase “awareness” of what Americans can do to prevent breast cancer without addressing the real problem. Technically, what I’m getting from this “Official Pink House” picture is a friendly invitation to comply with the system rules and ignore the external forces that are killing us softly. Through this new campaign, the government wants me to be peaceful and conventional while embracing with honor my predesigned destiny that is always sponsored it by neighborly corporations.

Please don’t get my message wrong: I do officially stand with all cancer victims. In reality, I empathize with them because both of my grandmothers died of cancer. My mom had a hysterectomy several years ago and my educational background is related with such disease. Indeed, I supposed to be working in a lab identifying cancerous cells in Mexico, but greater forces brought me to the United States where my real battle against cancer took place when I moved with my own family to South Los Angeles, the poorest neighborhood of Los Angeles City.

imagePalace Plating plant at South San Pedro Street and E. 30th Street.

In 2003, the Air Quality Management District hosted a public meeting at my children’s school to let us know that Palace Plating, a chrome-plating company located across the street from my children’s elementary school, was using chemicals identified by the State of California as carcinogens. I never thought that there was something wrong until I started learning the stories of those living in our community.

Over the past ten years, I was able to record information about children suffering from mental retardation, autism, birth defects, neurological damage, and many other symptoms such as asthma, abdominal pain, vomiting, dizziness, vision problems, nose hemorrhaging, and more—the list goes on and on. More than ten teachers and former school workers died of cancer and many more are cancer survivors. As I fought for the permanent closure of the company, I was able to collect dozens of people’s testimonies that helped me to prove my claims and to achieve my demands of permanently closing that company last December.

Those personal narratives certainly directed me to the actual responsible of this cancer crisis—the Environmental Protection Agency and the lower rank agencies sheltered under its umbrella. After recording people’s testimonies, I concluded that the war on cancer is a multi-billion dollar industry that makes money not to cure cancer but to address the cost of its treatments. I discovered as well that media have contributed to the problem by turning the “guilty into innocent” and the victim into a “proud survivor.” Ten years of work led me to conclude that the American Cancer Society and its allies—the corporate supporters and politicians helped by the media—have betrayed and exploited the public with their “bogus campaigns against cancer.”

Let me explain why I don’t feel sympathy, not even grateful for having so many generous “cancer supporters.” Through this “Pink House” campaign, President Obama has stated that “the exact causes of breast cancer remain unknown, but understanding its risk factors is essential to prevention.” Certainly there is plenty of evidence against those “huge corporate-sponsors.” Those companies have been targeted by the National Environmental Protection Agency as “toxic polluters” and accused by environmentalists as directly responsible for producing environmental carcinogens. With so much evidence at hand, then why it is that the national regulatory agencies are not doing their part by prosecuting them? Well, they have successfully avoided public responsibility by donating a portion of their sales to the cancer research and by drawing the attention to our “bad health, live and eating habits” instead.

Touching the lives of Americans from every background and in every community throughout the nation is very profitable. Let’s think about the amount of things that we can “Shop for the Cure.” Today, we can do anything to find the cure like running, biking, climbing, jumping, cooking, and even organizing mass events, public demonstrations, and you name it—the sky is the limit! But even more importantly, we can feel good and look better if we join America’s cancer movement by buying teddy bears or wearing amulets, talismans, bracelets, and showing out those popular pink ribbon brooches in public.

Let’s be honest, those fashionable “rosy goodies” have only improved the character of cynical merchants such as Revlon, Avon, Tiffany, Pier 1, Estee Lauder, Ralph Lauren, JC Penny and many more… the same ones that are making their consumers sick! What we really need to do is to stop putting on their cosmetics and consuming their costly “beauty” products. The problem is that we have become masters at fooling ourselves into thinking that we are automatically supporting the treatment for a cancer victim any time that we buy those healthy-looking products.

According to HSP-Online.com, in an article named, Processed Food there are over 6,000 synthetic chemicals used in the processed food industry. This industry has deceived the public and governmental health agencies by ensuring that their products are safe for human consumption. Although most information is available to the public, the material is presented in technical language with scientific notations which most people—including me — find intimidating and difficult to understand.

Therefore, as long as we continue ignoring the real causes of cancer, older women and those that are living in close proximity to industrial facilities, regardless their gender and age, will continue to endure the aggressive and obsolete practice of chemotherapy. I strongly believe that it is time for us to elaborate a real plan and an authentic “anti-cancer campaign.” Incidentally, I came out with a better version for your campaign Mr. President; hopefully you could find it more inclusive.
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Second chance for high school dropouts in South LA

October 13, 2012 By Leave a Comment


image Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa unveiled 13 new YouthSource Centers on Friday with four of them located in South Los Angeles, and tasked with the goal of getting high school dropouts to finish their education.

The Youth Source system is a redesign of Los Angeles’ OneSource Center, which previously focused on job searching efforts for in-school youth. Now, the agenda has shifted to get out-of-school youth back into school to receive their high school diploma or pass the General Educational Development (GED) test.

Mike Fong, east area director for the City of Los Angeles and senior liaison to Asian Pacific Islander community, said the criteria for where the centers would be placed was the “fairly high dropout rates” of high schools in the city.

imageThere were seven planning areas such as South L.A., and within those areas are one or several YouthSource centers. Fong said each center is operated by a non-profit organization.

“It was a competitive process and raters looked at proposals and picked the best operators that would fulfill the need for the community,” said Fong.

In South LA, two centers are operated by Watts Labor Community Action Center and the others by Brotherhood Crusade and Archdiocesan Youth Employment.

Fong said each center services neighboring high schools and is employed with a full-time Pupil Services and Attendance Counselor who reaches out to out-of-school students from a list of high school dropouts. Students are also free to join the center themselves said Fong.

In order for students to become involved in the YouthSource program, they must be 16 to 21 years old, live in Los Angeles and be income eligible. Students are asked to be involved with the program for at least one year where they receive guidance on reenrolling in high school and various other services like work readiness and computer training.

Fong said the future of the YouthSource system is to decrease high school dropout rates and prepare students for college and work.

“This is really a second chance opportunity,” said Fong.

The system, managed by the City’s Community Development Department, was made possible through $13 million annually provided by the Federal Workforce Investment Act and a new $12 million grant from the Department of Labor’s Workforce Innovation Fund.

Michelle King, assistant superintendent at Los Angeles Unified School District said there are a variety of student recovery programs in place, but what differentiates the YouthSource Centers is the umbrella of services it provides students from family to financial concerns.

“It’s like a case worker. It’s not just to get them back in school, but to stay,” she said.

King said the dropout rate for LAUSD is at 24 percent, the lowest in five years, compared to its previous standing at 33 percent, and the high school graduation rate is 64 percent.

Filed Under: Education Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

Parents and teachers vent frustration at Head Start schools in South LA and Compton

October 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment


Listen to the audio story from Annenberg Radio News:

“Can you tell me your name?”
“Ke-lonze James.”
“How old are you Ke-Lonze?”
“Four.”
“And what do you like better: going to school or going to work with your mom?”
“Going to work.”

imageKe-Lonze used to be a student at a Head Start preschool in Compton. But this year, things are a little different. His school is one of 21 schools in South LA that are under new management this year.

Head Start is a federal program, but at the local level it is run by other agencies. In June two organizations, Crystal Stairs and Volunteers of America took over South LA’s Head Start programs.

Parents expected their kids to start school in late August, but weeks later, a lot of schools still haven’t opened. Ke-Lonze’s school is open, but his mom, Takisha Collins says that because of limited staff and regulation changes at her son’s school, she now has to take him to work with her instead of leaving him there.

“I have no other options,” she says. He likes it, but Collins, a single mom with a full-time job, feels differently, “He bugs me the whole time, the whole eight hours he bugs me, so it’s hard.”

Today, Collins and her son weren’t at school or work, they were riding a bus around Compton with several other community members protesting the changes to the Head Start program.

The delayed start to the school year and sudden change in policies are not the only complaints the group has. For many, the biggest issue is that most of the teachers have been fired or replaced.

Pastora Alvarez-Munroa, who worked at Willowbrook Head Start in Compton until last year, said, “I received a letter through the mail after 29 years of service. It’s a slap in the face. We want our jobs back. We want to go back and work with the family and the community.”

Alvarez-Monroa came out today with other teachers, union organizers, parents, and community leaders to show her frustration with Head Start.

Volunteers of America in LA did not return our call, but the group’s organizer, Orlando Ward, told KPCC that his organization is asking parents to be patient while the schools transition to new management.

But the parents and community members at today’s event want Head Start to know that they’re not happy. Ke-Lonze’s mom, Takisha Collins said, “I just hope everything can go back to normal.”

Collins’ employer has told her she can’t keep bringing Ke-Lonze with her to work. So like many parents in the community, she hopes he can get back to school soon.

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Activists want to legalize sidewalk street vendors in South LA and elsewhere

October 11, 2012 By Leave a Comment


imageStreet vendors hawking fresh fruit and tamales from push carts are as much a part of LA as sunshine and beaches. But it’s actually a misdemeanor to sell food, or anything for that matter, on public sidewalks.

That’s out of step with many big cities in the U.S. says Mark Vallianatos, an urban and environmental policy expert at Occidental College. “Ironically, it’s the only one of the ten largest cities in the U.S. that doesn’t allow for the selling of food on the sidewalk.”

He says many low-income immigrants take up street-vending anyway at the risk of having their carts confiscated. “This is one of the few economic niches that they can move into to start providing for themselves and their family.”

Vallianatos estimates there are as many as twelve thousand unlicensed vendors in the city. Because the practice is a vital source of income for so many residents, activists are pushing City Council to reform the law.

Janet Favela is a community organizer with the East L.A. Community Coalition. She says there’s a ways to go before concrete proposals are made and many questions must be asked. “If we legalize street vending, what should we do? What should it look like? How is it going to better serve their needs so that they do feel like there’s an opportunity for them.”

But even if changes are made, Vallianatos says California’s Health Code presents more challenges to vendors.

“If you want to operate legally, you have to have a cart that has a certain number of sinks on it, or refrigeration, or heating of water, etc. The solution might be to try to work with the companies that manufacture food trucks and carts, and with vendors to try and come up with a lower cost version of the required equipment.”

If a solution can be reached, Vallianatos says that it could provide an economic boost to the city too.

“This activity is happening in many places, but right now the city isn’t getting any permit fees from it, and they’re not getting any sales tax from it.”

Beyond the financial benefit to the city, Favela says vendors also help keep Angelenos healthy.

“We do want to incentivize healthy foods and fruits and vegetables, because we do think that there are specific areas that are part of the city that don’t have much access to healthy foods.”

And she says doing that has a positive impact on the local economy.

“Street vendors always say … we do contribute to this economy and we buy all of our products in the city of Los Angeles.”

The coalition members have held initial meetings with City Council staffers and plans to keep building community support for their movement over the next few months.

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Mural by Mexican artist restored and unveiled

October 10, 2012 By Leave a Comment


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Exactly eighty years after it was first unveiled, America Tropical was welcomed back into the public eye by members of the Mexican and arts communities.

The mural on Olvera Street is by world-renowned Mexican artist David Alfaro Siqueiros. It was completed in 1932, but was painted over within a decade. This was widely seen as an attempt to squelch political expression by Mexican immigrants.

The organizers made it clear, that this time the mural is here to stay. The nearly ten-million-dollar project was funded by the Getty and the City of Los Angeles and included restoring the painting and installing a protective canopy and sun shades to protect it from further damage from sun, rain and birds.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Sequeiro’s work was an inspiration to political public artists all over the world. Villaraigosa spoke Tuesday morning about how the mural represents his Mexican grandmother’s journey to Los Angeles. She came here with nothing but a dream, he said in Spanish. “By conserving and displaying this masterpiece we are repaying our debt and honoring Siqueiros and his work” Villaraigosa said.

The mayor and others hinted at the challenges public art has faced in recent years. Ten years ago, the city of Los Angeles enacted a ban on signage that restricted murals, billboards and large-scale advertisements to designated parts of the city.

Rich advertisers began monopolizing space in the designated areas, which essentially silenced muralists and public artists. Over the last year, Councilman Jose Huizar has been pushing a mural ordinance to restore rights to public artists. “This is about history, it’s about censorship, it’s about art and it’s also about bringing Los Angeles together to a place that started the mural movement in the whole world,” Huizar said.

The ordinance, however, has been delayed because the city planning commission and artists can’t agree to the terms. Muralist Daniel Lahoda, the owner of LaLa Gallery and producer of the LA Freewalls Project, supports the ordinance.

“There’s such a great value in the public arts, there’s economic value, there is cultural value, aesthetic value and emotional value,” Lahoda said outside of Novelty Café, an eclectic coffee shop in the heart of L.A.’s arts district. “It just provides incredible energy overall to the lives of the community.”

Lahoda recently created a mural at the Skid Row Housing development. He believes that as long as property owners and community members support the art, the city should have no grounds to stop it. He said part of the problem is that the city makes money off illegal graffiti and doesn’t want to give up that revenue. “I have a hunch, a pretty strong hunch that the city attorney’s office is continuing to delay the mural ordinance specifically to maintain the power of the graffiti abatement community and their role in that community,” Lahoda said.

Representatives for the city attorney’s office did not respond to a request for comment. The mural ordinance is scheduled to be discussed at the city planning commission’s next meeting on Thursday morning.

Filed Under: Arts Tagged With: , , , ,

L.A. County D.A. candidate details views on drugs, Proposition 36, redemption and fair trials

October 10, 2012 By Leave a Comment


image
Jackie Lacey answering questions from one of the panelists.

What was planned to be an ideal occasion for voters to further comprehend the differences in both character and position between the two candidates for Los Angeles County district attorney, ended up being a question and answer session between the panelists, the audience and Jackie Lacey, the current Chief Deputy District Attorney and the only candidate that showed up at the forum held at the Bethel A.M.E. Church of Los Angeles.

Hector Villagra, co-host of the event and Executive Director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California (ACLU-SC), said that Alan Jackson, the other candidate, did not respond to the invitation. “Nevertheless,” he added, “we have set up an empty chair for him.” Although people laughed at Villagra’s remark, it was evident that they were upset. One of the audience members said that he considered Jackson´s behavior “a lack of respect to the community.”

Despite their annoyance, both panelists and the audience took advantage of the opportunity to better understand Ms. Lacey’s position on issues important to the community. Lacey responded to questions on fair drug enforcement, juvenile justice, conditions in county jails, charging, plea bargaining and sentence reform, as well as alternatives to incarceration for nearly two hours.

One of the first points Lacey made was that she is against the legalization of drugs. “For me, it is personal. I have raised a nephew due to drugs making his parents unavailable,” she said.

Her stance on medical marijuana sales is firm. Lacey says that she will prosecute dispensaries. “Dispensaries attract people that are well. Citizens going to dispensaries are on average under 30 years old. Legalizing them will not cure our drug problems.” On this issue, both Lacey and Alan Jackson stand together.

Crime prevention was another important topic raised by Lacey. “Adults have to get involved in the lives of our children. I want to stop kids from getting in crimes before they have committed them.” For the last four years, Lacey has volunteered one lunch hour a week to teach fifth-graders at Lorena Street Elementary School in Boyle Heights about the criminal justice system.

Lacey, second in command to current District Attorney Steve Cooley, also pointed out that unlike her opponent, she supports Proposition 36. Under the current Three Strikes Law, a person convicted of a felony who has two or more prior convictions for serious or violent felonies is sentenced to 25 years to life, regardless of the nature of the latest crime. To trigger the 25-years-to-life term, Proposition 36 would require that the third strike be serious or violent as well. Jackson opposes Prop 36.

Lacey: “I believe in redemption”

Almost half way through the forum Lacey described herself to the audience in one sentence: “I’m all about going after the bad guy but doing it in a fair and square manner.”

Lacey later went on to say that she believes that people have the ability and the right to reform in life. “I believe in redemption and I think that people can reform. You won´t hear that from the other candidate. I can´t give jobs, but if you sincerely want to change, I can create policies to help you leave that way of life.”

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Audience member asking the candidate a question.

Once the forum concluded, Intersections asked Lacey to list the most important differences she had with Jackson. This was her response:

“Unlike my opponent, I have knowledge and experience in running the district attorney’s office. I have experience in implementing alternative sentencing courts. I also have experience with implementing training for lawyers, especially with regard to high tech crime. Finally, I am an accomplished litigator. My opponent minimizes that, but the truth is I have been kicking butt just as much as he has in the sense of keeping our community safe.”

If elected, Lacey will be the first woman, the first African American, and the first person who grew up in South L.A. to becomes District Attorney in Los Angeles County.

Who is Alan Jackson?

Born in 1965, Jackson was raised by a single mother in Texas and served as a jet engine mechanic in the United States Air Force. He left his childhood home after earning his B.A. at the University of Texas, Austin, to pursue his J.D. at Pepperdine Law School in California.

He is a seventeen-year veteran prosecutor in the Los Angeles County District Attorney´s Office, and twice named Prosecutor of the Year. As Assistant Head Deputy of the Major Crimes Division, Jackson manages the office’s elite trial teams while prosecuting his own docket of marquee cases.

Many remember him for a high-profile celebrity case he handled which brought him international attention: the successful murder prosecution in 2009, on retrial, of record-producer Phil Spector.

Although Lacey out-polled Jackson by a slender margin in the June primary election, she did not garner the 51 percent of the votes necessary to automatically win the elections. The run off will be held on November 6.

Filed Under: Featured, Politics Tagged With: , , ,

Las Cafeteras: From community organizers to musical leaders

October 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment


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From left to right: Annette Torres, Denise Carlos and Daniel French.

What is music and what is its purpose? Although it has different definitions for different people, I believe it is safe to say that music should be interesting, pleasurable and above all, inspiring.

Listening to Las Cafeteras, an L.A. band composed of seven community organizers and nonprofit workers of Mexican descent, perform at the California African American Museum´s courtyard, was certainly a moving and inspirational experience.

The band mixes traditional Son Jarocho – a centuries-old form of Mexican music from the eastern state of Veracruz, that combines indigenous, Spanish and African musical elements – with diverse rhythms, and creates music that touches the soul.

While on stage, these musicians radiate pride, love, anger, happiness, but above all, hope. Their energy and verses transmit and infuse among the audience, a feeling that justice and equality is attainable if you fight for it.

Once the concert concluded, I had the chance to interview David and Hector Flores, two of the members of Las Cafeteras.

Last month you released “It´s Time, your first studio recorded album. How was this experience?

Hector: It was an incredible amount of work. When we started off as a band, we saw ourselves as students of the music. It was not until very recently that we began considering ourselves as artists. When we saw what we were doing with the music, we felt that we had to leave a mark and inspire people to tell their stories. If we don´t tell our stories, other people are going to tell them for us. Creating the album required hard work and a lot of fund raising, but we made it happen and it has been a wonderful story ever since.

Until now, music has been a side job and a recreational activity for you. Have you considered transforming it into full-time work?

David: To put everything else aside is scary and a bit nerve-wracking. It’s something we feel we are going to have to consider.

So your answer is yes. You may become a full-time band?

Hector: Yeah. This is a conversation we just had. By the end of the year, we will have decided if we´re going to go one hundred percent.

Do you have enough time to rehearse during the week?

Hector: Right now we’re rehearsing six hours a week. It´s not enough time considering the musical projects we have in mind.

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From left to right: David Flores, Hector Flores, Leah Rose Gallegos and Jose Cano.

How do people react to the way you mix traditional Son Jarocho with different rhythms and musical styles?

Hector: We just finished a national tour, and folks have received us with love and admiration. They are excited about the fact that people are remixing traditional music to make it relevant with what´s going on today.

Your lyrics include many community-focused political messages. Tell me how this idea originated.

Hector: Son Jarocho is a music genre that comes from slavery and is rooted in resistance. To play Son Jarocho music, and not talk about the conditions that created this music, would be disrespectful. We´re not a political band, we’re a real band talking about real issues.

You mention in your web page that your mission is to learn, share, and practice the beauty, culture and energy of Son Jarocho music for the purpose of building autonomous communities. What is your definition of an autonomous community?

David: To define autonomy everyone would have to autonomously do it. That´s exactly what we encourage people to do. People have to figure it out for themselves. What is their community? What do they need? What do their families need?

You mention in your songs that you are against wars. Do you think the world would be a better place if military programs ceased to exist?

David: Is the Pope Catholic? We´re most definitely against war and aggressive behavior.

Hector: We´re anti-war, but that doesn´t necessarily mean we´re against military programs. What we are against is the fact that the United States spends more money in military operations and domestic protection programs than the rest of the world combined.

During August, a group of housekeepers, laborers, students and immigration activists traveled around the country in a caravan chanting “no papers, no fear” and declaring “I´m undocumented in public gatherings.” This bus tour, dubbed the “indocubus,” was carried out to challenge their anti-immigrant foes in the ongoing national debate on immigration. Was the bus tour a good idea?

Hector: I think the “indocubus” was an incredible tour of people wanting to voice their stance for dignity and a fair immigration policy in the United States. It was a beautiful thing.

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The audience enjoying the show.

The presidential elections are a month away. Why do you think there still hasn´t been a women president in the United States?

Hector: We still haven´t had a president that really serves the needs of the people in this country. In order to move forward, we need a president that supports everybody. It´s less about whether we have a female president, and it´s more about whether we have a president that serves our needs.

What´s your stance on the deferred action policy under which certain young immigrants in the country without documents can get a two-year work permit and a reprieve from deportation?

Hector: Although deferred action was by no means a solution to the movement´s demands, it was a response that showed us that the government is listening. It’s an opportunity for the immigrant rights movement to push even harder.

What do you think of the U.S. pilot program designed to deport illegal immigrants by flying them to Mexico City instead of deporting them to violent border regions?

Hector: It’s ridiculous. It’s like expecting to cure a man that has been shot with Tylenol. If this country really cared about the safety of its immigrant folks, it wouldn´t support racial profiling and anti-immigrant laws.

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CicLAvia bike event draws 100,000 enthusiasts

October 7, 2012 By Leave a Comment


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Cyclists having a good time at the CicLAvia.

Approximately 100,000 bicycles, skates, rollerblades, walkers and dogs took to the streets on Sunday for L.A.’s fifth installment of the biannual CicLAvia bike festival.

With an expanded route, that added new spurs to Boyle Heights, Chinatown and Expo Park, more than nine miles of city streets were shut down to motor traffic from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

At a news conference in front of City Hall to mark the beginning of the event that promotes clean air and encourages people to get out of their cars and explore downtown, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said “I hope everyone discovers at least one new thing about L.A.”

Anthony, a Los Angeles teenager riding his bike with two other friends, believes that this type of event should be held more often. “I love it,” he said. “It keeps us out of trouble.”

L.A. held its first CicLAvia in October 2010. Ciclovías originated over thirty years ago in Bogotá, Colombia, as a response to city congestion and pollution as well as to provide an opportunity for young and old to have a place for safe, healthy and enjoyable recreation.

Filed Under: Community Tagged With: ,

South LA hero encourages civic engagement in the face of adversity

October 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment


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Men of faith: Reverend Mark Whitlock, Dr. Varun Soni and Reverend Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray prepare to speak at the “Twice Tested by Fire” reception at the USC Doheny Memorial Library. Photo: Alec Faulkner www.alecfaulkner.com.

Members of the Los Angeles community gathered at the University of Southern California Doheny Memorial Library on October 2nd to listen to veteran community leader Reverend Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray discuss struggles faced by humanity and the efforts needed to overcome them. USC staff and faculty, congregation members of Dr. Murray’s First African Methodist Episcopal (F.A.M.E.) Church in South LA and other guests listened to the retired pastor and current USC Religion & Civic Culture faculty member reflect on the history of his own life and the United States as a whole while celebrating the publication of his 2012 autobiography “Twice Tested By Fire.”

Faith under fire

Dr. Murray has been known as a hero in the Los Angeles community for decades and has a name that has been attached to many titles and awards, but USC President Dr. Max Nikias stressed that “these titles don’t tell the whole story.” After being introduced by Dr. Nikias and USC Dean of Religious Life Dr. Varun Soni, who pointed out that October 2 was also the birthday of legendary Indian civil rights leader Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. Murray deflected the praise and attention he received and pointed out that his struggle is part of a larger human struggle.

“Understanding (that) we are family is the challenge of the 21st century. The pain is not going to go away. The fire is not going to go away. The truth is we are not saved from the fire: we are saved in the midst of the fire,” said Dr. Murray in an analogy to his near-death experience which occurred when his Air Force jet caught on fire in 1957.

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Community Catalyst: Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray receives a proclamation in honor of his community service and 83rd birthday from City of Los Angeles Community Services Officer Josefina Salvador on behalf of LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. Photo: Alec Faulkner www.alecfaulkner.com.

The next step

Despite being praised by members of the USC community and being recognized with a proclamation from the City of Los Angeles for his efforts thus far, Dr. Murray refused to focus on his awards and instead chose to discuss the dire need for social justice for South Los Angeles and other underserved communities around the world.

“All of us are constantly tested by fire. Half of the people of the world live on less than two dollars a day. We have a long way to go. Seeing that we are family, we will get there. But our chauffeur will be necessity,” said Dr. Murray, who added that all humans are “kin under the skin.”

History lesson

While also focusing on the future, Dr. Murray referenced the 1992 riots that swept across South LA and other underserved communities in Southern California and pointed out the set of root causes first highlighted by Dr. Martin Luther King.

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“Poverty, racism and war were the combination that caused not only the 1992 riots, but the 1965 riots in Los Angeles as well. The poverty rate in underserved black communities is double the national rate,” said Dr. Murray, who recently celebrated his 83rd birthday and was inspired by the 1992 riots to create social justice for communities of color.

Civic engagement within South LA, which has been spurred by organizations such as Community Coalition South Los Angeles, was highlighted as a key component of the solution to social ills during the final moments of Dr. Murray’s speech.

“We have enough resources to change our neighborhoods. We have an obligation to rise to the occasion,” said. Dr. Murray.

“If we don’t do it, who will?”

This event was hosted by USC Spectrum.

Elias Kamal Jabbe is the Founding Editor of MulticulturalMatters.org

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