Los Angeles County should invest at least $100 million for community development and alternatives to incarceration next fiscal year.

That's the recommendation of the county CEO, Fesia Davenport, who will present the 2021-22 budget to the Board of Supervisors Tuesday morning.

But activists say that amount falls far short of what voters intended when they approved Measure J in November, the charter amendment that requires the county to dedicate at least 10% of its locally generated, unrestricted general fund to reimagined public safety models such as youth programs and mental health services

It was passed with the support of nonprofits and civil rights groups that urged county leaders to divest resources from law enforcement and prisons. Members of that coalition rejected the CEO's plan in a statement Monday evening.

"Our communities deserve better," said Ivette Alé, co-founder of La Defensa, a decarceration advocacy group. "After tireless racial justice uprising and commitment to budget advocacy from the streets to the public comment podium, the County CEO is remiss to ignore the grassroots people power that led to the passage of Measure J in the first place."

During a press briefing Monday, Davenport called the spending "a year one down payment." Supervisors, working with an advisory committee, will decide on specific programs that will be funded under the Measure J umbrella in the coming months.

In recent years, activists led a successful push to convince supervisors to begin the process of closing Men's Central Jail and cancel plans for a new jail-like mental health facility in L.A. Last November, Supervisors passed a "Care First" plan to move juveniles in the criminal justice system out of locked facilities into "community-based therapeutic housing" overseen by a Department of Youth Development, instead of the Probation Department. The 2021-22 budget does not yet fund the proposed Youth Development department.

"It's a little bit premature," Davenport said. "The consultant's report sort of laid out a timeline and a list of tasks that need to be completed before we can move forward with that endeavor.

The Measure J charter amendment is phased in over the course of three years -- it will not be in full effect until June 2024. It's not yet clear how much of the budget will ultimately be subject to Measure J requirements.

The charter amendment targets revenue that is locally generated and unrestricted -- money with no strings attached -- but what that means is actively being debated by some Measure J advocates. In projections based on past years' revenue, the County CEO's office has predicted Measure J spending will grow to $300 million in the FY 2023-24 budget.

The Re-Imagine L.A. Coalition, which spearheaded Measure J's passage, said that projection is "flawed" and "not legally or financially sound." The coalition supports analysis that Measure J spending should be in the neighborhood of $900 million when it is fully implemented.

"The County has the power to make meaningful change that aligns with our communities' demands," Mark-Anthony Clayton Johnson, founder of Frontline Wellness Network said in a statment. "Carceral budgets directly lead to punishing people by locking them away in deadly cages. Policy makers who drag their feet when given a mandate by voters are directly complicit in continuing this harm."

MORE ON THE COUNTY'S NEXT FISCAL YEAR PLAN

Total county funding for the Sheriff's Department is roughly $3.4 billion in the new 2021-22 recommendation. That's relatively flat compared with the current fiscal year.

Overall, the $36.2 billion county budget recommendation is starting at a "leaner baseline" than last fiscal year's proposal -- it's more than $2 billion smaller -- because of the challenges still posed by COVID-19, according to Davenport. The pandemic has walloped local tax revenue, "probably to the tune of about 735 million," Davenport said. "It might be a little bit more than that."

Last year, in the scramble to bridge the gap, the county made $369 million in cuts to department budgets, laid off more than 2,500 workers and issued a hard hiring freeze for non-essential workers. Federal CARES Act relief of $1.22 billion was used for emergency COVID-19 response efforts such as coronavirus testing, rent relief and small business assistance.

During the briefing, the CEO highlighted several more changes in next year's budget, which has to be approved by the supervisors and takes effect on July 1:

• $16.6 million in additional funding for Measure H programs, focused on increasing the supply of interim housing beds and the funding for permanent supportive housing services
• Nearly $30 million to expand the Department of Mental Health's crisis and intervention services, responding to a 30% surge in helpline calls during the pandemic
• A $57.1 million boost to foster care, in-home supportive services and general relief
• $35 million for elections administration and infrastructure

The proposed plan for FY 2021-22 does not reflect the $1.9 billion in federal help expected to flow to the county from the American Rescue Plan, passed by Congress and signed by President Biden last month. That money will be factored into ongoing budget updates throughout the year.

Davenport said $530 million in unmet department budget requests will be moved forward for consideration in those future budget phases.

Up for some light reading? The L.A. County CEO's full recommended FY 2021-22 budget is available online, broken into Volume One and Volume Two.

This story has been updated with statements from the Re-imagine L.A. Coalition.

Two grocery stores in Long Beach closed permanently on Saturday after parent company Kroger took issue with the city's "hero pay" law.

Back in February, Kroger announced plans to close a Ralphs and a Food 4 Less, shortly after elected officials in Long Beach passed a temporary hazard pay mandate for large grocery chains.

The "hero pay" rules require larger employers to pay their frontline grocery workers an extra $4 per hour over four months. Proponents said the goal is to compensate employees who have faced enormous risk while working through the pandemic.

Kroger said the pay bump made it financially impossible to keep the two stores open. The company described both the Ralphs on N. Los Coyotes Diagonal and the Food 4 Less on E. South Street as "underperforming."

WORKERS OFFERED TRANSFERS

"The irreparable harm that will come to employees and local citizens is a direct result of the City of Long Beach's attempt to pick winners and losers, and is deeply unfortunate," a Kroger spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The two stores employed about 150 workers. Kroger said it offered to transfer all employees to other stores. While most workers planned to accept transfers, some could have a tough time getting to their new job, said Andrea Zinder, president of the local chapter of the UFCW grocery union.

For example, she said a long-term bakery clerk was told she'd have to split her job between two stores.

"She walks to work right now," Zinder said. "She lives across the street. She's going to have to go to two different stores and take several buses in order to keep her full-time status."

Union leaders say Kroger's decision to close the two stores is "retaliation" for workers demanding better pay during the pandemic.

Kroger maintains the city overstepped its bounds, requiring a pandemic-related pay bump for some, but not all, essential workers. And the company insists the employee transfers are in line with union contracts.

CUSTOMERS WILL HAVE TO ADJUST TO NEW STORES

In both neighborhoods, customers will have other stores nearby to fill the void.

But North Long Beach resident Norberto Lopez -- a project director with the housing rights group Long Beach Residents Empowered (LiBRE) -- said with the Food 4 Less near his apartment closing, his nearest alternative will be a non-union store.

"For me, the fact that Food 4 Less was a union store made a difference, because I knew I was supporting not just the store, but the workers," Lopez said.

Kroger announced three more store closures in Los Angeles after elected officials in that city passed a temporary $5-per-hour "hero pay" mandate. Two L.A. Ralphs stores and one Food 4 Less are set to close on May 15.

The California Grocers Association has sued Long Beach and other cities in an attempt to overturn the ordinances.

"We hate to see any community lose a grocery store, but store closures are one of the unintended consequences we warned about before the ordinance passed," CGA spokesperson Nate Rose said in an emailed statement.

Celebrate Earth Day. Catch a 4/20 double feature. Tune in to an online set by Tame Impala. Join a virtual talk between Barack Obama and Ava Duvernay. Nosh on beignets, tacos, a kush pizza and mulitas.

Monday, April 19; 12 p.m. PT

Love Divinities in Vodou Art
Katherine Smith of the Fowler Museum explores an altar assemblage by sculptor and Haitain artist Samuel François whose pop aesthetics are exemplified in his 1999 homage to two female deities of love. Learn about the religious and historical aspects of the work at a lunchtime talk.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Monday, April 19; 5 p.m. PT

SuperHorses, WildEgo
Two comedy teams come together for a night of comedy. Performers include Stephanie Allynne, Jeremy Carter, Matt Gourley, Mary Holland, Lauren Lapkus, Mark McConville, Paul F. Tompkins and Erin Whitehead
COST: $5 - 10; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 20; 5:30 p.m.

420 Double Feature: Half Baked & Pineapple Express
The Mint
6010 West Pico Blvd., Mid-City
Enjoy a night of comedy and 4/20-themed movies. Half Baked screens at 6:30 p.m. followed by Pineapple Express at 9 p.m. with comedy sets from Holly Anabel Brown and Kane Holloway. Proper distancing and masks are required, and temperatures will be checked at the door. Ages 18+.
COST: $12.50 - $20; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 20; 5 p.m.

Immigration and Entrepreneurship
Kim Luu-Ng, human rights attorney and co-owner of Cassia Restaurant (with her husband, chef Bryant Ng), takes part in a UCLA conversation on the impact of immigration on L.A.'s restaurant culture. Her experiences as a refugee from Vietnam have influenced how she advocates for people who are seeking asylum in the U.S. Luu-Ng talks with Los Angeles Times columnist Frank Shyong about advocacy, entrepreneurship and the restaurant business.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 20; 6 p.m. PT

Lisa Napoli with Susan Stamberg, Nina Totenberg & Linda Wertheimer
Live Talks L.A. welcomes journalist and author Napoli who writes about four pioneering women of NPR in her book, Susan, Linda, Nina & Cokie: The Extraordinary Story of the Founding Mothers of NPR. In a virtual conversation, Napoli discusses American news, history and sexism with her subjects, Susan Stamberg, Nina Totenberg and Linda Wertheimer.
COST: FREE - $38 with RSVP; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 21

Tame Impala: InnerSpeaker Live from Wave House
To celebrate the 10th anniversary of its debut album, InnerSpeaker, Tame Impala performs the album from start to finish live from Wave House, the studio where Kevin Parker originally recorded the album. Watch on the Moment House digital platform.
COST: $10; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 21

Getty Villa Reopens
17985 Pacific Coast Hwy., Pacific Palisades
The museum and gardens in Pacific Palisades reopens to a limited number of visitors. They'll be able to view the exhibition Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins, which was slated to open last year and features works from the Louvre in Paris. The museum now has specific one-way routes and other measures in place to ensure the safety of visitors and staff. The Getty Museum in Brentwood remains closed.
COST: FREE with advanced reservations; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 21; 10 a.m.

Earth Day Virtual Summit
See what's being done to save the planet and what you can do to help. The Nature Conservancy holds its first virtual summit, bringing together environmental luminaries, policymakers, business leaders and scientists, including Dr. Jane Goodall, Alexandra Cousteau and Dolores Huerta.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 21; 7 p.m. PT

Barack Obama & Ava DuVernay
The Los Angeles Times Book Club holds a virtual event with former President Barack Obama, who discusses his book, A Promised Land, with filmmaker Ava DuVernay. The event will stream on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22 - Friday, May 21

L.A. Zoo's Walk for the Wild
Take a virtual global trek to raise funds for the L.A. Zoo's conservation work. From Earth Day through Endangered Species Day on May 21, participants (ages 13+) can explore efforts to save threatened species. Get rewarded throughout the journey with digital fitness and fundraising badges, exclusive content and rewards based on fundraising level. There are prizes for team and individual categories.
COST: Individual registration starts at $45; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22; 4 p.m.

Two by Sarah Maldoror (1929-2020)
UCLA virtually screens two of Sarah Maldoror's complementary films: the short film Monangambé (1969) and her satiric French TV film Dessert for Constance (1981). There's a post-screening conversation with Maldoror's daughter, producer and distributor Annouchka de Andrade; UCLA Ph.D. candidate Zama Dube; and UCLA professor Ellen C. Scott.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22; 7 p.m. PT

Breaking the Oscars Ceiling
Although not slated to open until later this year, the Academy Museum launches its programming (virtually for now). Up first is a conversation with four iconic Oscar-winning women -- actors Whoopi Goldberg, Sophia Loren, and Marlee Matlin, and singer-songwriter Buffy Sainte-Marie -- about their lives and careers.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22; 7 p.m.

Plastic Bag Store: The Film
Brooklyn-based artist, puppet designer and director Robin Frohardt first conceived of an immersive installation and puppet theater in a storefront. The installation was to feature thousands of hand-sculpted food items made from discarded plastic bags. It was scheduled to open in New York in March 2020 but we all know what happened next. So CAP UCLA commissioned a film that reimagined a visit to the store for L.A. audiences. Look for puppetry, humor and handcrafted work. At 5:45 p.m., there's a pre-show event, Unpacking The Plastic Crisis. Recommended for ages 8+
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22; 7 p.m. PT

Sound Bites
Live music and food. Those are two things that we sorely missed during the year that wasn't. KCRW's Good Food presents a three-part virtual series that explores the intertwined worlds of food and music. For the first event, Evan Kleiman and Anne Litt welcome guests Roy Choi and John Gourley (Portugal. The Man) who'll talk about what was missed and how the pandemic may have changed those industries -- for better or worse.
COST: FREE with RSVP, donations accepted; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22; 4 p.m. PT

The Tale of Genji: Imaged and Reimagined
The Huntington welcomes Bruce A. Coats, professor of art history and the humanities at Scripps College. He lectures on the 11th-century book The Tale of Genji, written by Japanese court lady Murasaki Shikibu. The work is considered the world's first novel and has been reimagined for a thousand years.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22 - Sunday, May 30

Trash
For Earth Day, enjoy an online screening of the animated feature Trash (Italy, 2020) directed by Luca Della Grotta and Francesco Dafano. The film will become available to screen at 6 p.m. on Thursday. There's also an accompanying exhibition of drawings, videos and other works that feature the film's characters showing what we all do to protect our environment.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22

Earth Day Garden & Grounds Volunteer Workday
The Muckenthaler Cultural Center
1201 W. Malvern Ave, Fullerton
Celebrate Earth Day with a hands-on experience at The Muck. Bring your garden tools, gloves, garden carts and rakes and volunteer to help with earth-friendly weeding, garden dressing and plant installation. Wear appropriate clothes, shoes and sunscreen. Masks are required. Please RSVP via email to marsha@themuck.org or call 714-388-4815 to volunteer.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 22; Friday - Saturday, April 24 - 25

Leica Women Summit
Camera brand Leica holds a virtual summit to support the professional development of women in photography. Sessions include The Art of Pitches & Proposals, How to Get Your Work Seen, Disruptive Creativity and The Anatomy of a Photo business.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Streaming Pick

Mare of Easttown
On Sunday, HBO debuted a new seven-part limited series starring Kate Winslet as a small-town Pennsylvania detective who investigates a local murder while her life falls apart. The drama, which focuses on community, family and history, was created by Brad Ingelsby (The Way Back), with all episodes directed by Craig Zobel (The Leftovers and Westworld). Watch on HBO.

Dine & Drink Deals

Here are a few options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.

• Newport Beach Restaurant Week returns Monday, April 19, through May 2. Dine your way through dozens of Newport Beach eateries' prix fixe menus and specialty dishes. Participating restaurants include Beachcomber Cafe, Billy's at the Beach, Gracias Madre, Helmsman Ale House, Sushi Ii and zinqué.
• The Nantsin Sabor Poblano a lo Chapín taco cart sets up at the corner of Sunset Blvd. and Micheltorena St., from Thursdays to Saturday evenings, serving mulitas, quesadillas and tacos.
• La Monarca Bakery partners with the Escondido-based ECOLIFE Conservation, which protects butterfly habitats in Michoacán, Mexico, and the NHM's Butterfly Pavilion for a Save the Monarchs campaign. While 1% of all sales of La Monarca's packaged goods sold online or in store (yes, its café de ollo and Mexican wedding cookies included) always goes to the ECOLIFE Conservation, each item purchased in its retail stores or at NHM through April 30 comes with a bag of California Milkweed seed, a plant that feeds and protects the monarch butterfly.
• Earlier this month, actor-performer Christina Milian and Elizabeth Morris opened the Studio City cafe Beignet Box, which puts the New Orleans deep-fried treat at the center of its menu. Enjoy hot beignets with café au lait or other coffees and teas.
• Playa Vista has a new taco purveyor in town. Loqui has opened its third location (in addition to DTLA and Culver City) inside the Free Market complex. They offer an assortment of tacos, Mexican cerveza and their famous flour tortillas.
• La Purépecha has its official grand opening in Santa Monica (1320 2nd St. Ste A) on Taco Tuesday (April 20). Starting at noon, they're offering $1.50 tacos all day. The menu also features mulitas with handmade tortillas, mariscos and bowls.
• Boy Smells pops up at La Morra to offer a limited-edition Italian kush pizza with whipped ricotta, confit lemons, basil, salsa verde and a cannabis leaf.

Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti is proposing a guaranteed basic income pilot program in his upcoming budget, putting L.A. front and center in the debate over how government can most effectively combat poverty and spur equitable economic recovery in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic.

The $24 million program would be the largest experiment of its kind in the United States.

Under the proposal, dubbed "BIG: LEAP" (Basic Income Guaranteed: L.A. Economic Assistance Pilot), 2,000 Angeleno families at or below the federal poverty line would receive $1,000 a month for one year, no strings attached.

"We have to end America's addiction to poverty," Garcetti said in an exclusive interview with LAist. "For families who can't think past the next bill, the next shift or the next health problem that they have, we can give them the space to not only dream of a better life, but to actualize it."

The selection criteria for participant households is still being developed, but will likely include supporting a child under the age of 18 and a demonstrated medical or financial hardship connected to COVID-19, the Mayor's office said. Each council district would have a share of funding based on its poverty rate. The program would be open to everyone regardless of immigration status.

The goal? If successful, the Los Angeles pilot would serve as a major proof-of-concept for direct cash assistance that is divorced from the work requirements attached to many safety net programs for poor Americans, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit.

The concept of a guaranteed basic income is not new, but it's gained steam with recent high-profile tests in Finland; Ontario, Canada; Maricá, Brazil; and Stockton, California. The economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis has also cracked open the long-running conversation about financial assistance and poverty alleviation. Last year, Garcetti used his nonprofit, The Mayor's Fund, to raise money for cash transfers via prepaid debit cards, which were distributed to more than 100,000 city residents. (Demand for these far outstripped supply -- over four times that many people applied for the so-called Angeleno Card.)

"This pandemic has thrown everything up in the air," Garcetti said. "This is an America willing to say, If we were so good, why did so many people die? Why was it so disproportionate in certain communities? And if we're not as good as we thought we were, how can we become better?"

The ambitious guaranteed income experiment is part of an "Equity and Justice Budget" the Mayor will introduce in his State of the City speech Monday evening, which will also include a sharp increase in spending on housing and homelessness programs. It's a dramatic shift from the grim math of last spring, when Garcetti laid out his initial plan to survive the looming fiscal calamity of COVID-19: service cuts, worker furloughs and digging deep into the city's reserve funds. It was a road map cobbled together as public health officials were still coming to terms with the scope of the pandemic, and shortly before George Floyd was killed by a Minneapolis police officer, setting off months of protests and calls to defund law enforcement and reimagine public safety.

Last month, the Biden Administration and congressional Democrats threw local governments a life-preserver in the form of the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. It includes $1.3 billion in aid for the city of L.A.

Garcetti says he plans to use the money to "transform systems," including funding a new Youth Development Department and upping the city's investment in unarmed response to mental health crises.

"This is not small ball," Garcetti said. "It isn't just the biggest budget I've ever overseen -- it's the most progressive, and I would argue the most progressive in the country."

Another guaranteed income pilot program focused on single parents is already in the works for Council District 9, including large parts of South Los Angeles and downtown Los Angeles. Councilmember Curren Price plans to use $6 million to pay for the experiment, earmarked from funding that was cut from the LAPD budget last summer.

LEARNING FROM STOCKTON

An unconditional monthly check means "acknowledging the dignity of people and giving people some agency over their time," said former Stockton Mayor Michael Tubbs, who founded the group Mayors for Guaranteed Income and is working with Garcetti on the Los Angeles pilot. He credits the Black Lives Matter movement with propelling the effort.

"Economic insecurity was an issue before COVID-19. Income inequality was an issue before COVID-19," Tubbs said. "Dr. King called for guaranteed income in 1967. But the pandemic really illustrated the ways the economy isn't working for many people."

The two-year Stockton Economic Empowerment Demonstration was funded by private donations and recently ended. Through the program, 125 residents received $500 per month, starting in February, 2019. Researchers with the University of Pennsylvania found the program did not discourage people from working, and it leveled out income volatility, improved health outcomes, and lowered anxiety and depression in participants.

Full-time employment increased for people receiving the $500 a month by 12 percent, compared to five percent in the control group. Participants spent the vast majority of the money on staples such as groceries, utilities, gas and rent -- and less than one percent on cigarettes or alcohol.

"People did amazing things with the money," Stockton's former mayor said. "Whether it was to pay for childcare, take time off to apply for a full-time job, or pay off credit card debt."

The Wall Street Journal editorial board recently criticized the University of Pennsylvania analysis as politically biased "hype," reliant on self-reporting and a too-small sample size. The research team that evaluated the Stockton program, led by Amy Castro Baker and Stacia Martin-West, have signed on as partners in the design of the Los Angeles pilot.

"My words for critics are -- we know the status quo isn't working," Tubbs said. "And that's why we're doing pilots across the country. Data, unfortunately, doesn't drive enough decision making in our country. See the gun debate, or climate change."

THE COMPTON PLEDGE

L.A.'s big pitch for guaranteed income follows the launch of a program in Compton, called The Compton Pledge, championed by outgoing Mayor Aja Brown.

Starting in January, the program began delivering strings-free cash payments to Compton households below the poverty line.

Last week, the group announced it had reached full enrollment, with 800 households representing 1,770 participants, including families and dependents. They are receiving an average of $300-600 a month for two years, scaled by household size. The effort is being funded by more than $8 million in private donations.

In the Compton model, participants can choose to get the money via Venmo, Paypal, direct bank deposit or a prepaid debit card. They aren't required to produce a social security or taxpayer I.D. number, making the process available to immigrants without documentation.

The program's director, Nika Soon-Shiong, says the cohort is representative of Compton as a whole in terms of race, gender, immigration status and whether they were ever incarcerated. She hopes the findings of the study will help inform future policy decisions and answer questions around the most effective timing and size of cash transfers.

"The welfare programs that exist today are insufficient, and too many people fall through the cracks," Soon-Shiong said. "What we need is a system that looks at the well-being of all residents, and that's less punitive. We really see this policy as a window of opportunity to enhance the social safety net across the board."

"Honestly, at first I thought it was a scam," laughed Roslyn Ford, a Compton Pledge recipient. She's a mother of three with a 15-year-old son and twin nine-year-old daughters. When the pandemic hit, she struggled with the extra cost of internet at home for distance learning for her kids, on top of her regular bills.

"Everything was adding up -- my water bill, my cable bill, electricity. I did not know where my help was coming from," Ford said. "When I got the first deposit, I ran to the water company -- I paid everything. And I had a little extra to spend on my children. I'm really appreciative of that."

Feedback from participants such as Ford will guide the future of cash transfer programs, according to Soon-Shiong.

"Their voices are really important because they are going to be the policy experts when it comes to how to inform the way that we approach guaranteed income implementation moving forward," Soon-Shiong said.

THE DEBATE OVER WORK REQUIREMENTS

Cash assistance for working-age, able-bodied adults has been a political sticking point for decades. During the Trump Administration, the federal government and Republican-led states pushed to tie more types of government assistance to work.

Conservative policy makers operate on the theory that cash or medical assistance for able-bodied people discourages them from finding employment that could lead to an escape from poverty. It's the same argument that motivated the "welfare reform" legislation signed by President Clinton in 1996, which added time limits and work requirements to assistance for needy families. Conservative scholar Scott Winship with the Manhattan Institute argues that the initiative was a success -- a combination of restructuring welfare, refundable tax credits and non-cash benefits such as food stamps reduced child poverty considerably between 1996 and 2014.

Liberals dismiss the idea that cash assistance makes people lazy, and say evidence shows the Clinton-era changes exacerbated severe poverty.

"It's about illustrating that we can trust people -- including people who struggle economically, including people of color, including women -- to make their own decisions on what to do with money," Stockton's Tubbs said. "Poverty isn't some deficiency in people. What's lacking, in every case, is cash."

While Clinton-era welfare reform initially appeared to boost employment, it's hard to separate those effects from the roaring economy of the 1990s. Research by the University of Kentucky found that any earnings gains for poor women with children were mostly offset by the loss of federal help, and "have left the most vulnerable ... either running in place or falling behind." Analysis from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities echoed this conclusion and found that employment gains were modest and faded over time. Most people worked even if they were not forced to, and income for the bottom 10 percent of single mothers with kids declined in the decade after welfare reform.

"The dichotomy between welfare and work, I think, is a false dichotomy when you look at the persistence of involuntary unemployment across America, especially in communities such as Compton," Soon-Shiong said. "It's a really important time to revisit the assumptions that have been underlying our existing welfare programs."

There is a long-running example of no-questions-asked payments to consider: In Alaska, every resident gets a yearly cash dividend from oil reserve royalties -- maybe the closest thing to a universal basic income that academics can sink their teeth into. A study of the state's program by University of Chicago researchers found no significant impact on employment.

Since June 2020, we've asked for your stories about how race and ethnicity shape your life and and published as many of these stories as we can. We call this year-long effort Race in LA. Click here for more information and details on how to participate.

By Juan Ricardo Gomez

I'm a proud fronterizo. I'm a Mexican immigrant from the border region.

I was born and raised in Tijuana, but often spent time in San Diego, where many of my family members live.

I moved to California in my junior year of high school to live with my uncle and his family in, of all places, Temecula.

I didn't know much about this town in southwestern Riverside County, because when I had previously visited, we mainly stayed at my uncle's home, where I spent time with my cousins and other family members.

As I learned, Temecula has little in common with most other cities I had visited in SoCal, like Los Angeles, Riverside, and San Diego. The town is known mainly for its vineyards, the Pechanga Resort Casino, and quiet stretches of suburbia.

When I officially enrolled in my new high school, I didn't feel "different," per se.

I realized it was my first time studying in another country, but I'd been visiting San Diego all my life, and my English was decent, since all my schools in Mexico taught me the language. I didn't feel intimidated.

Those feelings quickly changed as I started interacting with the students and staff.

My school was primarily white, and the Latinx students seemed like they weren't into their culture at all, as if they were embarrassed by it. And in a way, I understand why -- they wanted to "fit in" with the dominant race and culture in school. They wanted to blend in. It's not the first or last time that I would see that type of situation.

About 33% of the school's students are "Hispanic," according to GreatSchools.org. But most of the Latinx students I knew at my school barely spoke Spanish, and if they did, they tried to avoid speaking it.

One of the first students I spoke with was Latino. He was in my psychology class, and he knew based on my accent that my first language was Spanish. So he began speaking with me in my language, but every time someone came close to us, or when he introduced me to his other friends, he avoided it as much as possible, switching to English.

Now, I understand that he probably didn't want to make his friends feel left out by speaking a language they didn't understand. But in this case, I could feel that he felt ashamed by speaking Spanish, you could see it in his face and tone each time he spoke it.

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I rarely got to speak my mother tongue with anyone there, not even at home. My uncle, who is Mexican, has a Filipino American wife, and their children never learned Spanish.

All my teachers were white, which wasn't strange for me. I had never experienced racism of any kind as a visitor.

But it's different when you actually live in this country.

"This equation is two 'x' variables, or should I say Dos Equis, like the beer, am I right, Juan?" said my high school math teacher in class.

Another teacher said, "Juan, you can take your test at home and translate it with your Spanish dictionary." I usually never spoke with other students in that class, but I'm pretty sure I spoke enough times with my teacher for him to know that my English was good enough to understand his class, which was marine biology.

I don't know how far they thought Tijuana is from Temecula. But it's just a 45-minute drive, and their assumptions about me felt offensive.

It dawned on me pretty recently: My teachers and classmates looked at me as a foreign exchange student, perhaps -- not someone who lived there.

One of my "friends," or should I say a kid who sat with the people I was with during my lunch breaks, was someone who had white skin but had a Mexican mother, as I recall. He always liked to make racist jokes, calling me and another friend "beaners," which I tried to convince myself wasn't hurtful. But who would not feel hurt hearing one of the most offensive comments that one can make to a Latino? It seemed like he did it to feel superior.

I never felt like I belonged at my school or in Temecula, in general.

And as I have learned more about racism in America, and its history and culture with regard to immigrants and people of color, I realized upon reflection that this might be because what I was experiencing were microaggressions.

When you are young and naive, as I was at age 17, you don't notice these things.

Now, a few years later, I'm an early career journalist and a student at Cal State L.A. My experiences and education since then -- especially classes about race and gender, Chicano studies, and the history of Latinx communities -- have helped me deconstruct these earlier experiences, and learn and grow from them.

As a proud Mexican living in the U.S., I now hold onto these experiences to take what I can out of them.

They inform me of the kinds of racism, often much more apparent, that happens to people I report on, as well as misperceptions about my culture. And ultimately, they fuel my passion for telling the stories of under-covered communities.

So, I take what I can out of these hurtful personal experiences from when I first moved here, and then I will simply let them go, so I can be a healthy, happy and productive student and journalist -- one who feels he does finally belong.

Today, my sense of belonging doesn't come from that year I lived in Temecula. Today it comes from all the hard work I've done ever since leaving Temecula. I don't have hard feelings for the city; I still occasionally visit and enjoy my stay.

Now I'm virtually living in L.A, where I continue my studies at CSULA as unfortunately, like all of us, I've had to adapt to this new COVID-19 era. Meanwhile I'm physically living in San Diego, where I have found a true identity and passion for one city.

As a young, immigrant Latino, this is just a minor setback from the bigger picture. Hopefully, in the next couple of months, I can call myself an "in-person" resident of Los Angeles and continue building my career here.

A version of this story appeared in Cal State L.A.'s University Times.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Juan Ricardo Gomez was born and raised in Tijuana. When he was 17 years old, he moved to the U.S temporarily, then returned to Mexico. He moved back to the U.S. at age 19, studying journalism with a focus on broadcast news at San Diego City College, then transferring to Cal State L.A., where he is now pursuing a bachelor's degree in journalism.

For now, while the pandemic lasts, he's in online classes in L.A. while living and working in San Diego as a story producer. He hopes to move and start in-person classes at Cal State L.A. before too long.

By Jocelyn Wiener | CalMatters

An effort to fix problems with the oversight of California's nursing homes has stalled, sparking fears that the bill is doomed -- and prompting elder care advocates to warn that even a delay jeopardizes residents' safety.

"I'm incredibly frustrated," said Democratic Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi of Torrance, author of Assembly Bill 1502. "The pandemic has clearly exposed the horrible conditions of so many of our nursing homes.

"People are dying as we wait....We cannot sit around with a broken state oversight system while our most vulnerable residents continue to live in these nursing homes."

A recent CalMatters investigation spotlighted an opaque licensing process for California's nursing homes, plagued by indecision, delays and misleading information. For instance, the California Department of Public Health has allowed the state's largest nursing home owner, Shlomo Rechnitz, to operate facilities for years through a web of companies while their license applications languish in "pending" status, the investigation found.

That story "blew the lid off of my thinking," said Assemblymember Jim Wood, a Santa Rosa Democrat who chairs the Assembly Health Committee -- and helps decide which health legislation in that house will live or die. "I didn't realize to the extent that it was happening."

Note: An LAist investigation published last week also detailed a troubled nursing home chain connected to ReNew Health and owner Crystal Solorzano. In 2020, state health officials took the extraordinary step of denying Solorzano licenses to operate nine nursing homes. The California Department of Public Health cited a lengthy list of serious violations at her facilities, and even concerns about Solorzano's character. But due to what advocates call a "completely exploited" licensing process, Solorzano's business are still operating those nursing homes..

Wood was dismayed to hear that Solorzano's businesses were able to operate nine facilities, despite being denied a license to do so. "It's pretty shocking, quite frankly," Wood said. "Do we grant them the ability to grow their businesses, without some requirement that they actually show improvement? That they show that they have changed the way they're doing things?"

Nonetheless Wood's committee declined to hear the bill, which would forbid the use of management agreements to "circumvent state licensure requirements" and would require owners and operators to get approval from the California Department of Public Health before acquiring, operating or managing a nursing home. Instead, the committee turned Muratsuchi's proposal into a two-year bill that won't be heard before next January.

Advocates had expected the bill to face opposition from the nursing home industry, which has deep ties to influential players at the Capitol. The CEO of the nursing home industry group, Craig Cornett, was a top aide to two former state Senate leaders and four former Assembly speakers before joining the California Association of Health Facilities in 2017. He's known for having masterful knowledge of the state government bureaucracy and is included on a list of the most influential people around the Capitol. Cornett's industry group employs a lobbying firm that counts Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon's cousin, Edward Rendon, as one of its lobbyists. Edward Rendon is also a partner at a consulting firm called Spiker Rendon that was paid $45,000 last year by the California Association of Health Facilities, according to the industry group's lobbying reports.The California Association of Health Facilities has donated more than $1.6 million to California campaigns in the past decade, according to filings with the secretary of state.

And Rockport Healthcare Services, the administrative services company for many nursing homes, employs the lobbying firm of Jason Kinney, whose French Laundry birthday bash was attended by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

The Newsom administration also hasn't taken a position on the bill, although that is not unusual at this stage.

This story is part of 'Unprotected,' an ongoing series examining California's failures on nursing home oversight, done in collaboration with other nonprofit newsrooms

Immediate Jeopardy: Death And Neglect Inside A Troubled California Nursing Home Chain (LAist)

California oversight of nursing homes called 'befuddling,' 'broken' (CalMatters)

State Authorities Allowed Alleged Sexual Predator To Job-Hop Among San Diego Area Nursing Homes (KPBS)

Dr. Mark Ghaly, whose agency oversees the Department of Public Health, declined to answer questions for this story or for CalMatters' investigation into the department's licensing practices. Gov. Newsom also declined to be interviewed for either story.

However, the governor recently agreed to donate $10,000 to charity after an investigation by LAist showed that he had received a political contribution in that amount from ReNew Health Consulting Services, which is affiliated with a troubled nursing home chain. LAist, affiliated with KPCC in Los Angeles, and CalMatters are part of a collaboration of California's nonprofit newsrooms to investigate the state's supervision of nursing homes.

Wood's communications director, Cathy Mudge, told CalMatters this week that the Newsom administration had not pressured his committee to stall the bill.

Wood said he is so committed to fixing these issues that he plans to take an uncharacteristic step of putting his name on it as a joint author next year. He has long been an ally of nursing home oversight, calling for a May 2018 audit that said licensing lapses by the California Department of Public Health increased the probability that residents might not receive adequate care. He has also authored previous bills to protect nursing home residents and improve transparency in the licensing process.

"I don't want you to walk away with the impression that I'm stalling this, because I'm not," Wood said. "I just want it to be right and I want it to be meaningful and I want to use this process to change the way we put this industry together."

Before the bill is heard in January, Wood said he believes staff and outside consultants will need to invest a huge amount of time to gather data and communicate with various state agencies about complex issues. He also wants to work to get the California Department of Public Health and the Newsom administration on board as "active partners." He said he worries about the department's bandwidth during the pandemic, and said his committee has also been inundated with 165 health-related bills.

The state's licensing and oversight problem "really falls on the backs of CDPH for the most part," he said.

"My hope is that, in the interim, as we move forward and do our work on this, that we get feedback from CDPH, that we get cooperation from them on how we can make this process work better," he said. "I hope we're not going to see a situation where they circle the wagons and lock the doors and really don't work with us."

"We need more time," he said. "I hate that, quite frankly. I really do."

Top officials at the department, including its director, Dr. Tomás Aragón, have refused CalMatters' requests to be interviewed about the licensing situation. In an email Thursday, an unnamed spokesperson said the department does not comment on proposed legislation.

The unnamed spokesperson told CalMatters the department had initiated a regulatory package related to the change-of-ownership licensing process, but that the effort has been "placed on a temporary hold due to staff redirections associated with COVID response."

Proponents of the bill say it is strong as it is, and that it can help resolve urgent problems.

"I don't think the problem's complicated," said Tony Chicotel, a staff attorney for California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform, which sponsored Muratsuchi's bill. "People are running facilities without licenses. That shouldn't happen for years and years and years. It shouldn't happen for another year."

"We should all agree that's not good and work out something to attend to it now. I think we owe that to the residents who have suffered so horribly this year."

Chicotel said he worries, from past experience, that the bill's chance of becoming law "was diminished when it was postponed." He also believes it buys the Department of Public Health more time to not take action on the issue.

"They're pretty comfortable doing nothing, but now they have an excuse," he said.

"You blink and another year's gone by."

Chicotel said past bills to improve nursing home oversight have often been vetoed or significantly watered down. This includes a 2019 bill authored by Democratic Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo of Los Angeles, that initially proposed to streamline ownership reviews. California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform first supported the bill, Chicotel said, but vigorously opposed it after it was amended to allow new owners to receive provisional licenses by default if the Department of Public Health missed a deadline.

"It went from a bill that could have been great to a bill that would have been devastatingly bad," he said.

The bill ended up passing with proposed alterations to the change-of-ownership licensing process removed.

Chicotel said something similar happened in 2015 with a measure that would have prevented nursing home operators from acquiring more homes under certain circumstances. Chicotel's group initially sponsored the bill, but ended up opposing it after amendments were made. So did its author, Democratic Assemblymember Kevin McCarty of Sacramento, who pulled the bill.

Another hurdle to changing the law: opposition from the nursing home industry.

Deborah Pacyna, spokesperson for the California Association of Health Facilities, which represents most of the state's 1,100 nursing homes, described the state's change-of-ownership licensing process as "broken" in a previous interview with CalMatters. The organization had not yet officially weighed in on Muratsuchi's bill, but she said it probably would have opposed the bill unless it was amended.

She said a recent California Court of Appeal ruling determined that state approval of unlicensed interim nursing home managers to operate nursing homes does not violate state or federal law.

"It just shows to us that if the trial lawyers can't win in court, they're going to go to the Legislature," she said.

She commended Wood's decision to wait a year before attempting to alter the state's licensing system.

"We really appreciate the reasoned approach, looking at all this from a big picture standpoint, instead of just striking out," she said.

Wood anticipates pushback on licensing reform from "players in this industry who don't want the scrutiny and don't want their business models upset."

"This bill is about government oversight and fixing our own house," he said. "But I guarantee you that this will be a challenge."

CalMatters political reporter Laurel Rosenhall contributed to this story.

A year ago, Little Tokyo restaurateur Kenji Suzuki was nervous about a pandemic with too many unknowns. Adding to his anxiety: he's in partial remission from leukemia, meaning the cancer is still there, just less of it. So he had to run his landmark Suehiro Cafe from the relative safety of home, all the while watching boisterous 4-year-old twin daughters.

But ever the optimist, the owner of the 1st Street mainstay embraced the heady task of keeping the business afloat.

He pared down the nearly 200-item menu. Applied for a PPP loan. Got help freshening up social media accounts to tout online ordering, available for the first time ever. Offered free delivery on orders over $25. Heck, those customers even got a free roll of toilet paper -- to the horror of his wife.

"There's an old Japanese saying that businesses are usually run into the ground by the second generation," Suzuki laughed. "I just want to make sure that that doesn't happen on my watch."

Suzuki, 58, had promised to keep the restaurant open for as long as his mother was alive. Junko Suzuki started Suehiro Cafe in 1972 with her younger sister Yuriko, serving comfort food such as ramen and curries and her own favorite dish that became the 'House Special': beef, pepper and eggplant stir-fried in a miso sauce.

A year later, how are Suzuki and Suehiro Cafe faring?

When Suzuki answered the phone, it was clear the pandemic had taken a heavy toll. The energy in his voice from a year ago was gone. He sounded ragged as he described graying hairs and stress rashes. In the worst months of the pandemic, business had dropped by 90%.

"I told you that I wanted to keep the restaurant open as long as my mom was alive," he said.

"Well," he continued, "COVID took my mom in January."

Junko Suzuki died at age 84 at her Boyle Heights nursing facility, a week after she had been diagnosed with COVID-19. Mother and son hadn't been able to see each other in-person since the pandemic struck, a particularly difficult situation because she had Alzheimer's.

Suzuki noted that he did fulfill his promise to keep Suehiro open until she died. That pressure was gone. But this was not how it was supposed to happen. And after shouldering great financial and personal loss, Suzuki questions what to do about the restaurant now.

'Everyday someone would cry"

The customers have returned to Little Tokyo, standing in long lines for restaurants in Japanese Village Plaza and swelling to crowds on the weekends. Parking is a familiar nightmare.

It feels and looks pre-pandemic, but in kitchens and the backs of shops, battle stories abound.

Around 20 shops, restaurants and clubs have closed over the past year, according to Mariko Lochridge, a business consultant with the Little Tokyo Service Center who has assisted many owners in developing pandemic plans, including Suehiro Cafe.

"Man, it's been rough," Lochridge said. "Every day, someone would cry. I think I'm down to two, three times a week."

Among the businesses reportedly shuttered:

• Acai Hero
• Bad Son Tacos
• The Blue Whale
• dot dot dot Wheel Cake
• Ebisu Japanese Tavern
• Fickle Wish
• Golden State
• JapanLA (relocated to La Brea & 3rd)
• Johnny Rockets
• Kasih
• Little Tokyo Cosmetics
• Oreno Yakiniku Japanese Bar-B-Cue
• Quiznos
• SKD Tofu House
• Tokyo Beat

Other businesses remain open but hobbled. The Kouraku ramen bar, said to be Little Tokyo's first, lost its owner Hiroshi Yamauchi, who was diagnosed with cancer during the pandemic and died in mid-September.

Yamauchi had struggled mightily to adapt to running a restaurant in COVID times. Lochridge coached Yamauchi through making his first Facebook post, announcing takeout.

Calling himself an "analog uncle," he wrote:

Long ago, I remember my father, a very grumpy old man often complaining, 'These young people, they're doing nothing!' And I have also often found myself saying the very same thing. But now, in these dark times in Little Tokyo, young people are coming to me and saying, 'We are here for you in this time, let's fight through this together.'

At the urging of volunteer business counselors, Yamauchi got set up on UberEats and arranged for new promotional photos to post online. And he finally relented and began accepting credit cards after more than three decades of only taking cash.

It took a pandemic, but Yamauchi had shifted his business into the 21st Century, positioning his wife and staff the best they could to weather the rest of the calamity without him there.

"The Mochi Effect"

Not all Little Tokyo businesses struggled during the pandemic, and some newcomers even decided to open their doors in the past year, including Keepers, Kiosk Boys, Madre Tierra Express, MG Tofu House and Sushi Kaneyoshi.

Lochridge said area marijuana vendors thrived, as did another specialty store: Fugetsu-Do.

The third-generation owner of the mochi shop, Brian Kito, whose family has owned Fugestu-Do for more than a century, had tried to adapt to the pandemic by improving his website for online sales and moving his staff to part-time.

But his fears turned out to be unfounded. Fugetsu-Do enjoyed a banner year in 2020, despite the pandemic.

Kito chalks it up to a couple of videos of his mochi-making that went viral before the pandemic hit. They helped draw the attention of TikTokers who he says have become devotees of the shop, eager to showcase the mochi they purchase on the app.

"We've gone crazy on TikTok," Kito said. "And so on Saturday and Sundays, if you come to my store, you have to wait in line. And sometimes the line gets pretty long."

On those busy occasions, Kito sets up a kiosk outside the shop for customers willing to buy pre-packaged mochi.

Lochridge called Fugetsu-Do's ability to triumph through the pandemic the "mochi effect."

@sylvia.wakana

Mochi from Fugetsudo 💕 #mochi #fyp #kawaiifood #desserts #japanesefood #japanthings #japanlife

♬ Stunnin' (feat. Harm Franklin) - Curtis Waters

"People panic about their small businesses and they can only think of one business off the top of their heads," Lochridge said. "For Little Tokyo, it's Fugetsu-Do."

"Maybe We Should Just Go Back"

As Kito tries to keep up with orders and crowds, Suehiro owner Suzuki is contemplating whether to stay in the restaurant business.

While a second smaller Suehiro site in Chinatown has sustained itself with serving predominantly take-out, business at the flagship restaurant is half of what it is normally, even with dine-in available.

Suzuki still feels for Kouraku's owner Yamauchi -- his dearest friend in Little Tokyo -- who spent the last months before his death pained over plummeting sales and having to let go many of his employees.

"He ended up having to be the server and he was doing things that he normally didn't do before," Suzuki said.

Suzuki's wife is a Japanese national and thinks it's time to move the family back to her home country, especially given the surge in anti-Asian violence. Suzuki, who emigrated to the U.S. with his family when he was a young boy, sees her point.

"With all the Asian-bashing going on right now, it's just like, well, if we're not going to be welcomed in this country, maybe we should just go back," Suzuki said.

But Suzuki is torn. He said while he met his goal of keeping the restaurant open while his mom was alive, lately he's been telling himself that it's her legacy that he needs to keep going because of the years she invested.

Suzuki likes to joke that the restaurant was his mom's favorite child. But it was also her most challenging. Junko incurred debt to pay her Japanese food suppliers when she was starting out. And after the 1992 civil unrest, the restaurant struggled, as diners stayed away.

Junko did all this while raising Suzuki and his sister on her own after she and their dad divorced.

"My mother worked all day. She worked all night. So my sister and I would eat ... Swanson [frozen] dinners," said Suzuki, fondly recalling that turkey was his favorite.

Suzuki was in 6th grade when he began helping out at the restaurant by washing dishes. He knew his mom wanted him to take over the business one day. But he stayed away, remembering how hot the kitchen got. His 20s were spent in car sales. Then he hit his 30s.

"I began to see the way society was treating her -- a woman, a minority, trying to run a business," Suzuki said.

Because of the work she put into Suehiro, and its value to the community, any potential buyer would "have to show a little love towards it, you know? Really understand the restaurant," Suzuki said.

Or, he says, maybe he should keep managing the restaurant -- even from Japan.

As he describes his mother, he could be talking about himself.

"She didn't know that she could quit," Suzuki said. "So that's why she just kept going."

LANGUAGE BARRIERS

For some street food vendors, who are only fluent in Spanish (or another language), becoming eligible for the vaccine was just the first step. They still have to navigate an appointment process they often don't understand.

Gabino, who asked that we not use his last name because he doesn't have a license for his utility cart and portable drink cooler, recently started selling tacos and esquites in MacArthur Park. He would love to get vaccinated. "I'm 50 years old and have diabetes so it definitely would help me feel safer while I work," Gabino says.

He doesn't have a computer or broadband internet so his cell phone is his only way of making an appointment. He has tried calling L.A. County's dedicated number for vaccine appointments several times. "I have tried calling to set up a vaccination appointment but I have not been able to as of yet," Gabino says.

He typically calls the appointment hotline once a day but his social anxiety makes each call difficult. He doesn't speak much English so each time, he waits for someone to answer, hoping they speak Spanish. Like many other non-English-speakers, Gabino worries he may not be able to communicate properly with whoever answers his call.

Hold times are long. Every time he has called, the automatic message notifies him that the county is dealing with a high volume of calls. He typically waits for a while but the process is discouraging and he eventually hangs up.

"For the longest time, I did not know if I was eligible for the vaccine, so when I first started calling [in March,] I had no idea if it was worth waiting a really long time to get my call answered," Gabino says.

Gabino, who lost his job cleaning offices in Long Beach 10 months ago, only joined the street food game in early March.

"I have to say that street vending has been just as fruitful. I work closer to home and the park tends to be busy on the weekend, which is why I often come here to make some money," Gabino says. But more people means more risk.

On a recent Saturday, MacArthur Park was bustling. Kids ran around the playground, elderly couples watched ducks by the pond and a community of unhoused people sat together on the grass while maskless preachers shouted about salvation through microphones.

The Westlake neighborhood has seen nearly 7,645 COVID-19 cases, meaning approximately 6% of its residents have tested positive for the virus, a similar rate to many other Los Angeles neighborhoods. But in late March, L.A. County reported that the population of unhoused people in MacArthur Park suffered a COVID-19 outbreak leading to 15 infections and 1 death.

Street food vendors, like Gabino, who interact with the general public are in a vulnerable position. As a diabetic, he knows that every day without the COVID-19 vaccine, he's rolling the dice. But what else can he do?

"I just wish the government did more to help me, not just with the vaccine but also by getting police officers to stop the fines on unlicensed vendors," he says.

NO DOCUMENTATION? NO SERVICE

To get a COVID-19 vaccine in Los Angeles County, food and agriculture workers must present three things: a photo ID, proof they work in the food industry and proof they live or work in L.A. County (if their other documents don't include a home or work address).

That's not an easy ask for many of the DIY taqueros, eloteros, tamaleros and marisqueros who have shaped L.A.'s street food scene.

"I have no papers so my line of work puts me in a tough situation," says Ramiro, an undocumented and unlicensed vendor who sells raspados and elote from a cart in Bell Gardens. (He also asked that we not use his last name to protect his identity.)

The only document preventing Ramiro from getting vaccinated is proof that he works in the food industry. He is his own employer and he doesn't have a license from City Hall, so what evidence can he show?

This may not be an issue for vendors with licenses but they're in the minority. Unlicensed street food vendors make up the vast majority of L.A. County's approximately 10,000 street food vendors.

"This economy is rough. I went from doing this as a temporary job to doing this full time since it helps pay the bills. Not sure when this will end, particularly for workers like me where vaccines are just not available to us," Ramiro says.

"A lot of the Spanish-speaking street vendors we work with have trouble getting access to the vaccine," says Rudy Espinoza, Executive Director for Inclusive Action for the City, an organization that advocates for street vendors and looks to legitimize their work across Los Angeles. "These community members have already been left behind for so long, so they need a lot more resources now to catch up with everyone else."

Like most street food vendors, licensed or not, Ramiro wakes up early. At 5 a.m., he heads to Treto's, a wholesale produce market in DTLA where he buys fresh corn. While he sorts through the corn, tossing any cobs that are bruised or moldy, his wife makes the 11 syrups that flavor his raspados. (Mango and guava are the most popular.) Ramiro then heads out with his cart, going block-to-block looking for customers.

Ramiro does his best to keep himself and his customers safe. He wears a mask. He brings copious hand sanitizer. He prepares everything while wearing gloves. He has customers drop their money in a bucket instead of handing it to him. These safety precautions have kept him healthy but business is still slow. Before the pandemic, he typically earned $200 per day. Now, he feels lucky to make $100.

"Most of my money came from selling to local factory workers but most [of them] aren't really comfortable coming up to me," Ramiro says.

Not being able to meet the documentation requirement to get a COVID=19 vaccine has been frustrating, since it's the only thing separating him and his licensed colleagues.

"For workers like us, without any papers, there are no vaccines," Ramiro says. "I call and check online and there is just nothing being offered to us."

JUGGLING APPOINTMENTS AND EMPLOYMENT

Working six or seven days a week, a typical schedule, has made it hard for many street and mobile food vendors to get inoculated.

"My work day is, honestly, never ending," says John Ou, who owns burger truck The Fix On Wheels. "I wake up at 5:30 a.m. At 7:38 a.m., I get to Restaurant Depot to stock up for my first stop of the day. By 10 a.m., I arrive at my first spot and stay there for lunch hours. Following that, I refuel and restock for dinner. By the evening, I'm at my dinner area."

Ou does this six days a week, every week. When he tried to set up an appointment on his day off, which is usually Monday, he had trouble finding available time slots.

Even with help from Matt Geller, who runs the Southern California Mobile Food Vendors Association, it didn't make much of a difference. California's MyTurn vaccine scheduling site had no available appointments for weeks when he checked the site.

"Most vendors I work with have been complaining," Geller says. "I do my best to help them set appointments because these are some busy people and they can't always be refreshing the MyTurn website."

Like many other mobile truck operators and street food sellers, Ou has had no choice but to continue working during the pandemic, even as sales plummeted. In the past year, he says he has seen roughly two-thirds of his fellow food truck operators park their vehicles for good.

At Asian fusion truck StopBye Cafe, business has dropped 80% in the past year. Co-founders Justin and Tom Tulus say they've managed to survive because family members stepped in, helping them prepare and serve their fried chicken and garlic noodles.

After a week of trying, the brothers finally received their vaccines on March 8. "It took us a week to find an appointment and we had to drive from central L.A. to Pomona but we did it. We are hoping that we can get our other family members vaccinated soon," Justin Tulus says.

These aren't nebulous concerns. Food trucks are, by design, cramped spaces. COVID-19 outbreaks, when they happen, can spread quickly among the people who work in them.

"I know of two food truck owners who had some real established businesses, who died of COVID-19. From my knowledge, nobody else tested positive but the fear that they could is valid," Ou says.

Street vendors were already vying for appointments with other essential workers and vulnerable populations. Now that COVID-19 vaccine access is open to any California resident who is at least 16 years old, they'll be competing for appointments against an even larger group of people.

The Tulus brothers managed to get fully vaccinated at the end of March. Now, they're waiting and hoping that as more of their customers get vaccinated, their sales will start ticking upwards.

"We used to serve food by the Anime Expo and that would have about 100,000 people per day," Justin Tulus says. "We won't see that this year but hopefully, we do in the future. [That's why] it's important for everyone in the U.S. to get vaccinated at this point, so we can all go back to normal."

Attend the L.A. Times Festival of Books from the comfort of your couch. Watch bicycle-themed flicks or works by queer BIPOC filmmakers. Tune in, turn on and drop out during a day of serenity. Celebrate 20 years of music at The Hotel Cafe. Fill out your Oscar ballot during AirTalk's FilmWeek preview. Enjoy kimchi quesadillas, a literal sausage fest, vegan ice cream and duck confit enfrijoladas.

Friday, April 16 - Tuesday, April 20

2021 Outfest Fusion QTBIPOC Film Festival
The festival, which showcases works by filmmakers who are queer, trans, Black, Indigenous and people of color, returns this year in a hybrid format. Watch 10 features and 41 shorts. Attend panel discussions and workshops. Movies include Marion Hill's Sundance premiere Ma Belle, My Beauty and Mari Walker's recent SXSW premiere See You Then. There are also two programs of short films that will be screened at a drive-in in Exposition Park.
COST: Individual tickets start at $10; MORE INFO

Friday, April 16; 6:30 p.m.

RISK! Livestream Online Show
Kevin Allison hosts a night of true tales from people who never thought they'd share them in public. Storytellers include Oz du Soleil, Kent Whipple, Freddy-May AbiSamra and Hannah Sussman. A link will be sent to ticket buyers after registration
COST: $15; MORE INFO

Friday, April 16

Japanese American National Museum (JANM) Reopens
100 N. Central Ave., downtown L.A.
JANM reopens to the public on weekends, starting on Friday. Admission is by reservation only; no walkups. The opening coincides with the relaunch of the exhibition Taiji Terasaki: Transcendients: Heroes At Borders. The multimedia artist's living memory of the Japanese American concentration camps also serves as a tribute to democracy and social justice. The exhibition closes on May 16.
COST: FREE with reservation; MORE INFO

Friday, April 16; 6 p.m.

Lost & Found at the Movies: New Suns
The Central Library's ALOUD on Film series examines how the renewed appreciation of Octavia Butler's Black speculative fiction is shaping storytelling through film. Join a Zoom discussion that includes the Criterion Collection's Ashley Clark, filmmaker Wanuri Kahiu and the Los Angeles Public Library's Vi Ha.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Friday, April 16 - Friday, April 23

2021 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books
The lit fest kicks off virtually on Friday night with the annual Book Awards. The festival includes 30+ virtual author panels for all people of all ages and interests. Panelists include Walter Mosely, Don Lemon, Carribean Fragoza, James Patterson, Viet Thanh Nguyen, Meena Harris, Zooey Deschanel and Jesse Tyler Ferguson.
COST: Most sessions are FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Friday, April 16 - Sunday, April 25

Bicycle Film Festival Los Angeles
The festival returns this year with a curated lineup of virtual short films. True to its name, it celebrates bicycles and the international cycling movement. The entire lineup is available to watch online throughout the festival.
COST: $10, $15, $20 (sliding scale); MORE INFO

Friday, April 16; 6 - 10 p.m.

Virtual ArtNight Pasadena
The city's signature cultural event returns for a virtual spring edition with art, music, performances, readings, talks and artmaking sessions. Participating organizations include the Armory Center of the Arts, MUSE/IQUE, Parson's Nose Theater, Boston Court, Red Hen Press and the Pasadena Museum of History. The website will go live with partner content on the night of the event.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 17

Electric Dusk Drive-In Opening
Bergamot Station
2525 Michigan Ave., Santa Monica
The Secret Movie Club opens a second location (in addition to its Glendale drive-in) that's perfect for movie nights with friends or family. The Santa Monica season starts on Saturday at 7:45 p.m. with the 1946 Howard Hawks classic The Big Sleep, starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall. It's followed at 10:15 p.m. by a screening of The Coen Brothers cult favorite The Big Lebowski.
COST: $23 - $45; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 17

Hammer Museum Reopens
10899 Wilshire Blvd., Westwood
The museum reopens with limited capacity this weekend. Advanced reservations are required. Currently on view: Made in L.A. 2020: a version, through Aug. 1.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 17; 7:45 p.m. PT

Magic Asphalt
Magic Castle Hollywood Parking Lot
7001 Franklin Ave., Hollywood
As the Magic Castle prepares to resume indoor operations, the pop-up comedy show wraps up its outdoor residency with a few final shows. This week's lineup includes Jay Pharoah, Kevin Nealon, Crystal Powell and Doug Benson. The residency ends on Saturday, May 8.
COST: $120 - $150 per car; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 17; 9 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Drive-In & Serve
L.A. Works hosts a contactless service project that was originally planned for MLK Day in January. This Saturday, volunteers can choose to help with a mural of Martin Luther King Jr. or create care kits for under-resourced communities. For the painting experience, volunteers remain at tables by their cars while painting their portion of the mural. Volunteers can sign up for one of the five hour-long sessions.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 17; 3 p.m.

Feathers, Flippers, & Fur
The California Wildlife Center in Calabasas has cared for more than 60,000 injured animals since it opened in 1998. The organization holds a silent auction through Saturday that concludes with a live virtual celebration from 3 to 4 p.m. The event features animals from CWC, music and drop-in guests.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Sunday, April 18; 5 p.m. PT

20 Years Before the Mast: The Decemberists
Colin Meloy, Jenny Conlee and the rest of the band continue their series of 20th anniversary shows, streaming live from their hometown of Portland, Oregon. Each show features a unique setlist. Bundles include VIP post-show experiences and a limited-edition series poster illustrated by Carson Ellis. Each show will be available to view on-demand for two weeks following the stream. The final anniversary concert takes place on April 25.
COST: Tickets start at $25; MORE INFO

Sunday, April 18; 1 p.m.

AirTalk's FilmWeek: 2021 Oscar Preview
Attend FilmWeek's annual Academy Awards preview to help you win your Oscar pool. Watch host Larry Mantle and KPCC's FilmWeek critics -- Justin Chang, Tim Cogshell, Angie Han, Christy Lemire, Lael Loewenstein, Wade Major, Amy Nicholson, Claudia Puig, Peter Rainer and Charles Solomon -- discuss this year's nominees and snubs.
COST: Free - $20; MORE INFO

Sunday, April 18; 12 a.m. - 11:59 p.m.

24 Hours of Serenity
After the past year, who doesn't need serenity? KCRW holds an online wellness festival aimed at rejuvenating mind and body. Sessions include a guided meditation with Valerie June and Garth Trinidad, music and resilience with Esperanza Spalding and Novena Carmel, soothing DJ sets by Valida and Jeremy Sole, ambient music sets curated by dublab, animal cams, qigong, tai chi, yoga and story time with Bookworm's Michael Silverblatt.
COST: FREE with RSVP, but donations accepted; MORE INFO

Ongoing

The Drum Dances
Earlier this week, the American Contemporary Ballet released the first program in a series planned for ACBTV, its online media channel. The 13-minute piece originally opened the February 2020 staging of ACB's fan-favorite Astaire Dances, which was inspired by the legendary dancer (who was also a jazz drummer). ACB's resulting work features three ballets set to music by jazz drummer Ana Barreiro.
COST: $5 minimum donation requested; MORE INFO

Through Saturday, May 1

The Hotel Cafe: 20 Years in 20 Days!
The intimate venue celebrates two decades with music and appearances from more than 60 artists including Sara Bareilles, Tom Morello, Damien Rice, Imogen Heap. Rachael Yamagata. The shows stream daily on IGTV.
COST: FREE, but donations accepted; MORE INFO

Through Wednesday, May 5

The New Adventures of Super Indian
The Autry Museum's Native Voices play series goes virtual with a three-episode audio production based on Arigon Starr's (Kickapoo Tribe of Oklahoma) graphic novels. Follow the comic exploits of Hubert Logan aka Super Indian as he faces his enemies -- the ringleader of the Circle of Evil, a cursed vampire and a scheming social media influencer. The first episode is online now. More episodes will be released on April 21 and 28 at 4 p.m.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Outdoor Pick

Storrier Stearns Japanese Garden
270 Arlington Drive, Pasadena
This hidden garden is a great place to find your moments of zen. Created by Kinzuchi Fujii between 1935 and 1940, house rules include no phone calls, music or loud celebrations. Stroll through the one-way paths to view the pond, teahouse and 15-foot waterfall. It's open on Friday and Saturday nights and during the day on Sunday. Advanced reservations are required.

Streaming Pick

Ilana Glazer Presents Tight Five
If you miss the broads of Broad City, here's a new weekly digital comedy series from Ilana Glazer on Comedy Central's Stand-Up YouTube Channel. The nine-episode series features sets curated by Glazer. They're released on Tuesdays. The first episode is out now featuring New York-based Marie Faustin. Other comedians will include Alex English (4/20), Alison Leiby (4/27), Petey DeAbreu (5/4), Sydnee Washington (5/11), Shalewa Sharpe (5/18), Rojo Perez (5/25), Fareeha Khan (6/1) and Kristen Buckels & Lacey Jeka (6/8).

Dine & Drink Deals

Here are a few options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.

• Rad Brat in Dana Point is holding a Sausage Fest on Saturday, April 17, 11 a.m. - 10 p.m. Bust out the lederhosen and take part in stein-hoisting competitions while sampling German-style sausages and brews.
• Chef Roy Choi and Grammy award-winning band Portugal. The Man are teaming with Feed The Music to cook Choi's famous kimchi quesadilla -- for a good cause. Proceeds from the online class will fund a Kogi food giveaway in a community in need. Tickets are by suggested donation starting at $29.50.
• Bill Esparza's Taqueando presents six nights with chef John Sedlar, who brings back faves from his former DTLA restaurant Rivera. These include tortillas florales, duck confit enfrijoladas, caracoles (snails) and mole ice cream. The food is available for takeout, delivery and dine-in April 15 - 17 and April 22 - 24.
• In honor of Earth Day, vegan ice cream producer Brave Robot partners with Alfred Coffee (8428 Melrose Pl., Beverly Grove) to give away plant-based affogatos (that's coffee drizzled over ice cream). The treats are free while supplies last.
• Beloved Guatemala-based chicken chain Pollo Campero celebrates its 50th anniversary with sweet deals for guests who download the fast food brand's app and sign up for its loyalty program. Until Monday, April 19, get 50% off two sandwich meals. Next week, the app gives users half off two camperitos meals.
• U Street Pizza, from the team behind Union, just opened in Pasadena (33 Union St.) serving New York-style pies, salads and desserts. It's open daily, 4 - 10 p.m.
• Helene An's garlic noodles take centerstage at a new takeout and delivery concept, Noods. Customize your orders with sauces, toppings and sides, then pick them up at Crustacean in Beverly Hills from Thursdays to Sundays. If you're feeling extra splurgy, The Family Jewels (aka Noods and An's Famous Roasted Garlic Dungeness Crab) are also on the menu.
• With Black businesses more than twice as likely to close because of COVID-19, chef Marcus Samuelsson started the Black Businesses Matter Matching Fund. It connects Black-owned businesses to grants so the owners can pay bills, payroll and other debts. The latest restaurant to benefit from the campaign is Earle's on Crenshaw. The funding will help it continue its Earle's Cares community nonprofit and its Meatless Mondays partnership with local food carts and vendors.
• Chef Kuniko Yagi of Pikunico (the Japanese fried chicken concept at ROW DTLA) teams up with chef Jihee Kim of the Korean banchan pop-up Perilla LA for a special dish to be served exclusively at Pikunico from April 17 - May 1. Chicken Dupbap ($15) is made with Jihee's one-year aged kimchee, marinated kombu seaweed, sesame shishito peppers, Pikunico chicken tenders and seasoned egg, served over ginger rice. The dish is available for dine-in and phone orders for pick up only. Call (213) 278-0407 to order. Limited quantities.
• Bosscat Kitchen & Libations is now open in the city of Orange, taking over the historic Rod's Liquors building. The American comfort food menu is complemented by 300+ whiskies.
• Shake Shack opens a new Santa Monica location (501 Wilshire Blvd.) on Sunday, April 18. To celebrate the new store and to follow Shake Shack's mission to "stand for something good," every burger ordered on Sunday will see a burger donated to Westside Food Bank. The first 100 customers on Sunday who order in-Shack or via the app will receive 16 oz glass showcasing a Shake Shack tribute to the iconic Santa Monica ferris wheel.
• Taquero Mucho Downey (8260 Firestone Blvd.) opened last month specializing in tacos, tortas and guisados.
• In the mood for Brazilian food? The new Valeu Espetos in Montrose offers skewers, coxinha (chcken croquette), risoles (beef croquette), asa de frango (chicken wings in garlic sauce) and pastel (Brazilian-style empanada).
• The wine bar and eatery Wife and the Somm, from Chris Lucchese and Christy Lindgren Lucchese, is now open for business in Glassell Park. Many of their wines are from small and independent wineries and are meant to be paired with the restaurant's ever-changing dishes (charcuterie, crostini, meatballs, etc.).

We're highlighting the contributions of Black Angelenos -- in activism, music and art, sports, literature and more. This coverage is part of The 8 Percent, an extension of LAist's Race In LA which explores the inextricable ties between L.A. and its Black residents. These people are making meaningful contributions but not necessarily in the limelight. They may attract a level of celebrity in their communities and among their neighbors but they're not famous in a Hollywood sense. Nonetheless, we're taking time to amplify the notoriety of these changemakers. They're sharing the stories of what they've done and for whom -- unfiltered and in their own words.

Black feminist scholar Anna Malaika Tubbs was inspired to write to The Three Mothers: How the Mothers of Martin Luther King, Jr, Malcolm X and James Baldwin Shaped A Nation so she could explore the civil rights movement by looking at it through "the woman before the man." We talked to her about the experience of writing the book and how she has changed since she became a mother.

Listen to the radio story:

A CALL TO ADVOCACY

Q: When you think back to some of the people who have inspired how you see the world, who comes to mind?

My parents, in their very different ways, influenced my journey, including writing this book. My mom advocated for women's and children's rights everywhere that we went. She taught at different universities abroad. She is trained in international law, and she wanted to talk about those that had been forgotten, those that were being oppressed and those that we're fighting their own battles for freedom. She very specifically spoke about the importance of supporting women in order to support the community. She always said that if women are doing well in a community, then that community will do well, and if they are not, if they are being ignored, then that community will continue to struggle with whatever issue it is that they are facing.

Q: What does being an advocate mean to you?

Being an advocate means not only standing for somebody but standing and learning about experiences for yourself. It's saying, 'I'm gonna learn about this for myself, and I'm also going to consider what has already been done,' instead of just jumping in and thinking from the beginning you know what's best for that cause or that person simply because you have a degree. That was something that my mom always did very well, she would spend time just getting to know people before she proposed anything and she went to places that we're facing crisis -- she worked in Iraq, Afghanistan, in South Sudan -- because she wanted to know these places for herself and she wanted to meet the people [for herself].

WRITING 'THE THREE MOTHERS'

Q: What inspired you to write "The Three Mothers"?

When I started my Ph.D, all I knew was that I wanted to join other scholars who were correcting the erasure of black women's stories. I was really inspired by Margot Lee Shetterly's 'Hidden Figures.' I was also inspired by Isabel Wilkerson's 'The Warmth of Other Suns.' Both books speak to the importance of understanding the Black American experience in order to understand the American experience, in not only our history but where we find ourselves as a country today.

Q: Why did you decide to explore the civil rights movement through the lens of these three mothers' lives?

One area where we often speak about men as being leaders and celebrate men as leaders is the civil rights movement. I got really excited about the notion of the woman before the man. Before the man is even thought of, even conceived -- [the concept of] motherhood just stuck with me. I looked into several different men of the civil rights movement and their mothers before I came to the women that I study in the book: Alberta King, Berdis Baldwin and Louise Little. I chose them for several reasons. Their lives were just incredibly interesting from even the little I could find at the beginning. They were all born within six years of each other and their famous sons were all born within five years of each other. They represent the diversity in the nuance of the Black experience.

FIGHTING FOR WOMEN

Q: You've been an outspoken advocate for gender justice. In your role as First Partner of Stockton, you pioneered the release of the original Report on the Status of Women in Stockton in 2018. You also hired the city's first Gender Justice Officer. Talk to me about your role in that process and its legacy in the city of Stockton.

When my partner was the mayor of Stockton, and, even when he was running his campaign, I was by his side. We would go to all these debates and after each one we would talk about what went well and what could be improved. After each one, though, I was shocked that nobody was talking about gender, nobody was asking him or any of the other candidates what they were willing to do for women or what they were going to do to change the status of how women were doing in our community. I said to him, 'This is wrong. You are going to miss a huge piece of the puzzle if you don't have data, or if you don't focus on the issues that are specifically affecting women here.' To his credit, he said, 'You're right. You know more about this than I do. How do we start that?' And that's when I said let's start with getting numbers behind it.

Q: Why a report? Why tackle an issue many might say demands on-the-ground action by looking first to statistics?

So often women, especially women of color, who have been marginalized can say very clearly what issues they need help with, what they need support with, what policies need to change. But many [critics] will say, 'Oh you're exaggerating that.' There's this notion that you're being emotional. However, when and if there's a number behind it, if there's research behind it, we can say, 'Look at this data. Look how [women in Stockton] compare to women in the rest of the state, in the rest of the country, etc.' So we did this report to bring attention very specifically to the women in Stockton.

Q: What is one thing that resulted from that report you feel most proud of?

[We found that] one-third of households in Stockton with children under age 18 were helmed by single mothers. If we weren't coming up with policies that would help single mothers specifically -- maybe having some kind of child care pilot program or the universal basic income pilot program, that my husband has become well-known for -- we would not understand why there were gaps not being filled. So women, and specifically women of color, and single mothers started to become more of a focus of his work after the report.

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Q: You mentioned earlier that you felt called to address the erasure of Black women's stories. As a Black woman yourself, what was it like journeying through the lives of these women and working to put the pieces together about who they were as individuals?

Journeying through their lives was so powerful, and it's something that I'll carry with me for the rest of my life. I became frustrated that that people didn't already know these details about their lives. It's really shocking because of the very obvious and direct connections to their sons' works. Why didn't we already know this? Why were they being erased? Why were they being forgotten when they were clearly so important? That was really difficult for me, but I also felt honored that I was going to change that, and I was gonna share their names with the world as they should've already been.

PERSONAL GROWTH AS A NEW MOTHER

Q: In exploring the lives of "The Three Mothers" what did you learn about yourself?

I became a mother while writing this book. I started the research beforehand, but my second year into the research I found myself expecting my son. [My pregnancy] gave me a new layer of connection to [the mothers] because as much as I was overjoyed and excited, the fact of the matter is that it's very dangerous as a Black woman to have a child in the U.S. We are more likely to die in pregnancy and childbirth, whether or not we're educated, whether or not we have access to different resources and connections.

The American gynecological system is built on this notion that Black women are less than human, that they don't feel pain in the same way that other people do. It was literally built by experimenting on the bodies of enslaved women. We see remnants of that today when Black women say something is wrong, and they're not heard and many die as a result of that. I was terrified, but studying these women gave me hope and some feeling of power and agency. [I felt like] there were things I could do to be a part of changing the system and transforming it. I realize that Alberta, Berdis and Louise also knew tha, like themselves, their children were going to be seen as less than human. Instead of accepting that as something inevitable, they became part of the change. There is something very politicizing about Black motherhood because this is your most precious being, and you need to help the world see them in the same way that you do.

Q: What is the biggest lesson you have taken away from the process of writing "The Three Mothers"?

Writing this book taught me how powerful and influential and important my life is. And, I want more Black women to view themselves that way. It's not that we are allowing ourselves to be erased, because there's so many different factors that are playing a role in our erasure, but there is something that we can do about it. We need to share our stories. We need to be willing to take credit for our own contributions and kind of stand and say, 'I am here, and I deserve recognition.'

Q: Who did you write this book for, and what do you hope people who read it will take away?

This book is for everyone; there's something that everyone can gain from it. I hope that if you are a Black woman you feel celebrated and if you're not that you learn about us and our experiences and celebrate that. This is a time where more people are realizing that they need to learn more about us and how we've made it through. They're understanding that they need to do everything they can to make life easier for Black women in the U.S. today. But when I think about the three audiences that I carried with me in my heart as I was writing this book, first, 100% it's for Black women. This is a love letter to my community to celebrate us and our many different ways of living, loving and believing. Secondly, this is a celebration of motherhood. In so many ways, mothers are underappreciated, forgotten. Our contributions are taken for granted, and I wanted to change that. I want us to see the role of motherhood as powerful, influential, strong. Thirdly, it's for activists. I thought about activists a lot while writing this and celebrating the communities that raised us to be the fighters and the activists we are.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, the rise in hate crimes and incidents targeting the Asian American community has made national headlines and sparked widespread discourse.

Last month, the Center for the Study Of Hate & Extremism at Cal State San Bernardino reported a 145% increase in hate crimes targeting Asian Americans across America's 18 largest cities between 2019 and 2020, in a study that analyzed police data.

In the past month, Americans have rallied and protested after the March 16 Atlanta spa shootings left six women of Asian descent and two others dead. Federal investigators say they have not found enough evidence to charge the shooter with a hate crime, which has sparked discussions about what exactly hate crimes entail, and why prosecuting offenders on hate crime charges is challenging.

KPCC's AirTalk recently talked with Jerry Kang, distinguished professor of law and Asian American Studies at UCLA, to explain what constitutes a hate crime in California.

We've also included some additional information and resources.

WHAT IS A HATE CRIME?

The FBI defines a hate crime as "a traditional offense like murder, arson, or vandalism with an added element of bias." Federal statutes would prosecute a hate crime based on different protected categories, namely race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity, gender or gender identity.

Despite the federal legislation, states are left to create their own statutes, and these protected categories differ in each state. In the 47 states that have enacted hate crime laws, 17 do not require data collection on hate crimes, according to the Department of Justice.

California's own statutes recognize hate crimes as offenses "where a victim is singled out because of their actual or perceived disability, gender, nationality, race or ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, or association with a person or group with one or more of these actual or perceived characteristics."

These offenses can serve as a stand-alone crime, as an aggravating factor or as a sentence enhancement under the state's penal codes.

According to UCLA's Kang, hate crimes prosecuted at the state level generally have three elements:

• A "criminal act" was committed
• There is a causation between the crime committed "in whole or in part" and...
• The victim's "actual or perceived characteristics"

Some examples are offered in an LAPD circular on hate crimes:

• Acts which result in injury, even if the injury is slight
• Threats of violence that looks like they can be carried out
• Acts which result in property damage
• Any criminal act or attempted criminal act, including property damage, directed against individuals, public or private agencies

What's Not Considered A Hate Crime?

A lot of hate rhetoric is protected as free speech under the First Amendment. Therefore, it's difficult to make words criminally accountable unless it includes a direct threat.

However, Kang says if an attempted physical altercation includes such hate speech, even if the speech did not provoke the fight, such speech can be relevant in enhancing a criminal offense to a hate crime.

"Unfortunately, we have to distinguish between words on the one hand, and actual sort of physical behaviors on the other, at least in the criminal context," Kang says. "We should not assume criminal law fixes everything."

But Kang warns that words have an unconscious and explicit impact on the "milder states of mind." In other words, the widespread stereotypical jokes and jabs launched against a racial group can influence how someone might react toward that group.

"There are a bunch of stereotypes associated with the Asian American body that marks us as forever foreign, fungible, looking alike, submissive, unfair competitors," Kang told KPCC, "that come from centuries of treatment (and) that actually make it a little bit more likely that we are scapegoated."

This is exemplified by phrases like "you don't belong here" that were woven into racist letters that reached multiple Asian businesses across California last month. (The same phrase was used by a man who physically attacked a 65-year-old Filipino American woman in New York recently -- and who has been charged with a hate crime.)

In order for a perpetrator to psychologically prepare for a hate attack, Kang says there must be a cognitive engagement in racial blaming and racial dehumanization.

Those incidents that do not rise to the level of a hate crime are typically labeled a "hate incident." The federal Department of Justice defines a bias or hate incident as "acts of prejudice that are not crimes and do not involve violence, threats, or property damage."

The LAPD's circular on hate crimes and incidents denotes that "the difference between a hate incident and a hate crime is that a hate incident is not a criminal act." It lists these examples as hate incidents:

• Offensive materials such as hate flyers placed in mailboxes or thrown on lawns
• Hate materials, not resulting in property damage, such as demeaning caricatures depicting a racial, ethnic or a religious group
• Hate graffiti in public places not directed against a specific target such as an epithet on a vacant building

Hate incidents are tracked by some law enforcement and several NGOs.

How Do I Report A Hate Crime Or Incident?

If you believe you have been the victim of a hate crime, Kang recommends calling your local police department and using official channels to report crimes.

The Department of Justice calls on victims and eyewitnesses of hate crimes to report to local police and submit a tip to the FBI.

Currently, state lawmakers are aiming to resurrect past bills that expand state hate crime legislation. California Reps. David Chiu and Al Muratsuchi introduced a bill that would establish a statewide, toll-free hotline for reporting hate crimes.

For other incidents of hate, Kang suggests reporting them to community and advocacy organizations such as Asian Americans Advancing Justice.

"This might be especially useful if you think that the incident did not rise to the level of a crime but still should be recorded as an incident of hate," he said.

There is also an online hate tracker called Stop AAPI Hate, put together last year by the Asian Pacific Planning and Policy Council (A3PCON), Chinese for Affirmative Action and the Asian American Studies Department of San Francisco State University that encourages the reporting of hate incidents.

"I think part of our challenge," Kang said, "is to see where in our culture are we looking the other way when we tend to scapegoat certain populations, and tend to think of certain populations as other and not fully human."

To listen to Jerry Kang's conversation with Larry Mantle on AirTalk, click here.

SOME RESOURCES IF YOU EXPERIENCE HATE:

• Stop AAPI Hate
• LA vs. Hate
• 211 L.A. County Hate Crimes Reporting
• LAPD Hate Crimes Resource Pamphlet
• Anti-Violence Project
• California Department of Fair Employment & Housing Commission

In L.A. County there are, and have been for years, stark health disparities between Black families and those of other races.

Black babies born here are three times more likely than white babies to die before their first birthday, and Black moms are four times more likely than white moms to die of complications related to pregnancy and childbirth.

Research suggests the root cause is not any singular behavior, rather it's a lifetime of living with racism, an experience sometimes called "weathering."

"What that stands for is the idea that being a black woman in America is associated with such adverse experience that it ages you -- it ages you -- before your time," said Dr. Deborah Allen, deputy director of the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health during a press conference Monday.

Three years ago, the department committed to reducing the gap between Black and white infant mortality by 30% by 2023.

"Racism is so pervasive a social phenomenon in our society, that we can't make this a project, if you will, for one agency," Allen said. "This really has to be a movement, and it has to include all sectors in the county."

For a few examples of this effort, see our stories about midwives who are expanding options for birthing in South L.A. and doulas who've adapted to working during the pandemic.

"To call together this community has really been a labor of love," said Adjoa Jones, founding leader of the County's African American Infant and Maternal Mortality Community Action Team. "We can come together, we who are impacted by this issue, can come together and address this."

Part of this expansive effort is Black Maternal Health Week, a nationwide initiative created four years ago by the Black Mamas Matter Alliance to encourage "awareness, activism, and community building."

HERE ARE A FEW WAYS TO PARTICIPATE IN L.A.

Learn how to create family-centered care

TUESDAY, APRIL 13; 1 p.m. - 3 p.m.

Virtual event

Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist LeHenry Solomon moderates a conversation about doulas, fathers supporting mothers during labor, home visitation and the Black Daddy Dialogue support group. The conversation will also be livestreamed on Facebook. Here's MORE INFO.

Donate toys to South L.A. and South Bay families

TUESDAY, APRIL 13 and WEDNESDAY, April 14

The South Los Angeles/South Bay African American Infant and Maternal Mortality Community Action Team and the Casa Bella Foundation are collecting toys for kids 0-5 and gift cards (Target and Walmart suggested) for local families. Contact Dr. Erica Melbourne at 213-905-8861 before Thursday, April 15 at 5 p.m. to arrange a drop-off. Here's MORE INFO.

Meet Antelope Valley doulas

TUESDAY, APRIL 13; 12 p.m.

Virtual event

Learn about how doulas can support families in pregnancy, birth and postpartum. Hosted by the Antelope Valley African American Infant and Maternal Mortality Initiative. Here's MORE INFO.

Cook tasty and nutritious food for breastfeeding mothers

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14; 12 p.m.

Virtual event

Join the Kitchen Divas on Zoom to learn more about preparing meals and treats to nourish breastfeeding mothers. Presented by non-profit Black Women for Wellness. Here's MORE INFO.

Pick up some fresh produce in the San Gabriel Valley

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 14; 1 p.m. - 3 p.m.

Pomona Wellness Community-- 750 S Park Avenue Pomona, CA 91766

A drive-through giveaway of fresh produce, masks, hand sanitizer, home goods and baby supplies for San Gabriel Valley families that "identify as African-American, Black and/or African descent" with at least one child in the family. Here's MORE INFO.

Connect the dots between health disparities and solutions

THURSDAY, APRIL 15; 12 p.m. - 1 p.m.

Virtual event

A conversation about centering and improving outcomes for Black mothers between March of Dimes Greater Los Angeles' Mashariki Kudumu, Black Women for Wellness Executive Director Jan Robinson Flint, Frontline Doulas Co-Director Khefri Riley, Black Infant Health Long Beach Licensed Clinical Social Worker Angie Dixon-Hamlett and Riverside University Health System-Public Health's Stephanie Bryant. Here's MORE INFO.

Learn how collaboration can improve the health of Black families

THURSDAY, APRIL 15; 6 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.

Virtual event

A roundtable discussion between clinicians, family members, birth workers and advocates for Black maternal health hosted by March of Dimes Greater Los Angeles, Zeta Phi Beta, Inc. Pasadena chapter and Links, Inc. San Fernando Valley chapter. Join via Zoom meeting.

Honor lost pregnancies and babies

FRIDAY, APRIL 16; 9:45 a.m. - 10:45 a.m.

Virtual event

Join the Antelope Valley African American Infant and Maternal Mortality Initiative in remembering those lost in pregnancy and infancy. Here's MORE INFO.

Refill needed family supplies

FRIDAY, APRIL 16; 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Miller Family Health Education Center -- 3820 Cherry Ave. Long Beach, CA 90807

The Long Beach Black Infant Health program is giving away diapers, wipes, educational materials for kids and more. Participants must register on Eventbrite and can call or text 562-246-6218 with questions. Here's MORE INFO.

Get to know your pelvic floor

FRIDAY, APRIL 16; 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Virtual event

Learn how to prep your pelvic floor for labor, ask questions about preventing prolapse and tearing and more during this workshop from the Children's Collective Black Infant Health Program. Here's MORE INFO.

Love yourself

FRIDAY, APRIL 16; 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Virtual event

Self care...in this pandemic? Licensed clinical social worker and mental health entrepreneur Nakeya Fields leads a workshop on self-love, accountability, forgiveness and accessing mental health resources. Here's MORE INFO.

Amplify the experiences of Black mothers

MONDAY, APRIL 19; 2-3:00 p.m.

Virtual event

March of Dimes Greater Los Angeles Maternal and Infant Health Director Mashariki Kudumu and journalist Kimberly Seals Aller discuss how to uplift the stories of Black mothers and her new app, Irth, "a tool for Black and brown parents to use in creating accountability around bias and racism in maternity and infant care." The event is hosted by the Los Angeles Public Library with March of Dimes and the initiative Cherished Futures. Here's MORE INFO.

Listen to some podcasts

ANYTIME

NATAL describes itself as a "podcast docuseries about having a baby while Black." Co-Executive Producer Gabrielle Horton is an Inglewood native and season one features several Southern California voices. Here's MORE INFO.

I'm Just Saying - Two Black Women with Opinions is hosted by Jan Robinson-Flint and Adjoa Jones. Throughout Black Maternal Health Week they'll discuss topics including finance, healthy relationships, mourning, mental health and skincare. Here's MORE INFO

Today is a major milestone for kindergarteners and first graders at 61 LAUSD elementary schools, who are back in the physical classroom for the first time, after over a year of distanced at-home learning.

Also returning this morning are preschoolers at 11 of the district's 88 early education centers (we're talking 2 to 4-year-olds).

More kids will go back to their classrooms as the week progresses: Second and third graders on Wednesday, followed by older elementary students on Thursday.

Of course, school looks a lot different now -- students are all masked and spaced six feet apart. Teachers are figuring out new ways to correct papers and assignments while being mindful of their physical distance. Kids have to stay far apart from one another at recess, get their temperature checked and exit their classrooms slowly, one by one.

But human beings are nothing if not resilient.

At an elementary school in Lakeview Terrace, staff couldn't hold the hands of the youngest students to take them inside. So they used pool noodles to guide them into the classroom.

At Harding Elementary School in Sylmar, a first-grade teaching assistant used post-it notes to correct spelling, as a work-around to avoid writing directly on a student paper, which would mean getting closer than a few feet.

And there were still moments of joy.

Education reporter Kyle Stokes captured a classroom of kindgergarteners singing a good morning song together, for the first time in 13 months.

Here are some more photos/observations of the day from Kyle Stokes and early education reporter Mariana Dale.

To listen to our coverage from today, check out these reports on 89.3 KPCC from Kyle Stokes and from Mariana Dale.

And in case you missed it, here's the full reopening schedule for LAUSD:

• The week of April 12: Roughly 10% of LAUSD elementary and early education campuses reopen. (Here's a map of exactly which ones.)
• The week of April 19: The rest of LAUSD's 700+ elementary schools and early education centers welcome students back to classrooms.
• The week of April 26: LAUSD middle- and high schoolers return to in-person instruction.

READ MORE RETURN-TO-CAMPUS COVERAGE + OUR RESOURCES FOR PARENTS:

• Everything We Know About LAUSD's Plan To Reopen Schools In April
• LAUSD Reopens Campuses This Week -- Here Are All The Local Districts Doing The Same
• As Some Of LAUSD's Littlest Students Head Back To The Classroom, Here's How To Prepare
• A Look Behind The Scenes At Preparations To Reopen LAUSD Campuses

Gina Pollack, Kyle Stokes and Mariana Dale contributed this report.

By Maria Godoy and Richard Harris | NPR

Federal health officials have called for a pause in the use of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, after reports that six women who got the vaccine developed blood clots afterward. Close to seven million people have gotten this vaccine in the U.S. to date.

The state of California is abiding by the federal instruction and notes that only 4% of its current vaccine supply is from Johnson & Johnson. Anyone with an appointment at a city of L.A.-run site today will be offered either the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine. County facilities will contact patients who were slated to receive the Johnson & Johnson vaccine about rescheduling or providing a new appointment.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the blood clots are extremely rare but that it is reviewing the cases. Until that review is complete, the agency called for this pause in distribution "out of an abundance of caution."

So how worried should you be about these rare cases? And how would you know if you might be at risk? We have answers.

Who is being affected by these blood clots?

The clots that have been reported so far are in women between the ages of 18 and 48. Their symptoms emerged six-to-13 days after vaccination. However, at a press conference Tuesday, acting commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, Janet Woodcock, said at this point there's not enough information to say whether any particular subgroup is being affected.

Dr. Anne Schuchat, principal deputy director of the CDC, added that there are too few cases at this point to determine what specific risk factors might predispose someone to developing these clots.

What kind of clots are we talking about?

The FDA says the clots are a rare and severe type that happen in the blood supply that drains the brain. It's called cerebral venous sinus thrombosis or CVST, and it is being seen in combination with low levels of blood platelets (a condition called thrombocytopenia).

The symptoms of CVST vary but they can include headache, blurred vision, fainting or loss of consciousness, loss of control over movement in part of the body, seizures.

If you got the Johnson & Johnson vaccine recently, should you be on the lookout for symptoms? Which ones?

The CDC and FDA say these events appear to be extremely rare but generally occur one week to "not longer than three weeks" after vaccination. The FDA says if someone develops very severe headaches, abdominal pain, leg pain or shortness of breath within three weeks after getting the shot, they should seek medical attention and let doctors know they were recently vaccinated.

Many people who get vaccinated develop side effects within the first several days of vaccination, including flu-like symptoms and headaches, that are not serious, says Dr. Peter Marks, the director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research at the FDA. "It would be more important if someone reported to an emergency room with a very severe headache or blood clots," Marks says.

Health officials emphasize that these clots should not be treated the way other clots often are. Most importantly, Marks says doctors should avoid using heparin, a standard blood-thinning treatment, because in these clots it "can cause tremendous harm, or the outcome can be fatal."

But there is no simple substitute. Treatment needs to be individualized, the CDC's Schuchat says, because these patients don't simply have blood clots, they also have lower levels of platelets. And that can raise a person's risk of increased heavy bleeding, because it makes it harder for blood to clot.

Marks at the FDA says, ideally, patients with this rare condition should be referred to physicians experienced in treating blood clots. The need for this specialized treatment is one reason the CDC and the FDA saw an urgent need to get the word out about this rare combination of side effects.

Do doctors know what is causing these clotting events? What's the mechanism?

Scientists have a working hypothesis, but don't have complete answers. Marks at the FDA says the leading hypothesis is that, on rare occasions, the vaccine can trigger an undesirable immune response. So instead of simply prompting the body to produce antibodies that protect against the coronavirus, people also generate antibodies that affect blood platelets. That could explain why they are depleted among people with this rare condition.

Researchers in Europe noted this phenomenon among people who suffered similar side effects after receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine.

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

Reported and written by: Caitlin Biljan, Caitlin Hernandez, Zoe Ives, Giuliana Mayo, Jessica P. Ogilvie, Nubia Perez, Stefanie Ritoper, Peri Wallent.

Many Angelenos are facing difficulties getting their basic needs met as a result of the rapid changes brought about by the coronavirus. To help, we've compiled this list of resources that are offering financial assistance, food and more. If you have a question (or if you know a resource that should be on this list), please tell us.

This information does not constitute professional/legal advice. Check with individual resources for the most up-to-date information.

General Resources

• Call 211 or visit 211LA to find health, human and social services in L.A. County.
  
• Go to the L.A. County COVID-19 Disaster Help Center website, email disasterhelpcenter@lacounty.gov or call 833-238-4450 (weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) to get help. They help workers, businesses, nonprofits, renters and landlords navigate available assistance.
• Explore this L.A. County Public Health list of food, financial, health and other resources for L.A. county residents.
  
• Use this One Degree COVID-19 resource guide to find resources.
• Get a City of L.A. list of resources that provide support during this crisis.

Free Food

• Sign up for CalFresh benefits (it's a free, preloaded EBT card that you use for groceries).
• Use the 211LA FoodFinder map to locate free meals, including those for seniors and kids.
  
• Use the Los Angeles Food Bank Pantry Locator to find food pantries and food banks close to you.
  
• Use this LAUSD Grab & Go map to find locations where they offer free meals for students and community members. Anyone who arrives during open hours will be able to receive food.
  
• If you can't leave your house and need food or supplies, WDACS offers a Critical Delivery Service. If you have COVID and need to quarantine 14 days at home, you may qualify. You also qualify if you are 60 years and older, or have a permanent or temporary disability. If you need free food, they can bring you emergency dry food boxes or arrange for food bank delivery (if it's a simple pick-up/no-line situation). You can also pre-pay for prescriptions, groceries, restaurant food, cleaning supplies, etc. and they can pick those items up and deliver them to you for free. Call (888) 863-7411 (24 hours in advance is preferred) for delivery service. Get a detailed flyer and visit the WDACS website for more information.
• People4PeopleLA supplies groceries to "Black and POC, elder and immunocompromised families and individuals." Call (707) 390-0269 (Sundays noon to 4 p.m. and Mondays 2 to 4 p.m.) to make a request.
• L.A. Dream Center has 22 mobile food bank locations around the Los Angeles area on varying days/times. Any and all are welcome to come get free food. See their website for site times and locations.
• L.A. County has a list of locations where you can get free food, food delivery and other types of food assistance.
• If you are elderly or immunocompromised, you can get groceries delivered for free by Zoomers to Boomers, a free grocery delivery service provided by local high school students and young people.
  
• Here is a list of LA Area food bank contacts.
  
• There are additional food resources in other sections of this guide.

Unemployment Help

• If you have a frustrating or complex unemployment issue, call the Worker's Rights' Center EDD hotline at (916) 905-1625 to schedule an appointment to talk with their experts. They can help you get answers and movement regarding your EDD situation. We've heard from many people who have said this service really helped.
  
• Check out our LAist guide to applying for unemployment.
  
• This EDD FAQ page may help you.
  
• You can go to the L.A. County COVID-19 Disaster Help Center website, email disasterhelpcenter@lacounty.gov or call 833-238-4450 (weekdays 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.). They help workers, businesses, nonprofits, renters and landlords navigate available assistance.

Financial Assistance: Restaurant, Food Service, Hospitality

• The Restaurants Care Resilience Fund provides cash grants of up to $3,500 and a year of support to small restaurants in eight counties in California (including L.A.) with priority given to women and people of color. They also offer hardship grants for servers, cooks and dishwashers. Learn more and apply here (and soon!)
• If you are in the hospitality industry, you can apply for emergency relief funds via Another Round Another Rally. They have multiple funds including ones meant specifically for people of color. They also offer professional development grants and scholarships.
• If you are a food service employee and have experienced an unforeseen hardship, you can apply for various emergency funds shared by The California Restaurant Association.
• Southern Smoke has an emergency relief program for "those employed by or own restaurants or bars or are employed by a restaurant or bar supplier that are faced unforeseen expenses that cannot or will not be covered by insurance."
• One Fair Wage is offering free cash assistance to restaurant workers, delivery drivers and other tipped service workers.
• If you are a food and beverage service employee with children and are facing a health crisis and need support, you can apply for a grant from Children of Restaurant Employees (CORE). Qualifying events include but are not limited to (child or parent): COVID diagnosis, medical condition, injury/accident, death of immediate family, domestic abuse, natural disaster and more. Their grants cover medical bills for children, gas cards, groceries, clothing, medical supplies, therapies, utilities, rent and mortgage, and other essential needs. Apply for a CORE grant on their website or email info@COREgives.org.

Financial Assistance: Entertainment, Music, the Arts

• Apply for emergency financial assistance through the Actors Fund of America (they have partnered with other entertainment industry orgs). Funds are available for union and non-union workers in entertainment and the performing arts. They also have an unemployment resources page.
• The Motion Picture and Television Fund administers relief funds and supportive services (including help with health insurance, unemployment, mental health assistance, rent, food, and other essentials) for various entertainment industry guild and group members. To get help, email info@mptf.com or call (323) 634-3888 (if you're under 65) or (323) 634-3866 (if you're over 65 or need food delivery).
• If you're a music professional, you can apply for a COVID-19 relief grant for immediate financial support through Music Health Alliance. They also offer health insurance information and an emergency resource database with links to more funds. You can also apply for financial assistance from the Sweet Relief Musicians Fund.
• If you're a freelance artist (including but not limited to an actor, designer, producer, technician, stage manager, musician, composer, choreographer, visual artist, filmmaker, craft artist, teaching artist, dancer, writer, playwright, photographer, etc.), this aggregated list of free resources may help you.
• See a large list of emergency funding and artist resources from I Care if You Listen.

Financial Assistance: Child Care Providers

• Learn more about financial support and resources on the Child Care Heroes website.
  
  

Financial Assistance: Debt Relief and Interest-Free Loans

• Savi and Student Debt Crisis are offering help to folks who are having trouble paying their student loans because of the coronavirus' impact on their income.
• If you live in L.A. or Ventura, you can receive a 0-percent-interest, no-fee loan from the Jewish Free Loan Association. They offer interest-free loans for anything from everyday expenses such as rent and child care, to lost wages and wellness. You do not need to be Jewish to apply. Guarantors may be required.

Financial Assistance: Stimulus Packages

• Read Golden State Stimulus information.
• Go to the IRS page with stimulus information.

Rent Relief and Eviction Resources

• See our LAist guide on how to get help paying your back rent. It also includes links to many organizations that can help you with eviction and rent issues!

For Children and Families

• Child Care Alliance Los Angeles can help you find child care. Some programs include state preschool, child care subsidies through CalWORKs and federally funded Head Start and Early Head Start.
  
• Explore a map of providers that shows available spots near you for both private-pay and subsidized child care. It's updated twice a week, so be sure to call the place you're interested in first.
  
• If you are a child care provider, you can go to the Child Care Heroes site to link to the latest updates on operating guidelines, vaccine information, and financial and mental health support.
  
• Call the LAUSD Student and Family Wellness hotline at (213) 241-3840 (weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.) for support with mental health, health insurance, food, housing and more.
  
• See a list of family resources from the Partnership for Los Angeles Schools.
  
• Get a list of resources from First 5 LA for ECE professionals and LAUSD students/families that can help with virtual learning, food, child care and more.
  
• Get free tutoring (English and math, grades K-12) through the Southeast Community Foundation Enrichment Tutoring Academy. Learn more and register here.
  
• Check out our giant LAist guide of fun and educational online activities for kids.

Mental Health Help

• See our LAist guide to getting mental health help now.

Free Medication Delivery

• Rite Aid offers free delivery for eligible prescriptions.
• Walgreens offers free delivery for eligible prescription and purchases on Walgreens.com.
• CVS offers free delivery of prescriptions and everyday essentials.

For Those Unhoused

• Get L.A. County resources for the unhoused.
  
• Connect with Housing is a Human Right, Streetwatch LA, and KTown For All to get support and services. KTown For All regularly distributes zines that discuss current events that are impacting unhoused people. You can read their most recent zines here.
  
• Visit The Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority for a list of congregate shelters and interim housing for adults, families and youth in need of shelter. Here is their current interim housing list. Keep in mind, congregate shelters are shelters that house many people at once, oftentimes in the same space, so COVID risk may be a factor to consider.
  
• Dream Center offers transitional housing and a variety of residential programs. Learn more.
  
• See a directory of health resources.
  
• Find L.A. County handwashing stations with this map,
• Locate mobile shower units offered by The Shower of Hope.
  
• Get details about YMCA showers, bathrooms and lockers.
  
• If you need legal help, The Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA) provides direct legal services at a weekly legal clinic in Skid Row, and provides legal services in collaboration with homeless services providers to unhoused individuals and families to remove barriers to housing and income benefits.
  
• To find nearby internet hotspots, enter your ZIP code into the map here, and it may help.
  
• If you know someone who is unhoused and are concerned about them, LAHOP may be able to help. Contact their outreach team

For Those Undocumented

• See several funds that you can apply for that provide cash assistance, food and more, on The California Immigrant Resilience Fund website.
• Learn how to get cash aid, food, housing for agricultural workers and more on the Help for Immigrants page of the State of California COVID-19 website (choose "select language" to choose your preferred language).
• The California Immigrant Youth Justice Alliance has a large list of resources that can help with food, utilities, child care and more.
• See a big directory of COVID-19 funds and resources from Grantmakers Concerned with Immigrants and Refugees (GCIR).
• Use this crowd-sourced spreadsheet for immigrant resources by VietRise, a community organization based in Orange County. (Note: This is an external list that we have not vetted or updated.)
• Explore Relief Funds for Undocumented Workers in California from Legal Aid at Work (in Spanish and English)
• Learn more about your rights as an undocumented worker

How to Help Others

• L.A. County offers suggestions ranging from delivering food and giving blood, to doing wellness checks and assembling hygiene kits. Learn more
• The City of Los Angeles also has a page with opportunities ranging from food bank help and meal delivery, to neighborhood check-ins and virtual volunteering. Learn more.
  
• See a large list of ways you can support nonprofits, restaurants, stores, seniors, pet shelters and more via The Washington Post (no paywall).
  
• A while back, we shared a long list of ways you can help feed first responders. The list hasn't been updated in a while, so check in with each program for the most up-to-date information.
• Be a Neighbor connects community members with those who need volunteers (and vice versa).

LAist Guides for You

• How to (New) L.A.: Your Handbook for Daily Life - and All the Rapid Change - in Los Angeles
• A Step-by-Step Guide to Getting the Most Money Possible from Your Unemployment Benefits in California
• Need Some Mental Health Support? Start Here.
• You're About to be Eligible for a COVID-19 Vaccine in California. Now What?
• How to Schedule your COVID-19 Vaccine Appointment in L.A. (and across SoCal)
• How to Get the Second Dose of Vaccine - and Everything You Need to Know about It
• Like Everything Else, Applying To College Is Very Weird Now. Here's How To Do It

If you have a question (or know a resource that should be on this list), please tell us.

Among the Los Angeles Unified School District campuses reopening Tuesday are 11 of the district's 88 early education centers, attended by kids 2 to 4 years old.

More than three-quarters of early education center families enrolled filled out the return to campus form, and 40% of those want their children to continue learning online, while 60% opted for in-person instruction, according to a Los Angeles Unified spokesperson.

With kids under 5 returning to the classroom -- some in person for the first time -- get ready for Big Feelings from adults and little ones alike.

"Changing something that we've done consistently for a year and a half is going to be a disruption for the whole family," said Altadena licensed clinical social worker and counselor Nakeya Fields.

We asked Fields and a few other local experts about what families can expect as they transition their children back to preschool, and what they can do to prepare.

For tips on helping older children get ready for school, take a look at this story.

PARENTS AND CAREGIVERS, LET'S TAKE A MINUTE

Sending a kid off to school or daycare for the first time could be an emotional ride even in the Before Times.

Add constantly shifting public health guidelines and the will-they-won't-they-when-will-they of school reopening in these pandemic days, and "it's also very normal and natural to be pretty frustrated," said licensed psychologist Chris Leucht, who directs the birth to 5 program at behavioral health non-profit Pacific Clinics.

"The first thing would be for parents to check in on their own feelings, and try and manage those so that they can be there for their kids," Leucht said.

It can be as simple as having a conversation with another adult and dropping in a "can I take a minute and tell you how I'm feeling about (child's name) going back to school?"

"Just in the process of talking about it, we realize feelings that were there, but we weren't really aware of them," Leucht said.

TAKE A (VIRTUAL) TOUR

"The more familiarity kids have with what's going to happen, and where, the better," Leucht said.

While an in-person tour of the school might not be an option, talk to your child's teacher about taking a virtual visit to their new classroom. Some schools have already posted videos on their websites.

There will also be some new procedures to learn. Students at LAUSD's early education centers will need to stay at least six feet apart from their peers and teachers.

But what does six feet mean to a 3-year old?

District early education teacher Maria Gutierrez uses examples, like the length of a comfy couch or two big dogs kissing, to help children understand social distancing.

"We are still going to have fun, but in a different way," Gutierrez said.

For example, instead of hugging a classmate hello, she's talking to students about different, less-touchy greetings like waving air hugs, blowing kisses and peace signs.

Maria Gutierrez is participating in an ongoing LAist project that invites caregivers to document their lives through photos. Check out year one of the project, Parenting: Unfiltered.

NEW ROUTINES

You might have heard a lot about routines and why they're so important to help young kids navigate the world.

A new one to establish is how you'll say goodbye to your child at the start of the school day.

Leucht suggests something "caring and consistent and predictable, and hopefully also brief." He said it's normal for a child to cry for five to 15 minutes afterward, and in his experience, a long goodbye doesn't reduce the tears.

Fields said the start of school is an opportunity to remind kids that even though they may be apart from you for several hours during the day, there's a safe and predictable time to be together each week.

"Identify things where the children have space, where they know they belong," Fields said.

She suggests picking an activity to remind them of that's both easy to commit to and look forward to each week. Examples include family movie night, listening to a favorite music playlist together, walking or gardening.

MAKE SCHOOL SOUND FUN

"Kids really take a lot of cues from their caregivers about how to react to things," said Leucht, of Pacific Clinics. "And if the caregivers are really positive and excited and enthusiastic, more often than not, kids will follow that lead."

Talking with enthusiasm about the friends they'll meet or what they'll learn is one way to help kids get excited about the upcoming transition.

GRACE, PATIENCE AND COMPASSION

Everyone LAist talked with acknowledged that this time of transition will come with challenges and frustrations -- and may lead to moments we'd like to take back.

That's OK.

"Just take a deep breath and acknowledge how you feel," Fields said. "Reaffirm that it was a lesson versus you're a bad person because that happened. Reaffirm that it was something that you were supposed to learn because you experienced it and then move on from it."

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

Watch Brandi Carlile play the Gaylywed Game. Hear from a pioneering shark expert. Relive your favorite moments from The Office's first episode. Sample some delicious dishes at a Thai New Year pop-up. Celebrate Earth month at an environmental film festival. Help destigmatize "that time of the month" with Period Piece.

Monday, April 12; 5:30 p.m.

DeRay Mckesson: Building Power for Racial Equity and Social Justice
The California Endowment hosts a virtual evening with the activist, educator and author who'll discuss his journey from middle school math teacher to civil rights leader and police reform advocate. Mckesson shares his insights and thoughts on a number of topics including the impact of the pandemic on Black and Brown communities and the possibility of ending police violence in the United States.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Monday, April 12; 5 p.m. PT

Behind the Book: How Music Can Make You Better
CaltechLive! continues its author series with neuroscientist and opera singer Indre Viskontas. She discusses her book, which investigates what music is and how it can improve us, with Maia Jasper White, Caltech's director of chamber music. An audience Q&A follows.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Mondays, April 12, 19 and 26; 5 p.m. PT

Period Piece
More than 60 performers and playwrights are joining together to help destigmatize a monthly event for half of the world's population. Yes, we're talking about menstruation. Conceived by playwright and screenwriter Susan Cinoman (TV's The Goldbergs), this original work will be streamed for three performances. Each night features 12 different monologues performed by 12 different actors. Participants include Mandy Moore (This Is Us), AJ Michalka (Aly & AJ), Carmen Carerra (RuPaul's Drag Race), Nicole Lynn Evans (Superstore), Agneeta Thacker (Netflix's Dash & Lily), Sara Chase (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt), Shahadi Wright Joseph (Jordan Peele's Us) and playwright Lauren Gunderson.
COST: $20 or $40 for all three nights; MORE INFO

Monday, April 12; 7:15 p.m.

Pacific Virtual StorySLAM: EARTH
Since April is Earth month, this virtual edition of The Moth's storytelling night features tales about communing with nature, digging through dirt, saving the planet and wild encounters. If you have a five-minute story to share, put your name into the storyteller's hat for a chance to be selected.
COST: $10; MORE INFO

Monday, April 12; 6 p.m. PT

Diane von Furstenberg in conversation with Bozoma Saint John
Live Talks Los Angeles welcomes the fashion designer, entrepreneur and philanthropist who talks about personal growth and her new book, Own It: The Secret to Life. Von Furstenberg will talk with Bozoma Saint John, global chief marketing officer at Netflix. (Later this week, Live Talks LA welcomes Admiral William H. McCraven to discuss his new book with actor Mark Harmon of NCIS.)
COST: $34 (includes a signed copy of the book); MORE INFO

Monday, April 12 - Friday, April 23

Earth Focus Environmental Film Festival
KCET, PBS SoCal and Link TV present a virtual version of the environmentally focused film fest. It opens with the West Coast premiere of Playing With Sharks, which tells the story of pioneering scuba diver, marine conservationist and shark expert Valerie Taylor. The film is followed by a discussion with writer/director Sally Aitken, creator/producer Bettina Dalton and Taylor.
COST: $10 - $45 (all-access pass); MORE INFO

Monday, April 12; 6:30 p.m. PT

Sharon Stone with Anderson Cooper
Writers Bloc presents an evening with actress Sharon Stone who discusses her book, The Beauty of Living Twice, with CNN's Anderson Cooper. In this memoir, Stone discusses her triumphs and disappointments, her struggle to recover from a massive stroke and her charity work for HIV/AIDS causes and poverty and education in Africa. Attendees are asked to support authors and local bookstores by preordering a copy of The Beauty of Living Twice from Skylight Books.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 13; 5 p.m. PT

The Gaylywed Game feat. Brandi & Catherine Carlile vs. Glennon Doyle & Abby Wambach
Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, musician and producer Brandi Carlile is in the middle of a virtual book tour for her just-released memoir, Broken Horses. In partnership with Book Soup, the L.A. event features Leslie Jordan hosting a gaylywed game that pits Carlile and wife Catherine vs. soccer star Wambach and her spouse, Doyle. Tickets to this event include a copy of the book. The stream will be available to view until 11:59 p.m. on April 27.
COST: $33 - $58; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 13; 6:30 p.m. PT

TV Pilot Club (The Office): An LAist Virtual Event
A cringey boss, a drab corporate setting and a bunch of quirky co-workers make for a compelling and way-too-relatable half hour. TV junkies can join LAist's Mike Roe and special guests for a look back at all the camera confessionals, love triangles and eye-rolling moments that made The Office a hit. Rewatch the pilot before the event.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 14; 8 a.m. - 5 p.m.

COVID-19 Vaccination Pop-Up Event
Historic Filipinotown
Ava Duvernay's nonprofit Array Alliance partners with the Center for Family Health & Education to host a COVID-19 vaccination event. The pop-up site will administer a limited number of vaccinations for L.A. County residents who meet the current eligibility requirements (Phase 1A, 1B, or age 50+). Advanced registration is required for morning or afternoon appointments. Location will be provided upon registration.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 14; 5 - 6 p.m. PT

Stories from The Great Wall of Los Angeles
Artist Judy Baca discusses her art practice and her plans to extend her mural, The Great Wall of Los Angeles, in the Tujunga Wash. Officially named The History of California (1976-84), the half-mile-long artwork explores California, from prehistory through the mid-20th century. The Lucas Museum houses the mural's archive, which includes more than 350 objects from blueprints to concept drawings, as well as notes and correspondence. Baca will talk with the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art's Sandra Jackson-Dumont and Pilar Tompkins Rivas. Watch live on the Lucas Museum's YouTube channel.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 14 - Sunday, April 18

Virtual KATG Week 2021
The long-running, Queens-based comedy podcast Keith and The Girl, hosted by Keith Malley and Chemda, hosts a series of virtual events this week to celebrate its 16 years and second year of remote recording. Attend a live KATG episode recording (online), a Silent Trailers Game Show livestream, a movie night with commentary or game night.
COST: $10 - $30 per event; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 14; 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. PT

National Geographic Live: Women and Migration
In 2019, more than 270 million people, nearly half of them women, were living in countries other than the one where they were born, according to the International Organization for Migration. Many were forced to leave their homes because of famine or violence. The Broad Stage online holds a visual presentation about women and migration, followed by a live conversation with the photographers.
COST: Tickets start at $20; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 14; 3 - 6 p.m. PT

Bands on the Bay
San Pedro Fish Market Alamitos Bay
6550 E. Marina Dr., Long Beach
The fish market presents a series of live music throughout the month featuring acoustic performers and cover bands. This Wednesday, guests are invited to enjoy fresh seafood on the restaurant's expansive patio while listening to tunes from The Killer Lips.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 15; 1 p.m. PT

Race and Sports: Collective Athlete Activism
On Jackie Robinson Day, the Rose Bowl Institute continues its Dialogues on Race and Sports series with a panel discussion on collective athlete activism. Participants include L.A. Dodgers President Stan Kasten, CEO and President of LaChica Sports Angela LaChica, Penn State educator Amira Davis and former pro softball player Kiki Stokes. The discussion will be moderated by journalist Juan Williams.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Thursdays, April 15, 22 and 29; 6 p.m. PT

Our L.A. Voices: A Pop-up Arts+Culture Fest
Grand Park's annual spring arts experience takes place online this year for three consecutive Thursdays with programming that showcases the richness of L.A.'s arts community. DJ Lani Love kicks off the festival with a live hip-hop set featuring tunes from the Vietnamese diaspora.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 15

LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes Reopening
501 N. Main St., downtown L.A.
While LA Plaza continues its online programming, the museum and cultural center reopens to the public on Thursday for limited-capacity attendances.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Through Saturday, May 1

Under Construction: The Long Beach Port in Paintings and Photographs
The LBCG/Rod Briggs Gallery
2221 E. Broadway, Long Beach
View a group show of paintings and photographs that document the construction of the recently completed Gerald Desmond Replacement Bridge in Long Beach. Four artists (Helen Werner Cox, Kathryn Babcock, Sarah Arnold and Liz Talbot), who spent three years focusing on bridge construction, and two crane operators (Paul Trinidad and Nick Santa Ana) present photos from their perches. The works are available to view online or in-person (with COVID protocols in place).
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Through Saturday, May 15

15-Year Anniversary Group Exhibition
Corey Helford Gallery
571 S. Anderson St., Boyle Heights
The gallery presents the first installment of a two-part anniversary show. View new works by more than 100 international artists including Arturo Garcia de las Heras, Ben Frost, Buff Monster, Camilla d'Errico, Christybomb, D*Face, DOSSHAUS, Eric Joyner, Hikari Shimoda and Yang Cao. View the works online or in person from Thursdays to Saturdays, 12 - 6 p.m. Mask-wearing and social distancing in the gallery are mandatory.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Streaming Pick

Younger
For its seventh and final season, Darren Star's series starring Sutton Foster as a 40-something mom trying to re-enter the workforce by posing as a millennial, moves from TV Land to Paramount+ and Hulu. Four episodes of season 7 are being released on April 15, with a new episode released each Thursday. The cast includes Hilary Duff, Peter Hermann, Nico Tortorella, Debi Mazar and Miriam Shor.

Dine & Drink Deals

Here are a few newsy notes and options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.

• Summer Social Club at Employees Only features a pop-up on Wednesday, April 14 to celebrate Songkran (Thai New Year) with chefs Justin Pichetrungsi of Anajak Thai, June Intrachat of OTUS Thai Kitchen & Coffee and Dan Rabilwongse of Tartine Sycamore. Part of the proceeds will be go to AAPI nonprofits. Employees Only is partnering with Pernod Ricard to create two Asian-inspired cocktails to complement the chefs' menu. Make reservations on Resy.
• Nomad Eatery in El Segundo also opened last week with Mediterranean, Southeast Asian and Latin American flavors. Highlights include a whole branzino with pickled daikon and carrots, a deconstructed lomo saltado and a crisp chili relleno paired with jalisco rice and lime crema.
• Botanica Restaurant & Market in Silver Lake recently reopened for coffee and sweets (by day) as well as cocktails, natural wines and dining al fresco (by day and night). The market is stocked with more than 25 different products from women-owned small businesses.
• The Institute of Culinary Education holds a number of virtual recreational cooking classes this month, from baking fundamentals to vegan menus. Online workshops this week include Galette Baking on Tuesday, April 13, and on April 14 explore spice blends from different countries with labneh dip with pita (za'atar) and Jamaican jerk chicken with rice and peas (jerk seasoning). $50 per class. Instructions and an ingredients list will be sent ahead of time.
• Kura Revolving Sushi Bar opened its latest location last week. It's at the Westfield Fashion Square in Sherman Oaks. The restaurant offers Japanese cuisine and sushi free of artificial sweeteners, seasonings, preservatives and colorings.
• Enjoy rooftop cocktails at the recently opened Bar Bohemien, which sits atop the Citizen Public Market in downtown Culver City. Grab a bite to eat from the food hall below and enjoy the views from the roof.

WE LOVE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

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Back in the fall, Los Angeles County firefighter Mickey Juarez was sitting in his garage with his friend talking about COVID-19.

News about a potential vaccine had been ramping up nationally and Juarez was considering whether to get it. At his friend's urging, they turned on a podcast.

"He just asked me to listen to what they had to say before I got the vaccine," said Juarez.

"It was a guy speaking regarding the way the government works."

When we spoke he couldn't remember which show it was, but Juarez described the guy on the podcast as an "advocate for people's rights," who used the interview to question the safety of the vaccine and the government's true intentions. It was enough to send him down an online rabbit hole searching for what he thought to be the little-spoken, unpopular truth.

He wondered if the virus was made in a lab, if the whole crisis was manufactured by the government and pharmaceutical companies. And he wondered if, with his preexisting lung condition, the vaccine would do more harm to him than good.

He was set on not getting the shots.

Juarez wasn't the only firefighter consumed by conspiracy theories and worries. "You know, I get a lot of firefighters sending me YouTube videos from all over the place," said Dr. Clayton Kazan, Los Angeles County Fire's medical director.

"The ones that stand out are the concerns around infertility, that the vaccine causes lower sperm counts," he said.

Side note: it doesn't, though it's possible that COVID-19 can lead to inflammation of the testes.

Last fall, L.A. County Fire and the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health surveyed the organization's 4,900 employees and found that roughly 45% of them didn't want to get the vaccine. That was similar to nationwide numbers from around that time.

A THREAT TO FIREFIGHTING RESOURCES

We're in for a whopper of a fire season as California enters its second year of drought, and we'll need as many firefighters as we can get. The more that opt out of the vaccine, the more that are vulnerable to getting sick, and the more that are likely to be out at any one time when the virus spreads through a station.

That's what happened last year.

Over at Cal Fire Riverside, roughly 30% of firefighters were out because of COVID-19 during the December surge. Employees were forced to fill the empty shifts, some working for weeks at a time. Not only did they have to deal with a large number of sick patients, putting their own lives at risk, but they had to deal with the tail end of fire season as well.

That led to burnout, and noticeable depression, anxiety, and angst amongst employees, according to Gad Amith, Cal Fire Riverside's emergency medical services battalion chief.

That's a continued threat this year as well.

FIGHTING MISINFORMATION

L.A. County's Kazan and his colleagues knew that if they wanted to convince their people to get protected they had to break through the misinformation.

They needed to be clear about what the science said and to push back against spurious claims, while keeping an open, non-judgemental dialogue with those who were willing to talk about their concerns.

"We were all over them from about the end of November on, about explaining the science, answering questions, doing live Q&A ... and putting out videos and linking to things and trying to compete against the noise of some of these social media rabbit holes," said Kazan.

Besides the barrage of information, they settled on one other idea as well.

If a firefighter wanted to refuse the vaccine, L.A. County Fire made it so they couldn't just not show up, or casually check off a box online. The firefighters instead would have to leave the bubble of their fire house, drive to a vaccination site, and decline in person.

"If you're sitting at a station with five people who are all kind of grumpy and don't want to get it, it's a lot easier to say no than when you have to show up to an area where you see your friends stepping up and taking it. And now you have a chance to ask your questions. And maybe you'll just kind of roll your eyes and roll up your sleeve," said Kazan.

That approach is "brilliant," said Alison Buttenheim, who studies vaccine acceptance at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing.

"There's at least two things going on there," she said.

They've "reframed the default as everyone's going to get vaccinated, and choosing to do something else actually requires additional effort. Now the easiest thing to do is just to show up and get vaccinated," Buttenheim said.

And then there's the added social pressure of having to publicly show your peers at the vaccination site that you're doing something different from them.

"We not only don't want to be different, but when we have a new decision ... or a decision where we're really info overloaded, one of the shortcuts we take is just to look around and see what everybody else is doing. That's one of the ways we make it easier on ourselves to make a decision," she said.

When asked if L.A. County Fire had considered all of the above when working up its strategy, Kazan laughed and asked, "So we stumbled upon genius?"

WAS THE EFFORT WORTH IT?

The approach seems to have worked across the department.

As of late March, Kazan estimates that about 70% of L.A. County's firefighters have gotten the vaccine, much more than Orange County's 53% or New York City's 49%.

He's quick to point out that other firefighting forces have tried similar moves and been less successful. It should be noted that vaccine hesitancy has been falling over time as trust in the vaccine has grown.

Some firefighting organizations aren't tracking their vaccination rates, most notably Cal Fire, the largest firefighting force in the state that not only helms much of our wildland fire response but also acts as many cities' local fire department.

"They're not required to get it, so we don't ask them if they got it because that's a personal choice of their own," said Cal Fire Battalion Chief Nick Schuler.

"I want to be clear," he said. "I'm not saying that we have a large group that's not vaccinated. I don't know that to be true."

During a conversation with Amith from Cal Fire Riverside, he estimated that fewer than half of his firefighters had opted in to getting the vaccine.

He was frustrated and said that he too had spent time speaking to firefighters about vaccine safety and the implications of an unvaccinated work force.

"I think, generally, some of our employees are distrustful of authority, they're distrustful of government," Amith said. "And they elicit their information from social media outlets like Facebook, and YouTube, and Twitter. And I think that some of what has been described to me by the employees is outright reckless."

JUAREZ CHANGES HIS MIND

As for Juarez, the firefighter who said he'd never get vaccinated, he was actually among the first wave of people to get a shot in late December. It was one of Dr. Kazan's videos that changed his mind.

It was a surprising about-face that Juarez said was a direct result of honest communication from someone he'd grown to trust. Juarez contracted Valley Fever a few years ago while on the job, and Kazan looked after him, checking in regularly even though he didn't have to.

It wasn't hearing Kazan talk about the potential side effects of the vaccine that fully convinced him, Juarez said. It was that the vaccine could potentially stop him from unwittingly transmitting the virus to his ailing father.

"Although I don't agree with everything, I do trust what [Kazan] says," he said.

Juarez is confident he made the right decision, because a week or so after he got his shot, he contracted COVID-19. His preexisting condition meant he could have gotten extremely sick and died, but instead he recovered. He believes the vaccine offered him some level of protection -- and potentially saved his life.

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

This is the second in a series of stories on how different communities around L.A. County have weathered the pandemic. Our first story profiled Burbank's Magnolia Park.

In the South L.A. neighborhood of Leimert Park, nearly 80% of the residents are Black -- making it one of the few majority Black neighborhoods in the county and a cherished enclave.

Three years ago, Leimert Plaza Park was fenced off by the city for a restoration project. The park's gates don't open much these days. The office of Councilmember Mark Ridley-Thomas says it's still working to find shelter for unhoused residents living around the park, a process that could take months, if not longer.

Leimert residents have mourned the temporary loss of a space known for hosting festivals, talks and street vendors. But just north of the park, around Degnan Boulevard, you'll still find a panoply of Black-owned restaurants, clothing stores, health stores and vendors.

Sunday is the time to be there. You'll probably get a chance to listen to a drum circle, or catch a fashion show or a concert. Once, someone hosted a homegoing ceremony for their mom. Film crews routinely take over the whole strip (HBO's "Insecure" was there recently).

Locals confirm what's already clear: business is booming.

ACKEE BAMBOO

Growing up in Jamaica, Marlene Beckford always had food on her mind. She remembers using what was on hand, such as flour, green bananas, and yams to "run boat," a patois phrase meaning to put together a quick meal.

"Even as children, as long as we have a little flour we could make our dumplings." Beckford said. "As a teenager ... I would buy pots and pans and I would store them under my bed."

Beckford moved to the United States in 1977 and began working for Kaiser Permanente. Her dream, though, was to share Jamaican spices and flavors, like "ackee," a soft, yellow fruit with the texture of avocado. It's the main ingredient in the country's national dish, ackee and saltfish.

When her kids were still young, Beckford quit her job and opened Ackee Bamboo, a Jamaican restaurant on Degnan Boulevard. Sixteen years later, she's something of a Leimert fixture.

"We keep pushing and we're still here," Beckford said.

The beginning of the pandemic was scary, she said. The landlord of the building that's home to Ackee Bamboo posted a notice saying everything would be shut down.

"I thought to myself, Well, what are we going to do? I have a mortgage. I have a staff that relies on us," Beckford said. "I decided, no, we're not going to do that."

Beckford checked the L.A. County health guidelines and pushed back against the landlord, who relented. She was allowed to stay open for takeout and delivery, which went pretty well at first.

Then last summer, the Black Lives Matter protests and Juneteenth celebration brought thousands of people to Leimert Park.

"Then we got a tweet out from Beyoncé and that was another blessing," Beckford said. "We couldn't stop because, how could you deny your blessings?"Ackee Bamboo has been able to keep staff on throughout the pandemic. At this point, Beckford is optimistic about the future of her restaurant, and the new businesses opening up around her.

"It's all positive," Beckford said. "But our mindset has to be positive too, towards all the changes that are coming."

SOLE FOLKS

A few doors down from Ackee Bamboo is one of those new businesses: the clothing store cooperative Sole Folks, which sells the work of Black designers. It opened last Juneteenth, filling a void in Leimert Park by offering streetwear styles for the "younger generation in the community," its website says.

Brand Manager Ferriss Mason decides what the store carries.

"I just feel like it's my divine purpose to be of service to my community -- Black people," she said.

At first, Sole Folks was selling six brands. Now, it's up to 40. Some designers are making around $4,000 a month, according to Mason.

"The pandemic has helped put a highlight on the community," she said. "It's been a really good thing, actually."

Designers selling through Sole Folks, including Mason, have received grants from businesses to help them through the past year. Sole Folks has become a neighborhood presence, hosting weekend events, such as a recent fashion show.

And Sole Folks is expanding. This summer, it plans to launch an incubator program for young Black entrepreneurs. There's also a juice bar in the works.

"People know, if you want to be around like-minded creatives ... this is where you come," Mason said.

GRANDMA'S REMEDY

Brick-and-mortar stores are one part of Leimert Park's business community. The street vendors are also central to the neighborhood's identity.

Down the street from a recent Sole Folks fashion show, vendor W.L. Jackson, Jr. was selling cannabis.

"You have people that just cook food, people that make clothes, people that deal with literature," he said. "We all represent Leimert as a whole."

Jackson, who goes by Lay Low, has been in the cannabis business for eight years. His brand is called Grandma's Remedy.

"Everybody's grandma has some type of remedy," he said. "If you look at my logo, it's a grandma with no face. So when you look at her, you see your grandma."

Jackson grows his own organic plants in an L.A. greenhouse, with no animal products -- except for ladybugs that eat pests.

"I only enter the greenhouse if I'm happy," he said. "So no bad vibes or nothing like that."

Jackson started selling his cannabis in Leimert six months ago, at the invitation of other vendors. Coming from the Watts area, several miles south, he hardly knew anyone and felt intimidated. The pandemic helped him get a foothold, Jackson said, by slowing people down.

"It allowed me to mingle and get around folks that usually ... wouldn't have looked at me," he said.

A few weeks ago, Jackson sold a $75 joint, the VIP CEO premium, to a producer who's worked with Kanye West. That's the sort of clientele he's hoping to cultivate by staying in Leimert as COVID-19 restrictions are eased.

"A lot of new buildings are being built, a lot of new people coming out from every different background," Jackson said. "The point is, Leimert is getting bigger, it's getting better, and it's prospering as a community."

By the end of this year, the new Crenshaw/LAX Metro line is supposed to be finished, including a Leimert Park stop. For some, there's trepidation about rents going up.

Jackson, though, is excited about the neighborhood's future. He welcomes people of all backgrounds to visit -- and spend money.

Since June 2020, we've asked for your stories about how race and ethnicity shape your life and and published as many of these stories as we can. We call this year-long effort Race in LA. Click here for more information and details on how to participate.

By Yiming Amy Hua

In the summer of last year, I packed up my things and moved across town to a quaint apartment with high ceilings and an abundance of light.

After years of being house rich but cash poor, having spent my life savings on a condo I struggled to afford, I sold my home in Van Nuys to start fresh. Mid-pandemic might not have been the best time to move, but it felt like the right decision for where I was in my life.

It wasn't that hard to decide where to move. I missed the Asian flavors I grew up with, and I wanted to have more grocery stores to choose from than the single 99 Ranch Market on Sepulveda. The way I saw it, the San Gabriel Valley was too far, and the Westside was too expensive, so I landed on Koreatown. The local H Mart has a lot of ingredients for Chinese cooking, I figured, and I love Korean food in its own right!

There was another reason I chose Koreatown, though, which I told very few people at the time: I thought I would be safer here.

Last year opened my eyes to the ways that racism is threaded into our collective experiences of space. It isn't as though I wasn't aware of it to some degree in the past, but I didn't understand how subtle it could be, and how some of the most endemic parts of racism were the hardest to see and fight.

I started experiencing more overt racism in my old community after Trump was elected in 2016, like having "Go home, chinky!" shouted at me by angry men in trucks in nearby Sherman Oaks. Then last year, like many people, I felt the tension increase thanks to rhetoric like "Kung-flu" and blaming Chinese people for causing the coronavirus by eating bats.

On a couple of occasions, I overheard conversations about conspiracies like how the virus was coming in on shipping containers from China, not American travelers abroad. The sentiment was that they needed to avoid things from China. There were a few Trump 2020 signs in the windows around my old neighborhood, and this made me feel uneasy and worried about potential bad interactions. From what I saw in the media, I got the impression that Trump supporters were often the ones spreading this hateful rhetoric.

It felt like the anti-Asian sentiment was growing, and I didn't want to be cornered by racism. So when it came time to decide where I wanted to call my new home, I wanted to be near other Asian people -- safety in numbers, I thought.

'I ACCEPTED THIS AS NORMAL'

In this past year, as anti-Asian hate has escalated, I've also begun to own the part I played in fueling the system.

One piece of my complicity is in accepting the objectification of Asian women, and thinking that the "good" racial stereotypes were worth holding onto, because it seemed better than just experiencing hate. These are things I'm only now finding words for.

In many ways, I was just playing along because I was taught that this is how you survive in a hostile world. The subconscious thought was, If I accept this reality, it will cause me less pain. But that's not true.

I'm an immigrant, born in China, and raised in Canada since the age of 3. I have an English name, given to me by my parents when I started school and, eventually, I associated more with my English name than the one I was born with.

My name is a form of armor, and the first way that I assimilated into this new culture. It has protected me and offered the privilege of entry to spaces I may have felt less welcome in without it.

There is a kind of relief I see on some faces when I say, "You can call me Amy." I long accepted this as normal.

The reality is that assimilation happens gradually, and it's not just a way that immigrants like me try to fit into a new country. We are all asked to assimilate to the dominant beliefs and customs of an environment.

For example, as a girl, I was taught that women need to work twice as hard as men to be successful, and at the same time, that we should ultimately submit to their needs first. No one said this explicitly. It was learned through experience and consequence -- or lack of consequence, as it pertained to the way I was treated by men and boys.

I have more painful memories around this than I know how to share, and I'm not alone in this trauma. As an Asian woman, I also do not know how to disentangle my experience of race and gender.

I remember one early taste of harassment at the age of 12, by a sleazy group of businessmen in Shanghai, where my family was vacationing. They wanted me to take a picture with them. "Come on, it's just a picture," they cajoled, "we think you're pretty, just come over here. It'll be quick." Strange hands on my hips. Strange hands on my shoulders.

That's what you get when you're a pretty girl, a family member later told me. I internalized that.

There was the college party in L.A., after I moved here, where one guy spent the whole night trying to get me to sit in his lap. Eventually, I gave in. It's just a laugh, right? He thinks I'm pretty and just wants to get a picture with me. Oh, and the guy who told me, "I like dating Asian girls, but I know I'll end up marrying a white one." Sure, he thinks we're attractive, but naturally, he'll want to marry someone with a relatable cultural background. This is all normal, right? I repeated this to myself so many times, I grew numb to it.

It's impossible to parse the motivations of my aggressors. All I know is that I built a twisted kind of protection around my heart to survive the aftermath. If I believe this is normal, it's going to be okay.

I'm writing this shortly after six Asian women were murdered in Atlanta by a white man who called himself a sex addict, reportedly patronized the spas where they worked, then shot them and others there to eliminate his "temptation." He objectified them and used that as an excuse for his violence.

My friends are posting on social media about how Asian women need to be aware of their surroundings and be careful when they move through public spaces. But I've been living this way for years, constantly aware of dark corners, assessing strangers' body language, assessing threats, and even learning self-defense. I built this vigilance because I wanted to feel safe. I did this after moving to L.A.

WHERE IS SAFE?

I moved to L.A for college. I was more than excited to ditch the six-month winters of Canada for palm trees and the kind of December where you can wear a skirt with boots. About a month into this new life, I found myself cornered by two big men in an alley, who demanded my purse.

They were probably disappointed to only find five bucks in my wallet, but it taught me my first concrete lesson in situational awareness. If two random men are waving you over, they're not asking for the time, your help, or friendly conversation -- even in daylight.

There is a thought I often had in those early days: Is there something about me that makes people think I'm an easy target? Do I have it written on my face? In a way, the answer is yes. I'm a woman and I'm Asian.

MORE FROM OUR RACE IN LA SERIES

• Zola's Story: 'What Am I?' I'm Just A Pretty Little Girl
• Don't Turn My Community Into COVID-19 'Trauma Porn'
• A Latino 'Gringo' On Straddling Two Cultures, Never Enough Of Either
• Life Beneath Hollywood's 'Bamboo Ceiling'
• Boricua At Home, Black In The World: An Afro Latina in LA
• As A Black Nurse At The Pandemic's Frontlines, I've Had A Close Look At America's Racial Divisions
• 'What Are You?' 'Are You Adopted?' A Biracial Black Woman Gets Real About The Questions People Have The Nerve To Ask
• Reading While Black, And Other Ways To Court Trouble
• Reparations And Reinvestment: Contemplating The Proverbial '40 Acres And A Mule' Today
• Claiming My Dignity On A San Fernando Valley Street
• The Day My Brother Learned To Fly
• In The Process Of Becoming American: A Proud Son Of Immigrants Reflects On His Family's Past And Future
• How To Participate In Our Series

At this point, I've lived in neighborhoods all across the city, from a comfy apartment in a sleepy area in Palms to an affordable space in Echo Park, at a time when gunshots at night were common. I remember going for a morning run one day to find the park sign riddled with bullet holes. I'm not sure what happened the night before, but the sight of it was a shock to a girl from a place where guns were for deer hunters.

Over time these things shocked me less as I became more guarded, and the everyday violence was woven into my definition of normal.

When I moved to the Valley, I hoped it would be quieter than in some of the other neighborhoods I'd lived in. In many ways, it was. I made some good friends, and had some fantastic neighbors that I still keep in touch with. I definitely didn't find bullet holes on park signs.

But I began feeling unsafe nonetheless. When I sold my condo, the decision to move away wasn't just about feeling elevated racial tensions, but a lifetime of conditioning that's taught me to run when I feel there might be danger.

I've come to since understand that I'm no safer in Koreatown than I was in Van Nuys. My instinct to find and be closer to people who look like me will not protect me from the damages of racism or sexism.

Since moving here, I've experienced a few more incidents of hateful remarks being shouted at me or muttered as I pass by.

There was a casual slur tossed at me by a stranger as I walked my dog. One morning, a woman shouted "F*** you!" at me from her window, then quickly closed the blinds. Then there was the horror of learning a young Korean American man was assaulted and beaten a few blocks from my home.

I now understand that vigilance and self-defense are woefully limited, and that I can't keep running away. To be truly safe someday, we have to fight for greater equality for everyone. I want to live in a world where men stop objectifying women, so we can break the cycle of violence and misogyny. I want to live in a world where racism is dismantled in our hearts and our systems of governance. That would be a world where people love and respect each other for their diversity.

It doesn't matter where I move. This is reality: I'm not going to be safe from hate until we all are.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Yiming Amy Hua was born in China and grew up in the foothills of the Canadian Rocky Mountains. She has lived in Los Angeles for 15 years and has lost all ability to handle cold weather, but still can't swim very well.

Yiming is a multipotentialite artist and designer. She is the art director and co-founder of Friendly Vengeance, a local experiential marketing agency that brings mixed reality experiences to events and public spaces. By night she is a fine artist exploring emotional landscapes through pop surrealism, and an illustrator, creating characters and imagery for brands and narrative projects.

She hopes that people who wish to take action against hate will consider supporting groups such as Asian Americans Advancing Justice and Black Lives Matter, because, she says, "we all rise stronger as a coalition."

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

Kristina Wong wears all the hats. She's a comedian, a performance artist, a community activist and a director. She also runs the Auntie Sewing Squad, a ragtag group of do-gooders who make face masks for vulnerable populations. She is an in-demand speaker at colleges and conferences, and, as an elected member of the Koreatown neighborhood council, she "votes on things, sits on the Planning and Land Use Management Committee and yells at developers." The lady is busy.

In late 2019, after scanning "haul" videos and posts about people's frugal food shopping trips, she fell down a YouTube rabbit hole watching videos by people who were spending only $10 a week on food. Between groceries and dining out, Wong was at the time, spending upwards of $1,000 a month on food. She decided to challenge herself and see if, in 2020, she could spend only $50 a month on groceries -- an experiment that she would, of course, document on Instagram. Enter the age of the food bank influencer.

DOING IT FOR THE 'GRAM

The challenge of living under self-imposed economic or personal restrictions is a genre unto itself. There was the year of living by the Bible, the year without buying things from China, the year of zero waste (good luck cramming your garbage into a mason jar!) and the classic that started it all, Nickel and Dimed, Barbara Ehrenreich's 2001 book in which she worked as a hotel maid, a waitress and a Wal-Mart clerk to explore the lives of minimum wage workers.

Wong doesn't appear to be angling for a book deal. Her art has always had a strong civic focus, mixing her personal obsessions with her public politics. In 2020, after winning a seat on the Koreatown neighborhood council, she wrote and performed Kristina Wong for Public Office, a one-woman show that explored the experience of joining the political establishment. Her goal was to open peoples' eyes to the importance of voting and local activism, while entertaining them with 75 minutes of comedy.

For this latest project, Wong isn't' interested in staging a full theatrical production (no bedazzled capes or Hillary-esque pantsuits this time). She's more focused on minimizing food waste, scoring killer bargains and evangelizing for her favorite food pantry.

"It's the most exciting thing to me," Wong says of shopping at World Harvest Food Bank a Pico-Union market that looks like the low-key love child of a bodega and a Trader Joe's. "It's like the rush of being on a game show, a scavenger hunt, a shopping spree, Christmas. It's like all that."

Wong was on a sewing machine repair run when she first noticed World Harvest. Curious and with time to kill, she popped in to do a little shopping. She didn't realize until she got to the checkout and heard told the total amount for her groceries -- a mere $13 -- that she was in a food bank. Inspiration struck.

"I started to make these videos where I just wanted people to see how much you could get and how not shameful it was to go and how like, actually just fun it was," she says.

• Where To Get Financial Assistance, Food And More During The Coronavirus Crisis

Artist and performer Mikki Yamashiro was converted to the cause of food banking after seeing Wong's posts. Before her awakening, Yamashiro was spending approximately $150 a month on groceries. These days, she spends about $80.

"I really love what Kristina is doing. Her videos are so joyful, so fun and really inspired me to go. I tell everyone about it," Yamashiro says. Now that she's a World Harvest veteran, she has advice for newbies: "As a vegetarian, I call beforehand to check what the produce situation is like. That's a pro tip I would offer."

Fine artist Sara Chao also jumped on the food pantry wagon after watching Wong's videos. Chao started going to World Harvest last year when her job was slashed to part-time. She frequently shares a cart with friends, some of whom haven't been hit hard by the pandemic but still want to save money or reduce food waste.

She admires Wong's practical application of her art. "I really enjoyed her take on performance art, taking it to the real world. And also bringing activism into it, too."

After more than a year of making these videos, Wong still gets jazzed to shop and shoot. "I get really excited the day of," she says. "It's like, 'Oh, I'm gonna get high today.' I run through the aisles taking videos and more and more stuff is revealed. It's like a happy haunted house."

SISTERS ARE SHOPPING FOR THEMSELVES

On a recent afternoon, I accompanied Wong and two of her friends-turned-food bank-converts, Jessica Hanna and Dylan Kendall, to World Harvest as she shot her latest food bank "haul" video. It was like watching Supermarket Sweep, minus Leslie Jones. Hanna has been tagging along on these trips with Wong since early in the pandemic.

"She turned me on to it," Hanna says. "I came in and volunteered and was able to feed myself really well and was just like: 'This is amazing. Why is this place not packed with people all the time?'"It's not an uncommon reaction when people first enter World Harvest Food Bank.

Located in an unassuming building on Venice Boulevard near Arlington Avenue, its small parking lot is so jampacked with pallets you're lucky if you find a spot. You definitely want to drive here because you'll leave with so much food, there's no way you can schlep it on a bus or a bike.

At most food pantries, you get what you get -- usually a pre-packed bag or box of food -- and you don't complain about it. At World Harvest, you pay a flat $40 fee then you shop just as you would in a regular grocery store. Anyone who can't afford the $40 buy-in can volunteer to do four hours of work, typically something like sorting newly delivered goods or stocking the aisles. The products are always changing, depending on what's been donated that day. Don't be shy. You're encouraged to fill your cart with as much stuff as it can handle. If you have a spare minivan, bring it.

On this day, World Harvest founder and CEO Glenn Curado greets Wong, Hanna and Kendall at the door. Their shared excitement about the donations from top-tier grocery stores (which he can't name) and luxury hotels (also nameless) is infectious. Adding to the excitement, Hanna's frequent shopper card means she her $40 cart of groceries is free. Shoppers and workers cheer as the cashier rings a bell to mark the occasion.

The three women have decided to split a single cart because World Harvest gives customers so much food, it's too much for a single person to store, let alone eat. First, the ladies stock their cart with packaged foods. (Saltines, seaweed snacks and, randomly, water from a German airline.) Then, they add all the produce it can handle. (Peppers and citrus were abundant that day.) After, they head to the meat and dairy section where employees load them up with 10 pounds of Jidori chicken, shredded cheese and other goods. At their final stop, they receive pre-packaged meals of beef, broccoli and rice along with individually wrapped breadsticks, honey cashew bars and more snacks.

As they push their cart out to the parking lot, the're followed by Curado and a couple employees carrying cases of San Pellegrino and World Harvest sweatshirts, because, seriously, this store seriously will not let you leave without an empty trunk.

"As you can see, it's insane," Wong says of their overflowing cart. "It's a project. I don't think my drunker younger self could have figured this out. But now that I'm sober and bored in the pandemic, I'm like obsessed with managing the food that comes in and out of my house."

WASTE NOT, WANT NOT

Curado says World Harvest has seen a 300% increase in customers since the pandemic began, which makes sense. Numerous organizations around Southern California (and the United States) say food insecurity has skyrocketed in the past year.

"I would say probably 20% or 30% of our customers might be on EBT. My average customer is actually middle class and the rest are hard-working individuals. They're just trying to make it," Curado says.

He wants everyone, regardless of financial need, to feel comfortable shopping at World Harvest, citing the ridiculous amount of food waste in the country. Wong is onboard with the mission. "We have enough in this country. We just distribute it wrong. Shopping here is an interesting way to get to a more sustainable version of the food chain, short of jumping in a dumpster," she says.

Her shopping experiences have made Wong rethink food access -- who has it, who doesn't and why. She was already living thriftily before the coronavirus pandemic. (When she was performing live, one of her favorite pastimes was raiding green rooms for goodies.) After COVID-19 shut down most comedy clubs and dried up many of her income streams, Wong decided it wouldn't hurt to keep the challenge going. It meant she'd have to do a lot more cooking and start incorporating foods outside her comfort zone.

"It's like being on this crazy episode of Chopped, where we have to go, 'Okay, let me figure out how to cook this random thing,'" she says. Jackfruit was her bête noir. It took a lot of online research to figure out how to prepare it, then two hours to actually get it done the first time. She lived off it for two weeks but says she'd be happy to never see another jackfruit.

As Wong and her pals wrap up shopping and shooting for the day, they roll their loaded cart up to her well-worn Lexus (purchased for $1, long story, but know that she is a bargain shopper in all aspects of her life). There, they divvy up the goods. Wong cleans house on breadsticks and seaweed snacks. Kendall miraculously leaves with only a spaghetti squash and some cans of San Pellegrino. Hanna, the lone meat eater of the bunch, makes off with all the chicken and other animal proteins. Looking over their massive haul, she -- like everyone I spoke with -- says she makes sure all the food she gets at World Harvest finds a good home. "I will take whatever I can't use and drop it at community fridges," Hanna says

Wong's $50 a month challenge -- that's $600 a year for the math-challenged -- came in $42.19 under budget, a fact she announced on Instagram on New Year's Day. She doesn't see an end in sight to her budgeting-experiment-turned-performance-art-piece-turned-turned-lifestyle-choice.

Leaving the World Harvest parking lot, Wong shouts to Curado, "Thank you, food bank daddy!" and she heads home to upload her latest video, hoping to add a few more followers to her "Food Bank Fold."

WE LOVE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

Even as coronavirus cases climb in parts of the United States, California is slowly lifting its pandemic restrictions. It's a welcome relief for Angelenos weary of locked venues and pleas to stay at home, but public health officials are worried.

For the first time since the color-coded tier system was put in place last fall, Los Angeles County is in the less restrictive orange tier, indicating fewer cases and spread, and allowing some indoor activities such as dining in a restaurant. On Tuesday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that many coronavirus restrictions will lift on June 15 (although masking will still be required indoors), as long as cases remain low and the COVID-19 vaccine is readily available.

The move would eliminate the complex web of tiers and replace it with a statewide reopening of businesses to full capacity, although individual counties can still opt to have more restrictions depending on their circumstances. But the tantalizing prospect of summer barbeques and fireworks rests entirely on our behavior right now.

LAist spoke with Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer about a range of topics, including getting teenagers vaccinated and why this is such a critical time in the pandemic.

On The Potential Lifting Of Coronavirus Restrictions On June 15

I hear the promise of June 15 and a return to pre-pandemic times. I think many of the restrictions on capacity will disappear, but some of the basic infection control practices will be around for many weeks to come. We're going to need to make sure that we have masks to protect people who can't get vaccinated, like kids in schools. We've also got to wait and get a lot more information about vaccine effectiveness. The vaccines are so powerful right now. It's really good at protecting people from serious illness ... and from being hospitalized and from dying, but if 10% of everybody who's vaccinated can still become infected and we find out those people can still go ahead and and pass-on that infection, will need to continue to take care of each other by wearing masks.

On Vaccines Versus Variants

Part of me wants to just say, you know, folks, we are so very close right now. We are also so very much not there. If we're not particularly careful as we're doing more reopenings ... during these next six weeks, while we actually are able to accelerate the number of people who get vaccinated and have that protection, we could see an increase in cases. And we also could see, unfortunately, the dominance of some of these variants of concern, which are just more infectious. None of that would be good for us. And it would thwart our ability to get to that June 15 deadline. For the most part, everyone who dies [from COVID-19] from here on in is more than likely to be passing away because they weren't yet vaccinated. Our job is to keep everyone alive right now until they can get vaccinated.

On Contact Tracing In LA County

We're averaging about 50% of the new cases that actually complete our interviews. So we're going to be piloting some additional efforts in some of the hardest communities where we will now have community health workers that will be able to go and visit and allow us to be able to identify close contacts and get in touch with them.

On Getting Teenagers The Pfizer Vaccine After April 15

I think what we're going to end up needing to do is have some designated sites where young people know they'll be able to get vaccinated. It is highly likely that we'll find a fair number of sites that will be able to partner with the schools and at least for 16- to 17-year-old students, that may be one of the easier strategies if we can get it to work, where they can have an identified location within their school district where they'd be able to get vaccinated.

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Break out the Cracker Jack for the Dodgers' home opener. Do the socially distanced Time Warp as the Rocky Horror Picture Show comes to the drive-in. Snag some guava pie or a free ice cream bar. Score great deals at Dine Latino Restaurant Week. Learn about Catalina Island from pop culture historian Charles Phoenix. Watch cherry blossoms at their peak. Take part in a global dance party against white supremacy.

Friday, April 9; 1:10 p.m.

Dodgers Home Opener
Dodger Stadium
1000 Vin Scully Ave., Elysian Park
The boys in blue take on the Washington Nationals for a weekend series. There's limited availability for all Dodger games in April because tickets are sold in socially distanced pods in groups of two to six seats. The game is also available to watch and listen to on SportsNet LA or Dodgers Radio AM570.
COST: Varies; MORE INFO

Friday, April 9; 8 p.m. PT

The Rocky Horror Picture Show
Drive-In at Mess Hall Market
Mess Hall at FLIGHT
1705 Flight Way, Tustin
Let's do the time warp again, thanks to Frida Cinema: Sing along (from your cars) to Jim Sharman's 1975 horror comedy musical starring Tim Curry, Susan Sarandon, Barry Bostwick and Meat Loaf. Bring snacks from home or purchase dinner from participating Mess Hall restaurants including The Lost Bean, Big Parm and Slapfish.
COST: $30 per car; MORE INFO

Fridays and Saturdays through April 18

Murder at Winterberg Manor
The live theatrical production has its world premiere online, streaming for six nights. Written and directed by Meghan Pleticha (whose writing credits include HBO's Silicon Valley), the rom com/thriller is set during the pandemic but it's not about the pandemic. Instead, it follows Jessica (Elizabeth Guest) as she hosts a virtual murder mystery party for her friends.
COST: $15; MORE INFO

Friday, April 9; 7:30 p.m. PT

Movie Night: Crazy Rich Asians
Segerstrom Center for the Arts
Julianne and George Argyros Plaza
600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa
Watch the hit 2018 romantic comedy, directed by Jon. M. Chu, starring Constance Wu as a woman who accompanies her longtime boyfriend (Henry Golding) to his best friend's wedding in Singapore. While on the trip, she meets his uber-wealthy family and his disapproving mother. Masks are required and social distancing protocols will be in place.
COST: Tickets start at $20; MORE INFO

Friday, April 9 - Sunday, April 11

Film Screening and Conversation: Aggie
Join Film at LACMA for a screening of the feature-length documentary about art collector and philanthropist Agnes "Aggie" Gund. Directed by her daughter, Catherine Gund, the film explores the intersection of art, race and justice. The event includes a discussion with director Gund, Helena Huang of Art for Justice Fund and artist Xaviera Simmons, moderated by LACMA curator Christine Y. Kim. Available on Vimeo.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Friday, April 9; 7 p.m.

Valentine
Written, directed and performed by Tracy Ann Chapel, this virtual show focuses on the artist's dysfunctional, violent upbringing and her life in couture, the culinary arts, professional dance and the circus. After ditching an abusive husband, she meets a well-known individual online: Her celebrity crush. You have to attend to find out who it is, and if s/he becomes her valentine.
COST: $15.99; MORE INFO

Friday, April 9

Mullin Automotive Museum Reopening
1421 Emerson Ave. Oxnard
The museum reopens to the public from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Friday through Sunday. View rare and classic cars such as the 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic, the 1938 Hispano-Suiza Dubonnet H6B "Xenia," the 1937 Talbot-Lago T150-C-SS Goutte d'Eau as well as an extensive collection of Bugatti artwork, sculpture and furniture. Health protocols will be in place and face masks must be worn. Tickets must be purchased in advance.
COST: $10 - $16; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10; 9 p.m.

Pop Cultured
The movie-themed game show features three comedians competing against each other in improvised games. Contestants Kristen Studard, Guy Branum and Chris Fairbanks will be judged on their comic prowess by Jimmy Pardo.
COST: $15; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10 - Sunday, April 11

From Number to Name
Performance artist, activist and elected political representative K​ristina Wong​ has a new work and it shares the stories of formerly incarcerated Asian Americans and those in the API community impacted by mass incarceration. The production, which has its world premiere online, asks viewers to reflect on current perceptions of the criminal justice system and its future. The work is presented by East West Players in partnership with API Rise.
COST: Pay-what-you-can; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10; 6 p.m. PT

Charles Phoenix: Catalinaland
The Catalina Island Museum welcomes retro pop culture authority Charles Phoenix for an online performance on his YouTube channel. The lecture explores the island's landmarks, legends and lore, from the 1929 casino to Bird Park to the mysterious Catalina-shaped swimming pool. The presentation will be available for 48 hours after the live performance.
COST: $25 - $40; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10; 6 p.m. PT

Join Lummis Days Virtual Noisemaker 2021
The festival of Northeast Los Angeles and the Lummis Day Community Foundation honor founders Eliot and Jain Sekuler with the 2021 "Noisemaker" Award. The evening features an hour of performances and testimonials from Suzanne Lummis, the Evangenitals, Richard Montoya of "Culture Clash" and The Andersons.
COST: Pay-what-you-can; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10 - Saturday, June 12

Sanctuary of the Aftermath
Angels Gate Cultural Center opens its newest show virtually on Saturday from 2 to 3:30 p.m. The exhibition uses immersive video, auditory and installation art to redefine the gallery as a place to experience and take solace. The works, from several artists, explore how art can create new channels for connection even during periods of isolation. Register to receive opening reception information.
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10; 11 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Victorian Tea & Vintage Fashion Show
Heritage Square Museum
3800 Homer St., Montecito Heights
Sit down for a Victorian tea with sandwiches, desserts and, of course, tea while watching "All the World's a Stage," a vintage fashion show featuring Victorian threads. Wear your best outdoor ensembles and take photos with the models.
COST: $10 - $55 admission; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10; 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. PT

Angel City Market
10903 South Inglewood Ave., Inglewood
The monthly open-air market brings together dozens of small and local businesses to showcase their crafts, products and services. Mexican food and drinks will be available from La Feria Restaurant. Niosh and sip while you listen to live singers and DJ sets.
COST: FREE admission; MORE INFO

Saturday, April 10; 7:30 - 11:30 p.m. PT

LUMINEX: Dialogues Of Light
W. Pico Blvd., S. Olive St., W. 11th St., S. Hope St., Flower St., downtown L.A.
The outdoor walkable digital art exhibition features work by L.A. artists Refik Anadol, Nancy Baker Cahill, Sarah Rara, Carole Kim, Luciana Abait and Akiko Yamashita, who play with light, sound and video at designated sites along the route. Use a QR code to view a walking map and to listen to audio messages from the artists (headphones recommended). The exhibition takes place within a five-block radius. Masks must be worn at all times at all exhibition sites.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Sunday, April 11; 6 p.m.

David Duchovny & Jeff VanderMeer Double Book Release
Attend a livestream discussion between Duchovny and VanderMeer as they discuss their new novels. Presented by Skylight Books and Dynasty Typewriter, Duchovny will chat about his fourth novel, Truly Like Lightning, which examines religion, sex, greed, human nature and the vanishing environment of an ancient desert through the lives of a Mormon family. In the thriller Hummingbird Salamander, VanderMeer explores climate change, identity and a disappearing world.
COST: $5 - $86 (two book bundle); MORE INFO

Sunday, April 11; 12:30 - 3 p.m.

Learn how to be a Deejay with DJ Travis Holcombe
Kids of all ages can join KCRW DJ Travis Holcombe on LACMA's YouTube channel on Sunday (and anytime thereafter) as he demystifies the art of the spin. He'll talk about music and teach a few skills for the turntables. The activity is part of LACMA's Andell Family Sundays Anytime series and is based on the art of Yoshitomo Nara.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Sunday, April 11; 12 - 6 p.m.

A Global Dance Party Against White Supremacy

Artist and Black Lives Matter cofounder Patrisse Cullors teams with the Hammer Museum to hold a global online dance party. The event serves as an antithesis to the 2020-21 suckshow while promoting healing through movement. Dance along as DJ collectives Cumbiatón and Everyday People play live sets from noon to 6pm on the Hammer site. It kicks off with a conversation between Cullors and Hammer curator Erin Christovale.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Sunday, April 11; 4 p.m. PT

Art Deco Entertainment Venues of the Post-Prohibition Years: A Postcard Pictorial
Join the Art Deco Society of Los Angeles on a virtual tour of five theater and entertainment complexes constructed in the 1930s, all of which display classic Art Deco and Streamline Moderne design. Diane Lapis and Anne Peck-Davis, authors of Cocktails Across America, illustrate their lecture with vintage postcards and ephemera. Three cocktail recipes will be sent in advance and will be prepared during the presentation so viewers can transport themselves to the post-Prohibition era.
COST: $10 - $14; MORE INFO

Outdoors Pick

Cherry Blossoms
The cherry blossoms are in peak bloom this week at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. View the pink flowers of the Akebono cherry tree before they gradually fade to white or the long petals of the pink Beni Hoshi trees. As a bonus, lilacs are in full bloom at the gardens this week. Timed tickets are required. Admission: $5 - $15.

Streaming Pick

Slalom
An official selection from last year's Cannes Film Festival, this #MeToo drama marks the debut feature of filmmaker Charlène Favier (who also co-wrote the script). Noée Abita plays 15-year-old Lyz, a teen ski prodigy who earns success in the elite skiing world because of (or despite) her predatory coach. In French with English subtitles. The film opens Friday, April 9 at the Laemmle Pasadena and Laemmle Monica but is also available to watch virtually through Kino Marquee.

Dine & Drink Deals

Here are a few options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.

• Dine Latino Restaurant Week, which runs through Sunday, April 11, showcases the depth and resilience of L.A.'s Latino restaurants. Check out Amara Chocolate & Coffee Café in Pasadena, El Marisquero Bar & Grill in the San Gabriel Valley and Whittier, El Paisa in Long Beach, La Golondrina Cafe in DTLA and Milpa Grille in Boyle Heights.
• Cea-Lo L.A. recently opened in Sherman Oaks serving up soul food delights including crab cakes, fried fish, roasted Cornish game hens, shrimp and grits, black eyed peas, collard greens and hush puppies.
• Glendale's Restaurant Week, which runs through April 10, showcases All India Cafe, Bar Verde, Big Chicken, Brewyard Beer Company, Dinah's Fried Chicken, Eden on Brand, Frida Mexican Restaurant, Porto's, Grillers Mediterranean Kitchen, Halal Guys, Mario's Italian Deli, Mr. Furley's Bar and Tavern on Brand, among others. All participating restaurants will be abiding by L.A. County Department of Health guidelines.
• Local institution Porto's adds another classic option to its Bake at Home offerings: Rosa's Guava Pie. An original menu item through the early '90s, it was replaced with individually sized guava strudel. The pie is back and you can ship it anywhere in the U.S. It arrives frozen and ready to bake for $19.99.
• Recently opened Vista, a Mediterranean food and cocktail pop-up by 71Above, is located on the 69th floor of the top of the U.S. Bank Tower Building in DTLA. The patio spot offers fabulous views and a family-style mezze menu featuring marinated feta, cilantro hummus, fatoush salad, olives and pickles (starting at $54 per person). Specialty cocktails are also available.
• Van Leeuwen will visit two locations this weekend to hand out free ice cream bars. It'll be at the Silver Lake Farmers Market on Saturday, April 10 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and the Melrose Trading Post on Sunday, April 11 from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. (or until supplies last).
• The James Beard-award winning Yuca's Hut -- an 8' x 10' building at 2056 Hillhurst Ave. in Los Feliz -- just celebrated its 45th anniversary. The family-owned business, which is known for its cochinita pibil and carne asada, recently added chicken tacos to its menu.
• HomeState's Texas-inspired fixins are now available for takeout in West Adams (3923 W. Jefferson Blvd.). The small outpost doesn't have seating but it does offer the usual menu of breakfast tacos, anytime tacos and migas from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• To celebrate the Dodgers' home opener on Friday, Dunkin' restaurants throughout greater L.A. are offering a new Dodgers Signature Latte (a blueberry crisp latte topped with whipped cream, caramel drizzle and cinnamon sugar) for a limited time.
• And a food-related job opportunity: L.A. County is looking for a director for its Food Equity Roundtable, "a new initiative to build a more sustainable & just food system." Salary is $125-150K/year. Applications are due tomorrow, April 9.

WE LOVE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

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Lisa Brenner contributed to this guide

The pandemic has had a devastating effect on our finances.

Almost 10 million renter households in the U.S owe an average of $5,586 in back rent.

You might be one of them.

In the time since the world exploded, there have been various eviction moratoriums designed to keep you in your home.

But money is what's really going to help. And you can now apply to a new round of rental assistance programs in California designed to pay off much of what you owe.

Note: the program closes on April 30th so you need to act now to get help. (We've heard from people that it's an involved process, so you may also want to set aside a good chunk of time to do it).

It's stressful to owe money, and it can also be stressful to navigate government-run application processes. We're here to escort you through all of it.

🔑 🔑 🔑

WHERE THE RELIEF MONEY IS

In January, California's lawmakers passed SB91, known as the COVID-19 Tenant Relief Act. It extended tenant protections and set aside $235.5 million to people behind on rent.

The Emergency Rental Assistance Program, as it's known, will pay your landlord 80% of your unpaid back rent -- if your landlord forgives the other 20%.

It's applicable to rent due between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021.

You need to meet certain requirements to qualify, and your landlord has to apply as well. To make it even more complicated, some cities and counties have separate applications, each with different criteria.

We've put it all together, below. If you get stuck or need additional support, at the end we've put together a list of legal assistance organizations who can help for free or at a low cost.

► DO I QUALIFY?

You are eligible for rental assistance if you meet all of the following criteria:

• The combined income of everyone in your household is at or below a certain threshold of the median income in your area. Some programs have different requirements, so check below.
• You or someone in your household experienced financial hardships due to COVID-19 or qualified for unemployment benefits.
• You or someone in your household is at risk of housing instability.

► WHICH PROGRAM DO I APPLY TO?

The specific program you'll need to apply for is based on where you live. Some locations have their own application process. Other places are using the state of California's application.

Take a look at the options below, figure out which applies to you, and read the section on that program.

▷I live in the city of L.A.

• L.A. city has its own rental assistance application. See the City of L.A. section below for details. Check to see if you live in L.A. city here.

▷ I live in L.A. County (but not in the city of L.A. or Long Beach)

• L.A. County is using the state's rental assistance application. See the California section below for details.

▷ I live in the city of Long Beach

• Long Beach has its own rental assistance application, which opens the week of April 12. See the Long Beach section below.

▷ I live in Orange County, Ventura County, Riverside County or San Bernardino County

• These counties are using the state's rental assistance application. See the California section below for details.

► WHICH DOCUMENTS DO I NEED TO SHOW?

Some documents you may want to gather before you start your application:

• Your 2020 tax returns, or documentation that you participate in programs like WIC, Medi-Cal (Medicaid), SNAP (CalFresh), and Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR).
• Unemployment paperwork or pay stubs.
• A driver's license, ID, or passport for everyone in your household.
• Your lease, utility bills with your address, or other documents that connect you to your address.
• If you have them, a past-due rent notice, past-due utilities, or an eviction notice.

These aren't all required - here are the full document checklists for California and L.A. city. If you don't have documentation to prove you meet some of the application requirements, you can also submit a self-attestation form.

► WHAT DO I DO IF MY LANDLORD DOESN'T WANT TO APPLY?

• If your landlord doesn't agree to apply, you may be eligible for 25 percent of past-due, unpaid rent to be paid to your landlord.
• Check your specific application for details on how to apply for that assistance.

🔑 🔑 🔑

HOW TO APPLY

► CALIFORNIA RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

This is the state's rental assistance program, which is now taking applications until April 30.

If you qualify and are accepted, the program will pay your landlord 80% of your unpaid rent between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021. Your landlord has to apply for the program and agree to forgive the other 20%, too. Here's a link to the application and official documentation, and here are some specifics:

You are eligible for California's rental assistance program if:

• You live in California, outside of a certain number of locations listed above.
• The total income of everyone in your household is below 80% of the median in your area. For one person in L.A. County that's $63,100, for two it's $72,100, and for a household of four it's $90,100.
• You or someone in your household qualified for unemployment benefits or experienced other financial hardships, like a reduction in income, due to COVID-19.

→ How you can prove eligibility on your application.

You should also know:

• You can apply for relief for utilities that are due.
• The program can also pay 25% of future rent payments for three months.
• Money will be distributed to those who are eligible based on an assessment of need.
• Citizenship status is not needed to apply. You won't be asked about it on the application.

How to contact the program:

• For general questions, or if you need to view the application in an alternate format, or require other help, call (833) 430-2122 or email support@ca-rentrelief.com

→ Apply for California rental assistance and find the complete documentation here.

► CITY OF L.A. RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

This is the city's rental assistance program, which is now taking applications until April 30.

If you qualify and are accepted, the program will pay your landlord 80% of your back rent between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021. Your landlord has to apply for the program and agree to forgive the other 20% of your unpaid rent, too. Here's a link to the official documentation, and here are some specifics:

You are eligible for L.A. city's rental assistance program if:

• You live in the city of L.A. (Check here to see if you do)
• The total income of everyone in your household is below 50% of the median in your area. For one person in L.A. city that's $39,450, for two it's $45,050, and for a household of four it's $56,300.
• You or someone in your household qualified for unemployment benefits, experienced a reduction in income, or experienced other financial hardships due to COVID-19.

→ Here's how you can prove eligibility on your application.

You should also know:

• You can apply for relief for utilities that are due.
• The program can also pay 25% of future rent payments for three months.
• The program will choose applicants based on a random selection process, but prioritize paying past-due, unpaid rent.
• Citizenship status is not needed to apply. You won't be asked about it on the application.

How to contact the program:

• Call 866-557-7368 Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. or submit a request here.

→ Apply for city of L.A. rental assistance and find the complete documentation here.

► LONG BEACH RENTAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

If you qualify and are accepted, the program will pay your landlord 80% of your unpaid back rent between April 1, 2020, and March 31, 2021. Your landlord has to apply for the program and agree to forgive the other 20% of your unpaid rent, too. Here's a link to the official documentation, and here are some specifics:

• The application opens the week of April 12, 2021.
• You can apply for relief for utilities that are due.
• The program can also pay 25% of future rent payments for three months.
• The program will choose applicants based on a random selection process, but prioritize paying past-due, unpaid rent.
• Citizenship status is not needed to apply. You won't be asked about it on the application.
  
  

→ Starting the week of April 12, apply for Long Beach rental assistance here.

► OTHER LOCATIONS

Orange County, Ventura County, Riverside County or San Bernardino County use the state's application.

🔑 🔑 🔑

EVICTION MORATORIUM EXTENSION

SB91 not only established rent relief, it also extended eviction protections. The statewide moratorium doesn't give you money, but it does buy you a little time. Here's some general information about it , and here are some specifics:

• Not all types of evictions are prevented under the moratorium. It protects you from being evicted if you can't pay rent due to COVID-19. But landlords can still establish "just cause" evictions, meaning there's a reason for evicting a tenant, like a breach in the lease agreement.
• Starting September 2020 and ending June 2021, if you pay 25 percent of your rent and submit a declaration of financial distress each month you do not pay the full amount, you can't be evicted. But after that period ends, you will owe your landlord the rent you didn't pay during that time, unless you receive rental assistance or the moratorium is extended again past June.
• Landlords must give 15 days' notice for tenants to pay late rent before an eviction can occur, instead of three.

🔑 🔑 🔑

ORGANIZATIONS THAT CAN HELP YOU

If you still need help, there's several free and low-cost organizations in Los Angeles and around Southern California that offer support.

Reach out and keep reaching out until you find someone to walk you through the labyrinth:

• Stay Housed LA:
• A coalition of legal service providers and community organizations working together to provide legal services, information and workshops. Contact Stay Housed LA through their website or phone hotline to get connected with legal help on housing.
• Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles (LAFLA):
• Contact LAFLA to apply for legal aid on housing and evictions, and resources and information for tenants.
• Housing Rights Center:
• Get in touch with housing counselors and find answers to housing questions through a hotline and by appointment.
• BASTA:
  • Connect with their eviction defense team for help with your rights as a tenant.
• Community Legal Aid SoCal:
  • Apply for free legal services through their website
• Eviction Defense Network:
  • They provide legal consultations and services through a donation-based and sliding fee scale system.
• HEART LA:
• A legal resource for people whose pets are family, too. HEART LA provides legal representation, clinics and resources to protect tenants who have companion animals.
• Neighborhood Legal Services of Los Angeles County:
• Another place to turn for legal help and information.
• Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE):
• Find straightforward information and assistance on what to do if you get an eviction notice, specifics on tenant protection, workshops, and more.

► OTHER PLACES TO TAKE ACTION AND STAY INFORMED

• Street Watch LA: https://streetwatchla.com/resources/
• KTOWN for All: https://ktownforall.org/
• LA CAN: https://cangress.org/
• Housing is a Human Right: https://www.housinghumanright.org/
• LA Tenants Union: https://latenantsunion.org/en/

WE LOVE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

The Long Beach City Council unanimously approved a plan Tuesday night to convert the city's convention center into a temporary shelter for up to 1,000 unaccompanied migrant children.

The site will be run by the U.S Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and FEMA. The agencies have already set up similar shelters at convention centers in San Diego and Dallas because of overcrowding at Border Patrol facilities.

Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia said the goal will be to reunite children with their family members or sponsors in the U.S. He also made a plea for compassion.

"I think we should focus on the fact that these are kids and children," Garcia said at Tuesday night's city council meeting, "that deserve our love and that deserve a warm welcome to our city, in a place that is going to also be welcoming."

The city of Long Beach said in a statement that the plan is a response to a request for assistance from the federal government:

"The United States is experiencing a humanitarian situation at our southern border, with a significant number of unaccompanied minors currently housed in overcrowded Border Patrol facilities.

To ensure the safety and well-being of each child, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Refugee Resettlement, has requested assistance from local governments throughout the United States to provide temporary facilities for these children, while the federal government quickly reconnects them with family members or sponsors in the United States. Long Beach specifically has been requested to assist with this humanitarian mission to safely house children who are unattended by their parents."

THE DETAILS

The convention center is currently empty and has been during the pandemic.

But there is an end date to the migrant housing plan. The contract for using the space to house the children expires on Aug. 2. Garcia said in the Fall the center will return to hosting conventions, and staff will need to return to work.

Garcia also emphasized that there will be no cost to the city for the temporary shelter; it's 100% reimbursable by the federal government.

WILL THE CONDITIONS BE HUMANE?

We spoke with Lindsay Toczylowski, executive director of Immigrant Defenders Law Center, which represents migrant children. She told us the conditions in Long Beach will be much better than those at the border facilities, where, according to reports from ABC News, children have been sleeping on the floor due to severe overcrowding.

"These kids will be in a congregate care setting, which is really not the ideal situation for children," she said, "but it is so much better than the alternative."

Toczylowski toured a similar shelter at the San Diego Convention Center. She says there may be opportunities for the community to provide crafts and sports gear for the kids. The federal government will handle medical and psychological support. The children will also receive three meals a day.

SUPPORT/OPPOSITION

The effort has received support from several Long Beach organizations and non-profits, and from Jane Close Conoley, President of Cal State Long Beach, who called it a "human rights effort."

Other supporters include the Long Beach Superintendent of Schools, the pastors of City Church of Long Beach, and the Long Beach NAACP.

As expected, however, not everyone approves of Long Beach opening a child migrant shelter at its convention center. More than 30 immigrant advocates and progressive groups, including the California Immigrant Policy Center, Bend The Arc: Jewish Action Southern California, Puente Latino Association and Occupy ICE LA signed a letter voicing their opposition to the shelter effort.

The letter says the plan fails to "address the root causes of children arriving unaccompanied" by continuing to embrace "imperalist policies that drive people away from their country of origin and treat them inhumanely once they arrive."

They specifically cite President Biden's continued use of the Title 42 policy as a cause for concern. The Trump-era policy allows border security officials to send migrants back across the border without the opportunity to seek asylum. The Biden administration has been criticized for admitting minors while turning away adults and many families.

The organizations are demanding that the convention center facility be closed in 90 days and that children be reunited with families in a timely manner to minimize potential trauma.

You can read the full letter here.

HOW TO VOLUNTEER

Mayor Garcia said a lot of people have expressed an interest in volunteering at the site when it opens, or helping in some way.

"I think it's great," he said, adding that both individuals and organizations can either donate or apply to help provide food, mental health services, and/or education needs.

Garcia said the city is working with Health and Human Services to set up a volunteer portal with links at the longbeach.gov site "in the days ahead."

Chris Greenspon and Monica Bushman contributed to this story.

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily newsletters. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.

This story is part of "Lost on the Frontline," a project from The Guardian and Kaiser Health News that aims to document the lives of health care workers in the U.S. who die from COVID-19, and to investigate why so many are victims of the disease.

CORONA, Calif. -- Antonio Espinoza loved the Los Angeles Dodgers. He loved them so much that he was laid to rest in his favorite Dodgers jersey. His family and friends, including his 3-year-old son, donned a sea of blue-and-white baseball shirts and caps in his honor.

Espinoza died at age 36 of COVID-19, just days after he got his first dose of a COVID vaccine. He was a hospice nurse who put his life in danger to help COVID patients and others have a peaceful death.

When COVID hit, it was no surprise to his family that this "gentle giant," as friends and family called him, stepped up to the plate.

"His attitude was like, 'No, I'm not going to be scared,'" said Nancy Espinoza, his wife of 10 years. "This is our time to shine," he told her. "I became a nurse for a reason."

As a hospice nurse and chief nursing officer for Calstro Hospice in Montclair, California, Espinoza routinely made house calls, visited assisted living facilities and performed death visits -- during which hospice nurses pronounce patients dead.

Hospice workers aren't just doctors and nurses, but also include home health aides, social workers, chaplains and counselors. In the past year, they have frequented some of the highest-risk environments, such as nursing homes, assisted living facilities and patients' homes.

Hospice requires intimate patient care, and the additional safety requirements and need for personal protective equipment made it challenging, said Alicia Murray, board president of the Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association. But hospice workers adapted, she said, knowing they might be the only people who could comfort dying patients when family members were not allowed to visit medical and long-term care facilities.

"They're taking care of dying people and, in particular, people dying of COVID who may be spewing out the virus," said Dr. Karl Steinberg, a geriatrician and palliative care specialist who is the medical director of Hospice by the Sea in Solana Beach, California, and several nursing homes.

A few months into the pandemic, when Calstro Hospice began caring for COVID patients, Espinoza helped develop a COVID unit. Part of his job was to make sure staff members had sufficient personal protective gear, including himself.

"Some people had a hard time getting a hold of all the PPE gear, but his office had adequate equipment," his wife said. Right before he got sick, he was excited to receive a big shipment of gowns, N95 masks, booties and face shields from San Bernardino County, she said.

Espinoza fell ill a few days after his first dose of COVID vaccine on Jan. 5, but went to work thinking it was vaccine-related. "He had kind of a sore throat and felt a little bit under the weather, but nothing major," said Nancy Espinoza. His symptoms progressed to a fever and chills and he tested positive for COVID on Jan. 10.

Seven other Calstro Hospice staff members also got COVID during the pandemic, said Jennifer Arrington, Calstro Hospice's director of patient care services.

Espinoza was a victim of bad timing, according to Dr. Lucy Horton, infectious disease specialist and associate professor at the University of California-San Diego School of Medicine.

The virus's incubation period averages five to seven days, she explained. "If you test positive a few days after the vaccine, chances are you actually got exposed before you even got your first dose," she said.

Horton said people aren't fully vaccinated until at least 14 days after their second dose of a two-dose vaccine, or their first dose of a one-dose version. Early after the first dose, people don't reap the benefit of the vaccine yet, she said.

"Even after you're fully vaccinated, there still is a remaining risk," said Horton, co-author of a letter to the New England Journal of Medicine about post-vaccination infection rates among health care workers in California. "Even if it's so much lower, it's still present."

Espinoza knew he wanted to care for others and go into health care since he was in high school, and realized the Hispanic community needed Latino nurses in hospice care, his wife said. "He made it his purpose to help the Hispanic community understand hospice care and not be afraid of it," she said.

On Jan. 15, Nancy Espinoza and the couple's toddler, Ezekiel, spoke to Antonio over the phone for the last time. "I love you" were the last words she heard her husband say.

She was allowed to visit him right before he died on Jan. 25. He was intubated with an oxygen level of 25%.

Nancy Espinoza stood in the room alone with her husband for the last time. "I just wanted to be able to hold his hand and pray for him," she said. "I wanted him to know that he wasn't alone."

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Walk past Alliance Morgan McKinzie High School in East Los Angeles and you might notice a striking image of a muscled man shielding himself from a rain of swords. It's one of 19 sections in "The Story of Our Struggle," an eleven-foot-high, five-foot-long fired-ceramic tile mural that charts Chicano history from pre-Columbian times to the present. In rich jewel tones, it depicts Aztec civilization, the Spanish conquest of Mexico and the loss of Mexican land to the United States. Although sweeping in its subject matter, the work is as much a personal reckoning as a cultural one.

The mural was created by artist and educator Johnny D. Gonzalez, aka Don Juan. Born in 1943 in the Mexican state of Aguascalientes, he came to California as a young child. Unable to speak English, he was ridiculed by his schoolmates for his thick accent.

"My introduction to the country was fear of being beaten up because I was Mexican. My brother was getting beaten so, being five years old, I didn't want anybody to know that I was born in Mexico," Gonzalez says.

Growing up in East L.A. in the 1950s and '60s, he took little pride in his Mexican heritage and, like many immigrants, he worked hard to assimilate.

Music and art were his salvation. "His mom said that he was drawing before he could walk," says his partner, the multi-talented Irma Beserra Núñez. She serves as the Vice President of the L.A. City Human Relations Commission, the Co-Chair, Lead Advocate, and Artist Spokesperson for the Coalition To Save The First Street Store: Chicano Historical Monument and as a cultural educator.

As a young man, Gonzalez illustrated advertisements and played in the popular rock band Leggeriors. Although he loved music and drawing, he wanted more. "My dream was always to travel," he says.

Gonzalez had been obsessed with geography books since childhood. He loved looking at pictures of foreign monuments such as the Great Wall of China.

Alienated by the racism he experienced growing up, Gonzalez had avoided becoming an American citizen until the late '60s when he realized the benefits of having a U.S. passport. "I became an American citizen so I could leave the country," Gonzalez laughs.

In the fall of 1969, he hopped on the R.H.M.S. ELLINIS, an ocean liner headed to Europe. To pass the time on the nine-day journey, Gonzalez played his guitar. His fellow travelers -- a mix of Europeans, old hippies and East Coast residents -- began asking him to play the Mexican folk songs he had learned as a child.

"I was shocked that they knew about these songs and I was amazed that I knew two languages. They said, 'Could you translate what it means? Because we grew up hearing these songs but we didn't know what they meant.' I became a celebrity on the ship," Gonzalez says.

Over the next four months, he travelled to 14 countries, enthralled by Gothic and Renaissance architecture as well as artworks like Lorenzo Ghiberti's "Gates of Paradise" and Michelangelo's "Tomb of the Medicis," both in Florence, Italy.

It was a transformative experience for Gonzalez. "Coming from East L.A. and seeing their architecture and monuments -- all this culture and art -- I thought I had died and gone to art heaven," he says. In Spain, "That was the first time in my life that I felt I was being treated with respect for being Mexican."

He devouring books on the history of Mexico, which he hadn't been taught as a child. "I started thinking, 'Spain comes in to conquer us, and France and then all these different countries. So we're having invasions and then we're weak and then they come and invade us again.' And I started thinking, 'No wonder we haven't progressed. We're always being attacked.' That was my inspiration for 'The Story of Our Struggle.'"

When Gonzalez returned to East L.A., he began working at a fever pitch to draw up plans for a massive East L.A. cultural heritage site called El Monumento de la Raza. In the spring of 1970, he wrote an eight-page initiative, "Project: East L.A. to Tourist Attraction," which stated, "In Europe, all roads lead to Rome. In Southern California, all freeways lead to East Los Angeles."

Gonzalez proposed transforming East L.A. into a cultural destination similar to the ones he had seen in Europe. He began meeting with local leaders and business owners to figure out how to make that happen.

"Scholars [including Dr. Karen Mary Davalos in her article All Roads Lead to East L.A.] have said that it's the first cultural heritage tourism initiative. The key thing about Juan's concept is that it wasn't just murals. It was architecture, monuments, murals and public art. His whole focus was to transform the outdoor physical environment," Núñez says.

Although the project was never realized, Gonzalez and his brother Jose Luis threw themselves into opening what would become Goez Art Studios and Galleries at 3757 East First Street. It was the country's first art studio and apprentice program dedicated to Chicano artists.

Gonzalez's cultural awakening coincided with a critical moment in Chicano history.

During the '60s and '70s, Chicano youth around the country, particularly in East Los Angeles, banded together to fight institutionalized racism. High school students staged walkouts (known as blowouts) to protest poor educational opportunities and LAUSD discrimination. The Chicano Moratorium held marches to oppose the Vietnam War as well as boycotts, rallies and protests to support the United Farm Workers, who were fighting for fair wages and humane working conditions. In the book Give Me Life: Iconography and Identity in East Los Angeles, Holly Barnet-Sanchez and Tim Drescher write:

"In East Los, the period elicited a general sense of both desperation and possibility, frustration to the breaking point and the potential of new horizons, with residents daily experiencing both poles of these dialects. Problems included substandard housing, job hiring discrimination, lack of access to insurance, and increasing gang problems on the one hand and police brutality toward Mexican Americans on the other."

In September 1970, Gonzalez met with Bob Kemp, the owner of the First Street Store. The budget department store, opened in 1924, was where everyone in East L.A. -- at the time a mix of Eastern European, Latino and Asian immigrants -- shopped. According to Hector Becerra of the Los Angeles Times:

"Sometimes a department store is more than a department store. It can be a gathering place and a symbol of economic independence. First Street was all of that for East L.A. It wasn't as fancy as the department stores that once thrived downtown -- May Co., Broadway, Robinson's. But to many on the Eastside -- immigrants without the money for downtown prices -- First Street was a touch of class within walking distance or a short ride. When people said they were 'going to First Street,' it was understood that they meant the store, not the street."

The store was already a consumer landmark. Gonzalez wanted to make it a cultural one.

He presented Kemp with a sketch of "The Story of Our Struggle," which fused Mexican-style murals with European touches and architectural elements from California missions. Kemp loved the idea but was hesitant. Tensions were high in East L.A. due to the killing of civil rights activist and reporter Ruben Salazar during the National Chicano Moratorium March on August 29, 1970.

Kemp held onto the sketch and drafted Gonzalez's studio to create another mural (now lost) inside the store. The job was given to artist Richard Jimenez, a member of the Goez team.

In December of 1973, with tensions in East L.A. temporarily settling down, Kemp finally greenlit "The Story of Our Struggle."

Working with fellow Goez artists Robert Arenivar and David Botello, Gonzalez finalized the design for the murals and the architectural facade. Goez had the tiles made in Guadalajara, Mexico at the studio of ceramicist Joel Suro Olivares.

Framed by arches, the panels told a multi-generational story, illustrating pivotal moments from Mexico's past.

"The Return of Quetzalcoatl" depicted the arrival of Spanish colonizer Hernan Cortez in 1519, whom Aztec leaders supposedly believed was the Mesoamerican god Quetzalcoatl. "Eradication and Absorption of Mexican Culture and Knowledge," a panel that shows a man on a horse tangled up in creeping vines, represents the pain of assimilation. The last panel, "Hope for a Brighter Tomorrow," portrays Chicano men and women looking toward an unseen but hopefully more equitable future.

Once completed, "The Story of Our Struggle" attracted national attention and inspired more murals around East L.A.

A story in the April 7, 1975 issue of Time magazine described the "East L.A. Chicano Mural Movement":

"The Message that came through is pride in the Chicano heritage. One series of... murals, called "The Story of Our Struggle," shows events from Mexico's loss of the Southwest in 1848 to a present-day farm unionist cutting the chains that bind a fallen comrade. So well does the series trace the rise of chicanismo that elementary school classes are brought to study the murals as part of their history lesson."

The Kemps were thrilled to have the monument on the front of their department store. "We were very proud of that, and so were the residents. They all thought it was a very nice tribute to them," Olive Kemp, wife of Bob Kemp, told the Los Angeles Times in 2007.

Gonzalez would go on to have a prolific career as an artist, activist and educator. After completing "The Story of Our Struggle," he began leading bus tours that highlighted more than 100 local murals. In 1983, he partnered with Núñez, and together they created the New Barrio Lifestyle Campaign Cultural Arts Education Program, which brings Chicano history and culture to Californians through the arts. They also created murals with students around the state, including "The Color of America," a three-story mural at Redlands High School in San Bernardino County.

Economics eventually brought Gonzalez back to "The Story of Our Struggle." In 2007, the First Street Store closed after 80 years. The site was purchased by Alliance College Ready Public Schools and the building was threatened with demolition.

Núñez and Gonzalez sprung into action. With the help of the Los Angeles Mural Conservancy, the Los Angeles Conservancy and lawyer Susan Brandt-Hawley, they fought to save mural.

"I was teaching older adult education at the time in the Eastside and in the Valley. My students in the Valley were predominantly Jewish. Many of them grew up in Boyle Heights. Even though the Jewish community has primarily moved out, they were here when they were young so they wrote letters," Núñez says.

In 2013, the multi-ethnic Coalition to Save the First Street Store reached a compromise with McKinzie High and the city of L.A. -- not a given. (Look at what's happening to many of Millard Sheets' murals.)

They decided to save the mural, while making way for the new construction. The new landmark, "The First Street Store: Chicano Historical Monument," would be a feat of artistic preservation and architectural progress. The original building was torn down and the tiled mural placed in storage. Gonzalez was tasked with recreating the new facade, making it a more exhaustive work than the one he had created almost five decades prior.

In 2016, the new facade was completed. The tiled murals were reinstalled and a new high school complex built behind it. But Gonzalez's vision isn't yet complete. He and Núñez are raising funds to add a fountain featuring the Aztec god Quetzalcoatl and a sidewalk with Aztec designs in front of the facade.

Gonzalez and Núñez want to help revitalize this portion of First Street. Once a a hub of culture and commerce where East L.A. residents shopped, banked and ran errands, now, "They call it La Calle Fantasma, the Ghost Street," Gonzalez says.

"We're hoping we can have at least one block that we could utilize as a sample to motivate and inspire elected officials, community leaders and grassroots communities," Núñez says.

The past year has halted their dreams of a First Street revitalization. Plans for the fountain and sidewalk at the First Street Store were put on hold due to COVID-19. In September 2020, the block suffered a setback when a five-story housing complex that was under construction caught fire.

"This project was designed to provide desperately needed low-income housing for families and veterans as well as retail space to help generate economic development," Gonzalez says.

On the positive side, plans to quickly rebuild the apartment complex are in the works. Gonzalez and Núñez continue to pursue Revitalization Innovations: Chicano Cultural Community Educational Tourism, a project that aims to bring tourism and educational opportunities to East Los Angeles. Like almost everyone else, their lives were derailed by the pandemic. But they have hope that a new day is rising in East LA.

"This is actually the beginning of what we hope is going to be a new renaissance," Núñez says. "We can't just allow the destruction of our communities, again and again. It's the story of our struggle and it is ongoing. It's the hope for the future."

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It's not just wildflowers that bloom in California this time of year -- it's also when massive art installations blossom across the Coachella Valley.

Every two years, a group of international artists creates a variety of site-specific works for Desert X in and around Palm Springs, many set against the massive wind farms that pepper the landscape.

Visually and tangibly responding to a deeply unpopular Desert X decision to partner with the repressive Saudi Arabian theocracy for an exhibit there, many of this year's artists are making bold statements about women's rights, diversity, immigration, land use, indigenous communities and various political and historical issues tied to the valley.

While some critics have described Nicholas Galanin's "Never Forget" as a giant Instagram backdrop (which it indisputably is), his massive reimagining of the Hollywood sign -- in Galanin's 45-foot tall text, it reads "Indian Land" -- sets the political tone for this year's Desert X.

The work is hard to miss. It sits behind the iconic Palm Springs Visitors Center and at the base of the steep road leading to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, on the route most people enter the city. And its message is equally apparent: the ground underneath so many Palm Springs area golf courses, resorts and shopping malls once belonged to local tribes.

Not far from "Never Forget" is Serge Attukwei Clottey's "The Wishing Well." Two tall cubes are constructed from small pieces cut from hundreds of industrial yellow plastic containers used to carry water in Ghana.

With the arid Coachella Valley framing the work, and lushly landscaped estates just a short distance away, it's a silent totem about natural resources and those without access to them.

The roads and highways cutting through the valley are lined with countless billboards, but if you didn't know that some of that outdoor advertising was part of Desert X, you could easily swerve off the road in surprise over the messages.

Xaviera Simmons' "Because You Know Ultimately We Will Band A Militia" along Gene Autry Trail is a series of billboards filled with what looks like standard advertising typography and images, but the words themselves are radically different. "California Once Tried to Ban Black People" reads one billboard, while another says, "You Are Entering the Reparations Framework."

One installation that is as beautiful as it is provocative is Ghada Amer's "Women's Qualities," set inside the spectacular grounds of the Sunnylands Center & Gardens. Set in a huge circle on a perfectly manicured lawn, Amer's work is constructed from an array of large steel planters, grouped to spell out a series of adjectives associated with femininity.

The text was suggested by desert residents, including the words "resilient," "loving" and "nurturing," and each is filled by plantings that might complement or challenge our understanding of the word: strong, for example, is filled with white daisies.

Finally, there's Kim Stringfellow's work, "Jackrabbit Homestead." It's a 112-square-foot cabin that sits on a small plot of dirt, and it was inspired by Catherine Venn Peterson, who wrote about her homesteading experience for Desert Magazine in 1950.

Peterson moved her cabin from Pasadena to Palm Desert, and inside Stringfellow's recreation of it, there's a tiny single room with a few pieces of furniture, including a writing table with a typewriter, and as you approach it, you hear a recording of Peterson's memoir. Even surrounded by mini-malls and restaurants, her words take you back a generation.

While guided tours of the 13 separate installations are no longer offered because of the pandemic, docents are on site Saturday mornings. Admission is free, but two exhibits require timed admission tickets.

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Attend Q&As with Oscar-nominated filmmakers and cast. Laugh along with Lapkus & Tompkins. Take socially distant salsa lessons under the stars. Learn what can be done to thrive in a post-apocalyptic world. Check out Reservoir Dogs at the drive-in. Sample Nigerian dishes at a new downtown L.A. spot.

Monday, April 5 - Thursday, April 8

Awards Season Q&As
The American Cinematheque presents a series of Q&As with Oscar-nominated films, performers and directors. The virtual programming begins with One Night in Miami and Leslie Odom Jr. (Monday) and a Q&A for The United States vs. Billie Holiday with Andra Day (Tuesday). It's followed by a Promising Young Woman Q&A with actor Carey Mulligan, filmmaker Emerald Fennell, editor Frédéric Thoraval and producer Josey McNamara as well as a Better Days Q&A with director Derek Kwok-cheung Tsang (both on Wednesday). The week wraps with a Soul Q&A with Pete Docter (Thursday).
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Monday, April 5; 5 p.m. PT

Writing Toward Liberation: A Conversation with Jody Armour, Bidhan Roy, and Maytha Alhassen
This Los Angeles Review of Books virtual event invites scholars, USC Law professor Armour and Cal State LA English professor Roy (founder of the incarcerated artist platform WordsUncaged), to discuss the power of language andnarrative in imagining alternatives to incarceration and the prison industrial complex. The discussion is moderated by journalist and historian Maytha Alhassen.
COST: FREE with RSVP, but suggested donations of $5 - $50; MORE INFO

Monday, April 6; 5 p.m. PT

Lapkus & Tompkins: Two April Fools
The two comics team up, once again, for a night of improv and hilarity.
COST:$5 - $10; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 6; 1 p.m. PT

How Do Our Cities Prepare for the Post-Apocalypse?
Zócalo and University of Toronto continue The World We Want series with a discussion on surviving a post-apocalyptic world -- hopefully without the zombies. Global pandemics, climate change, floods, fires, mass migrations and economic instability are all signs of massive change. What can be done now to ensure that our most vulnerable communities have a better chance of recovering and thriving in the future?
COST: FREE with RSVP; MORE INFO

Tuesdays, April 6 - 27; 6:30 p.m.

Tuesday Night Dance: Salsa
Segerstrom Center for the Arts - Argyle Plaza
600 Town Center Drive, Costa Mesa
Get ready to shake those boo-tays in a safe, socially distant manner under the stars. Lyrik Cruz leads upbeat Salsa classes all month long for dancers of all levels. Masks must be worn by all participants and you'll be spaced eight feet apart from others. Dance movements will be stationary.
COST: $10; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 6

The Autry Reopens
Autry Museum of the American West
4700 Western Heritage Way, Griffith Park
The museum opens to the public with safety protocols in place. Currently on view are exhibitions When I Remember I See Red: American Indian Art and Activism in California, which features the work of 40 Native artists, and Masters of the American West Art Exhibition and Sale, with paintings and sculptures by more than 60 Western artists.
COST: FREE with RSVP through April 18; MORE INFO

Tuesday, April 7; 6 p.m. PT

Senator Tammy Duckworth in Conversation with Bradley Whitford
Sen. Duckworth tells her story in this Live Talks L.A. event. In her memoir Every Day Is a Gift, she takes readers through her life, including the 2004 explosion from an Iraqi RPG in the cockpit of her U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter. After more than a year of recovery, in which she learned how to walk again on prosthetic legs, she entered the political fray, serving on both the state and national levels, including winning a U.S. Senate seat in 2016. She'll be in conversation with actor Bradley Whitford (The West Wing).
COST: $39; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 7; 5 p.m.

Recognized / Recognizability: LGBTQ Photo Archives and History
The ONE Archives Foundation presents an online panel discussion on LGBTQ+ photography, history and archives, moderated by artist and educator Kaucyila Brooke. Joining Brooke are panelists Neal Baer, Zackary Drucker, Texas Isaiah, Kang Seung Lee and Hugh Nini and Neal Treadwell. The discussion is inspired by the recent publication of Loving: A Photographic History of Men in Love, 1850s-1950s, authored by Nini and Treadwell.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 7; 6 p.m.

LGBTQIA+ Landscape: Rocío Carlos & Gustavo Hernandez
Listen to poetry and a discussion of representation of the local LGBTQIA+ community at this WeHo Reads program, presented with Book Soup. Guests include Rocío Carlos, author of the (other) house, and Gustavo Hernandez, author of Flower Grand First, and musical guests Mariachi Arcoiris de Los Angeles. Watch the program on the WeHo Arts Youtube Channel.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Wednesday, April 7; noon

Rec Center: Accessible Yoga & Breathwork
Grand Park introduces a new family-friendly digital series, REC (Refresh, Empower, Create) Center, that supports health equity through recreational, educational and creative approaches to health. Each Wednesday at noon through May, learn or take part in a new 30-minute activity. This week, all ages and levels are invited to take part in a yoga and breathing session.
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 8

La Brea Tarpits and Museum Reopening
5801 Wilshire Blvd, Mid-Wilshire
The Tar Pits are reopening gradually, Thursdays through Sundays, and will expand to more days over the coming months. Timed tickets must be reserved online and will be available on a first come/first served basis.
COST: $7 - $15 admission; MORE INFO

Thursday, April 8; 8 p.m. PT

Reservoir Dogs
Electric Dusk Drive-In
Glendale Sears Parking Lot
211 West California Ave., Glendale
The Secret Movie Club screens Quentin Tarantino's 1992 heist film at the drive-in.
COST: Tickets start at $23; MORE INFO

Ongoing

The Groundlings: This is Us
For a limited time, the Groundlings comedy theater presents a VOD panel discussion featuring its Black alumni and Main Company members. The panel includes Jordan Black, Daniele Gaither, Julian Gant, Phil LaMarr and Lyric Lewis with moderator and Main Company member Leonard Robinson. They'll discuss sketch and improv as well as race and why representation matters.
COST: $5; MORE INFO

Streaming Pick

Chad
The new comedy is created by Nasim Pedrad (Saturday Night Live), who stars as a 14-year-old pubescent Persian boy navigating his freshman year of high school -- while on a mission to become popular. The single-camera comedy features Pedrad as writer, executive producer and showrunner. Chad premieres on TBS on Tuesday, April 6 at 10:30 p.m.

Dine & Drink Deals

Here are a few news, notes and options from restaurants and bars as we work our way back toward normal.

• Bronx-born, Lagos-raised Simileoluwa ("Simi") Adebajo launches her Nigerian takeout and delivery spot Eko Kitchen LA on Thursday, April 8, in the Arts District (out of the Crafted Kitchen at 672 S. Santa Fe Ave). She opened a Nigerian restaurant in San Francisco in 2019 but has moved her operation to Southern California. Takeout/delivery (Uber Eats, DoorDash, Grubhub) runs Wednesdays to Sundays from 4 to 8 p.m.
• Oste, the Roman-style pinseria and osteria located in Beverly Grove, launches its full dinner menu, including burrata focused dishes, mussels and an extensive list of pinsa (it's hand-pressed dough with toppings that's similar to pizza but isn't pizza).
• Jeanne Cheng, the owner and creator of Kye's on Montana in Santa Monica, has opened a second Kye's location (operating out of Internet Food Court on Western) in Hollywood. All of her menu items -- including the Kyerito (a sandwich/wrap without bread -- are built on superfoods and incorporate Chinese medicinal principles. Most dishes are gluten-free and many have paleo or vegan options. Takeout and delivery only in the Hollywood location.
• Happy hour (remember those?) returns to Nick + Stef's Steakhouse in downtown L.A., Tuesdays through Fridays from 5 to 7 p.m. The new happy hour menu is offered for guests dining on the outdoor and indoor lounges only (not for takeout/delivery). Sample oysters on the half shell, steakhouse sliders, smoked deviled eggs, Old Fashioneds and a Lillet Rose Spritz.
• The Japanese bakery and Cafe the Loaf became an instant hit in the Santa Clarita Valley when it opened earlier this year. From the same team behind Okayama Kobo in Anaheim, the Loaf uses traditional Japanese baking techniques and ingredients in their sweet and savory baked goods. Expect lines to get in, especially on weekend mornings.
• Post & Beam in Baldwin Hills reopened this past weekend for in-person dining. Joining the team with chefs John and Roni Cleveland is new chef de cuisine Martin Draluck (formerly of Hatchet Hall). Post & Beam's core menu -- vegan crab cakes, shrimp grits, jerk catfish, beef short ribs, oysters -- returns with a focus on incorporating more local, family-owned products, farms and distributors.

WE LOVE TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS

A West L.A. photographer is among the winners of the prestigious Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest, for the photos he took documenting the Black Lives Matter protests across L.A. in the wake of George Floyd's murder.

Matt Stasi said he could feel the urgency of the community coming through the lens as he captured the images on the streets last summer.

"Everyone wanted justice for what was going on, what is going on," he said. "It was just powerful to see everyone coming together -- that was the one thing that really really stood out."

Stasi recently won recognition for a black-and-white photo he captured of a Hollywood protester named Guy Peel, wearing a mask bearing the words, I can't breathe.

"It was a raw nerve, so I was capturing a lot of anger, a lot of pain after hundreds of years of people being marginalized, and that's an understatement," Stasi said.

Since June 2020, we've asked for your stories about how race and ethnicity shape your life and and published as many of these stories as we can. We call this year-long effort Race in LA. Click here for more information and details on how to participate.

By Leilani Burrell-White

When I was a student at Pacific Oaks College in Pasadena more than 20 years ago, studying for my undergraduate degree in human development, I was assigned to create a "persona doll."

A persona doll is a creative and often therapeutic way to tell a story. Using the persona doll allows the storyteller to convey the story in a non-threatening, non-invasive and safe way. The story that is being told is the doll's story.

There are many ways to create a persona doll. You can create a doll and then tell the doll's story, or you may have a story in mind that you want to tell and then create the doll. The story always belongs to the persona doll, not the person who wrote or told the story.

Persona dolls are very useful in therapeutic settings, especially when working with children, as I frequently do. However, I have found that persona dolls are helpful for all ages and genders. We all have stories we want and need to tell.

"Zola" was my persona doll I created during the college class I attended, in which the students were asked to consider how our lives were shaped, during our early development, by the social and political context of the time. We then wrote our persona dolls' stories.

Zola's story was drawn from the early experiences of a young girl growing up during the early 1960s, as I did. The young girl living those experiences was me. Zola's mother is white and her father is Black, just like my mother and father.

Zola is a young child whose only concern is to play. But people keep pointing out to Zola that she is different, and Zola can't understand why.

I wrote her story in her voice and from her perspective, in the language of that era.

Zola's story has stayed with me throughout the years. She helped me to respect the inner world of children more intensely. Zola gave me an understanding of how early events help to shape an individual's worldview, as they did mine.

Zola also informed me that there are times when we need to revisit, reframe and reconsider our early formation and challenge some of those beliefs. We may find that by doing so we uncover, discover and discard useless baggage and make room for precious memories that hold meaning and positive reinforcement.

I recently revisited Zola, thinking of how so many children of different races and cultures are cast as "different" and "other" these days. With them in mind, I added on to Zola's story.

I hope to turn Zola's story into a children's book one of these days.

***

Hi, my name is Zola. I'm six years old.

My name is from the Congo -- that's a place in Africa -- and it means "to love."

I'm different. The reason why I know I'm different is because people keep asking me "What are you?" I don't know what to say when people ask me that, but the first time somebody did, I went home and told my mommy.

"Mommy, today, somebody asked me 'What am I?' My mommy said, 'The next time they ask you that, you tell them, 'I'm just a pretty little girl.''"

Well, the next time it happened, I did just what my mommy said. When somebody asked me, "What are you?" I said, "I'm just a pretty little girl."

Then they said to me, "No, not that. I mean, are you Black or are you pink?" And I said, "I don't know, I'm just a pretty little girl."

One day I saw my uncle, he's always asking me about school. "How's school, baby?"

I said, "Uncle, people keep asking me 'What am I?' My mommy said I should tell them 'I'm just a pretty little girl.' But when I did, they said 'Am I pink or Black?' But I don't know."

My uncle said, "What they saying to you don't matter none, you just keep telling them what your mama told you to say."

So, the next time somebody asked me "What are you?" I said just what my mommy and my uncle told me: "I'm just a pretty little girl." And they said, "No, not that. Are you a Creole or a Mulatto?" I don't know, I thought, what's a Creole or a Mulatto? I didn't have an answer.

Then one day I saw my auntie. I asked my auntie, "What's a Creole?" My auntie asked me why I was asking her that. I told her somebody asked me if I was a Creole. My auntie laughed and said, "You ain't no Creole, girl, now go on outside and play."

I went to my mommy and said, "Mommy, people keep asking me 'What are you?' I told them what you said -- that I'm just a pretty little girl. But they keep asking me stuff, like, 'Are you pink or Black? Are you a Creole or a Mulatto?' I don't know what they mean. Uncle said what they asking don't matter none. Auntie said I'm not no Creole. Am I a Mulatto, Mommy? Mommy, what's a Mulatto?"

Mommy said, "Baby, listen. You are Momma's baby, and you are a pretty little girl, and all those other questions people keep asking you don't matter. You just keep telling them what I told you -- you're just a pretty little girl."

Oh, well, my name is Zola. It's from the Congo, that's a place in Africa. It means "to love," and I'm different.

You want to know why I'm different? Cause being just a pretty little girl just ain't enough.

MORE FROM OUR RACE IN LA SERIES

• Don't Turn My Community Into COVID-19 'Trauma Porn'
• A Latino 'Gringo' On Straddling Two Cultures, Never Enough Of Either
• Life Beneath Hollywood's 'Bamboo Ceiling'
• Boricua At Home, Black In The World: An Afro Latina in LA
• As A Black Nurse At The Pandemic's Frontlines, I've Had A Close Look At America's Racial Divisions
• 'What Are You?' 'Are You Adopted?' A Biracial Black Woman Gets Real About The Questions People Have The Nerve To Ask
• Reading While Black, And Other Ways To Court Trouble
• Reparations And Reinvestment: Contemplating The Proverbial '40 Acres And A Mule' Today
• Claiming My Dignity On A San Fernando Valley Street
• The Day My Brother Learned To Fly
• In The Process Of Becoming American: A Proud Son Of Immigrants Reflects On His Family's Past And Future
• 'Black Enough?' Mixed Musings On My Skin Color, Hair, and Heritage
• How To Participate In Our Series

***

Time passes by, and people still keep asking me "What are you?" and I keep telling them the same thing. I'm just a pretty little girl.

But now the words they use are different. They say "Are you a half-breed?' and "Are you mixed?" Mixed? What's mixed? And what's half-breed?

I asked my Mommy to explain these words to me, but she says, "Don't pay that no mind, baby - you're just a pretty little girl, you're momma's baby and I love you...and that's all you need to know."

One day a new girl came to my school. She looked different than my other friends at school. She had a scarf wrapped around her head, and she never took it off. Not in class, not at lunch, not even when we went out to play. She wore it all day long.

One day, during recess, some of my friends asked her "What are you?"

When I heard my friends ask her that, I ran over, cuz I wanted to hear what she said. How would she answer the question people asked me? Was she a Creole? Was she Mulatto? Was she half-breed? Was she mixed? Was she just a pretty little girl, like me? Oh, I just needed to know so bad.

I waited and I waited. I needed to know the answer. Finally, she said, "Why do you ask me such a ridiculous question? What am I? I am a human being, just like you. You see me as different. I see me as who I am. My name is Habibi, it's Arabic, and it means 'loved one.'"

I stood there and just stared at her. How could this be? Another girl, in my school, who's different too, and her name almost means the same thing as MINE!

After that day, Habibi and I are best friends. She's different, and I'm different. We are the two "different girls" in our school, and we're always together.

Habibi tells me all about the country her family came from that's far away. We talk about all kinda stuff like the food we like, the games we like to play, the shows we like on TV and how people keep asking us stupid questions...like "What are you?"

Habibi taught me a new word. It's called "unique." She said it's like being different, but better. The way she said "unique" sounded way better to me than different. I like being unique, and I like being different. You wanna know why? Because being different and unique is something special. I feel special because I'm different and unique.

People still keep asking me "What are you" and now I tell them "I'm unique" or "I'm special." I like telling people that cuz when I do, they don't ask me more questions, or say words I don't understand because they think I'm different. I understand now why they ask, cuz I wanted to ask my friend Habibi questions too, like about the scarf she wore. But when we became friends, I didn't care anymore, all I cared about was that she's my friend.

My name is Zola, I'm six years old. My name is from the Congo, that's a place in Africa, and it means "to love." My best friend is Habibi, her name is Arabic, and it means "loved one." We are unique, and we like being unique, cuz being unique is something special.

People think we're different, but that's because they just don't know how special we are.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Leilani Burrell-White has worked in the counseling field for more than 30 years. She holds a Master of Science in human services management and a Master of Arts in professional clinical counseling. She presently holds a management position with a private agency within the foster care industry. She is a mother and grandmother who loves kids and has worked with children in the foster system, with teenagers, and with adults battling substance abuse.

Leilani is rooted and grounded in social justice for all people. Her early life experiences led her to take a direction where she wants to serve those who are disenfranchised. In addition to her full-time job, Leilani leads a class on sexual and reproductive health for teens, and is in the process of becoming a licensed professional clinical counselor.

On Thursday, Angels fans in Southern California were able to attend their team's opening game as baseball season kicked off for 2021. This time, with in-person games.

In-person baseball returns with a limited capacity. At Angel Stadium that means roughly 15,000 people, or about 30% of its capacity.

This was the first in-person game played at the stadium since 2019, and excitement was high among fans returning to the stadium. Many fans we spoke with have been lifelong attendees, like Jason Abraham, 42, who was at the game with his family.

"We've been season ticket holders since we were kids with my dad. So, it's nice," Abraham said. "I'm 42, and it's the first year I didn't go to a baseball game last year. My dads brought us since we were babies."

Abraham still feels apprehensive about crowds, but he decided to bring his family after reading about the seating set ups and safety measures being taken to keep people safe.

"If it was like a regular game -- all crammed together -- I don't think I'd be here for that," he said.

For many folks being able to go back to a sporting event felt like some return to normalcy.

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