“There was always kind of an urban legend about this rocket testing site that we had,” said Lauren Hammersly, a resident of Simi Valley.

Hammersley grew up in the area, and to her, the Santa Sunana Field Laboratory was just another abandoned government site.

“There weren’t families that were talking about the ill effects of the Santa Susanna field lab. So it was never really something on the forefront of my mind,” she said.

For more than 40 years, the site housed nuclear reactors that left behind heavy metals, radioactive waste, and the beginning of a cleanup project that has lasted decades to complete. 

In 2007, NASA, Boeing, the Department of Energy(DOE), and the California Department of Toxic Substances Control(DTSC) signed the Consent Order for Corrective Action agreement meant to clean up contaminated soil and groundwater.

But many of its critics argued that the agreement did not specify strict cleanup levels. In 2010, DOE and NASA signed the Administrative Order of Consent agreement, which helped define cleanup obligations to natural levels.

But this process was not just done with the help of the state.

“It was a hard-fought battle. Um, but it was a big moment of relief and celebration for the community that they were promised, um, legally promised the full cleanup of, of this toxic site, said Hookon Williams, Executive Director of Committee to Bridge the Gap, a watchdog nuclear policy organization.

But for Hammersley, those changes weren’t enough. In 2013, her two-year-old daughter, Hazel, was diagnosed with stage three neuroblastoma.

“She just kept telling me she had owies and she kept pointing to her back at her stomach,” said Hammersly.

When Hammersly took her daughter to the local hospital, she was transferred to the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, where doctors found a nerf-size tumor in Hazel’s abdomen. 

You feel like you’re supposed to protect your children. I mean, that’s your job. And, and there’s this thing that’s growing inside of her that I couldn’t protect her from,” said Hammersly.

During that time, she met Melissa Bumstead, founder and co-director of Parents Against Santa Susana Field, and her daughter, Grace, was in cancer treatment.

Bumstead is a resident of West Hill, not far from the Santa Susana field lab. 

“We started meeting other families whose kids live nearby, who also had really rare types of cancer. And I started to become concerned when I kept meeting other families who were just a street over, went to the same park, went to the same grocery store,” said Bumstead.

She started to map out where these families lived, and she began to see a pattern.

“Everyone that we met. We all lived within five miles of the Santa Susanna Field Lab,” she said.

So she decided to organize and create an organization that held Boeing and NASA accountable.

“I didn’t want to fight. I didn’t plan to fight. I planned on forgetting about it. I prefer to be a wallflower, but then I went to Costco one day, and I saw a baby with cancer,” said Bumstead. 

For Bumstead, that was enough. Children around her were being diagnosed with cancer on a large scale. And she is not alone. Denise Duffield, the Associate Director of Physicians for Social Responsibility Los Angeles, an organization that works to protect the public from nuclear weapons, radioactive waste, and contamination, has been working with families that have been affected by the toxins from the SSFL for almost 20 years.

“Now I’m having the second group of moms that I have met at the Children’s Hospital. Once you know what’s on the site, and you know what people are exposed to, particularly women and children. We work closely with the community. We forged deep bonds,” she said.

Duffield stays vigilant. Since clean-up is taking years to finish, her concern is that over time, nuclear waste will seep outside its borders.

“We know what the contaminants are there. And we know that they get off the hill, particularly in windy, rainy, and fire events. So the surest way to prevent exposure from now on for future generations is to remove the contamination,” she said. 

She says the organizations tasked to clean up the site are using time as a way to deflect accountability.

“At the rate some of the cleanup documents will say, natural attenuation is how they want to get rid of it, which means just letting it slide down the hill and break down gradually over time, it means not cleaning up,” she said.

In 2020, NASA unsuccessfully applied to have the entire site on the National Register of Historic Places, which would have the effect of exempting 100% of the site from any cleanup.

In a statement, Boind said, they “secured the future of nearly 2,400 acres as permanent open space habitat to benefit wildlife and the community.” And they plan to transform the Santa Susana Field Laboratory to an open space for animals and plants.”

In 2022, DTSC signed a new deal with Boeing. According to Williams, that deal superseded Boeing’s prior cleanup agreement.

 “(It) weakened cleanup levels that Boeing will use for the SSFL cleanup by hundreds or thousands of times,” he said.

“In other words, letting Boeing leave hundreds to thousands of times, more contamination at the site not cleaned up, where it can continue to migrate into the surrounding community,” he said.

Duffield stays skeptical and has little trust in Boeing and NASA to complete the SSFL clean-up.

“You know, the haters gonna hate, polluters gonna pollute,” she said.

For now, the rest of the community members, local organizations, and watchdog agencies keep working together to let the public know about the effects of the Santa Susana Field Laboratory.

Little Myanmar, located in the Lower East Side of New York City. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

The tactic of having one employee working in the morning is unusual for them, but at a time when restaurants are trying to stay afloat, at Little Myanmar, workers find ways to save payroll. That’s because the Trump tariffs on international imports rolled out earlier in the year are affecting the way small businesses across the city operate.

Thyar Kyar, the owner of Little Myanmar. Photo by Juan Dieg Ramirez

Thyar Kyar, the owner of Little Myanmar, has to import many of her ingredients monthly.

“Chickpeas, they’re coming from Myanmar. Ginger, curry, and chili I bring from Myanmar,” said Kyar.

And importing ingredients that can’t be harvested in the U.S. is costing small businesses like Kyar’s a high price.

“I used to spend 800 dollars, below 1,000 dollars (a month). Now I spend a little bit more, almost double. I spent maybe 2,000 dollars,” she said.

Back in April, President Donald Trump declared a national emergency and imposed a ten percent tariff on imports to the country under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. That has created a domino effect on the whole restaurant industry.

Kyar is not alone. In Kips Bay, Esam Ewees, who runs The Prince of Egypt halal cart, is also feeling the effects. He buys his meat and vegetables from local suppliers, but they are far more expensive than pre-pandemic prices, and the tariff has made it hard for his prices to stay steady, which is bad for business. Ewees does not rely on imported ingredients, but he depends on the cost of the imported food packaging, which comes from overseas. 

Esam Ewees, owner of The Prince of Egypt halal cart in Kips Bay. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

“All the stuff went up. The plates. I bought the plates for 30 dollars. Now the box is like 85 dollars. Too much money,” he said while cooking food inside his cart.

Ewees says that even without importing his ingredients, he still gets a hit. His suppliers are raising the prices of some of the products he needs. He says the farmers are feeling the pressure and are passing the added costs on to him.

“The lettuce, one piece, is about four dollars or 82 dollars a box. The farmers are losing the money too,” He said.

Patrick Saintclair, CEO of Atlantic Agri Imports. Photo by Atlantic Agri Imports.

Patrick Saintclair, CEO of Atlantic Agri Imports, a family-owned food supplier based in New Jersey, says that half of the product he sells comes from other countries. 

“We get our jasmine rice from Thailand. We get the basmati rice from India. We import from Egypt, so those products are definitely impacted,” he said.

Saitclair said he used to pay six percent of tariffs on Jasmine rice since he started the business back in 2009. Now, due to the Trump tariffs, he is paying 30 percent on top of that. 

Atlantic Agri Imports warehouse in New Jersey. Photo by Patrick Saintclair.

“We’re really getting hurt because of that additional tariff. That’s why a lot of importers like myself have either stopped importing the rice from India altogether or have drastically reduced the volume that we’re bringing in,” he said.

And his experience matches how tariffs function in practice. When a foreign country puts products on a ship at a port in the U.S., whoever is pulling the product from the port is the one who is paying the tariff.

To avoid losing customers, Saintclair says he has been forced to absorb the rising costs, and for small business owners, that is not sustainable.

“If they don’t reverse the tariffs, there will definitely be food inflation. The importers can absorb some of the price increase because they don’t want to lose customers. But they can’t keep on doing that month after month,” said Asli Leblebicioglu, an International Economics professor at Baruch College.

Asli Leblebicioglu, International Economics Professor at Baruch College. Photo via LinkedIn.

“It’s highly likely that one way for the businesses to save costs and to be able to keep on operating is to minimize the necessary labor. If they have to import necessary ingredients to be able to cook, it almost becomes like they have to cut back on labor. They have to cut costs on other elements, and labor potentially is one,” she said.

In the meantime, a local approach to help small businesses is in the works. The incoming city mayor, Zohran Mamdani, plans to create the Mom and Pop Czar, an office to help small businesses, including restaurants, ease the financial pressures the city puts on them.

“Compliance is incredibly important; punishment is not,” Mamdani told food influencer Jakie Cho, during an election campaign stop in Queens. 

“Our job should be to get small businesses, get restaurants into compliance, not to try to fine them to fund a budget of 116 billion dollars,” he said.

But that won’t help tackle tariffs in the long run. That’s why Saintclair is looking towards the midterm elections. 

“Everybody is waiting to see if the cards shift. We’re hoping that they do because if it doesn’t, then the outlook for the next 23 years it’s going to be really bleak. It’s going to be really bad for the market,” he said.

Until then, owners will continue to cut back wherever they can before they are forced to shut down operations.

For the people under the umbrella of war, the destruction has become part of daily life.

Yaroslav, who chose not to give his last name, is a Ukrainian soldier fighting on the frontlines of the conflict, has seen the outcome of war firsthand.

Yaroslav sitting in an undisclosed location. Photo provided by Yaroslav.

“You have to understand that with war comes destruction,” says Yaroslav.

“Entire forests are destroyed. There is no foliage, really whatsoever. It’s really a barren landscape. Very much like what you would imagine in World War I, the Western Front.  Even in other regions of the front, we use tree lines for concealment; they will destroy them. They’ll use phosphorus munitions to burn as much away. The destruction causes a lot of debris,“ he said.

The debris he is talking about is the rubble of fallen buildings, burned cars, and materials left behind by the armed forces. Groups like Let’s Do it Ukraine, a volunteer network that organizes civic clean-ups and recycling drives, face a painstaking task of collecting hazardous waste left behind by shelling and explosions. 

According to the organization, since the war started, it has produced about 200 million tons of contaminated debris and waste. The cleanup is dangerous to the volunteers, but it is essential to the environment and villages that are affected. 

Just like deforestation, many villages have also been flattened out, a product of being in the frontline zone. 

“Actual frontline towns, villages are bare and there’s almost nothing left,” said Yaroslov.

He recalls when, in 2023, the Russian army destroyed the Kakhova Dam, flooding entire towns. 

“It started to flood a lot of the local areas, thus turning a lot of ground into more swamp-type land, and that’s not good,” he said. 

Adding that once that area is free from conflict, the cleanup is going to be a problem for Ukraine.

“A lot of this isn’t gonna heal,” he said. 

While soldiers like Yaroslav see the damage directly, scientists like Anna Kot, a Senior Lecturer at the Department of Ecology and Environmental Management and a PhD student at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, are trying to understand its environmental impact. 

Anna Kot, Senior Lecturer at the Department of Ecology and Environmental Management and a PhD student at V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University.

Kot has been studying the ecological fallout through her research. Her focus is on environmental monitoring and natural resource management. Since the war began, scientists have been able to record large-scale environmental damage. 

Among them, the destruction and contamination of rivers and reservoirs, chemical spills from industrial enterprises, forest fires, soil “bombturbation”, a term used for the aftermath of an explosion that creates a crater and mixes the soil with debris, making the soil useless, and finally the accumulation of heavy metals on the surface of the soil. 

“The greatest concern is posed by heavy metals like lead, cadmium, copper, mercury, petroleum products, detonation byproducts like nitrates, nitrites, hydrogen sulfide, as well as dust and gaseous emissions from fires and destroyed industrial facilities,” she said. 

Due to the war, heavy metals from ammunition fragments, tanks, and explosives have seeped into and contaminated agricultural land, making it less fertile. 

She says that more than 12 million acres of agricultural land have been contaminated due to the war, which has resulted in the loss of almost half a million dollars. While the destruction of the Kakhovka Reservoir released over 90,000 tons of heavy metals into the Dnipro River and the Black Sea, making it unsafe for drinking water and marine life. 

“Soil, water, and air contamination can lead to the accumulation of toxic substances in food products, increasing the risk of chronic diseases in the population,” said Kot.

“Long-term changes in soil structure and decreased fertility may negatively affect crop yields and the quality of agricultural products, thereby undermining food security and the economic stability of affected regions,” she added.

For Let’s Do It Ukraine, the challenge is converting that data into action. The organization has partnered with city governments, the State Emergency Service, and the United Nations Environment Programme to separate debris, identify hazardous material, and find ways to recycle usable scrap. Volunteers collect and sort from regular trash to rocket fragments. The organization also has mandatory training for volunteers in case of an attack while cleaning. 

The combination of human survival and environmental survival has become one of Ukraine’s toughest challenges. Scientists like Anna Kot continue to gather data to document how the war has affected the environment in Ukraine. 

“Many underestimate the scale and long-term consequences of the environmental impacts. The war not only destroys infrastructure and takes human lives, but also causes the accumulation of toxic substances in soil, water, and air, which will affect human health and ecosystems for decades after the end of hostilities,” she said.

While Yaroslav, who is fighting on the frontlines, sees the present impact on human suffering. 

“People know (the war) is affecting the environment. That’s without a doubt, but what can they do? Survival is gonna be the focus,” said Yaroslav. 

Baruch students wait for Fitgi Saint-Louis at 12th Street and Lenox Avenue. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

The New York City Department of Transportation Art program selected Saint-Louis as a part of its NYC DOT Community Commission program. Fitgi was part of the first group of artists to participate in the program since its pause due to the COVID pandemic in 2020. 

“The Department of Transportation had a part of their budget where they can revitalize city streets.
And there was one call for all five boroughs, but one artist would be selected for each site,” said Fitgi at the busy intersection. 

She was awarded twenty thousand dollars from the DOT for a public art installation.

“So I, as the artist, was very much the project manager for it,” she said. 

According to Fitgi, although the lump sum was helpful, it was up to her how the funds would be distributed. She had to budget for materials, fabrication, installation,  maintenance, and the artist’s fee. That also included the budget for her two community engagement events.  

“I had a spreadsheet where I aligned all of those different line items, even having help from assistance, was all calculated into that budget,” she said.

Fitgi Saint-Louis posts next to one of the sculptures that make up her “Aunties” artwork. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

The NYC DOT program had each sponsored artist partner with a community organization. Fitgi partnered with the West Halem Art Fund, which creates sculptural works. With their help, Fitgi was able to make “Aunties”, a colorful trio of nearly six-foot-tall wooden sculptures that resemble a simplified shadow of women, meant to honor the women of Harlem. 

But the West Halem Art Fund was not the only help Fitgi got for this project. At her Harlem studio, Fitgi also got help from those close to her.

“My parents and my family, we all helped paint, to put it together,” she said.

Fitgi Saint-Louis posts next to her artwork, “Aunties”. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

The artwork is located in the median strip on Lenox Avenue, visible to those walking in the area and car traffic heading uptown.

Fitgi, who is also a Harlem resident, describes the reason why she set her sights on this location. 

“What drew me to it was its proximity to 125th, which is a huge corridor and avenue for Harlem history. Lenox Lounge, back in the day, used to be right here, so it’s a cultural hub,” said Fitgi.

“Aunties” by Fitigi Saint-Louis. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

The sculpture has caught the attention of many community members, among them, Harlem resident, Gina Ramcharam, Chief Idea Curator at Idea Manufacturer.

“I think it’s inspiring. I love that it pays homage to black women,” said Ramcharam.

Ramcharam appreciates the colorful sculptures because they remind her of her childhood toys. She said the name “Aunties” has a deeper meaning in her personal life.

“I’ve lived here for 26 years, and the reason I could live and make a life in Harlem and my family and myself thrive in Harlem was because of the aunties that took care of the community,” she said.

But “Aunties is not the only art installation Fitgi is displaying in Harlem. Just a few blocks northwest of the “Aunties” location, at Saint Nicholas Park on 135th Street, lies her other artwork, Fanal: Fe Limye. Fanal: Fe Limye pays homage to Fitgi’s Haitian roots. It is a shed-sized Fanal lantern decorated with colorful geometrical shapes, typically found in Haiti during the holiday season.

“Fanal: Fe Limye” by Fitgi Saint-Louis at Saint Nicholas Park in Harlem. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

”It’s a special piece. And I think that it was the first piece of art here,” said Mosart X, a local artist and park visitor.

Mosart X sees the park as a playground for adults, and for him, it serves as an open space for inspiration. But seeing Fitgi’s artwork reminds him of a terrible incident in his life.

“My house burned down, I moved here due to a house fire, so also seeing that weirdly, it reminds me of a house on fire, but still protected, still loved, it’s still beautiful, it reminds me of a little bit of my home.”

It is a bittersweet sight for Mosart X, yet he remains positive and perceives Fitgi’s work as uplifting.

Fitgi Saint-Louis posing next to her artwork titled “Fanal: Fe Limye” at Saint Nicholas Park in Harlem. Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez.

Fitgi’s installations have inspired countless people in her community, but she strongly advised the artists looking to follow in her footsteps. 

“Your experience is not as individual as you believe it to be. The things that you appreciate, the things that you might be scared of or hurt from, actually resonate with a lot of others.
So understand that what you create has an impact, and it will live on, hopefully, it’s preserved beyond your time here,” she said.

By Juan Diego Ramirez

Madison Square Park has oak, maple, elm and birch trees, which release high amounts of pollen in the Spring. (Photo by Juan Diego Ramirez)

Opening your windows for the first time after a cold winter in New York City might feel like a breath of fresh air. However, for many who live in a greener zone of the city, a nice breeze in the spring is the beginning of the dreaded allergy season—and efforts to expand the urban canopy could be exacerbating their symptoms.

That’s the case for Georgia Kuiok, a New York University student living in the Flatiron District. She has suffered from allergies all her life, but spring and fall are when they flare up.

“I take allergy meds daily,” she said.

Trees are vital in the city’s efforts to mitigate climate change. During high heat times, shaded areas are 20 to 40 degrees cooler than areas without. (Source: NYC Parks )

According to NYC Health + Hospitals, allergies flare up during certain months when trees, weeds and grass release pollen into the air. CDC allergy data show that 19% of people under 18 years old suffer from seasonal allergies in the United States. That number increases to almost 26% for people over the age of 18.

Dr. David Erstein is a specialist in allergy and immunology at NYC Health + Hospitals/Lincoln.

“Climate change has led to longer growing seasons and higher pollen counts,” he told a NYC Health + Hospitals publication. “Warmer temperatures and increased carbon dioxide levels help plants produce more pollen, and for a longer stretch of the year.”

Itchy eyes, runny noses and asthma attacks can be a product of pollen allergies.

“It’s like living with a chronic illness,” said Kuiok, who’s been to the hospital several times due to her seasonal allergies.

Limiting time outdoors on high-pollen days and in the early morning when pollen counts are highest can be helpful for those who suffer from allergies, according to Dr. Erstein.

“Keep windows closed, use air purifiers, and shower after being outside to wash off pollen can also be helpful,” he said.

With plans to expand its Neighborhood Tree Planning Program throughout its five boroughs, the city finds itself dealing with a public health conundrum: More tree species means more allergens.

“We now plant over 130 different species and varieties of trees, up from only 29 species twenty years ago,” said Judd Faulker, a spokesperson for NYC Parks.

NYC Parks manages 7,300 acres of natural forest area, street and parkland trees, according to their website.

“Each area demands a different planting approach, which includes species selection. A number of criteria goes into choosing which tree species is most appropriate, including flood/drought conditions, soil compaction/pollution, sunlight, surrounding canopy, and potential conflict with nearby infrastructure,” said Faulker as the city aims to fight urbanization, heat islands and air pollution.

“We aim to continue planting and maintaining a robust and diverse population of trees across the city that can tolerate all the challenges that the urban landscape provides,” he said.

According to NYC Parks, trees are vital in the fight against climate change. During the high heat of the summer, areas shaded by trees can be 20 to 40 degrees cooler than areas without trees.

While a strong and healthy tree canopy is critical for managing stormwater, providing habitat for animals, and reducing heat, it can also worsen pollen levels, according to Guy Robinson, a Visiting Scholar at Fordham University Department of Natural Sciences.

New York City was built on an Oak-Hickory woodland, but invasive species are creating a pollen problem, particularly in neighborhoods with more trees, according to one of Robinson’s studies.

“Trees that are exotics for the most part planted as ornamentals like Chinese, Elm, and the Pagoda tree flower in August, which is not when most trees flower, and so we’re now getting a second tree season in the late summer, early fall, which we didn’t have before,” said Robinson.

This chart was created to help New Yorkers find which trees planted in the neighborhood produce more pollution than others. Source: Journal of Exposure Science and Environmental Epidemiology

“I’m certainly not opposed to planting trees, but I do think we should think more carefully about which ones we plant because there are plenty of choices,” he said. Robinson and his colleagues have created a list of trees that produce less pollen and, therefore, could be a better fit for public health.

“The Tulip tree is one. It’s actually the tallest trees you can find in the city. Those produce very little pollen ‘cause they’re insect-pollinated. Anything that’s insect-pollinated is going to be less overall,” he said.

Although NYC Parks has not announced plans to prioritize low-pollen trees, they have created an immersive city map on their website that shows all the information on the trees under their care across the city.

NYC Parks offers a map on their website to see what species of trees have been planted around their neighborhood, and if it contributes to their seasonal allergies. (Source: NYC Parks)

Users can explore the map and see what species of trees are planted around their neighborhood and check whether those species are contributing to their seasonal allergy flare-ups.

For Robinson, a tree map is useful, but it’s not enough if the city does not take proactive steps to address the pollen issue.

“We actually have the capacity to do something in terms of airborne pollen in the city, and so this should be given some consideration when planning another project of tree planting,” he said. 

Editor’s Note: This is Juan Diego’s reporting debut for The Latino Newsletter. Daily Kos reporter Alix Breeden contributed to the reporting. All interviews were conducted in Spanish and translated into English for this story.

After months of confusion, isolation, and legal limbo, more than 250 Venezuelan men detained in El Salvador have returned home. They were part of a prisoner swap involving 10 American nationals held in Venezuela.

Many parents of the Venezuelan detainees who had sought justice are now breathing a sigh of relief to see their sons home, but remain concerned about the toll the detention has taken on their sons’ lives.

“I saw him. He was not all there,” said Karlyn Fuentes, describing to The Latino Newsletter the moment she saw her son, Joen Suárez, after his return to Caracas last Friday. “Like he had woken up from a dream. He is going to need a lot of mental help.”

Fuentes said the encounter was brief. 

Originally from Valles del Tuy, about one hour outside Caracas, Fuentes happened to be at a hospital in Venezuela’s capital city with her daughter, who had suffered a knee injury, when she heard from the news that the prisoners were being flown in. 

“I’m very happy,” she said. “As a mother, I don’t want him to return to the United States.”

A few weeks before the news, Fuentes was one of several Venezuelan parents who traveled to Geneva back in June to seek international support. 

She and other members of the Comité de Defensa de los Migrantes Secuestrados en El Salvador, a Venezuelan migrant advocacy group, spent over two weeks pleading with the U.N. Human Rights Council to intervene.

Their children were among the 252 Venezuelan migrants sent to El Salvador’s maximum security prison, Centro de Cofinamiento del Terrorismo (CECOT), by the U.S. earlier this year under the use of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798. Many had no prior criminal charges or convictions. Jetzy Arteaga, another Venezuelan parent, stated the transfers to CECOT happened without warning or access to due process.

Arteaga’s son, Carlos Alejandro Cañizalez, was arrested back in March and taken to CECOT by the Trump Administration.

“His partner called me and said they took him to CECOT in El Salvador,” Arteaga said.

Cañizalez was rerouted from a deportation flight to El Salvador with no trial or formal charges. 

Arteaga was infuriated with what happened to her son.

“I don’t understand why they are doing things this way. This is a crime against humanity, never before seen, because this has never happened anywhere,” she said.

Before the prisoner swap,  El Salvador’s president, Nayib Bukele. publicly shifted responsibility for their detained sons, pointing the finger back to Washington. He addressed the issue directly, explaining that “jurisdiction and legal responsibility” for the Venezuelan men in CECOT rest with the U.S. and not with his country. 

Bukele’s statement contradicted earlier comments made by the Trump administration and complicated the legality of the deportations. Legal filings submitted to U.S. District Judge James Boasberg in Washington, D.C. cite El Salvador’s admission that the U.S. retains authority “by virtue of international agreements signed and in accordance with the principles of sovereignty and international cooperation in criminal matters.”

The U.S. government had argued that once the men were flown out of the country, they could no longer challenge their detention. 

In June, Judge Boasberg ruled that migrants must be permitted to challenge their deportation even while abroad, and ordered the government to have a system for claims by CECOT detainees.

For Mirelys Casique, the legal nuance doesn’t make up for what her son endured. Francisco García Casique was sent to CECOT after missing a court date in Texas. 

“Our relatives were being used essentially as hostages, and that’s my analysis: they were used for a political purpose and ended up in a political limbo where no one gives us answers,” Casique said. “Everyone passes the blame around. It was a hot potato. The United States says it has nothing to do with them anymore because they are in El Salvador. El Salvador says it is only acting as the jailer.”

“We are humble people,” Casique added. “My son is not a terrorist. He is not a criminal in Venezuela, or in the U.S. He is just a barber.”

Though the men are now back in Venezuela, the mothers said the story is not over. In videos surfacing online, many of the returnees noted they suffered abuse while at CECOT.

Casique said her advocacy won’t end until every mother in her country has the answers they deserve. 

“Since this happened, I understood that I had to be the voice of my son, Francisco. But then I also realized I had to be the voice of all the innocent people locked up there, because it’s not just about my feelings as a mother,” Casique said. “I have a moral obligation. I also took on the responsibility to be the voice for the other mothers back home in Venezuela who don’t have the same strength I do.”

Listen to the podcast here.

Nationly is co-hosted by political science professor Sara Sadhwani and multimedia journalist J.D. Ramirez.

Orlando, FL: Felon Disenfranchisement & Voting Rights

“Desmond and Neil knew they weren’t going to win Amendment Four by only appealing to the family members of returning citizens. Their landmark campaign to restore voting rights to people with felony convictions needed widespread support.

Together, they built a wide network of grassroots volunteers across political divides. On any given day, they might go to an NAACP meeting, a Unitarian church, and a MAGA rally – all for Amendment Four. Neil joked that he and Desmond had a “20 minutes and a cup of coffee rule, and you could convince anybody to support Amendment Four because the truth is, it’s good for everybody”. Their strategy led to one of the largest expansions of voting rights in US history.”

https://www.thesumofuspodcast.com/#Episode-by-Episode-Guide

Note from the producer:

This podcast has been one of my most personal projects to date. Growing up in South Los Angeles, Chalino’s music was everywhere. I would often hear his music out of the loud speakers of cars passing by or at a family gathering once the party vibes were at their peak. Chalino represented street life, but also Mexican culture in L.A. The fine line his legacy played for Mexican Angelenos is second to none. When I was told I would be a producer for this series in both English and Spanish, I was ecstatic. I was tasked to oversee the end-to-end production of the podcast. This would be my first time in such a position. We had a lot of fun during the production of this project, from the research phase to writing original music. Chalino has created another everlasting memory for me. I hope you have also enjoyed listening to it as much as I enjoyed producing it.

“We examine Chalino’s extraordinary life and attempt to unravel the mystery of his death. Chalino’s story—his own narcocorrido—is the ultimate ride through the drug cartel world, the underbelly of the Mexican-American music industry, and a murder mystery for the ages. Idolo: The Ballad of Chalino Sánchez is a podcast by Sonoro and Futuro Media.”

https://sonoromedia.com/podcasts/idolo