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Villaraigosa Bows Out, Won’t Run for Governor of California

6:53 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · California|Los Angeles|Politics|society · 1 Comment

22 Jun 2009

Along with celeb Mayor of San Francisco, Gavin Newsom, L.A.’s Latino mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (and co-star of telenovela-like love dramas) had his sights set on becoming the Governor of the great state of California, but today has announced that he’s bowing out:

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced on national television today he would not be running for California governor in 2010 after flirting with a bid for higher office for months.

Elected to a second, four-year term in March, the mayor told CNN’s Wolf Blitzer that he wanted to devote his full attention to Los Angeles, which is facing its worst fiscal crisis in decades.

Villaraigosa’s decision adds a dash of clarity to the race for the 2010 Democratic gubernatorial nomination which, at the moment, appears will be between state Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown and San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom. Brown has yet to say if he will run, while Newsom already has announced his candidacy.

The L.A. Times attributes the bow-out to the Mayor’s low approval ratings – 55% on the job he’s currently doing as mayor in L.A. — and the fact that historically, Los Angeles mayors have had a very hard time at gaining support in their quest for Governor of California. Oh, and the $530 million deficit for the city in fiscal year 2009.

Meanwhile, Mr. Villaraigosa was just re-elected as Mayor of the great city of L.A., which apparently means he has a lot of trabajo to do.

Any L.A. reader want to let us know the real deal? Is L.A.’s crisis just an excuse? Did Villaraigosa ever even have a chance to be governor? What’s his report card for L.A. looking like? Let us know in the comments.

Via / Los Angeles Times and Politico

Gay Latino Teen is Prom Queen in L.A.

1 Jun 2009

It sounds like a script for the feel good movie of the year, but it’s a true story. An openly gay L.A. teen decided it might be fun to be a part of his high school’s prom court, but he didn’t want to be prom king — he thought prom queen would be more up his alley. And instead of being the target of bullying or ridicule, Sergio Garcia’s classmates at Fairfax High rallied around him and made his wish come true:

A few days before the dance and election, the contenders gave short speeches on why they deserved the crown.

“At one time, prom may have been a big popularity contest where the best-looking guy or girl were crowned king and queen. Things have changed and it’s no longer just about who has the most friends or who wears the coolest clothes,” Garcia told the crowd of seniors. “Sure, I’m not your typical prom queen candidate. There’s more to me than meets the eye.”

The audience erupted in applause after his speech, and a group of his female friends spent the rest of the week wearing pink crowns and campaigning for him.

On Saturday night at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, wearing a charcoal-gray tuxedo and a black bow tie, he was named prom queen.

“I felt invincible,” Garcia said.

He’s among the first male students in Southern California to take the title usually owned by female high school beauties.

“It just shows how open-minded our class is,” said Vanessa Lo, 18, the school’s senior class president.

Congrats to Sergio and his classmates. We can only wish that the rest of high schools in America — or in California for that matter — were so cool. Viva Fairfax High!

Meanwhile, anti-gay marriage protests rage in Sergio’s home state.

Via / LA Times

East L.A. Might be on its Way to Becoming a City

10:40 am By Maegan La Mala · California|Cities|Los Angeles|Politics|society · 1 Comment

11 Jan 2009

Latino neighborhoods in the U.S. — New York’s El Barrio, San Francisco’s Mission District, and East Los Angeles – often seem to visitors like cities unto themselves because of their uniqueness, culture and community feel. “East Los” wants to turn that “feel” into something tangible by becoming an city independent from Los Angeles, and this week they have taken the first steps towards accomplishing this goal. Reports The Los Angeles Times:

…on Friday, the community took a major step toward gaining independence. County officials announced that backers had gathered enough signatures for the cityhood process to formally begin. Boosters hope residents will cast ballots on the question in 2010.

First, a major study has to confirm what a much smaller, earlier study asserted: that the neighborhood of 140,000 can sustain itself economically as what would be L.A. County’s 10th-largest city.

On Friday, supporters who were gathered along Whittier Boulevard said they were confident of victory, even as they prepared to go door to door to raise $100,000 to pay for the study.

11,000 people signed the petition for East L.A.’s cityhood, getting the cause past its first big hurdle.

The last time cityhood for East L.A. was attempted was back in 1974. Supporters say it’s necessary that East Los become a city because it has no local governance (and therefore no government accountability) and its 127,000 residents live under the auspices of a county official which represents over 2 million constituents.

Via / L.A. Times and Cityhood for East L.A.

Image via ikkoskinen on Flickr

South Central L.A. Farm Site to be Forever 21

9:32 am By Maegan La Mala · Fashion|Labor|Los Angeles|Shopping · Comments Off

19 Aug 2008

The South Central Farm, a 14 acre Los Angeles space used by mostly Latino, immigrant community members, that became the center of controversy when the city took it away from those that worked the land, will be Forever 21, as in the space will be used as a warehouse for the cheap and cheaply made clothing company.

Inspiring a movement and a movie wasn’t enough for L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who supported the farm, has received a nice sum of money from the clothing company with a history of poor labor practices.

He has received nearly $1.3 million in contributions and commitments from Forever 21 and its executives over the past two years for initiatives ranging from tree plantings to his own reelection campaign

Via / Feministe and LA Times

L.A. Moves to Ban Fast Food from Poor Neighborhoods

1:55 pm By Maegan La Mala · Food|Health|Los Angeles|society · 3 Comments

30 Jul 2008

Who woulda thunk it: L.A. is setting a health standard that is admirable — the city is trying to do something about an obesity crisis affecting one of the city’s poorest neighborhoods. The idea is great, but I am skeptical it will work.

The local city council is banning fast food outlets in the less than privileged neighborhood of South L.A.:

A law that would bar fast-food restaurants from opening in South Los Angeles for at least a year sailed through the Los Angeles City Council on Tuesday.

The council approved the fast-food moratorium unanimously, despite complaints from representatives of McDonald’s, Carl’s Jr. and other companies, who said they were being unfairly targeted.

Councilwoman Jan Perry, who has pushed for a moratorium for six years, said the initiative would give the city time to craft measures to lure sit-down restaurants serving healthier food to a part of the city that desperately wants more of them.

“I believe this is a victory for the people of South and southeast Los Angeles, for them to have greater food options,” she said.

Martes Morning Movie : The Garden

7:18 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Activism|Los Angeles|Movies · Comments Off

22 Jul 2008

Back in 2006, we wrote up about how celebs and activists were getting behind the struggle of some Los Angeles residents who were fighting to protect 14 acres of community farmed land smack in the middle of the city from the city. Now there is a documentary about the struggle, called The Garden. From the website of the film:

The fourteen-acre community garden at 41st and Alameda in South Central Los Angeles is the largest of its kind in the United States. Started as a form of healing after the devastating L.A. riots in 1992, the South Central Farmers have since created a miracle in one of the country’s most blighted neighborhoods. Growing their own food. Feeding their families. Creating a community.
But now, bulldozers are poised to level their 14-acre oasis.
The Garden follows the plight of the farmers, from the tilled soil of this urban farm to the polished marble of City Hall. Mostly immigrants from Latin America, from countries where they feared for their lives if they were to speak out, we watch them organize, fight back, and demand answers:
Why was the land sold to a wealthy developer for millions less than fair-market value? Why was the transaction done in a closed-door session of the LA City Council? Why has it never been made public?
And the powers-that-be have the same response: “The garden is wonderful, but there is nothing more we can do.”
If everyone told you nothing more could be done, would you give up?

Sadly, there aren’t any scheduled screenings up on the website, but just checking out the trailer you should be moved.

FBI to investigate LAPD beating of Latino man

6:57 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Activism|Controversia|Internet|Los Angeles · Comments Off

13 Nov 2006

The power of YouTube continues to amaze us. The brutal August 11th beating of William Cardenas by the LAPD was caught on tape and put out there for the world to judge. And public opinion says it doesn’t think the LAPD has changed much over the past decade. You judge for yourself:

Thanks to the video’s viral popularity on the internet, the FBI is looking into the matter, reports BET:

The footage prompted federal investigators to open a civil rights inquiry into the Aug. 11 incident, FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller said.

The involved officers, who did not know they were being recorded, have been assigned to administrative duties while the FBI investigates. The LAPD’s internal affairs division is also investigating the arrest, the department confirmed Thursday.

Can’t see the video? Please let us know.

Via / BET.com and YouTube

Joan Baez up in a tree over L.A. real estate

12:48 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Activism|Celebrities|Los Angeles · Comments Off

25 May 2006

Folk singer and long-time activist Joan Baez has climbed into a tree in L.A. to protest the commercialization of a piece of farm land there, according to Spain’s 20 Minutos:

The object is to raise public sympathy to impede the eviction of 350 families that live off the land of this modest farm and who have been served an eviction notice.

The owner of the property at first accepted the 6 million dollars offered by the farmers, but later upped his demand to 16 million.

According to Los Ángeles newspaper La Opinion, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa stated that he cannot do anything else for them: “I am the only elected official who has supported them — the only one. I’ve raised 6 million dollars, but I could not raise the 16 million tat Mr. Horowitz is asking for. What can I say? We tried, we raised a lot of money to buy the land, and there are many officials that have worked against the interests of farmers. I’m not one of them.”

According to 20 Minutos, actress Daryll Hannah has also jumped on the bandwagon in support of the campesinos:

Actress Daryl Hannah asked that the owner of the property “swallow his greed” and accept the 6 million dollars being offered by the farmers. “He would not only get back the 5.1 million he paid for the land, but also the interest.”

See all related stories on Google News.

Via / 20 Minutos

Wave of protests nationwide: birth of a movement?

11:26 am By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Activism|Immigration · Comments Off

10 Apr 2006

Large-scale “immigration justice” protests are slated for today in numerous cities across the country. CNN reports:

On what is dubbed a “national day of action for immigration justice,” Atlanta’s was one of 30 marches in the South alone as focus on the immigration issue turned from Congress to the streets.

Other large protests are planned in New York, Philadelphia, Indianapolis, Seattle, Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.

According to CNN, protesters in New York will cross the Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan and march on City Hall. The Nation’s blog reports:

…even more massive pro-immigration demonstrations are scheduled for 140 more American cities in a national day of protest. Once again Los Angeles is predicted to be the epicenter of the day’s activities. As many as a quarter million of a people are expected there as well as an equal number in New York and Washington DC– perhaps a total of two million or more nationwide.

Half a million people took to the streets in Dallas yesterday in solidarity with immigrant workers. From The Nation:

The Dallas demonstration –- which mushroomed to ten times the size anticipated by authorities — rivaled the scope of the so-called “Gran Marcha” in Los Angeles two weeks ago – an event that to many observers marked the birth of a new civil rights movement.

Do these protests indicate the birth of a new civil rights movement or a knee jerk reaction which will likely die down? Leave your comments and debate.

Via / CNN.com and The Nation

Photo: AP

A “sanctuary” in the city of angels

8:05 pm By Jennifer Woodard Maderazo · Immigration|Los Angeles · 1 Comment

24 Mar 2006

In response to recent proposed legislation which would require local law enforcement to act on illegal immigration, a 97% Latino suburb of L.A. has declared their town a “sanctuary” for immigrants:

…attracting fierce criticism from opponents who say it is encouraging lawlessness.

Maywood, a tiny urban pocket of Los Angeles county, has abolished its traffic police because of complaints that they were unfairly picking on Latino drivers.

Previously drivers without licences – almost all illegal immigrants – had their cars impounded. The city council has also passed a resolution opposing some of the toughest government measures against illegal immigration in recent times.

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