As of May 20, members from the Bus Riders Union began a hunger fast on the grass area of Placita Olvera to stop MTA from increasing fares from $1.25 to $1.50 for regular fare, a day pass will be $6, weekly passes will be $20, and a monthly pass will be $75. These fare increases are scheduled to take place during the summer. MTA released their budget for the next fiscal year to the public breaking down where they would be making cuts, who much money is allotted to what and the increase in bus fares. Esperanza Martinez, one of the lead organizers for the union says that the increased fares are being passed down and targeting minorities, who are the majority of people that rely on the bus. All the poor people who depend on the bus for their livelihoods. People who commute everyday to work, school or just to get to doctor appointments and everyday commuting.
RADIO SOMBRA’S FRIDAY FILM NIGHTS
FRIDAY MAY 7, 2010 7 pm
THE 800 MILE WALL
Special Screening and Dialogue with Film Maker John Carlos Frey
+ Guest Music Performance
(2009, U$A, 90 mins) English/Spanish w/ English Subtitles
The 800 Mile Wall highlights the construction of the new border walls along the U.S.-Mexico border as well as the effect on migrants trying to cross into the U.S. This powerful 90-minute film is an unflinching look at a failed U.S. border strategy that many believe has caused the death of thousands of migrants and violates fundamental human rights.
Since border walls have been built, well over 5,000 migrant bodies have been recovered in U.S. deserts, mountains and canals. Some unofficial reports put the death toll as high as 10,000 men, women and children. As a direct result of U.S. border policy, migrants are forced to cross treacherous deserts and mountains in search of low skill and low paying jobs in the United States. The New York Times writes, “Current border strategy is serving as a funnel through deadly terrain.” The 800 Mile Wall documents, in great detail, the ineffective and deadly results of a failed border policy and offers some thoughts and on how the current human rights crisis may be resolved. Directed by John Carlos Frey and Produced by Jack Lorenz.
More info:
http://www.800milewall.org/
View Trailer
K-12 Students free!
Suggested donation: $3 – no one turned awayy.
*Donations go towards keeping Centro Comunicacion Comunitaria operational and East L.A. Sombra
Centro Comunicacion Comunitaria
3806 E. Cesar Chavez Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90063
Boyle Heights-East Los Angeles
Just below Self Help Graphics
For more info and complete schedule for May 2010 visit us at:
Boyle Heights Living Streets Initiative. Job Description: Green LA Coalition (GLA) is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Project Coordinator for the Boyle Heights Living Streets Initiative. This position is expected to run through March 2012. Boyle Heights Living Streets Initiative: The Boyle Heights Living Streets Initiative will increase people’s ability to safely and pleasantly cycle and walk in Boyle Heights by implementing 3 prototype Living Streets near the Mariachi Plaza and Soto Gold Line stations. Currently, City of Los Angeles ‘ standard street improvement projects do not give any special consideration to cyclists and pedestrians. This Initiative will take advantage of the opportunity afforded by approximately $25 million allocated through various grants and funding programs to design and install street improvements near these Gold Line stations according to Living Streets principles. GLA is partnering with the Community Redevelopment Agency of Los Angeles (CRA/LA) to lay the groundwork for 3 prototype Living Streets designed with strong community participation. This Initiative will additionally develop a Blueprint document and pass necessary policies so that Living Streets can be replicated throughout the city. An inter-agency task force and community stakeholder task force will be created. For more information on Living Streets see website
Interested candidates please send cover letter and resume to: Green LA Coalition, 1000 North Alameda Street, Suite 240, Los Angeles , CA 90012, ATTN: Stephanie Taylor, Interim Managing Director, staylor@greenlacoalition. org.  By: Friday, May 7, 2010
For More Information contact: Stephanie Taylor, Interim Managing Director, staylor@greenlacoalition. org
When I was kid, I was always told in school that you needed to go to college to get a better quality of life. Teachers always encouraged me and my fellow students to pursue a college education. They would ask the class, “what do you wanna be when you grow up ?” I always said that I wanted to be a vegetarian, because I love animals and I wanna help them. The teacher would then correct me and say, “ohh you mean veterinarian, silly.” The class would laugh and we would move on to the next kid who wanted to be a doctor, a lawyer, an astronaut, a dentist etc. Never once in my life growing up did it occur to me that in order to be anything great in this country, that I am proud to call my home, that you needed papers. I figured that if I did like my teachers said, I got good grades, applied myself and worked hard I would get into a college and make something of myself. Lies. Fucking lies. Continue reading →
For a long while, I’ve been questioning the intended efficacy of public protests. I often wonder if the days of marching and holding signs and the persuasive effect they used to have on those in power is long gone. Public protests still serve a purpose though, they create a sense of solidarity with other like-minded folks, walking on empty streets with thousands of other people is an interesting way to take in the city, creative sign slogans are entertaining and inspiring, and protests can sometimes turn into riots. With these things in mind, I headed Downtown this weekend for the Anti-Nazi Protest with a Bay Area friend in-tow. I wanted him to experience Los Angeles style oppositional politics, a sorta intro to “This is how we do it.”
Little known random fact about me, I use to be a raspado vendor. I kid you not. This was when I was trying to figure out what to do with my life after graduating high school. You know, taking a year off or three from school to get my head on straight. I worked as a street vendor and I learned some life lessons that cannot be learned anywhere else. Even when I was a kid, the raspado man would be a sight for sore eyes when school let out. My favorite all time flavors are rompope, vanilla, strawberry, then all three combined with some lechera on top Mmmm, mmmm.
El Chavo is usually talking sense, except when he goes blasphemous by throwing some corporate cheez in tamales. But, on the subject of that staples center concrete wonderland, he has never been more spot on. his cold, calculating description is muzak to my eyes. Shiny cement cesspools. Is there any way around that? Parks and libraries getting shut down and these commercial camps get ballyhooed. But those are public, this is private! Huh? Just so cold and sterile. Remember when De La Soul said, “neighborhoods are now hoods, cuz nobody’s neighbors…” Well I do. It’s a brothel without the “fun,” even though patrons do get fucked one way or another. L.A. Live. Music, dining, sports, living? Whateverz, as RHS students say. The grey buildings and grey walls and grey floors and those giant televisions. “OMG, they put Christ Miss lights on the bald trees. What a nice detail.” I dont want my trees trimmed, or anything else trimmed. Let’s keep it real. “Hey, where you going?” Oh, to go watch television. Outside. Television? Outside?
Acerbic naysayer? What are the solutions? What would you replace it with? What am I now, a city planner? Those assholes should be losing their jobs. Solutions? For starters, don’t be calling a concrete commercial center (or as their site claims, “a one of a kind entertainment campus,”) a haven. I’m not the one lying. Fuck you very much.
Who runs that dump? The Dutch East India Company?
I hope the Lakers and Kings lose. Everyday! Enjoy the video.
I found this on Cesar Chavez and Eastern on the side of a liquor store. I first saw it riding the bus going to school and this sign stood out like the jewel that it is. I made some edits on photoshop, but only to bring out the colors. To me, this says it all right here. The tagging of gang bangers, crews, tagging crews and corporate companies. The dog eat dog competition of getting up, being seen and having your stuff be seen by everyone. Being a rockstar right ? It’s funny that this piece of advertising, covered in tags from head to toe, seen as an eye sore by everyone, never got taken down. Even as the wall it’s next to it gets buffed out every morning after it’s tagged up, they leave advertising like this alone because if it were to get painted over, the city could possibly be sued by the company or the store owner. I’m not entirely sure how the laws regarding murals/advertising works. No one does and that’s part of the problem right ? The city is so desperate to stop this problem that they’ll make an example out of anyone they catch. Even if you may or may not be beautifying the city with cool kitty cats.
Can you believe that after 2 years and 1,066 post later we would all still be here? Time is sure flying by. I just wanna say, in my own special way, thanks to everyone who reads and writes on this here little blog. In the 2 years this space has been around, we’ve managed to get attention from all over L.A. I, for one, am thankful for being part of this space, being able to write what I think and create conversations about the communities we live, their changing streets and the people who make up this great city east, west, north or south of the river. Here’s to another great year 😀
The first week of April, 1-7, is testicular cancer awareness week. If it wasn’t for the gals over at I heart guts, who made the awesome chart above, I wouldn’t have known this week was TCAW, I thought it was just Easter. So men, get to know your boys a little close this week and give yourself a self exam because early detection is the best way to stop and get rid of testicular cancer. So what exactly is testicular cancer ? Google health defines it as, “cancer that starts in the testicles, the male reproductive glands located in the scrotum.” It seems that there are no detailed specifics on what causes the cancer in individuals, besides a family history or abnormalities in that region. Symptoms range from nothing to pain in that region, back/abdomen, enlargement of testis and the one you look out for the most is lumps or unusual swelling.
On April 1, 2010, the entire board of supervisors for Los Angeles County witnessed a historical event at the East Los Angeles civil court: the marriage of Juana Juanes-Robinson and her two husbands, Juan Juanes and Bob Robinson. After twelve years of protest and push from community residents and supporters throughout the county, thousands of supporters for PWWMT (People Who Wanna Marry Two) waited outside of the civil courthouse for Juana and her two husbands to tie their knots.
Thirty seven more 2+1 marriage ceremonies are scheduled through the summer of 2010.
A few days ago I caught a link by LA Observed that mentions some of the supposed worst “eyesores” in El Centro. Well I happened to be downtown on that very day, and I’d like to submit the following location to the list of eyesores. Yes, LA Live. A most inappropriate name. Well, unless you were trying to zap some sort of “life” into a monster. But at least the icon of a pole dancing stripper seems to work. They’ve bothered to make a map, not that you’ll ever need to refer to it.
Click ahead for some pics of this so called “Living.”
