Letters to the Editor: Problems at Skid Row can't ‘be magically fixed by treating people as unwanted criminals'
To the editor: I think this is one of the most important opinion pieces that the L.A. Times has published since I've been reading it ('My neighborhood, Skid Row, is not exactly what you think it is,' May 13). At a time when Gov. Gavin Newsom is pushing Californians to think of the unhoused or severely impoverished as people unworthy to sleep and live in public spaces, we need voices like guest contributor Amelia Rayno's reminding us that these are real people and communities being affected by vindictive policies.
The suffering and dangers of living in Skid Row are not to be ignored. However, neither can they be magically fixed by treating people as unwanted criminals. I think David Graeber and David Wengrow stated it best in their book, 'The Dawn of Everything.' To paraphrase, 'security' does not have a singular definition. There's the security of knowing one has a statistically small chance of being shot. And then there's the security of knowing that there are people who will care deeply if you are.
Matthew Neel, Sherman Oaks
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Business Journals
14 minutes ago
- Business Journals
Daily Digest: End of an era at Fisherman's Wharf, Scale AI eyes record funding from Meta
Happy Monday, Bay Area. Tensions remain high in Los Angeles as protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement took over the city this weekend, with demonstrators clashing with law enforcement as President Trump deployed 2,000 members of the National Guard to "address the lawlessness." The state of California will file a lawsuit on Monday challenging President Trump's use of the National Guard, Gov. Gavin Newsom stated on social media. Trump suggested Newsom should be arrested over his response. Protests also broke out in downtown San Francisco on Sunday with 60 arrests made, the Chronicle reports. Meanwhile in transportation, Alphabet-owned Waymo has suspended service of its ride-hailing service in downtown Los Angeles after some of its vehicles were set on fire during protests. Closer to home here in the city, S.F.'s first all-women's sports bar — Rikki's — is opening on Wednesday at 2223 Market St., an upper Market location that has seen a number of short-lived concepts over the past few years. And finally, the San Francisco-Marin Food Bank has announced the closure of all its farmers market-style pantries by June 30, as well as reductions to its home delivery service and staff. ABC7 also reports that 13 pantries closed for good Friday after the money ran out. Here's the rest of the local business news to start your week. GET TO KNOW YOUR CITY Find Local Events Near You Connect with a community of local professionals. 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CNN
an hour ago
- CNN
The Mexican flag has become a defining symbol of the LA protests
Mexico's red, white and green flag has become a defining symbol of the protests in Los Angeles. Demonstrators have waved flags from Mexico and other Latin American countries, as well as US flags, to express solidarity with immigrants and denounce the Trump administration's raids, provoking the ire of Trump's supporters. Los Angeles has been roiled in protests since Friday, when ICE officers raided several workplaces in the city's garment district. While the protests began peacefully, they have since led to dozens of arrests and some violent clashes. President Donald Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops and Marines, outraging Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom, who in a complaint defined the mobilization of the California guardsmen an 'illegal takeover' and on social media called the potential use of the Marines 'a blatant abuse of power.' The Mexican flag has long been a mainstay at immigration-related demonstrations, particularly in LA, which has deep cultural and economic ties to Mexico and is seen as the capital of the Mexican diaspora in the US. More than 3.4 million people of Mexican heritage or born in Mexico live in Los Angeles County, according to Census data, more than any other county in the US. But images and video showing flag-waving protesters facing off with police have drawn anger from Republican officials. 'They were literally out there protesting, carrying a foreign flag. That is absolutely insane. They're not just peaceful protesters. These are illegals,' Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin told CNN's Dana Bash, while defending Trump's decision to deploy the National Guard to LA. 'Insurrectionists carrying foreign flags are attacking immigration enforcement officers,' Vice President JD Vance posted on X Saturday. The Department of Homeland Security has shared on social media several photos and videos of the protests where, amid chaotic scenes, the Mexican flag is featured prominently. Trump's deputy chief of staff for policy Stephen Miller described the protesters on social media as 'foreign nationals, waving foreign flags, rioting and obstructing federal law enforcement attempting to expel illegal foreign invaders.' Waving a foreign flag – or even destroying an American one – is legal under freedom of expression rights protected by the Constitution's First Amendment. Raul Hinojosa-Ojeda, associate professor of Chicana, Chicano and Central American Studies at UCLA, said invoking flags to demonize protesters is a 'well-documented move on the part of the Trump administration, knowing that every single demonstration of this type brings out the Mexican flag.' The current Mexican flag was officially adopted by the country in 1968, though variations have been used since Mexico's war of independence from Spain in the early 1800s. The brandishing of it and other Latin American flags to defend the rights of immigrants in the US has a long and complex history. The Mexican flag was a lightning rod during the 1994 movement against California's Proposition 187, which sought to bar undocumented immigrants from accessing education, health care and social services. The flags, waved by protesters to show pride, were seen by many as symbols of anti-American defiance. In LA, some have argued waving the Mexican flag risks undermining the protesters' cause by alienating people and shifting attention away from immigration policy. Waving the Mexican flag 'transforms what should be a debate about American constitutional rights and due process into a conversation about foreign loyalty and cultural assimilation,' Mike Madrid, a Republican strategist focused on Latino voting trends wrote in the Sacramento Bee. But the waving of foreign flags speaks to the generations of people from Mexico and other Latin American countries who have called the US, and particularly California, home, Hinojosa-Ojeda said. 'The flags mean their families. The flags mean their communities. It's not about having an international invasion,' he added. The flags are a 'mechanism of pride and identity that is under attack,' Hinojosa-Ojeda added. Antonio Rodriguez, an organizer with the Brown Berets immigration advocacy group, said the Mexican flag at the protests is a symbol of unity, not division. 'I don't necessarily think just because somebody has pride in their culture that they're un-American,' Rodriguez said. 'Waving a Mexican flag, for us, is showing pride in our culture and our family.'
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
As Marines deploy to Los Angeles, California's Newsom says ‘a red line' is being crossed
After Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents carried out raids in three locations across Los Angeles on Friday, there was a predictable public backlash. A day later, as protests intensified, Donald Trump announced that he was calling up 2,000 National Guard troops, ignoring the objections of Gavin Newsom, California's Democratic governor. While the president's move was historic — though not in a good way — it was soon followed by an online statement from Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, who said the Pentagon was also mobilizing U.S. Marines. On Sunday morning, CNN's Dana Bash asked Republican Sen. Ron Johnson whether he'd be comfortable seeing active-duty Marines in Los Angeles. The Wisconsin senator, who chaired the Senate Homeland Security Committee for six years, replied, 'It won't be necessary.' It was the next day when NBC News reported: About 700 Marines from the Marine Corps base in Twentynine Palms, California, will deploy to Los Angeles to support the roughly 300 National Guard members already in the city to control protests against federal immigration raids, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said. President Donald Trump had earlier ordered the deployment of 2,000 troops in a move California Gov. Gavin Newsom criticized as inflammatory. Jim McDonnell, Los Angeles' police chief, didn't sound especially pleased about the developments. 'The LAPD has not received any formal notification that the Marines will be arriving in Los Angeles. However, the possible arrival of federal military forces in Los Angeles absent clear coordination presents a significant logistical and operational challenge for those of us charged with safeguarding this city,' McDonnell said in a statement. Newsom's reaction was even less guarded. 'U.S. Marines serve a valuable purpose for this country — defending democracy. They are not political pawns,' the California governor wrote via social media. 'The Secretary of Defense is illegally deploying them onto American streets so Trump can have a talking point at his parade this weekend. It's a blatant abuse of power. We will sue to stop this. The Courts and Congress must act. Checks and balances are crumbling. This is a red line — and they're crossing it. WAKE UP!' There's no shortage of questions surrounding what might happen next, starting with the possible rules of engagement for Marines who are being deployed to a city in their own country. Indeed, The Associated Press reported that the Pentagon was 'scrambling' to establish rules to guide Marines 'who could be faced with the rare and difficult prospect of using force against citizens on American soil.' The AP added, "The Marines are highly trained in combat and crisis response, with time in conflict zones like Syria and Afghanistan. But that is starkly different from the role they will face now." These efforts are a reminder about the degree to which Trump is playing with fire, needlessly escalating tensions in ways that will bring unpredictable consequences. This article was originally published on
