The Thorn West is a state and local news roundup compiled by members of DSA-LA. Our goal is to provide a weekly update on the latest developments in state and local politics, and to track the issues that are most important to our membership.
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Issue No. 54 - April 9, 2021
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- California plans to end its current coronavirus color tier system on June 15. Pandemic-related restrictions on businesses, with the exception of the mask mandate, will be dropped on that date. Health officials are warning that the public should remain cautious, as premature lapses in coronavirus safety protocols may result in another surge.
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- Workers rallied on Thursday to protest Kroger’s closing of a Food 4 Less in Hollywood. Kroger closed the store in retaliation against the people of Los Angeles following the city council’s passage of an ordinance last month mandating pandemic hero pay for supermarket workers. This week the council filed a strongly worded motion to investigate Kroger’s actions; the motion mentions the possibility of compelling testimony from Kroger executives.
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- The Los Angeles City Council voted unanimously to recommend the state shut down the natural gas storage site operated by SoCalGas in Playa del Rey.
- There was another oil spill at Inglewood Oil Field, which falls under the jurisdiction of both the city and the county. Legislation to consider phasing out oil drilling in the city of Los Angeles continues to slowly make its way through committees. The Culver City Council already voted to phase out drilling last year (and, as noted by Vice Mayor Daniel Lee, was ahead of Los Angeles in calling for the closure of the SoCalGas facility as well).
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Police Violence and Community Resistance
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The epic multi-part series recounting the history of violent deputy gangs in the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department, written by Cerise Castle for KNOCK-LA, has concluded with a searchable database of all deputies with gang affiliations.
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- An article in the New Republic uses examples from Los Angeles to demonstrate how legislation meant to promote “affordable housing” repeatedly fails due to its ideological reliance on marketplace solutions that give too much to private developers.
- Speaking of inadequate housing policy: Los Angeles cities are required to update their “housing element” on an eight-year cycle to ensure that they have planned to accommodate the amount of affordable housing the state has mandated in its Regional Housing Needs Assessment. With that cycle already beginning in 2021, Strategic Actions for a Just Economy is hosting a webinar on how to advocate for better housing policy.
- Councilmember Nithya Raman spoke out in support of AB 1401, a proposed bill which would eliminate minimum parking requirements for certain housing developments in California. A very comprehensive and readable chart of all the housing-related legislation being considered by the California State Legislature this year can be found here.
- The LA Times spoke with several of the unhoused residents of Echo Park Lake a week after their displacement, demonstrating that Mayor Garcetti and Councilmember O’Farrell have been dishonest in their claims that the population was successfully resheltered. Meanwhile, yet another encampment sweep conducted just this week in the neighborhood of Harbor City was documented on Twitter.
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