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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. 80 - October 8, 2021
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- Momentum gathers behind the idea of creating a public bank as new legislation — both at the state and city level — calls for further study into what the next steps toward implementation would look like.
- Governor Newsom has vetoed AB 339, authored by Assemblymember Alex Lee, requiring the continuation of virtual access to public comment in city council meetings across the state. Los Angeles City Council had passed a resolution opposing the motion.
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- When will Mayor Garcetti’s nomination to become the US ambassador to India be confirmed? No one knows.
- Councilmember Nithya Raman responded to the dismantling of her district in the currently proposed Los Angeles City Council redistricting map.
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- IATSE members voted to authorize a strike. Support was overwhelming, with 90% turnout and 98% voting in favor of authorization. Though now authorized, a strike has not been called; negotiations between IATSE and the AMPTP are still ongoing. Labor Notes carried an interview with an IATSE member about working conditions that had originally been published by Austin DSA.
- Los Angeles City Council passed an ordinance Wednesday requiring customers to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination to enter indoor public places such as shops and restaurants. The motion passed 11–2 with two absences.
- Climate or labor? As average temperatures climb, OSHA is ramping up to begin the first step in a rulemaking process to protect America’s workers from heat exposure. The effort is being led in the House by US Representative Judy Chu, as California already has similar protections in place — though the state struggles to enforce them.
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Housing and Gentrification
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- In the south end of MacArthur Park, a closure and encampment sweep has been scheduled for October 15, one week from today. After an LAPD representative compared the planned sweep to Echo Park Lake, Councilmember Gil Cedillo, who is overseeing the sweep, was careful to distance himself from that event, releasing an Echo Park “contrast chart.” On Instagram, LA CAN ignores the backbiting to highlight the similarities between the two operations.
- On Twitter, @MarVistaVoice has been tracking as councilmembers, taking advantage of new revisions to municipal code 41.18 that allow draconian bans of sitting, lying, or sleeping in public spaces, mark criminalization zones within their district.
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- A rupture in the San Pedro Bay pipeline leaked over 100,000 gallons of crude oil off the Orange County coast. The slow reaction time from authorities has come under scrutiny; CNN has a timeline of events. E&E News catalogs the potential damage to wildlife. Amid renewed calls to end offshore drilling, the LA Times diagrams how it could be done, and the obstacles (it would cost money).
- Labor or climate? The cause of the pipeline rupture is yet unknown. An article in Grist hypothesizes that it might have to do with the unprecedented number of cargo ships held in limbo around the San Pedro harbor, due in part to labor shortages in the supply chain. What is known is that the traffic jam is worsening air quality.
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