Our Take: We need a spending plan that reflects the values of voters As most working families know, California’s economic recovery has been uneven. For the millions of families still struggling to make ends meet, stagnant wages, budget cuts and a dwindling safety net have not translated into growing prosperity. However in recent years California…
Continue ReadingLooking Back on our Work in 2015
For SCOPE, 2015 was a year of victories benefiting working families in Los Angeles, including an increase in the minimum wage to $15 an hour and the passage of wage theft enforcement policies that protect the city’s most vulnerable workers. 2015 was also the first full year that eligible individuals could change their records under…
Continue ReadingSouth LA LADWP Rate Increase Townhall
On Tuesday November 3rd, SCOPE and the RePower LA Coalition hosted an important and much-needed conversation with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) on their proposed rate increases. With our community room filled to capacity with South Los Angeles community members, this was one of the largest community meetings the LADWP has hosted—and the first of…
Continue ReadingGiving Community Resilience Real-Life Meaning in South LA
What do you think of when you hear the word resiliency? I think of a rubber band being twisted and stretched in all directions. The resilient ones stay in tact, becoming a little looser, adapting to the movement. The not so resilient bands become brittle, breaking with the slightest addition of stress. I think of…
Continue ReadingCommunity Meeting with Marqueece Harris-Dawson
8th District Council Member Marqueece Harris-Dawson visited the SCOPE offices to meet with community members and share his plans for the neighborhood. Residents touched on issues of empty lots, blight, violence, and housing. The councilman shared many of the concerns brought up during the meeting and is actively working on changing things for the better,…
Continue ReadingRealizing the Promise of Solar for South Los Angeles
I recently wrote a piece for Capital and Main about how the Department of Water and Power’s residential rooftop solar initiative has left South L.A., along with Wilmington, Boyle Heights, Pacoima and other communities behind! Read on! Find out where LADWP’s solar incentives actually went and how SCOPE wants to see LADWP’s newest renewable energy…
Continue ReadingCA Legislative Session Closes With Wins & Loses
California’s legislative session came to a close on September 11th and with it, news and updates on various bills that will have impacts on our work to ensure that communities like South Los Angeles aren’t left behind when it comes to support, resources, and our on-going work to build a climate conscious community. The work…
Continue Reading Three Questions About Poverty the Republican Presidential Candidates Should Answer
The Center for Community Change asked me, along with long time SCOPE member and grassroots leader, Pat Jones, what we would like to see the Republican candidates debate. This piece continues a campaign at TalkPoverty.org where advocates and people struggling to make ends meet will ask 2016 presidential candidates about how they would significantly reduce…
Continue ReadingSouth L.A. has its sights set on the Air Resources Board
As the legislature session wound down last week, finalizing which bills would pass this year, we saw that California is at a pivotal moment. Our state legislators are forging a climate-conscious path that will shape our economy, health and environment in the decades ahead. While much work is still needed to extend and increase our…
Continue ReadingLA Wage Theft Coalition Looks to Past to Continue Fighting for Future or Workers
On August 18th, the Los Angeles Coalition Against Wage Theft held a worker assembly to review the new law they won with coalition members and to plan for next steps. Starting in July of 2016, the cities minimum wage will increase in increments until 2020 when the full $15 an hour will take affect. In…
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