SACRAMENTO — Sen. Thomas J. Umberg, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, issued the following statement today in response to Federal Bureau of Investigations Director Kash Patel’s announcement on X this morning that a Wisconsin Judge had been arrested:
“It is a sad day for democracy and the rule of law. Public safety is also deeply undermined when our courthouses become inhospitable, unwelcoming, and dangerous for vulnerable witnesses and parties.
The Trump administration has been threatening the independence of the judicial branch in an effort to consolidate power. The arrest of a state court judge is an escalation of his destruction of our fundamental structure of checks and balances and of our state rights and federalist system. As James Madison wrote in the Federalist papers: “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands…may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.”
Patel claimed in his post that Milwaukee Circuit Court Judge Hannah Dugan had been arrested for obstruction of justice for allegedly assisting an immigrant in avoiding arrest after he appeared in her courtroom this week. This is a developing story.
The Associated Press reported that FBI agents arrested Dugan April 26. The Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge is accused of escorting the man and his lawyer out of her courtroom through the jury door last week after learning that immigration authorities were seeking his arrest. The man was taken into custody outside the courthouse after agents chased him on foot.
President Donald Trump’s administration has accused state and local officials of interfering with his immigration enforcement priorities. The arrest also comes amid a growing battle between the administration and the federal judiciary over the president’s executive actions over deportations and other matters.
Protesters chanted and marched outside the FBI after Dugan’s arrest, chanted “Immigrants are here to stay” and held up signs saying, “Liberty and Justice for All” outside the FBI’s Milwaukee division.
Dugan was taken into custody by the FBI the morning of April 26. She appeared briefly in federal court in Milwaukee later that day before being released from custody. She faces charges of “concealing an individual to prevent his discovery and arrest” and obstructing or impeding a proceeding.
The families of Lebanese civilians killed with American “bunker busters” want to hold both Israel and theU.S.accountable
Human Rights Watch, on Wednesday (April 23), accused the Israeli military of launching indiscriminate attacks on civilians in Lebanon. The organization claims there is mounting evidence that Israel repeatedly violated international law in 2023 and 2024. “More and more evidence is emerging that Israeli forces repeatedly failed to protect civilians or adequately distinguish civilians from military targets during its strikes across Lebanon in 2023 and 2024,” said Ramzi Kaiss, a researcher at Human Rights Watch on events in Lebanon.
The group called on all countries — including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Germany — to suspend military assistance and arms sales to Israel.
Our colleagues at Al Jazeera’s award-winning documentary news program Fault Lines investigated several Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon that killed civilians with U.S.-made munitions. Today, they have released a powerful short film uncovering evidence of unlawful killings by Israel in Lebanon and revealing the central role of US-made weapons in the attacks. The film’s correspondent Hind Hassan also filed the story you are about to read for Drop Site. We encourage all of our readers to watch the film, Made in America, and spread the word about this investigation.
—Sharif Abdel Kouddous
Story by Hind Hassan
Mohammad Haidar, 21, says his parents, Fatima Fekiyeh and Abbas Haidar, spent twenty years trying to have a child before he was born. Five years later, they had his sister, Hasnah, who completed their small family. They lived in southern Lebanon, in a house near the village of Seksekiyeh. Fatima and Abbas marked forty years of marriage last year in the village, where, Mohammad says, their life was idyllic, only sharing the land with horses and chickens.
Everything has been upended by Israeli bombardment.
Hezbollah began firing rockets and artillery at Israeli military posts one day after Israel began its genocidal assault on Gaza in October 2023. Israel bombed Lebanon, mostly in the south, with the low-level cross border attacks continuing for nearly a year. In September, Israel escalated the conflict into an all-out war. Bombs began raining down on large parts of Lebanon, including the south, causing widespread devastation and leaving entire towns in ruins. In total, more than 4,000 Lebanese people were killed and 1.2 million displaced.
Mohammad said his family planned to flee to Beirut on September 23. That same day, Israel launched one of the most intense aerial bombardment campaigns in recent warfare. The family never made it to the capital.
Mohammed recounted his attempts to flee from this ongoing bombardment to Al Jazeera English’s documentary program Fault Lines. “My father went to pick up our relatives so we can all leave for Beirut,” he said. “We wanted to escape the planes. I went to the third floor, and I had just finished eating. I was just about to get up when suddenly I saw the entire house collapsing.” He continued, “it was like a rainstorm, but the color was gray. As soon as I hit the ground, I was gone. I was unconscious. At first I had no idea what happened. I didn’t think it was a missile or anything like that. But, then, I woke up, I started to scream, tried to move. I realized I could not get up.”
Mohammad was trapped underground for seven hours. “Death is easier than being stuck under rubble,” he recalled, “you can’t breathe, you can’t move, all of the stones are on top of you.” As people arrived to help, he could hear his father’s voice through the chaos, alongside the relentless sound of bombs falling nearby. “My father was asking me if my mother and sister were next to me. I said I didn’t know, and then I was unconscious. I was coming in and out of consciousness because I was having a hard time breathing.”
When Mohammad was finally pulled from the wreckage, emergency workers rushed him to a hospital. Initially, news of his mother and sister’s fate was kept from him. He learned the next day that both had been killed, after seeing a memorial photo of his 15-year-old sister, Hasnah, posted online. Her body had been found three hours after the initial strike, but his mother’s body has never been recovered. “My mother, may God rest her soul, she’s still inside the stones,” he said, “we haven’t found her. Not even a single part of her. Maybe the missile fell on her and she evaporated. No one knows.” For months, Mohammad documented the ongoing search for her body in videos he posted on TikTok.
He says it’s taken a toll on his father, who remains trapped in a constant state of shock. “He cannot accept what happened. Every single day he comes to search,” Mohammed told Fault Lines, “when he reaches here, he starts to cry. His home, his sweat and tears, his family — it’s all gone.”
Evidence for War Crimes
No one has explained to Mohammad or his father why his home was bombed. The Israeli military has repeatedly claimed, on social media and in public statements, that it targets Hezbollah facilities and fighters, but it has not commented on this specific attack. Mohammad says his family are not Hezbollah members or fighters, and there’s no evidence to suggest otherwise.
“As you can see, it’s a normal house. We have nothing to do with anyone; we’re living alone here. They convey to the media that these are Hezbollah targets. But in reality, that’s not true.”
Only the frame of Mohammad’s house remains—lying in ruin among rocks, stones, and twisted metal—and stands alone in the center of their once-gated land. The destruction of the civilian home did not unveil any tunnels, reveal any weapon storage facilities, or unearth any militant activity.
Among the debris, Fault Lines found shrapnel and large metal casings, which were photographed and sent to forensic investigators at Airwars, a watchdog tracking civilian harm in conflict-affected nations. They partnered with Armament Research Services to analyze the munitions.
Emily Tripp, Airwars’s director, says the footage showed evidence of a JDAM (Joint Direct Attack Munition) kit: “it’s a piece of material that attaches onto a specific munition and allows it to hit a very particular coordinate. So from that, we know that there must have been coordinates essentially plugged into the targeting system in order for that bomb to have been dropped.”
JDAMs are American-made, as are most of the bombs attached to them. U.S.-manufactured weapons used by Israel in Lebanon have killed many civilians, including Mohammad’s mother and sister. Airwars identified the weapon that struck Mohammed’s house as a BLU-109, a 2,000 pound bomb in a category known as “bunker busters.” These bombs can penetrate hardened structures—including concrete, steel, and rock—before detonating, and they have been used by the U.S. in Afghanistan and Iraq, and by Israel in Gaza—with devastating consequences.
The BLU-109 is considered a “dumb bomb,” meaning it cannot navigate once released, but when paired with a JDAM, it becomes a “precision-guided munition,” capable of adjusting course mid-flight using GPS coordinates to hit a specific location. This suggests that Mohammad’s home was intentionally targeted.
Tripp adds: “We have found no evidence, based on our review of the online information environment, around connections between this family and Hezbollah. This is a typical situation in that a military will make a decision, drop a bomb, and assume that nobody will say anything afterwards.”
We shared our findings and evidence with Dearbhla Minogue, a senior lawyer at the UK-based Global Legal Action Network (GLAN), an independent organization whose work includes pursuing cases involving serious human rights violations. Minogue confirmed that, based on the available evidence and without an explanation from Israel, the attack could constitute a war crime.
Mohammad’s story is just one of many in a war that has resulted in widespread civilian casualties, often caused by U.S.-suppliedmunitions.
Fault Lines emailed the Israeli military’s press office to ask why Mohammad Haidar’s home—a civilian residence—-was struck. They did not respond.
America’s Role
In the United States, the Leahy Law prohibits the U.S. government from providing military assistance to foreign military units credibly accused of gross human rights violations. Human Rights watchdogs, like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have called for Israel to be investigated for war crimes, and accused it of committing genocide during its assault on Gaza. Despite this, Israel continues to receive more U.S. weapons annually than any other country.
For years, massive arms shipments to Israel have received wide bipartisan support in Washington. The Trump administration has approved around $12 billion worth of arms to Israel since January alone, while just months earlier, the Biden administration authorized the export of thousands of JDAMs—like the one found at Mohammad Haidar’s home.
Democratic Senator Mark Kelly has repeatedly spoken in favor of providing these weapons to Israel. Fault Lines spoke to him on his way to a committee meeting in February and asked him about his advocacy for the sale of JDAMs. He explained that: “JDAM is a much more precise weapon, helps you hit the target and to avoid collateral damage.”
However, Josh Paul, a former State Department official who resigned over U.S. arms transfers to Israel in October 2023, argues that Gaza serves as evidence that Israel has no interest in that type of precision, and he underscored American responsibility: “The reality is that every bomb dropped, every tank that rolls through Gaza, and every missile fired from U.S.-made aircraft carries with it the weight of American policy decisions. And, in many cases, we are complicit in those actions, whether we want to acknowledge it or not.”
In his role, Paul worked on vetting arms sales. He says the process changed when weapons were sold to Israel after October 7th: “Any space for debate, discussion, for remediating possible bad outcomes went away, because the whole process was flipped on its head […] it wasn’t, we are not going to be asking you for your approval. It was, ‘you must approve this’, and there were deadlines.”
The bombs were approved and widely used: the type of 2,000-pound bomb that destroyed Mohammad Haidar’s home was also reportedly dropped on Lebanon’s capital Beirut—just days later.
Celebrated by Leaders, The Strike That Killed a Family
At around 6 p.m., on September 27, 2024, Amira Zaydan stood on her balcony in Beirut when she saw smoke rising in the distance. The smoke was drifting from the southern suburb of Dahiyeh, where her mother, father, and brother lived in an apartment. Turning to her husband she said, “I think my family is dead.”
A series of “bunker buster” bombs had been dropped by the Israeli military on the Haret Hreik municipality. Israel later claimed it had struck Hezbollah’s “central headquarters,” allegedly located “under residential buildings.” The strike killed Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and was celebrated by then-U.S. President Joe Biden, who called it “a measure of justice.”
But this was the same attack that killed Amira’s family.
She rushed to the site of the bombing. “When I got there after the strikes, I was just screaming because the site was catastrophic. The Red Cross wanted to take me to the hospital because I fell to the ground a few times.”
Emergency crews, overwhelmed by the scale of the destruction left by the 2,000-pound American-made bombs, could not locate her family. That night, Amira returned to the site, and she found her uncle holding a flashlight, digging with his bare hands and calling out her father’s name. It took five days for their bodies to be recovered.
Her brother, 22-year-old Mohammad Zaydan, was found first. “They asked me if I wanted to identify the body, and I agreed. I wasn’t prepared for what I was about to see. I entered the room, and as soon as they opened the bag he was in, I glanced quickly and started to scream. I didn’t want to see if it was him or not. My uncle came and started to rub [my brother’s] head, but then his skin came off. At first, I said it wasn’t my brother. I didn’t want to accept that this was him.”
“We tried to lift his eyelids to see if it was him, but we didn’t find any eyeballs. His eyes had exploded.”
The next day, emergency workers found her father, Wissam Zaydan, and then her mother, Mona Al Shaker. “My uncle told the rescue workers to work delicately. Once they recovered the couch, they found my mother sitting on it. When they tried to move her, the top of her head fell off, it had melted.”
Her tone is fast and detached, Amira recounted the details as though they belong to someone else, until she broke down when recalling her final exchange with her mother. “That morning I sent her a message telling her to forgive me if anything happened to me. She said don’t speak like this. I swear, I felt like something was going to happen. I told her I wanted to go over there.”
She added: “Israel did this. They say that they had warned us, but they didn’t. They didn’t warn us about that initial strike on September 27.”
Amira says there were other families living in the building who also died. The total number of civilians killed remains unclear, but Fault Lines has verified that at least seven civilians were killed in the same attack.
Absence of Accountability
Despite the immense loss and grief, Amira is not expecting justice.
“We say God-willing whoever did that to our parents and other people will feel this pain and more. If he’s [Joe Biden] saying that we achieved justice by assassinating Hassan Nasrallah — what justice could they have achieved by killing civilians? He killed innocent and oppressed people, like my family.”
Both Israel and the U.S. are not parties to the International Criminal Court (ICC). Additionally, the U.S. holds veto power at the United Nations Security Council, and Israel does not cooperate fully with international bodies. As a result, Amira and Mohammad are unlikely to bring accountability to fruition through international mechanisms.
Mohammad Haidar is also not expecting answers, but he does have a message for the U.S. government.
“The weapons being sent to Israel are killing innocent people as you have seen. Boys, girls — they’re killing everything. Elderly people, animals. They’re uprooting the trees. This isn’t right. They should not be selling them any weapons, or give them anything else.”
On April 23, the union representing hospitality workers in California and Arizona, Unite HERE Local 11, announced that it and ASM Global had ratified a new contract for the Long Beach Convention Center and its workers over the weekend. ASM Global has also agreed to hire the workers from 1Fifty1 and reduce its reliance on subcontracted workers.
This came after ASM Global cut ties with 1Fifty1, which is currently under investigation for alleged wage theft and skirting income tax law by the California Labor Commissioner..
“It covers a lot of people’s needs, especially with what’s going on, with everything rising in cost,” Andrea Romero, a lead cook at the Long Beach Convention Center, told Random Lengths News. The new agreement includes a $12 raise over the next 3 years, $5 in the first year, $2 in the second, and $5 in the last year.
The contract includes family health insurance, an additional 400% added to pension plans, along with an extension of the agreement to the in-development Long Beach Amphitheater or the Long Beach Bowl, which ASM Global was charged with running a little while ago by the city council.
“We were worried it would be longer, that we would have to go on for longer. If we did, we would’ve had to get second jobs,” Romero said. The union moved to strike and boycott the center earlier in the year, urging various event organizers and visitors to choose other places to either host or visit. Negotiations began last year in September. The new contract will end in January of 2028, right before Los Angeles hosts the Olympics.
One of the largest sticking points in the contract was regarding the pay and hours of the subcontracted workers, the workers under the temporary agencies ASM Global works with to fill the holes in its labor force. As a part of the contract, ASM Global must move towards reducing subcontracted workers.
“We want to make it rare, instead of common as it is now, there are reduction goals that they have to meet … they have to reduce it by 80%,” UniteHere Local 11 Co-President Kurt Peterson told Random Lengths News.
As a part of the agreement, ASM Global has also agreed to hire the workers who were affected by 1Fifty1 management, and according to their press release, ASM Global has hired over 20 workers and has made offers to the others as well.
Additionally, the contract stipulates more protections for these workers against exploitation in the workplace, and those who were recently hired by ASM Global gained an 80% increase in wages.
While under 1Fifity1, they had a cap of about 960 hours per year, excluding them from benefits for full-time employees.
The union pushed for them to be included under Measure RW, which was originally meant to raise the wages of Long Beach’s hospitality workers to about $28 an hour by 2028, just in time for the Olympics.
However, when the Long Beach City Council voted on expanding the ordinance to the workers for the Long Beach Airport and Convention Center, they moved to not include the subcontracted workers from the temporary work agencies that ASM Global contracts with, citing the cost and impact to businesses.
Long Beach itself will be hosting about 11 Olympic games, priming the union and operator for another round of heated negotiations before the international event, as Long Beach Mayor Rex Richardson is pushing Long Beach as a major waterfront venue for the games.
“I mean we got a lot with our contract, they expire before the Olympics and workers will be ready to do what they have to do,” Maria Hernendez told Random Lengths News when asked about the future negotiations.
“We have over 100 contracts for hotels, airports and food service that expire before the Olympics.
Members believe if we don’t get what we need, the Olympics, to benefit working people, we would be willing to strike,” Peterson said.
Native Blooms Receives Public Unveiling at at Angels Gate Cultural Center
Angels Gate Cultural Center or AGCC, in partnership with Mer Young and local youth, announces the public unveiling of a new mural, Native Blooms on May 3, at Angels Gate Cultural Center. The completion of this large-scale artwork marks the conclusion of the Spring 2025 AGCC Teen Mural Club or TMC, a ten-week professional development workshop for San Pedro students ages 13-20 years old.
Native Blooms is the culmination of the center’s third Teen Mural Club cohort, which included ten weeks of professional training, planning, and painting by San Pedro based students under the mentorship of Indigenous multidisciplinary artist, Mer Young (Chichimeca & Apache). The participants represented students from San Pedro High School’s Olguin and Flagship Campuses, Port of Los Angeles High School, Harbor College and homeschooling.
The final piece is an impactful vision of California Native plants thriving at Angels Gate Cultural Center, in San Pedro, and across the greater ecosystem. Under the mentorship of Mer Young, TMC students carefully observed and researched the native plants in their environment and selected one to adapt into the mural. The result, Native Blooms, is a colorful collage focusing on native species the young artists selected to bloom on AGCC’s campus.
Angels Gate Cultural Center invites the public to celebrate the power of education, community, and the native ecosystem as it presents the completed mural, for the first time, to the public. Join AGCC for the unveiling of Native Blooms created by the Teen Mural Club, under the guidance of Artist Mer Young, May 3. The unveiling will take place on the lawn, in between Buildings A and B, at Angels Gate Cultural Center.
Native Blooms will remain on display for the public during park hours daily, in perpetuity, at Angels Gate Cultural Center on Building B, overlooking the Lawn.
City Controller Kenneth Mejia has broken down Mayor Karen Bass’ proposed city budget to empower the LA community with knowledge. Random Lengths is sharing this resource to help you take action. Now is the time to get involved — review the budget, make your voice heard, and help shape the future of our city. The controller’s office urges you to speak up by sharing your feedback with the mayor and your city council. You’ll find links within each section to make it easy to participate.
The Mayor just released her proposed budget for the City for the next fiscal year.
The proposed budget is not the final budget.
The city council can still amend the mayor’s proposed budget.
Then, the city council will vote to approve or reject the budget by June 1.
The new fiscal year, FY2025-2026, starts this July 1.
The Mayor’s Proposed Budget includes laying off 1,647 City workers
The mayor’s Proposed Budget includes laying off 1,647 city workers and eliminating 1,074 vacant positions (which departments have been trying to fill).
1,074 vacant position eliminations: $100M in direct savings
Top Department Layoffs:
LAPD-Civilians: 403
Transportation: 262
Sanitation: 159
Street Services: 130
Planning: 114
General Services: 110
Engineering: 83
Personnel: 72
Animal Services: 62
Information Technology Agency: 54
Contract Administration: 31
Zoo: 31
Building & Safety: 23
Cultural Affairs: 14
Board of Public Works: 14
City Clerk: 12
Community Investment for Families: 12
The Mayor’s Proposed $13.95 Billion Total Budget
Click on the link above to zoom in for a closer look at how the proposed budget divides the city’s total $13.95B budget among city departments.
The $13.95B total budget includes both restricted (have to be spent on certain things like salaries and pensions) and unrestricted, or discretionary, funds (there is some flexibility in how this money is spent).
The Mayor’s Proposed $6.45 Billion Discretionary Budget
The Mayor’s Proposed salary budget increases/decreases — by Department
About 90% of department operating budgets is related to payroll (e.g., employee salaries + overtime).
Some departments with an increased budget for salaries/payroll may still get a net decrease in number of positions, due to higher wages for existing employees next fiscal year.
The Fire Department will get a net increase, adding 227 positions.
The Housing Department will get a net increase, adding 74 positions.
For more information
Visit the controllers FY2026 Budget site by clicking the button below.
This site will continuously update.
Get information on:
Which city positions are being proposed for layoffs/elimination
CARSON — The City of Carson stands in profound solidarity with the City of Vancouver and its residents following the heartbreaking tragedy that occurred yesterday. On behalf of the city council and the people of Carson, Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes extends heartfelt condolences to all those affected.
“We are profoundly saddened by the tragic events that unfolded in Vancouver,” said Mayor Davis-Holmes. “Here in Carson, where our Filipino American community is the largest in the South Bay and is an integral thread in our city’s rich tapestry, we feel this deeply. Knowing how interconnected our communities are, our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, first responders, and the entire Vancouver community during this incredibly difficult time.”
As a community that values compassion, unity, and resilience, Carson offers its support to the City of Vancouver in the spirit of shared humanity and friendship. As a city whose heritage is an array of different cultures, it’s clear that celebrating our differences makes us stronger. In moments like these, Carson recalls the vital importance of coming together—not just as cities, but as global neighbors.
In this context of shared sorrow and the paramount importance of community well-being, the City of Carson is planning its upcoming 127th annual Philippine Independence Day celebration, which will be held on June 7, 2025. Mayor Lula Davis-Holmes and Councilwoman Arleen Bocatija Rojas are at the forefront of these preparations, with a central focus on ensuring a safe and welcoming environment for all attendees.
“As we look forward to celebrating the rich culture and heritage of our Filipino American community at the Philippine Independence Day event,” stated Mayor Davis-Holmes, “the safety and security of everyone present are our absolute top priorities. Recent events underscore the need for vigilance and comprehensive safety measures at all public gatherings.”
In light of the tragedy in Vancouver, the City of Carson is reaffirming its unwavering commitment to the safety and well-being of all residents and visitors. The city’s public safety and emergency management team is continuing its diligent work with the Carson Sheriff’s station to further enhance safety measures for all events in Carson. Suspicious behavior is highly encouraged to be reported promptly to public safety and law enforcement officials.
Structural eugenics isn’t science fiction — it’s happening right now, and if you’re not terrified yet, you should be…
Wake up, America! While we’ve been distracted by the daily chaos of the Trump administration, something far more sinister has taken root in our country. It’s called Structural Eugenics (and a hat-tip to Qasim Rashid for putting this on my radar), and if you’re not furious about it yet, you damn well should be.
This isn’t some fringe conspiracy theory: it’s a coordinated assault on our most vulnerable citizens happening in broad daylight with deadly consequences.
Let’s be brutally honest here: the MAGA movement isn’t just pushing bad policy, they’re implementing a modern form of eugenics through selective attention and neglect.
Consider what the Trump administration is obsessively tracking: They’re monitoring autistic children, trying to build databases of women’s menstrual cycles, creating blacklists of anyone who criticizes Trump or questions Israeli policies, surveilling transgender Americans, and targeting anyone who dares mention diversity or inclusion.
They’re establishing the infrastructure of authoritarian control with surgical precision.
Yet what are they deliberately NOT tracking?
— They’ve abandoned monitoring of vaccination rates as measles returns to kill our children. — They’ve stopped counting Covid deaths even as hundreds of Americans still die weekly. — They refuse to track gun violence despite firearms becoming the leading killer of American children. — They’ve gutted environmental monitoring as our planet burns. — They’ve dismantled food safety regulations while tens of thousands of Americans get sick and hundreds die every year from contaminated products.
This selective attention isn’t random: it’s strategic and deadly. It’s the implementation of a 21st-century form of eugenics through bureaucratic means. Rather than directly eliminating “undesirable” populations through the horrors of the 20th century’s firing squads and gas chambers, this approach simply withdraws protection from targeted groups while amplifying imaginary threats.
The Trump-Kennedy alliance represents the perfect storm for this deadly agenda. Kennedy’s dangerous anti-vaccine propaganda will inevitably lead to the deaths of vulnerable children while Trump systematically disassembles the regulatory infrastructure that keeps Americans safe.
Meanwhile, they’re constructing elaborate systems to monitor and control the bodies and behaviors of anyone who challenges their worldview, particularly “uppity women.”
Consider Virginia, where Republican Governor Youngkin blocked legislation that would have prevented law enforcement from demanding, viewing, and compiling women’s menstrual histories. Think about that for a moment: Republicans want to track your daughter’s periods!
What possible legitimate purpose could that serve? It’s about control, surveillance, and, ultimately, determining which Americans get to fully participate in society without monitoring or harassment.
Women are downloading period tracking apps to understand their health, and now those very tools could become weapons of state control, with Trump brazenly telling TIME magazine that states “might” monitor women’s pregnancies to enforce abortion bans, as if such invasive surveillance is perfectly acceptable in what’s supposed to be a free country!
The treatment of transgender Americans under this regime is particularly telling. With nearly 600 anti-LGBTQ bills moving through state legislatures nationwide, we’re witnessing a coordinated campaign to legislate certain Americans out of existence. Eugenics, in other words.
This isn’t about protecting children or preserving sports; it’s about erasing people who don’t fit into their narrow vision of a straight, white, Christian, male–run America.
Perhaps most chilling is the Trump regime’s approach to political dissent. Palestinian students and other people of color who criticize American or Israeli policy face expulsion from school, imprisonment, and — after Trump decides they’ve spent enough time in jail to be appropriately punished for speaking out — eventual deportation. They’re holding Rumeysa Ozturk in jail right now, for example, for co-authoring an anti-Netanyahu editorial in the Tufts’ student paper over a year ago.
Trump has explicitly stated his intention to deport American citizens he dislikes, shredding due process protections enshrined in our Constitution. These aren’t the actions of a democratic government: they’re the hallmarks of fascism and dictatorial strongman rule.
The complete elimination of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs from federal agencies is another glaring sign of what’s happening and Trump’s embrace of white supremacy.
On his very first day back in office, Trump signed the executive order “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing,” systematically dismantling decades of progress toward a more inclusive society. The Department of Education has already canceled over $2.6 million in DEI-related contracts and removed hundreds of guidance documents from its website.
Their Project 2025 agenda isn’t about fiscal responsibility; it’s about ensuring that America’s institutions remain dominated by one certain group (wealthy straight white male Christians) while systematically excluding others.
Meanwhile, public health emergencies that threaten all Americans go unaddressed. Measles — a disease we had virtually eliminated — is back, killing children because of vaccine misinformation spread by the very people now running our health agencies. And whooping cough is quickly catching up.
At least three children have died in Texas from a measles outbreak while Bob Kennedy, with his long history of dangerous anti-vaccine rhetoric, has been sending mixed messages about vaccination by promoting quack “healers” who push unproven and potentially harmful treatments.
And it gets worse: there are credible reports that the Trump administration has directed NIH officials to stop all research involving mRNA vaccine technology, a devastating blow to cancer research and treatments for numerous diseases.
Gun violence continues its grim harvest, particularly in communities of color, while Republicans literally prohibit the CDC from even studying the problem.
Climate change — the existential threat of our time — is treated as a liberal conspiracy rather than scientific reality. Trump is reportedly considering an executive order to strip tax-exempt status from climate justice organizations, effectively silencing those fighting to save our planet. This isn’t governance; it’s the vindictive destruction of our future to enhance the profits of fossil fuel billionaires.
The gutting of food safety regulations might seem like a minor issue until you realize how many Americans — particularly the elderly, children, and immunocompromised — die from foodborne illness each year. These aren’t just policy disagreements; they’re life-and-death decisions being made with callous disregard for human suffering.
The most vulnerable Americans are being targeted through this structural eugenics approach. Low-income communities, Black and brown Americans, women, LGBTQ+ individuals: they’re all in the crosshairs of policies designed to determine who thrives and who suffers or even dies in Trump’s America.
This should concern all of us, regardless of political affiliation. When a government begins selecting which populations deserve protection and which don’t, no one is ultimately safe. Today it might be transgender kids or Palestinian students, but tomorrow it could be anyone who falls outside the ever-narrowing definition of Republican-acceptable Americans. Including you and yours.
We must recognize this for what it is: an attempt to reshape America through neglect, surveillance, and targeted harassment. We must fight back through every means available: in the courts, at the ballot box, in our communities, and in our daily lives.
Because make no mistake: structural eugenics isn’t just a theoretical concern for some distant future.
It’s here now, being implemented by people who believe some Americans are more valuable than others. And if we don’t stand against it with everything we have, we’re complicit in allowing this new form of eugenics to take root in the 21st century.
The time for polite disagreement and “strongly worded letters” is over. Our lives — and the soul of our democracy — quite literally depend on stopping this deadly experiment before it’s too late.
LONG BEACH — The Long Beach Police Department is asking for the public’s help locating a 77-year-old at-risk missing person, Charles E. Chambers, who was last seen on April 28, about 7 a.m.
On April 28, at-risk missing person Charles Edward Chambers was last seen at his residence near the 2200 block of Earl Avenue. Chambers is believed to be on foot and his destination is unknown. He walks with the assistance of a brown wooden cane.
At-risk missing person Charles E. Chambers is described as follows:
Age: 77-years-old Gender: Male Race: Black Height: 5’9” Weight: 160 lbs Hair: Bald Eyes: Brown Clothing: Black jacket, black or blue jeans, black baseball hat, and white shoes. Uses a brown wooden cane. Scars/ Marks/ Tattoos: Missing all his teeth. Medical Alerts: He has mental condition(s) and may become disoriented.
Anyone with information regarding this missing person is urged to call the LBPD missing persons detail at 562-570-7246 or Police Dispatch at 562-435-6711, or anonymously at 1-800-222-(8477, www.lacrimestoppers.org.
What Have They Done for Us Lately? A Personal Reflection
By Rick Thomas
In 1986, Janet Jackson asked a poignant question that resonates deeply and politically with me today: “What have you done for me lately?”
This song was the anthem of my youth, through the clubs where we danced away our nights and our days. When an “8 ball” wasn’t a black, miniature round object on a pool table at some place I should have gone home from too many hours ago.
TMI?
Probably.
But it’s all part of the journey.
One of the lines, no pun intended, in Janet Jackson’s song stands out to me: “You’re always
puttin’ off what we could do today.” It’s a sentiment that seems tailor-made for Los Angeles politicians. Procrastination is their modus operandi, continually deferring actions that could benefit their communities.
“A personal reflection” is a journey I embarked on 8 years ago. This road trip has been anything but smooth, filled with unexpected twists, turns, and the occasional brick wall. The ride has been bumpy and bruising, but it’s nearing its end.
It’s nearing its end.
Yet challenges remain, each day presenting new obstacles.
My frustration with the lack of political attention to the Harbor Gateway is no secret. I’ve voiced my displeasure loudly and clearly, emphasizing that this community has been neglected by its political leaders. Just look around, walk the streets, or ask community activist David Matthews – the failure is evident.
It’s a fact.
And it needs to be addressed.
As a tried-and-true Democrat who has only voted for one Republican, why do I continue to waste my vote on Democrats who do nothing for the areas they represent? Every couple of
years, I stand in front of a Ballot Marking Device, doing this last year at North Torrance High School and the two prior cycles at South Torrance High School, and I vote Democrat.
And I’m starting to wonder why.
Ezra Klein, who wrote for the New York Times, penned a best-selling book titled “Abundance.” He partnered this effort with Derek Thompson, a staff writer for The Atlantic. “Abundance” explores why America struggles to build big, ambitious projects in the modern era—despite having the resources and technology—and argues that reviving a politics of growth, innovation, and abundance is key to solving today’s biggest challenges
That lack of “growth, innovation and abundance? Are our so-called Democratic leaders for the Harbor Gateway. Look in the mirror, LA’s political leaders. The face you see deems you
part of the failures of addressing these issues. The failures of liberal governance. Cause now, today, we are looking at you and asking Janet Jackson’s question.
”What have you done for me lately?”
For many years, the Harbor Gateway community has been underserved by its political leaders. And historically, this community continued to support these politicians in elections. However, this trend is now changing as residents are more aware of the lack of public administrative services in the Harbor Gateway.
Political representatives are being held accountable for their performance and
can no longer relax and receive their substantial six-figure salaries without demonstrating tangible accomplishments.
Want some evidence?
Easy.
In Abundance, Klein and Thompson note that “Nearly every County in California moved toward Trump, with Los Angeles County shifting eleven points toward the GOP.” Those three election cycles I mentioned above at North Torrance and South Torrance High Schools? Well, I worked as a clerk for the County at those two schools.
Meaning I was there, firsthand, watching voters come and go. The first two elections I worked at were easy. Last year in real time, I watched that electorate change.
In real time.
For four straight days.
“…Los Angeles County shifting eleven points toward the GOP?”
That’s what I saw. Trump voters wearing Harley-Davidson t-shirts and other clothing indicating they were not gonna vote blue. And on Super Tuesday, North Torrance High School was overwhelmed with stakeholders who clearly were MAGA voters.
They showed up, but it was clear…the electorate DID change.
“We fundamentally as liberals have not delivered a model of governance that people trust,” said Klein on MSNBC’s ‘11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle.’ Derek Thompson, his co-author, says after the publication of his new book, he said he was asked by those on the right, “Why aren’t you guys just Republicans?”
Circumstances, though, may gradually be evolving. Some elected leaders have finally
started working for us…with us. To enhance our quality of life and, just maybe, we are finally seeing the light of day?
Let’s hope. But still, I place a question mark at the end of that sentence. We are simply seeking nothing more than “recognition.”
“Recognition” was the word a Random Lengths News photographer used two years ago to describe my push to bring solutions to the issues in the Harbor Gateway.
“Recognition.”
Unless our political leaders here wake up to the reality that they need to focus on the here and now, the electorate is going to continue to move to the right.
“What have you done for me lately?”
Can’t get a HAWK (High-Intensity Activated CrossWalk) traffic system to slow down cars speeding up and down Western Avenue, where Congresswoman Nanette Barragan is from, in the Harbor Gateway.
Put that on Councilmember Tim McOsker as well, who put a whole bunch of them in Harbor City.
But Caltrans feeds us bullshit about a HAWK beacon that I’ve been asking for since 2019.
I just want one.
I only want it because it will save lives. Children’s lives. Kids and residents crossing Western Avenue between Del Amo and Torrance face an unprecedented traffic nightmare going to school or work, North or South on Western Avenue on that stretch of road.
But crickets
The Assemblyman Mike Gipson’s office has been a waste as well― A complete waste.
“Bite my tongue for no one,” in the words of the Philosopher Biggie Smalls.
Then I gotta author a blunt email to the State Senator’s office to get Alcohol Beverage Control back on track to do the work they are paid to do, and shut down a nuisance retail location that for over a decade has been selling liquor to minors.
Nothing has been done to resolve this issue. Still selling liquor to minors, oh and it’s also a
nuisance as a headquarters for a local gang to recruit new gang members. And the State Senator Laura Richardson’s office tells me that the Alcohol Beverage Control, under State oversight, can’t do anything?
Yeah, well, now that office is waking up to the reality that it’s time to wake up. Because those photos I have of the gang activity at that retail location can end political careers when they are shown on Fox News. And the guy writing this column went to college with one of the architects of that news network. I don’t want to share those photos because they are, well, political career-enders.
But I am almost at the point where I don’t care anymore. Share them, part of me says.
You want more?
The Assemblyman, well, his office supported another nuisance alcohol serving establishment that caused significant problems in the Harbor Gateway.
Remember Paradise LA?
I do.
And now that nuisance is shut down.
And all you gotta do is read David Matthews’ posts on Nextdoor to see what he thinks about County Supervisors Janice Hahn or Holly Mitchell.
So, I ask again, “What have you done for me lately?” Quite frankly, not a damn thing without significant pressure. And that is unacceptable.
In upcoming posts, I will hold every officeholder mentioned responsible for what they do or don’t do. Because until said politicians representing the Harbor Gateway start doing something, as in doing their jobs for the Harbor Gateway, I will decide whether it’s time to shift to the other side.
It may be time to join that “eleven percent” that shifted toward the GOP in the 2024 election.
In extremely limited fairness, some of these local politicians have started to show us some ‘recognition.’ But it’s a speck of what we need.
I will write about the new CD15 Council office in the Harbor Gateway at the Enclave. The new State Senator’s office is there as well. But they’re just offices. I will write about the Congresswoman who started the Harbor Gateway Community Council. To address issues in her district that Maxine Waters never looked at when she repped our area.
But it’s what we see on the ground that determines if that “recognition” effort is real. And y’all gotta step up because on my end, it’s not.
The shift to the right will continue if you don’t step up.
LOS ANGELES — This morning, Chair of the Metro Board of Directors and Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn April 28 announced the beginning of Phase 2 of Metro’s Weapons Detection Pilot Program, which began today at Metro’s Norwalk Station on the C (Green) Line and San Pedro Street Station on the A (Blue) Line. The Norwalk Station serves as the eastern terminus of the C Line and a major commuter hub for the Gateway Cities region.
“You can’t take a gun or knife into a Dodger Game, a concert, or a government building, and you shouldn’t be able to bring them on Metro,” said Hahn who first urged the pilot and has championed weapons detection. “Let me be clear: weapons do not belong on Metro. There is no room for compromise on that. My goal is simple but firm: a Metro system where all of our riders feel safe, respected, and confident that they will get to their destination without fear.”
The weapons detection pilot program, using pillar-style scanners, will be conducted by Metro security officers at various stations, two stations at a time, for two-month increments, for the next 12 months. Riders will walk between sensors which detect concealed weapons without requiring them to stop and remove any belongings. If flagged by the sensors, riders will be subject to further screenings including a search of their belongings and follow-up questions.
From August through December 2024, Metro conducted the first phase of the weapons detection technology pilot program at Union Station and APU/Citrus College Station in Azusa. In addition to the rider screening process, Metro also tested video analytics systems at Union Station which scan CCTV video feeds in real time to identify threats, including someone brandishing a weapon, and sends alerts to law enforcement. In February, Hahn along with fellow board members Kathryn Barger, Hilda L. Solis, Karen Bass, Fernando Dutra, and James Butts led the Board in expanding the pilot program for this next phase.
A report by Metro shows that the passenger screening system technology proved to be effective. While no weapons threats were identified on passengers, the systems detected officers’ service weapons with 100% accuracy. At Hahn’s request, the board’s February motion also called for Metro to explore bringing the weapons detection technology pilot to the system’s buses. Metro has identified a vendor to conduct the 12-month pilot program on buses and is working to schedule its launch.
