Monday, June 29, 2009
President Obama: ''Honduras coup was not legal''
Obama says Honduras coup illegal
US President Barack Obama has described the removal of Honduran President Manuel Zelaya as illegal.
His remarks came after left-wing Latin American leaders declared their support for the deposed leader, who was expelled by the military on Sunday.
In Honduras, pro-Zelaya protestors have been demonstrating in the country's capital, Tegucigalpa.
Mr Zelaya's removal followed a power struggle over his plans for constitutional change.
The BBC's Stephen Gibbs in Tegucigalpa says all day hundreds of pro-Zelaya protesters have been taunting the thousands of soldiers deployed around the presidential residence, accusing them of taking part in a "criminal coup".
The ousted president, who was in office since 2006, had wanted to hold a referendum that could have led to an extension of his non-renewable four-year term in office.
Expulsion condemned
Polls for the vote were due to open early on Sunday, but instead troops stormed the presidential palace at dawn, detained Mr Zelaya and flew him to Costa Rica.
The military, Congress and the Supreme Court in the Central American nation had all opposed Mr Zelaya's referendum.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (right) and Nicaragua's leader Daniel Ortega in Managua. Photo: 28 June 2009
We cannot allow a return to the past, we will not permit it
President Hugo Chavez
In pictures: President ousted
Profile: Manuel Zelaya
Q&A: Honduras crisis
Our correspondent says that even though the international community regards the exiled leader as the legitimate leader of the country, any comeback will not be easy.
Speaking after a meeting with Colombian President Alvaro Uribe, Mr Obama said Mr Zelaya remained the democratically-elected leader of Honduras.
And he said a "terrible precedent" would be set if the coup were not reversed.
Earlier on Monday, speaking in Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez spelled out his opposition to the situation in Honduras.
"We cannot allow a return to the past. We will not permit it," Mr Chavez said.
He spoke after talks with Mr Zelaya, President Rafael Correa of Ecuador and Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega.
'Voracious elite'
After turning up in Costa Rica on Sunday, Mr Zelaya called his ouster a plot "by a very voracious elite, an elite which wants only to keep this country [Honduras] isolated, in an extreme level of poverty".
In Tegucigalpa protestors defied a curfew order between Sunday night and Monday morning, imposed by Mr Micheletti.
As Speaker of Congress, Mr Micheletti had been the next in line to the presidency. His swearing-in was greeted with applause in Congress.
In a speech, he said that he had not assumed power under the "ignominy" of a coup d'etat.
The army had complied with the constitution, he said, and he had reached the presidency "as the result of an absolutely legal transition process".
Congress said he would serve until 27 January, when Mr Zelaya's term had been due to expire.
Presidential elections are planned for 29 November and Mr Micheletti promised these would go ahead.
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Coup in HONDURAS!!!!!!
I did not think coups happened now a days..apparently that's not the case in third world countries..like just happened in Honduras!! What is frightening is the Honduran coup connection with Hugo Chavez and we all know he feels about the US!!
Here's a recap of what happened:
As of 11:15am Sunday June 28, 2009, Caracas time, Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was speaking live on Telesur from San Jose, Costa Rica. He verified that soldiers entered his residence in the early morning hours, firing guns and threatening to kill him and his family if he resisted the coup. He was forced to go with the soldiers who took him to an air base and flew him to Costa Rica. He has requested the U.S. Government make a public statement condemning the coup; noting that no statement would indicate its compliance.
zelaya said that he has not resigned and that until his term ends in 2010 he remains president of Honduras. The Honduran Foreign Minister and the ambassadors to Honduras from Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua were detained by the military. The ambassadors, after suffering physical mistreatment by the military, were reportedly set free but the Foreign Minister, Patricia Rodas, remained in military custody.
Call the White House comment line at (202) 456-1111
Upload a message to the President at http://www.whitehouse.gov./contact/
Call the State Department comment line at (202) 647-4000
This is an excellent recap of the events:
OBAMA’S FIRST COUP D’ETAT
President Zelaya of Honduras has just been kidnapped
By Eva Golinger 28 June 2009
Caracas, Venezuela - The text message that beeped on my cell phone this morning read “Alert, Zelaya has been kidnapped, coup d’état underway in Honduras, spread the word.” It’s a rude awakening for a Sunday morning, especially for the millions of Hondurans that were preparing to exercise their sacred right to vote today for the first time on a consultative referendum concerning the future convening of a constitutional assembly to reform the constitution. Supposedly at the center of the controversary is today’s scheduled referendum, which is not a binding vote but merely an opinion poll to determine whether or not a majority of Hondurans desire to eventually enter into a process to modify their constitution.
Such an initiative has never taken place in the Central American nation, which has a very limited constitution that allows minimal participation by the people of Honduras in their political processes. The current constitution, written in 1982 during the height of the Reagan Administration’ s dirty war in Central America, was designed to ensure those in power, both economic and political, would retain it with little interference from the people. Zelaya, elected in November 2005 on the platform of Honduras’ Liberal Party, had proposed the opinion poll be conducted to determine if a majority of citizens agreed that constitutional reform was necessary. He was backed by a majority of labor unions and social movements in the country. If the poll had occurred, depending on the results, a referendum would have been conducted during the upcoming elections in November to vote on convening a constitutional assembly. Nevertheless, today’s scheduled poll was not binding by law.
In fact, several days before the poll was to occur, Honduras’ Supreme Court ruled it illegal, upon request by the Congress, both of which are led by anti-Zelaya majorities and members of the ultra-conservative party, National Party of Honduras (PNH). This move led to massive protests in the streets in favor of President Zelaya. On June 24, the president fired the head of the high military command, General Romeo Vásquez, after he refused to allow the military to distribute the electoral material for Sunday’s elections. General Romeo Vásquez held the material under tight military control, refusing to release it even to the president’s followers, stating that the scheduled referendum had been determined illegal by the Supreme Court and therefore he could not comply with the president’s order. As in the Unted States, the president of Honduras is Commander in Chief and has the final say on the military’s actions, and so he ordered the General’s removal. The Minister of Defense, Angel Edmundo Orellana, also resigned in response to this increasingly tense situation.
But the following day, Honduras’ Supreme Court reinstated General Romeo Vásquez to the high military command, ruling his firing as “unconstitutional’ . Thousands poured into the streets of Honduras’ capital, Tegucigalpa, showing support for President Zelaya and evidencing their determination to ensure Sunday’s non-binding referendum would take place. On Friday, the president and a group of hundreds of supporters, marched to the nearby air base to collect the electoral material that had been previously held by the military. That evening, Zelaya gave a national press conference along with a group of politicians from different political parties and social movements, calling for unity and peace in the country.
As of Saturday, the situation in Honduras was reported as calm. But early Sunday morning, a group of approximately 60 armed soldiers entered the presidential residence and took Zelaya hostage. After several hours of confusion, reports surfaced claiming the president had been taken to a nearby air force base and flown to neighboring Costa Rica. No images have been seen of the president so far and it is unknown whether or not his life is still endangered.
President Zelaya’s wife, Xiomara Castro de Zelaya, speaking live on Telesur at approximately 10:00am Caracas time, denounced that in early hours of Sunday morning, the soldiers stormed their residence, firing shots throughout the house, beating and then taking the president. “It was an act of cowardness”, said the first lady, referring to the illegal kidnapping occuring during a time when no one would know or react until it was all over. Casto de Zelaya also called for the “preservation” of her husband’s life, indicating that she herself is unaware of his whereabouts. She claimed their lives are all still in “serious danger” and made a call for the international community to denounce this illegal coup d’etat and to act rapidly to reinstate constitutional order in the country, which includes the rescue and return of the democratically elected Zelaya.
Presidents Evo Morales of Bolivia and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela have both made public statements on Sunday morning condeming the coup d’etat in Honduras and calling on the international community to react to ensure democracy is restored and the constitutional president is reinstated. Last Wednesday, June 24, an extraordinary meeting of the member nations of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA), of which Honduras is a member, was convened in Venezuela to welcome Ecuador, Antigua & Barbados and St. Vincent to its ranks. During the meeting, which was attended by Honduras’ Foreign Minister, Patricia Rodas, a statement was read supporting President Zelaya and condenming any attempts to undermine his mandate and Honduras’ democratic processes.
Reports coming out of Honduras have informed that the public television channel, Canal 8, has been shut down by the coup forces. Just minutes ago, Telesur announced that the military in Honduras is shutting down all electricity throughout the country. Those television and radio stations still transmitting are not reporting the coup d’etat or the kidnapping of President Zelaya, according to Foreign Minister Patricia Rodas. “Telephones and electricity are being cut off”, confirmed Rodas just minutes ago via Telesur. “The media are showing cartoons and soap operas and are not informing the people of Honduras about what is happening”. The situation is eerily reminiscent of the April 2002 coup d’etat against President Chávez in Venezuela, when the media played a key role by first manipulating information to support the coup and then later blacking out all information when the people began protesting and eventually overcame and defeated the coup forces, rescuing Chávez (who had also been kidnapped by the military) and restoring constitutional order.
Honduras is a nation that has been the victim of dictatorships and massive U.S. intervention during the past century, including several military invasions. The last major U.S. government intervention in Honduras occurred during the 1980s, when the Reagain Administration funded death squads and paramilitaries to eliminate any potential “communist threats” in Central America. At the time, John Negroponte, was the U.S. Ambassador in Honduras and was responsible for directly funding and training Honduran death squads that were responsible for thousands of disappeared and assassinated throughout the region.
On Friday, the Organization of American States (OAS), convened a special meeting to discuss the crisis in Honduras, later issuing a statement condemning the threats to democracy and authorizing a convoy of representatives to travel to OAS to investigate further. Nevertheless, on Friday, Assistant Secretary of State of the United States, Phillip J. Crowley, refused to clarify the U.S. government’s position in reference to the potential coup against President Zelaya, and instead issued a more ambiguous statement that implied Washington’s support for the opposition to the Honduran president. While most other Latin American governments had clearly indicated their adamant condemnation of the coup plans underway in Honduras and their solid support for Honduras’ constitutionally elected president, Manual Zelaya, the U.S. spokesman stated the following, “We are concerned about the breakdown in the political dialogue among Honduran politicians over the proposed June 28 poll on constitutional reform. We urge all sides to seek a consensual democratic resolution in the current political impasse that adheres to the Honduran constitution and to Honduran laws consistent with the principles of the Inter-American Democratic Charter.”
As of 10:30am, Sunday morning, no further statements have been issued by the Washington concerning the military coup in Honduras. The Central American nation is highly dependent on the U.S. economy, which ensures one of its top sources of income, the monies sent from Hondurans working in the U.S. under the “temporary protected status” program that was implemented during Washington’s dirty war in the 1980s as a result of massive immigration to U.S. territory to escape the war zone. Another major source of funding in Honduras is USAID, providing over US$ 50 million annually for “democracy promotion” programs, which generally supports NGOs and political parties favorable to U.S. interests, as has been the case in Venezuela, Bolivia and other nations in the region. The Pentagon also maintains a military base in Honduras in Soto Cano, equipped with approximately 500 troops and numerous air force combat planes and helicopters.
Foreign Minister Rodas has stated that she has repeatedly tried to make contact with the U.S. Ambassador in Honduras, Hugo Llorens, who has not responded to any of her calls thus far. The modus operandi of the coup makes clear that Washington is involved. Neither the Honduran military, which is majority trained by U.S. forces, nor the political and economic elite, would act to oust a democratically elected president without the backing and support of the U.S. government. President Zelaya has increasingly come under attack by the conservative forces in Honduras for his growing relationship with the ALBA countries, and particularly Venezuela and President Chávez. Many believe the coup has been executed as a method of ensuring Honduras does not continue to unify with the more leftist and socialist countries in Latin America.
Here's a recap of what happened:
As of 11:15am Sunday June 28, 2009, Caracas time, Honduran President Manuel Zelaya was speaking live on Telesur from San Jose, Costa Rica. He verified that soldiers entered his residence in the early morning hours, firing guns and threatening to kill him and his family if he resisted the coup. He was forced to go with the soldiers who took him to an air base and flew him to Costa Rica. He has requested the U.S. Government make a public statement condemning the coup; noting that no statement would indicate its compliance.
zelaya said that he has not resigned and that until his term ends in 2010 he remains president of Honduras. The Honduran Foreign Minister and the ambassadors to Honduras from Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua were detained by the military. The ambassadors, after suffering physical mistreatment by the military, were reportedly set free but the Foreign Minister, Patricia Rodas, remained in military custody.
Call the White House comment line at (202) 456-1111
Upload a message to the President at http://www.whitehouse.gov./contact/
Call the State Department comment line at (202) 647-4000
This is an excellent recap of the events:
OBAMA’S FIRST COUP D’ETAT
President Zelaya of Honduras has just been kidnapped
By Eva Golinger 28 June 2009
Caracas, Venezuela - The text message that beeped on my cell phone this morning read “Alert, Zelaya has been kidnapped, coup d’état underway in Honduras, spread the word.” It’s a rude awakening for a Sunday morning, especially for the millions of Hondurans that were preparing to exercise their sacred right to vote today for the first time on a consultative referendum concerning the future convening of a constitutional assembly to reform the constitution. Supposedly at the center of the controversary is today’s scheduled referendum, which is not a binding vote but merely an opinion poll to determine whether or not a majority of Hondurans desire to eventually enter into a process to modify their constitution.
Such an initiative has never taken place in the Central American nation, which has a very limited constitution that allows minimal participation by the people of Honduras in their political processes. The current constitution, written in 1982 during the height of the Reagan Administration’ s dirty war in Central America, was designed to ensure those in power, both economic and political, would retain it with little interference from the people. Zelaya, elected in November 2005 on the platform of Honduras’ Liberal Party, had proposed the opinion poll be conducted to determine if a majority of citizens agreed that constitutional reform was necessary. He was backed by a majority of labor unions and social movements in the country. If the poll had occurred, depending on the results, a referendum would have been conducted during the upcoming elections in November to vote on convening a constitutional assembly. Nevertheless, today’s scheduled poll was not binding by law.
In fact, several days before the poll was to occur, Honduras’ Supreme Court ruled it illegal, upon request by the Congress, both of which are led by anti-Zelaya majorities and members of the ultra-conservative party, National Party of Honduras (PNH). This move led to massive protests in the streets in favor of President Zelaya. On June 24, the president fired the head of the high military command, General Romeo Vásquez, after he refused to allow the military to distribute the electoral material for Sunday’s elections. General Romeo Vásquez held the material under tight military control, refusing to release it even to the president’s followers, stating that the scheduled referendum had been determined illegal by the Supreme Court and therefore he could not comply with the president’s order. As in the Unted States, the president of Honduras is Commander in Chief and has the final say on the military’s actions, and so he ordered the General’s removal. The Minister of Defense, Angel Edmundo Orellana, also resigned in response to this increasingly tense situation.
But the following day, Honduras’ Supreme Court reinstated General Romeo Vásquez to the high military command, ruling his firing as “unconstitutional’ . Thousands poured into the streets of Honduras’ capital, Tegucigalpa, showing support for President Zelaya and evidencing their determination to ensure Sunday’s non-binding referendum would take place. On Friday, the president and a group of hundreds of supporters, marched to the nearby air base to collect the electoral material that had been previously held by the military. That evening, Zelaya gave a national press conference along with a group of politicians from different political parties and social movements, calling for unity and peace in the country.
As of Saturday, the situation in Honduras was reported as calm. But early Sunday morning, a group of approximately 60 armed soldiers entered the presidential residence and took Zelaya hostage. After several hours of confusion, reports surfaced claiming the president had been taken to a nearby air force base and flown to neighboring Costa Rica. No images have been seen of the president so far and it is unknown whether or not his life is still endangered.
President Zelaya’s wife, Xiomara Castro de Zelaya, speaking live on Telesur at approximately 10:00am Caracas time, denounced that in early hours of Sunday morning, the soldiers stormed their residence, firing shots throughout the house, beating and then taking the president. “It was an act of cowardness”, said the first lady, referring to the illegal kidnapping occuring during a time when no one would know or react until it was all over. Casto de Zelaya also called for the “preservation” of her husband’s life, indicating that she herself is unaware of his whereabouts. She claimed their lives are all still in “serious danger” and made a call for the international community to denounce this illegal coup d’etat and to act rapidly to reinstate constitutional order in the country, which includes the rescue and return of the democratically elected Zelaya.
Presidents Evo Morales of Bolivia and Hugo Chávez of Venezuela have both made public statements on Sunday morning condeming the coup d’etat in Honduras and calling on the international community to react to ensure democracy is restored and the constitutional president is reinstated. Last Wednesday, June 24, an extraordinary meeting of the member nations of the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA), of which Honduras is a member, was convened in Venezuela to welcome Ecuador, Antigua & Barbados and St. Vincent to its ranks. During the meeting, which was attended by Honduras’ Foreign Minister, Patricia Rodas, a statement was read supporting President Zelaya and condenming any attempts to undermine his mandate and Honduras’ democratic processes.
Reports coming out of Honduras have informed that the public television channel, Canal 8, has been shut down by the coup forces. Just minutes ago, Telesur announced that the military in Honduras is shutting down all electricity throughout the country. Those television and radio stations still transmitting are not reporting the coup d’etat or the kidnapping of President Zelaya, according to Foreign Minister Patricia Rodas. “Telephones and electricity are being cut off”, confirmed Rodas just minutes ago via Telesur. “The media are showing cartoons and soap operas and are not informing the people of Honduras about what is happening”. The situation is eerily reminiscent of the April 2002 coup d’etat against President Chávez in Venezuela, when the media played a key role by first manipulating information to support the coup and then later blacking out all information when the people began protesting and eventually overcame and defeated the coup forces, rescuing Chávez (who had also been kidnapped by the military) and restoring constitutional order.
Honduras is a nation that has been the victim of dictatorships and massive U.S. intervention during the past century, including several military invasions. The last major U.S. government intervention in Honduras occurred during the 1980s, when the Reagain Administration funded death squads and paramilitaries to eliminate any potential “communist threats” in Central America. At the time, John Negroponte, was the U.S. Ambassador in Honduras and was responsible for directly funding and training Honduran death squads that were responsible for thousands of disappeared and assassinated throughout the region.
On Friday, the Organization of American States (OAS), convened a special meeting to discuss the crisis in Honduras, later issuing a statement condemning the threats to democracy and authorizing a convoy of representatives to travel to OAS to investigate further. Nevertheless, on Friday, Assistant Secretary of State of the United States, Phillip J. Crowley, refused to clarify the U.S. government’s position in reference to the potential coup against President Zelaya, and instead issued a more ambiguous statement that implied Washington’s support for the opposition to the Honduran president. While most other Latin American governments had clearly indicated their adamant condemnation of the coup plans underway in Honduras and their solid support for Honduras’ constitutionally elected president, Manual Zelaya, the U.S. spokesman stated the following, “We are concerned about the breakdown in the political dialogue among Honduran politicians over the proposed June 28 poll on constitutional reform. We urge all sides to seek a consensual democratic resolution in the current political impasse that adheres to the Honduran constitution and to Honduran laws consistent with the principles of the Inter-American Democratic Charter.”
As of 10:30am, Sunday morning, no further statements have been issued by the Washington concerning the military coup in Honduras. The Central American nation is highly dependent on the U.S. economy, which ensures one of its top sources of income, the monies sent from Hondurans working in the U.S. under the “temporary protected status” program that was implemented during Washington’s dirty war in the 1980s as a result of massive immigration to U.S. territory to escape the war zone. Another major source of funding in Honduras is USAID, providing over US$ 50 million annually for “democracy promotion” programs, which generally supports NGOs and political parties favorable to U.S. interests, as has been the case in Venezuela, Bolivia and other nations in the region. The Pentagon also maintains a military base in Honduras in Soto Cano, equipped with approximately 500 troops and numerous air force combat planes and helicopters.
Foreign Minister Rodas has stated that she has repeatedly tried to make contact with the U.S. Ambassador in Honduras, Hugo Llorens, who has not responded to any of her calls thus far. The modus operandi of the coup makes clear that Washington is involved. Neither the Honduran military, which is majority trained by U.S. forces, nor the political and economic elite, would act to oust a democratically elected president without the backing and support of the U.S. government. President Zelaya has increasingly come under attack by the conservative forces in Honduras for his growing relationship with the ALBA countries, and particularly Venezuela and President Chávez. Many believe the coup has been executed as a method of ensuring Honduras does not continue to unify with the more leftist and socialist countries in Latin America.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Transportation Reauthorization
Oberstar: No Delay for Transportation Bill
R.G. Edmonson | Jun 19, 2009 1:15AM GMT
The Journal of Commerce Online - News Story
House transport leaders reject Obama bid to delay reauthorization 18 months
Leaders of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee vowed June 18 to push forward with a new surface transportation bill despite a call from the Obama administration to put the process on hold for 18 months.
Rep. James L. Oberstar, D-Minn., chairman of the transportation committee, declared the proposed delay “unacceptable.”
“That puts a Damocles sword of uncertainty over the future of transportation,” Oberstar said at a news conference to introduce a detailed outline of a bill he hopes will overhaul nation's transportation policy and restructure the Department of Transportation. Committee work on the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009 will begin next week.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposed delaying the launch of a new six-year transportation spending bill during a meeting with Oberstar on Wednesday. In lieu of a new bill, the administration would support existing programs at their current level.
A delay would cause states to steer federal money, including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, into small transportation projects instead of bold, multi-year efforts that would improve the infrastructure, Oberstar said.
“Delay causes uncertainty, will restrict the scope of projects, and when the stimulus money runs out, states will have to act under their 80-20 programs,” Oberstar said. “We have the prospect of creating 6 million new jobs over the six years of this program, or lose a million jobs with delays.”
Oberstar said that forming transportation policy is within Congress' purview. He left the door open for further negotiations on the bill with the DOT and White House.
“We are an independent body of government co-equal with the executive branch, and its partner,” Oberstar said. “If that partnership is going to change the future of transportation, they have to come and talk to us.”
“We are committed to work together in a bipartisan fashion. We are ready to go forward together come hell or high water,” said Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., the ranking Republican on the transportation committee.
Mica stressed the importance of the bill for jobs creation, and said the administration's apparent unwillingness to move forward is not a impediment.
“Never underestimate Oberstar and Mica,” Mica said. “They underestimated us on water resources. My administration underestimated us on passage of Amtrak reform."
Last year Congress overwhelmingly voted to override President Bush's veto of the Water Resources Development Act, which authorizes Army Corps of Engineers projects ranging from channel dredging for ports, to flood control in upland rivers. Mica noted it was only the 107th time in history that
Congress has approved a bill over a presidential veto.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., chairman of the subcommittee on highways and transit, denounced the administration's delaying tactics. He said every day of delay means another day that the government denies the public the transportation system it deserves.
“Now the administration is saying the status quo is just fine,” DeFazio said. “A D-minus transportation system is good enough for us.”
DeFazio said that members of Congress facing re-election in 2012 would be unwilling to adopt legislation to overhaul “a department that's dysfunctional, that delivers process, not product.” He predicted that instead of 18 months, it could take up to four more years before Congress would take up transportation reform again.
Contact R.G. Edmonson at bedmonson@joc.com.
R.G. Edmonson | Jun 19, 2009 1:15AM GMT
The Journal of Commerce Online - News Story
House transport leaders reject Obama bid to delay reauthorization 18 months
Leaders of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee vowed June 18 to push forward with a new surface transportation bill despite a call from the Obama administration to put the process on hold for 18 months.
Rep. James L. Oberstar, D-Minn., chairman of the transportation committee, declared the proposed delay “unacceptable.”
“That puts a Damocles sword of uncertainty over the future of transportation,” Oberstar said at a news conference to introduce a detailed outline of a bill he hopes will overhaul nation's transportation policy and restructure the Department of Transportation. Committee work on the Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009 will begin next week.
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood proposed delaying the launch of a new six-year transportation spending bill during a meeting with Oberstar on Wednesday. In lieu of a new bill, the administration would support existing programs at their current level.
A delay would cause states to steer federal money, including the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, into small transportation projects instead of bold, multi-year efforts that would improve the infrastructure, Oberstar said.
“Delay causes uncertainty, will restrict the scope of projects, and when the stimulus money runs out, states will have to act under their 80-20 programs,” Oberstar said. “We have the prospect of creating 6 million new jobs over the six years of this program, or lose a million jobs with delays.”
Oberstar said that forming transportation policy is within Congress' purview. He left the door open for further negotiations on the bill with the DOT and White House.
“We are an independent body of government co-equal with the executive branch, and its partner,” Oberstar said. “If that partnership is going to change the future of transportation, they have to come and talk to us.”
“We are committed to work together in a bipartisan fashion. We are ready to go forward together come hell or high water,” said Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., the ranking Republican on the transportation committee.
Mica stressed the importance of the bill for jobs creation, and said the administration's apparent unwillingness to move forward is not a impediment.
“Never underestimate Oberstar and Mica,” Mica said. “They underestimated us on water resources. My administration underestimated us on passage of Amtrak reform."
Last year Congress overwhelmingly voted to override President Bush's veto of the Water Resources Development Act, which authorizes Army Corps of Engineers projects ranging from channel dredging for ports, to flood control in upland rivers. Mica noted it was only the 107th time in history that
Congress has approved a bill over a presidential veto.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., chairman of the subcommittee on highways and transit, denounced the administration's delaying tactics. He said every day of delay means another day that the government denies the public the transportation system it deserves.
“Now the administration is saying the status quo is just fine,” DeFazio said. “A D-minus transportation system is good enough for us.”
DeFazio said that members of Congress facing re-election in 2012 would be unwilling to adopt legislation to overhaul “a department that's dysfunctional, that delivers process, not product.” He predicted that instead of 18 months, it could take up to four more years before Congress would take up transportation reform again.
Contact R.G. Edmonson at bedmonson@joc.com.
Political Turmoil in Iran
Iran has seen political unrest since the results of the election last week. The conservative president, Mahmoud Ahmadinjad, was declared the winner of Friday's election with 63 percent of the votes. Iranian leaders have failed to halt the second day of massive protests in the streets of Iran. Protesters are protesting the results of the elections claiming there was fraud involved in the voting process. Supporters of the opposition presidential candidate Mir Hussein Moussavi want a recount. Supports gathered in a line a mile long marched mostly in silence carrying signs and asking, "Where is my vote?"
On Monday, hundreds of thousands Iranians joined the largest public demonstration since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Seven protestors have been killed many uncensored images have been broadcasted around the world through various websites. The dire situation in Iran had received international attention. In Washington, President Obama is concerned about the election in Iran but said that it would be counterproductive to meddle in the disputed election. The government of Iran is trying to limit damage by cracking down on electronic media by threatening to block social mediums such as twitter and facebook, arresting many journalist, ordering foreign journalist not to report on the streets and sending many of them home. Supporters of President Ahmadinejad about 10,000 of them marched through Tehran chanting, "Rioters should be executed!" On Tuesday, many websites posted a video that purported to show the death of a student in Isfahan in a shooting by a pro-government militia members. Moreover, other videos showed bleeding demonstrators from Tehran after the large protest on Monday. The government has continued its violence against its citizens protesting the election. The government arrested more than 100 politicians and activists on Sunday. Some have been released. The supreme religious leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei met with the four presidential candidates urging unity and peace but did not address the protestors' demands for a new election.
The situation in Iran is difficult for the establishment to admit to the fraud because it would undermine the legitimacy of the government. There is no legal solution to the dilemma. Even the national football team has shown its support despite it being controlled by the government. During the game with South Korea the national football team, demonstrated their surprised defiance by wearing bright green ribbons supporting the oppositional party.
The turmoil has turned into a struggle over the balance of power in Iran. The fight for power is a symbolic struggle taking place on the streets of Tehran. Opposition supporters are defiant and have flouted the government's warning to have silent protests. Mr. Ahmadinejad's appeal has been to the mass poor and he has built a strong base and relationship among the military. Critics fear that he will turn Iran into a medieval Islamic-esq place and a militant North Korean environment. Which is highly conflictual since most of Iran is a diverse, sophisticated, and modern society. Iran has a a long complicated history in its leadership and it is unlikely for it to be easily and quickly resolved.
What should Iran do? Have re-elections? Should the International community get involved?
Monday, June 15, 2009
Gentrification Exposed
I am a huge, die-hard, bleed purple-and-gold Laker fan. Any victory amounts to joy in my eyes, so as you can imagine, Sunday night was that multiplied over and over. With that said, what I saw last night in Downtown Los Angeles amidst a time of celebration was appalling and ridiculous.
It was refreshing to see the streets of the (still) redeveloping downtown filled with pedestrians and, in general, sentiments of a lively urban atmosphere. That novelty quickly wore off, however, when I witnessed a swarm of young male Laker “fans” loot a convenience store. Several minutes later, I walked by a flaming trash bin and a damaged and broken-into Acura TL.
These things were already expected given the nature of the 2000 championship victory which I remember being more absurd. However I thought of the bigger picture as LAPD mobilized on the corner of Olive and 8th – gentrification.
Did gentrifying cause this? Or would more gentrification prevent this kind of behavior?
As one may know, the demographic of those participating this night were not of the same realm in which the South Park neighborhood is targeting as residents. Many of these individuals clearly crossed the (literal and figurative) boundaries of the 110 and 10. I am not saying rowdy behavior is always typical of South LA residents, but flooding the streets this night also happened in West Hollywood on Santa Monica Blvd – were stolen Gatorade bottles being thrown at squad cars over there? Probably not.
What I am trying to understand is that Staples Center, LA Live and the LA Lakers are world class elements meant to signify the character of a world class city. They are physically present within the outskirts of the most Tenderloin-esque part of town. The Lakers are meant for everyone. Everyone does embrace this team as any city should – it is their amenities that do not embrace the surroundings. The Lakers are an amenity to the city as whole, but their amenities are not for everyone.
Part of the reason these amenities exist are because this team provides a solid socioeconomic foundation for them. Furthermore, it is quite an anomaly for people who support the team to then have the desire to destruct what is there. I gathered a sense that people realize this and react accordingly. Unfortunately, this is spatial inequality that still exists and must be addressed.
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Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Job Tips for Recent Graduates and New Planners
Courtesy of APA
* Read APA's Career Development pages, which offer a comprehensive review of the planning profession.
* Contact the administrator of your college planning program administrator and all of your planning instructors. Ask them for help and referrals. Your alma mater's planning program has a vested interest in seeing that its grads get jobs because placement is a measure of student assessment and achievement.
* Before you start looking for a full-time position, try to build up a well rounded body of experience — which is attractive to potential employers — by working at several varied internships and at least one short-term job.
* Take advantage of the networking opportunities and other resources offered by your local APA chapter.
* Post your resume for free at Jobs Online. Interested employers can see it once they have posted a vacancy. Note: This service is available to APA members only.
* Every APA National Planning Conference offers an onsite Job Connection service in addition to sessions, facilitated discussions, workshops, and even mobile workshops for new planners. Several of these programs at the 2009 conference in Minneapolis focused on careers and jobs. One of them — the Career Planning Roundtable — was recorded in a Digital Capture format and may be purchased online for $40. Consider attending the 2010 National Planning Conference in New Orleans.
* Get your foot in the door of a municipal planning office or consulting firm by temporarily volunteering your services.
* Start out in the zoning administration program of a planning department.
* Take a long view of your career and plan to obtain AICP certification in addition to your master's degree.
* Above all, be realistic and strategic. Your dream job may be an Environmental Planner in Hawaii, at a salary of $100,000, but until such a position becomes available to you, spend your time gaining a variety of professional experiences and developing key skills.
* Read APA's Career Development pages, which offer a comprehensive review of the planning profession.
* Contact the administrator of your college planning program administrator and all of your planning instructors. Ask them for help and referrals. Your alma mater's planning program has a vested interest in seeing that its grads get jobs because placement is a measure of student assessment and achievement.
* Before you start looking for a full-time position, try to build up a well rounded body of experience — which is attractive to potential employers — by working at several varied internships and at least one short-term job.
* Take advantage of the networking opportunities and other resources offered by your local APA chapter.
* Post your resume for free at Jobs Online. Interested employers can see it once they have posted a vacancy. Note: This service is available to APA members only.
* Every APA National Planning Conference offers an onsite Job Connection service in addition to sessions, facilitated discussions, workshops, and even mobile workshops for new planners. Several of these programs at the 2009 conference in Minneapolis focused on careers and jobs. One of them — the Career Planning Roundtable — was recorded in a Digital Capture format and may be purchased online for $40. Consider attending the 2010 National Planning Conference in New Orleans.
* Get your foot in the door of a municipal planning office or consulting firm by temporarily volunteering your services.
* Start out in the zoning administration program of a planning department.
* Take a long view of your career and plan to obtain AICP certification in addition to your master's degree.
* Above all, be realistic and strategic. Your dream job may be an Environmental Planner in Hawaii, at a salary of $100,000, but until such a position becomes available to you, spend your time gaining a variety of professional experiences and developing key skills.
Year One Almost Done- Mission Accomplished
In September, when I started the Masters of Urban and Regional Planning program, I felt like I was in a crisis mode almost immediately. It seemed that through some poor choice of my own I had entered into a field that prepared students to be municipal planners or work for private consulting firms, and while I am not opposed to either of the two, neither one was ever something I thought of as a goal. I came into the field of planning because I wanted to study the intersection of environmental and social justice issues, because I don't think green movements are sustainable unless they are actually available as solutions to even the poorest people in the world. As I started taking my classes and learning about planning as a field I though that perhaps this program would have been better suited for someone who wanted to be a transportation planner or a land use planner, and I certainly didn't fit into the category.
I started talking to past graduates of the program and asked them what they thought I should do in order to make the program work for me. They suggested that I get in contact with OCCORD (Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development) and talk to them about the community organizing efforts that they do around the Platinum Triangle in Anaheim. This turned out to be a perfect connection for me, and I started to broaden my own view of planning as something that could range from municipal planning to community based planning efforts that occur within organizations like OCCORD. Both my experience working with them and my exposure to new teachers with different views helped me to expand my understanding of planning. Also, as I began to look at community based efforts as very much linked to planning I talked about these things often among my colleagues, because I felt that by continutally reminding others that planning was bigger than the city, then perhaps I could influence others who were struggling like I was.
During the Spring Quarter (which is currently ending) some students got together and initiated a class called Critical Urbanism. The students were the teachers in this class, coming up with the readings and course material. We talked about issues of race, class, and gender in planning. We also focused heavily on community based and radical planning efforts that worked to change the system rather than to uphold it. The twenty people in the class had different opinions, but were all of the same mind that something in planning needs to change in order to address critical issues that we often either don't think of as planning, or that city planning departments don't address.
Yesterday the class hosted its final project- a colloquuim called Planning in Crisis: Critical Urbanism in Action. The event consisted of three panels, each of which contained different speakers that could address ciritcal planning issues from a different perspective. We had community based planners/organizers from OCCORD and Latino Health Access. We had students from UCI, UCLA, and UCI that were talking about the efforts being made on their campus to address critical planning issues. We also had a panel where students and practioners talked about the collaboration of planning academia in addressing real world problems, and how some of their projects in the past have gone.
The event was a hit! The Department Chair among other faculty was extremely impressed by the event commenting that the speakers were very much on topic and everything ran very well. I heard rumors that the Department Chair really wants to publicize the event on the department's website because it went so well. Students were excited to make connections with radical planners in the community and on different campuses. Conversations were had among students from all three campuses regarding how we could connect in the future in order to work towards critical planning efforts.
For me, the event was so important because it was truly a benchmark of how far I have come within this program in just one year. I started off as a frustarted student, considering whether or not I belonged here, and ended as a student who felt like I had really accomplished something on campus. I feel like the first and most important think that I accomplished was the alliance of many like-minded students in the program. I also feel like in some ways because of my insistence on looking at planning outside of the box, I have helped my colleagues to do so as well. Thirdly, I feel like this group of students who views critical planning as important just established themselves on campus and earned the respect of the department through the event yesterday. So yeah- I feel really excited about this accomplishment and how this first year started on a rocky note and ended on a great one. I am hoping that this process can be continued into my experience as a second year in the program.
I started talking to past graduates of the program and asked them what they thought I should do in order to make the program work for me. They suggested that I get in contact with OCCORD (Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development) and talk to them about the community organizing efforts that they do around the Platinum Triangle in Anaheim. This turned out to be a perfect connection for me, and I started to broaden my own view of planning as something that could range from municipal planning to community based planning efforts that occur within organizations like OCCORD. Both my experience working with them and my exposure to new teachers with different views helped me to expand my understanding of planning. Also, as I began to look at community based efforts as very much linked to planning I talked about these things often among my colleagues, because I felt that by continutally reminding others that planning was bigger than the city, then perhaps I could influence others who were struggling like I was.
During the Spring Quarter (which is currently ending) some students got together and initiated a class called Critical Urbanism. The students were the teachers in this class, coming up with the readings and course material. We talked about issues of race, class, and gender in planning. We also focused heavily on community based and radical planning efforts that worked to change the system rather than to uphold it. The twenty people in the class had different opinions, but were all of the same mind that something in planning needs to change in order to address critical issues that we often either don't think of as planning, or that city planning departments don't address.
Yesterday the class hosted its final project- a colloquuim called Planning in Crisis: Critical Urbanism in Action. The event consisted of three panels, each of which contained different speakers that could address ciritcal planning issues from a different perspective. We had community based planners/organizers from OCCORD and Latino Health Access. We had students from UCI, UCLA, and UCI that were talking about the efforts being made on their campus to address critical planning issues. We also had a panel where students and practioners talked about the collaboration of planning academia in addressing real world problems, and how some of their projects in the past have gone.
The event was a hit! The Department Chair among other faculty was extremely impressed by the event commenting that the speakers were very much on topic and everything ran very well. I heard rumors that the Department Chair really wants to publicize the event on the department's website because it went so well. Students were excited to make connections with radical planners in the community and on different campuses. Conversations were had among students from all three campuses regarding how we could connect in the future in order to work towards critical planning efforts.
For me, the event was so important because it was truly a benchmark of how far I have come within this program in just one year. I started off as a frustarted student, considering whether or not I belonged here, and ended as a student who felt like I had really accomplished something on campus. I feel like the first and most important think that I accomplished was the alliance of many like-minded students in the program. I also feel like in some ways because of my insistence on looking at planning outside of the box, I have helped my colleagues to do so as well. Thirdly, I feel like this group of students who views critical planning as important just established themselves on campus and earned the respect of the department through the event yesterday. So yeah- I feel really excited about this accomplishment and how this first year started on a rocky note and ended on a great one. I am hoping that this process can be continued into my experience as a second year in the program.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
the Latino experience is already 'a part of the fabric of U.S. society
by Hector Tobar (Los Angeles Times)
June 2, 2009
I made a pilgrimage to Compton last week in search of wisdom, to a little storefront with bars over the windows and a liquor-grocer next door.
Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court nominee, set me off on this quest with her oft-repeated observation that "a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male . . . "
Southern California is home, arguably, to more wise Latinas than any other place in the United States. The only Latina in Obama's cabinet (Labor Secretary Hilda Solis) is from here. And I personally know dozens more, starting with my mother, my wife, my mother-in-law and assorted professors, activists and sharp-minded stay-at-home moms.
But Judge Sotomayor was referring, specifically, to the law. So I thought I should go find a smart Latina attorney and ask her if she thought that was true. Does American jurisprudence look different from a Latina woman's eyes, and if so, what does she see in the United States that a wise "white male" does not?
Until recently, Luz Herrera, 36, ran a solo law practice in Compton. She was born in Tijuana to Mexican parents and raised in heavily Latino neighborhoods of unincorporated West Whittier. But she'll be the first to tell you that her background alone didn't make her wise. Neither, she says, did Harvard Law School, from which she graduated in 1999.
"I learned to think like a lawyer there," she said of Harvard. "I learned how to be a lawyer here. That's what Compton gave me."
For much of the last seven years, Herrera was the only full-time, Spanish-speaking lawyer with an office in Compton, a community with more than 50,000 Latino residents. She was more than a lawyer, she said, to many of her clients, most of whom were working people who needed a bit of "hand holding" along with a legal brief or two.
What Sotomayor can bring to American justice, Herrera told me, is something that Herrera longs for every day: the understanding that the Latino experience is already "a part of the fabric of U.S. society" and that this truth should be reflected in our legal system.
I first read about Herrera in the Los Angeles Daily Journal in March. Columnist Martin Berg called a visit to her Compton offices "a little jolt of hope and inspiration" in the gloom of an economic crisis that's hit the legal community hard.
Herrera traveled from West Whittier to Stanford, and then from Stanford to Harvard to Compton, because she's a proud Latina. Her journey is one of those American stories that reminds us that American wisdom is, by definition, a book written by people of many different colors, faiths and outlooks.
"I went into law because I wanted to represent people from my community," said the daughter of immigrants, who graduated, as I did, from Pioneer High School in Whittier.
Hard work took Herrera to Harvard, where the grads, she said, think of their law degrees as "golden tickets." Herrera cashed in too, with a six-figure salary right out of law school. But during two years as a "corporate drone," she never entered a courtroom.
In law school she had discovered that the traditional path for Mexican American legal warriors -- civil-rights litigation -- wasn't her passion either. She wanted to do work that put her in touch with regular working people.
So in 2002 she set up a solo practice in the offices of a retiring attorney in Compton. Like Abraham Lincoln in Springfield, Herrera hung up her shingle and took on the kinds of cases that typically are the bread and butter of small-town attorneys -- divorce and child custody, bankruptcy, probate and real-estate transactions.
"I was scared and I was learning as I went along," she said.You might think of Compton as part of the big city, but in the eyes of the legal community, it's in the boondocks, Herrera said. "People think that if you're working here, you must not be a good lawyer."
But legal wisdom came, she said, in the unglamorous unfolding of cases in the satellite courthouses of Compton and Long Beach. And also in the East Los Angeles Small Claims Court, federal Bankruptcy Court and too many other places to mention.
Many of her clients were people like her own immigrant parents -- entrepreneurial, with some money to pay for a lawyer, but distrustful of the law.
There were a lot of people, she said, who were "freaked out" by the legal process. Often they ignored the summonses and legal documents that arrived in their mailboxes, hoping that the problems would just go away.
In this place some of her fellow law-school graduates looked down on, she saved people's homes and rescued their businesses.
"I thought, 'This is what I was meant to do,' " she said. "It's been a coming home."
At first, she said, she was surprised by the "sheer number" of people calling her office. Eventually, she began to see a truth about working-class Southern California that a lot of other people in the legal community either don't see or prefer not to talk about.
"There's only a system [of legal representation] for the well off, and for the very, very poor," Herrera said. Legal Aid helps the poorest people -- but your average middle or working-class family would have to go into debt to pay the $300 hourly fee typically charged by many lawyers.
Herrera has become a leading voice in the "low bono" movement for affordable legal services. These days, she's winding down her private practice and opening a new nonprofit in Compton called Community Lawyers. She runs it with three other Latinas on her board, and together they hope to help change the way legal services are provided to Los Angeles County's working people.
"Ninety percent of the population needs a new model for legal services," Herrera said. She sees Community Lawyers as an "incubator" that will bring attorneys to places like Compton at rates residents can afford.
Herrera and attorneys like her are fighting to keep the people of Compton and places like it from being priced out of the U.S. legal system. They're trying to breathe new life into the principle known as equality before the law.
That's why she finds it so thrilling that a "Nuyorican" may be on the cusp of joining the highest court in the land.
"Latinas aren't any less American than anyone else," said Herrera, who also teaches at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego.
Diversity on the Supreme Court isn't about putting tokens on the bench. It's about reflecting a new America that already exists all around us.
Go to the traffic courts of Huntington Park, to the small claims court of East Los Angeles, and you will find people who long for American justice. They carry the simple hope that the courts and the laws belong to them too.
hector.tobar@latimes.com
Copyright 2009 Los Angeles Times
June 2, 2009
I made a pilgrimage to Compton last week in search of wisdom, to a little storefront with bars over the windows and a liquor-grocer next door.
Sonia Sotomayor, the Supreme Court nominee, set me off on this quest with her oft-repeated observation that "a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male . . . "
Southern California is home, arguably, to more wise Latinas than any other place in the United States. The only Latina in Obama's cabinet (Labor Secretary Hilda Solis) is from here. And I personally know dozens more, starting with my mother, my wife, my mother-in-law and assorted professors, activists and sharp-minded stay-at-home moms.
But Judge Sotomayor was referring, specifically, to the law. So I thought I should go find a smart Latina attorney and ask her if she thought that was true. Does American jurisprudence look different from a Latina woman's eyes, and if so, what does she see in the United States that a wise "white male" does not?
Until recently, Luz Herrera, 36, ran a solo law practice in Compton. She was born in Tijuana to Mexican parents and raised in heavily Latino neighborhoods of unincorporated West Whittier. But she'll be the first to tell you that her background alone didn't make her wise. Neither, she says, did Harvard Law School, from which she graduated in 1999.
"I learned to think like a lawyer there," she said of Harvard. "I learned how to be a lawyer here. That's what Compton gave me."
For much of the last seven years, Herrera was the only full-time, Spanish-speaking lawyer with an office in Compton, a community with more than 50,000 Latino residents. She was more than a lawyer, she said, to many of her clients, most of whom were working people who needed a bit of "hand holding" along with a legal brief or two.
What Sotomayor can bring to American justice, Herrera told me, is something that Herrera longs for every day: the understanding that the Latino experience is already "a part of the fabric of U.S. society" and that this truth should be reflected in our legal system.
I first read about Herrera in the Los Angeles Daily Journal in March. Columnist Martin Berg called a visit to her Compton offices "a little jolt of hope and inspiration" in the gloom of an economic crisis that's hit the legal community hard.
Herrera traveled from West Whittier to Stanford, and then from Stanford to Harvard to Compton, because she's a proud Latina. Her journey is one of those American stories that reminds us that American wisdom is, by definition, a book written by people of many different colors, faiths and outlooks.
"I went into law because I wanted to represent people from my community," said the daughter of immigrants, who graduated, as I did, from Pioneer High School in Whittier.
Hard work took Herrera to Harvard, where the grads, she said, think of their law degrees as "golden tickets." Herrera cashed in too, with a six-figure salary right out of law school. But during two years as a "corporate drone," she never entered a courtroom.
In law school she had discovered that the traditional path for Mexican American legal warriors -- civil-rights litigation -- wasn't her passion either. She wanted to do work that put her in touch with regular working people.
So in 2002 she set up a solo practice in the offices of a retiring attorney in Compton. Like Abraham Lincoln in Springfield, Herrera hung up her shingle and took on the kinds of cases that typically are the bread and butter of small-town attorneys -- divorce and child custody, bankruptcy, probate and real-estate transactions.
"I was scared and I was learning as I went along," she said.You might think of Compton as part of the big city, but in the eyes of the legal community, it's in the boondocks, Herrera said. "People think that if you're working here, you must not be a good lawyer."
But legal wisdom came, she said, in the unglamorous unfolding of cases in the satellite courthouses of Compton and Long Beach. And also in the East Los Angeles Small Claims Court, federal Bankruptcy Court and too many other places to mention.
Many of her clients were people like her own immigrant parents -- entrepreneurial, with some money to pay for a lawyer, but distrustful of the law.
There were a lot of people, she said, who were "freaked out" by the legal process. Often they ignored the summonses and legal documents that arrived in their mailboxes, hoping that the problems would just go away.
In this place some of her fellow law-school graduates looked down on, she saved people's homes and rescued their businesses.
"I thought, 'This is what I was meant to do,' " she said. "It's been a coming home."
At first, she said, she was surprised by the "sheer number" of people calling her office. Eventually, she began to see a truth about working-class Southern California that a lot of other people in the legal community either don't see or prefer not to talk about.
"There's only a system [of legal representation] for the well off, and for the very, very poor," Herrera said. Legal Aid helps the poorest people -- but your average middle or working-class family would have to go into debt to pay the $300 hourly fee typically charged by many lawyers.
Herrera has become a leading voice in the "low bono" movement for affordable legal services. These days, she's winding down her private practice and opening a new nonprofit in Compton called Community Lawyers. She runs it with three other Latinas on her board, and together they hope to help change the way legal services are provided to Los Angeles County's working people.
"Ninety percent of the population needs a new model for legal services," Herrera said. She sees Community Lawyers as an "incubator" that will bring attorneys to places like Compton at rates residents can afford.
Herrera and attorneys like her are fighting to keep the people of Compton and places like it from being priced out of the U.S. legal system. They're trying to breathe new life into the principle known as equality before the law.
That's why she finds it so thrilling that a "Nuyorican" may be on the cusp of joining the highest court in the land.
"Latinas aren't any less American than anyone else," said Herrera, who also teaches at the Thomas Jefferson School of Law in San Diego.
Diversity on the Supreme Court isn't about putting tokens on the bench. It's about reflecting a new America that already exists all around us.
Go to the traffic courts of Huntington Park, to the small claims court of East Los Angeles, and you will find people who long for American justice. They carry the simple hope that the courts and the laws belong to them too.
hector.tobar@latimes.com
Copyright 2009 Los Angeles Times
Monday, June 1, 2009
Planners Out & About: Passion Pit
The Cambridge based band indie-electronic band stopped by the always enjoyable Glass House this past Saturday night in Pomona. Passion Pit, for the few who do not have the internet, have received much buzz prior to the release of their debut LP Manners this year.
It's always great to see a band live up to the hype as Manners delivers an infectious and very literal brand of skinny boy dance-party fun. To kick off their set was "Make Light," the first track off the new LP and features a hook and keyboard-line (both) nothing short of major.
Other highlights included a bouncy and very engaging rendition of the quintessential Passion Pit jam (if there was one) "Sleepyhead" and ending with what will most likely be remembered as one of the all-time summer jams of '09, "The Reeling."
A short set withstanding, Passion Pit will be making kids dance and smile for quite some time. I am hoping the nature of Michale Angelakos falsetto-on crack vocals do not limit this band from reaching further potential than it has already shown. Their sound seems as if it may have been trialed and errored before -- but in actuality it is completely and innocently original.
(photo courtesy of Jalapeno's Flickr pool)
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