Tag: congress

(0:37) We are 5.4 million renters in Los Angeles County, which is the richest county in the nation by a long shot. But about 3 million of us are rent-burdened, or paying more than half our monthly income on rent

(2:16) BTW: Remember to check out the latest from Making a Neighborhood

(2:44) Ron DeSantis and Gavin Newsom debate. Why does it matter?

(3:21) Yes, there were more important things to do besides watching this debate. At the same time…

(3:55) Dianne Feinstein’s sudden death while in office is, or should be, instructional

(4:49) Feinstein’s passing has led to a brand new race for CA-30’s Congressional District, among other things

(5:29) If Feinstein can pass away while still in office like she did, so can Joe Biden; that’s why Newsom is out there

(7:27) For what it’s worth, Newsom definitely left DeSantis in the dust through the debate

(9:09) To most people, politicians are hacks and grifters; while there’s a lot of merit to this, there are also tens of thousands of people who are employed or not depending on which one of them is office. That’s also what we vote on

(10:06) A good example of this is Rick Caruso vs Karen Bass. Bass was the standout choice for too many voters not just for her personality, but for her broader network with and for communities of color

(11:20) Speaking of Los Angeles, INDEPENDENT REDISTRICTING IS COMING TO L.A. IN 2024

(12:28) This is a moment for all the advocates, for all those who’ve called out L.A. City Hall’s back-room deals on city and community mapping over the last few decades

(13:14) Now, as for expanding the number of L.A. City Council seats; that’s still a work in progress…

(14:04) Think about it though: L.A. City Hall already struggles to provide services with 15 Council Members; if 10 more are suddenly added, what’s to guarantee that their offices wouldn’t also be understaffed?

(15:36) For more on this and other ways of remaking L.A. City Hall, check out L.A. Forward

(16:00) BTW: Have you subscribed to Making a Neighborhood yet??

(18:02) The latest from Making a Neighborhood is on JVP’s Ceasefire March and Rally in Hollywood!

(19:20) As for more actions for Palestine this weekend, consider the following…

(20:21) BTW: These marches are against the U.S.’s war on the people of Gaza, not just against Israel; it’s U.S. tax dollars which fund Israel’s military

(21:04) Children’s March for Palestine: Saturday at 12 PM at Grand Park in downtown L.A.; supporters include: Students for Justice in Palestine: IVC, Latino Musulmana de America, Our Califas Brown Berets, and more

(21:49) Writers for Palestine: Saturday at 6:30 PM at Beyond Baroque in Venice. Fundraiser for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund: Readers include Rhys Langston, who we’ve interviewed on the show, Armine Iknadossian, Paasha Motamedi, and more

(22:56) Gentrification and Genocide: Sunday at 9 AM at the Normandie Recreation Center. Organizers include: The L.A. Tenants Union and Palestinian Youth Movement

(24:25) Oh, and before I forget: We have another critical guest interview coming up soon concerning L.A. City Council and the upcoming ballot. Stay vigilant and stay tuned. And let the city know.

(25:23) Remember to follow/subscribe to J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast! You’re gonna need it, especially through 2024

To make a one-time donation to my fundraiser for the 9th anniversary of JIMBO TIMES, please do so through jmbtms.com. To support the production of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast, please check out my PATREON.

J.T.

This is a special rebroadcast episode outside of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast’s regular schedule.

On Wednesday, November 15th, Jewish Voice for Peace and the L.A. Chapter of If Not Now gathered in Hollywood for a rally and march demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. The event was attended by over 1,000 people of various ages, ethnic groups, and faiths, including Black Lives Matter – Los Angeles, which recorded and broadcast the event’s various speakers through their Instagram page; this audio features that recording, leaving out only the portion of the march from De Longpre Park through Hollywood boulevard to focus on the event’s main voices. The march concluded at the intersection of Hollywood boulevard and Highland avenue, where despite rain throughout the evening demonstrators sat atop the streets as speakers addressed the crowd, including through chants and songs.

(2:26) Jewish Voice for Peace and Allies begin the rally
(6:31) Acknowledging L.A. as Tongva land and the origins of the name “Hollywood”
(8:14) Donating to support land back for Tongva People in Los Angeles
(9:56) Mic Check/Practicing the People’s Mic
(10:59) A prayer for the march by Rabbi Robin Podolsky
(15:48) It’s not just raining in L.A. but in Gaza as well
(16:07) Calling for peace because of Judaism, not despite it
(21:56) Solidarity with the Islamic Center of Southern California
(23:33) A brief round-up of war crimes by the state of Israel in Gaza
(27:25) Why the genocide must STOP!
(28:49) Biden didn’t even try to bring Palestinians and Israelis together
(29:49) What does it take for U.S.’ elected officials to call for a ceasefire?
(31:02) As we stand here speaking…already hundreds have been killed
(31:46) Not in our name; let Gaza live
(33:05) Song: Nation shall not war against Nation
(36:50) Patrisse Cullors, co-founder of Black Lives Matter, artist and writer.
(38:09) What we are witnessing right now is not normal
(39:25) The first time I marched…was protesting the Iraq war
(40:23) An Iraqi child mattered just as much as a child in Los Angeles
(41:27) Liberation is not selective
(43:15) As you speak up for others, we will speak up for you; antisemitism has no place in liberation
(47:54) Michael Wolfe, Jewish Voice for Peace organizer
(52:06) Never Again for Anyone
(53:51) Jewish people first came to Hollywood because of exclusion elsewhere
(54:49) SAG-AFTRA and WGA Strikers: Join Us!
(55:45) Hollywood: We need stories calling for a ceasefire now!
(56:34) Judy Chiu, Tony Cardenas, Adam Schiff, Grace Napolitano, Brad Sherman, Jimmy Gomez, Norma Torres, Ted Lieu, Sydney Kamlager-Dove, Robert Garcia, Nanette Barragan, Michelle Steel, Alex Padilla and Laphonza Butler: WHERE ARE YOU?
(58:40) Song: Ceasefire Now
(1:00:28) We are here, thousands strong
(1:05:34) Proceeding to march in Hollywood; BLM-LA in the mix
(1:14:31) Jewish and Palestinian communities are both mourning right now
(1:15:57) Refusing a ceasefire jeopardizes the rescue of Israeli hostages; military strategists are not realists
(1:19:58) From the Mishnah: God suffers even when a murderer is killed, let alone innocent children
(1:23:04) Maya with Students for Justice in Palestine
(1:25:35) Dealing with the onslaught of your own people year after year
(01:30:02) To celebrities refusing to speak out against genocide:
(1:34:06) Konstantine Anthony: The only elected official in Los Angeles present at the march
(1:41:30) Matt Lieb on the march for Israel in D.C. and the role for Jewish voices in Hollywood
(1:44:35) On the intimidation of speaking out against Israel as an apartheid state
(1:48:40) On calling anti-zionists traitors for speaking out against the settler-colonial state
(1:52:50) Mexican Ashkenazi IndigiJewess Lu Coy singing in solidarity with Palestinians
(1:59:49) Hedab Tarifi is a Palestinian from Gaza
(2:03:56) I refuse to have a war-criminal as my president
(2:07:00) Viva, viva Palestina
(2:07:21) Ceasefire Now; Not In Our Name
(2:10:00) Melina Abdullah, Black Lives Matter
(2:14:48) Every dollar spent on genocide is not spent on housing in Los Angeles or healthcare
(2:16:24) Respect Oakland for shutting down ships to Israel
(2:16:46) A Palestinian child is being killed every two minutes in this genocidal bombardment
(2:19:16) We’re not calling for a humanitarian pause; a ceasefire is the very least we can do
(2:21:10) Shout out all the jews, gentiles and other allies today
(2:21:50) We Rise (Police en route notwithstanding)

This rebroadcast would not exist without the tremendous efforts of BLM-LA’s videographer to let the city know. Please consider making a donation to the organization for more independent media through our communities. To support the production of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast, please check out my PATREON.

J.T.

This is a special rebroadcast episode outside of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast’s regular schedule.

Today in Washington D.C. U.S. House Representative Rashida Tlaib (Democrat, Michigan), the sole Palestinian-American member of Congress, held a news conference alongside Rabbis for Ceasefire and fellow Congress members calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, where the state of Israel, supported by billions in U.S. military funding, has killed more than 11,000 people and displaced at least 1.4 million others. According to Tlaib, over 65% of Americans now support a ceasefire, and every moment the U.S. fails to halt Israel only leads to more lives lost and irreparable damage for the Palestinian people. On Wednesday, November 15th, Jewish Voices for Peace is staging a Mass Action in Hollywood also calling for an immediate ceasefire.

(2:42) Rabbi Brian Walt: Most Jews and nearly all Israelis know someone whose family member is held hostage
(8:45) Representative Rashida Tlaib (Michigan), the only Palestinian-American Congressmember who was also recently censured in the U.S. House of Representatives
(13:11) There is nothing humanitarian about a “humanitarian pause” that still leads to bombing innocent civilians
(15:21) Representative Cori Bush (Missouri), a St. Louis native and the first Black Congresswoman from Missouri
(18:05) Bush describes giving birth to her premature baby and grieving for the lives of families and their loved ones in Gaza
(19:41) On evoking the message of Dr. Martin Luther King in Congress and how he would have stood on the side of peace today
(21:10) Representative Alexandria Ocasion-Cortez (New York)
(22:54) On how unconscionable it is to call the killing of innocent civilians “collateral damage”
(24:26) How to define “ceasefire” for those asking what this demand means
(28:17) Representative Jonathan Jackson (Illinois)
(29:16) Gazans now make up the largest refugee crisis in the world; rebuilding will be difficult because of the amount of pollution from bombing
(29:57) In 1993, in Rwanda, 1 million people were killed in 100 days; today, Rwanda found peace and reconciliation and is now one of the most peaceful nations on earth
(31:53) Representative Delia Ramirez (Illinois)
(35:10) Only a week prior, post 9/11 veterans also stood at the U.S. Capitol to call for peace, not war
(35:57) We should not have to justify why we’re calling for a ceasefire; those not doing so should be justifying why they’re not
(38:27) Rabbis Abby Stein and Salem Pearce
(39:10) On echoes of the Vietnam war in Gaza today; I’m here because I cannot pray
(41:08) Can any of us say that we don’t have blood on our hands? Because none of us can say that we did not see
(43:58) Neither Jewish nor Muslim-Americans can feel safe in the U.S. as long as this war continues
(45:39) Representative Nydia M. Velazquez (New York)
(46:23) On Puerto-Rican American solidarity with all people seeking the right to self-determination
(47:27) For Velazquez, calling for a ceasefire is not about the next election
(50:01) Representative Jamaal Bowman (New York)
(52:13) The United States has a history of bombing people all over the world; are we corrupted by violence?
(53:28) As a school principal for ten years, Bowman mourns for children killed in Gaza
(56:13) A coalition of faith and elected officials; we have Jews, we have Christians, we have Muslims
(57:28) The bible tells all of us: Love thy neighbor
(58:12) Representative Summer Lee (Pennsylvania)
(1:01:09) Whole bloodlines have been erased in Gaza over the last five weeks; and there are no universities left
(1:02:45) Our movement is the new pro-peace movement, locking arms with people all over the world
(1:03:45) Representative Ayanna Pressley (Massachusetts)
(1:05:47) Children in Gaza should not have to hold a press conference asking to live
(1:08:58) Representative Omar Ilhan (Minnesota)
(1:12:01) Even children in Somalia can see the unfolding genocide of Palestinians in Gaza
(1:14:50) Deaf couple in Gaza is terrified of being unable to hear the bombs or anything during this siege
(1:15:21) Ilhan’s colleagues were quick to sympathize with Ukraine was getting bombed
(1:18:59) Rabbi Yosef Berman closes out the press conference with a prayer; am I my brother’s keeper?

This rebroadcast would not exist without the tremendous efforts of Rabbis for Ceasefire to let the nation know. Please consider making a donation to the organization for more independent media through our communities. To support the production of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast, please check out my PATREON.

J.T.