Grab your tickets now! Renascent/Renaciente in East Hollywood Is on August 27, 2026

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100 people, 100 plates of food and drinks. Live music, and at least four special honorees. The goal?? To raise no less than $10,000 through our program. It’s fair to ask if this can even be done, because it’s actually never been done in East Hollywood specifically for immigrant communities here in such a way. Then again, neither had a handful of volunteers– or children of immigrants–organized quite like our team has in nearly a decade of planning through the backyards our families raised us in. If you or your small business would like to donate an item for our raffle, please don’t hesitate to reach out, and all the more so since Quién Es Tu Vecindario’s nonprofit status ensures your donation is tax-deductible.

Consigue tus boletos ahora! 100 personas, 100 platos de comida y bebidas. Música en vivo y al menos cuatro personas que recibirán un reconocimiento especial. ¿El objetivo? Recaudar no menos de 10.000 dólares a través de nuestro programa. Es lógico preguntarse si esto es siquiera posible, ya que, de hecho, nunca se ha hecho algo así en East Hollywood específicamente para las comunidades inmigrantes de la zona. Por otro lado, tampoco se había visto antes a un grupo de voluntarios —hijos de inmigrantes— organizarse de la manera en que lo ha hecho nuestro equipo tras casi una década de planificación en los patios donde crecimos. Si usted o su pequeña empresa desean donar un artículo para nuestra rifa, no duden en ponerse en contacto con nosotros; más aún teniendo en cuenta que el estatus de organización sin fines de lucro de Quién Es Tu Vecindario garantiza que su donación sea deducible de impuestos.

J.T.

THE TENANT ASSOCIATION WITH PHOENIX TSO

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On this installment of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast we’re joined by Phoenix Tso, who chats with us about The Tenant Association, a new podcast on the Chinatown Hillside Villa Tenant Association, which formed in 2018 after residents there received a 300% Rent Increase without any prior notice from their landlord; in addition to the origins of the podcast and Tso’s investigative work, we consider the terms “affordable housing” and “eminent domain.” Tso notes that across the U.S., approximately 800,000 currently affordable units will lose their affordability within the next decade due to expiration dates for rent prices set in their housing covenants. Last but not least, Tso reveals the host of The Tenant Association to quite some cheer and even chuckling; it’s another can’t miss episode and you can also keep up with The Tenant Association here.

(1:07) Introducing The Tenant Association Podcast by the Los Angeles Public Press
(5:41) Outlining the story of the Hillside Villa Tenant Association
(13:30) “Affordable Housing” on a timer, not indefinitely affordable
(19:41) 800,000 “Affordable Housing” units in the U.S. are expiring within the next decade
(23:29) The use of “Eminent Domain” historically to rob communities of their right to housing
(30:25) How the Hillside Villa Tenant Association organized the fight against their landlord
(41:08) Final notes on the new podcast, as well as the HOST REVEAL!

To make a one-time donation to my nonprofit work for working-class communities in The City, do so here. To support the production of J.T. the L.A. Storyteller Podcast for as little as $5 a month, check out my page at Patreon.

Until the next time, stay vigilant and stay tuned!

J.T.

Btw L.A., did you know…?

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Did you know that on L.A. Metro’s A Line, formerly known to a generation as “The Gold Line,” the dilapidated, creaky building you can see from the Chinatown to Lincoln Heights/Cypress station, is actually the former Lincoln Heights jail?

In 2016, the L.A. Times noted that: “In the early years of the jail, which opened in 1931, some people were hauled to the building along the concrete-lined L.A. River because they were gay, leading to the creation of a separate wing, according to the Los Angeles Conservancy. Many of those arrested during the 1943 Zoot Suit riots, in which [white] servicemen targeted young Mexican Americans, were taken to the Lincoln Heights Jail on North Avenue 19.”

Young, mostly Mexican American men jailed in Lincoln Heights in the late 1930s. Photo courtesy of the L.A. Public Library.

The jail was also used for the federal government’s efforts against labor-organizing across the nation during the 1930s. One prisoner, E. Yagamuchi, was taken by authorities from the Imperial Valley and jailed for two years there, presumably for involvement with local labor organizing. Yagamuchi faced deportation to Japan before the International Labor Defense (ILD) organization rallied to his defense. In August 1932, the ILD’s efforts won him and another Japanese-American, Tetsui Horiyuchi, a “voluntary departure” to the U.S.S.R. instead.

E. Yamaguchi leaving Lincoln Heights jail after almost two years in 1932. Photo courtesy of the L.A. Public Library.
Taken from page two of the September 1932 edition of the Western Worker newspaper. Photo courtesy of Marxists.org

The Lincoln Heights jail was officially closed in 1965, including because of overcrowding conditions that became well too apparent when residents taken from the Watts neighborhood were booked there during the Watts Rebellion in August 1965.

Lincoln Heights jail photograped in 1936. Photo courtesy of the L.A. Public Library.

Now, 58 years after the fact, the youngest member of L.A. City Council, who also just completed her first year in office, is looking to transform the former jail into social housing for the Lincoln Heights community. Think it can’t be done? Hear about it and more through our latest podcast with Council Member for L.A.’s 1st District, Eunisses Hernandez.

View of Downtown Los Angeles from Lincoln Heights in 2014. Photo courtesy of Wiki Commons.

And subscribe for more Cuentos soon!

J.T.

P.S. JIMBO TIMES has now officially published more than 300,000 words for working-class communities in Los Angeles. Let the city know!

Our Community is Getting Stronger, Este Hollywood

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From the words of Dr. Mary Gallagher, President of Los Angeles City College:

“On Saturday, August 24th from 4 to 8 PM, staff from the non-credit department of LACC participated in a great local community event called Back 2 School 2, marking the second year of this event. I was able to attend and hear all of the things going on at the ‘grass roots’ level of our community. LACC was included because of the GED preparation and testing we do. We also provided information from some of our students currently attending non-credit classes. It was a fabulous event. I look forward to next year.”

Dr. Gallagher’s recognition of BTS 2 is a milestone achievement for the work to uplift more vecindades in East Hollywood and throughout Los Angeles. In the days ahead, the work to keep strengthening our community will remain challenging, but I also believe that as our special event showed this past Saturday–and last year–the promise of the work will remain bright and full of encouragement. There will be more following up on the success of BTS 2, but for now, I’d like to express my deepest thanks to each supporter, close and afar, who took a moment to contribute to this critical day for our neighborhood and families all throughout this great city.

J.T.