The Brief

I’m still coming down from last weekend's high of singing songs from & Juliet — coming to the Ahmanson later this summer — aboard Center Theater Group’s Pride Parade float. That rendition of “Domino” is going to be stuck in my head for ages.

To help get the pop songs unstuck, our friends at Licorice Pizza recommend the Yeah Yeah Yeahs on Tuesday at the Fox Performing Arts Center, the Preoccupation at the Lodge Room, and Zola Jesus doing two nights at 2220 Arts + Archives. Plus, a look ahead to the Blue Note Jazz Festival at the Hollywood Bowl this weekend.

For more to explore, visit LAist.com, where you can help a documentary producer find the missing guitar from Back to the Future and visit a pop-up vinyl shop that’s helping fire survivors repopulate their record collections.

Events

Tuesday, June 10, 6 p.m. 
Live Talks L.A.: Jacinda Ardern in conversation with Rachel Bloom 
New Roads School
3131 Olympic Blvd., Santa Monica
COST: $48 (INCLUDES SIGNED BOOK); MORE INFO

Jacinda Ardern, former New Zealand prime minister, and Rachel Bloom, creator and star of 'Crazy Ex-Girlfriend.'

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Courtesy Live Talks Los Angeles

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Both Jacinda Ardern, former New Zealand prime minister, and Rachel Bloom, creator and star of Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, are truly groundbreaking in their own ways. And both are no strangers to controversy, with Ardern’s new book dividing her native country over her legacy. Leave it to Live Talks to put these powerhouse women together to discuss Ardern’s A Different Kind of Power. Never one to shy away from taboo topics, Bloom will surely address topics like motherhood, mental health, and the current political climate with one of the world’s youngest leaders ever elected and current Harvard senior fellow.

Thursday, June 12, 6 to 10 p.m.
Proper Presents: Cut Copy 
Santa Monica Proper Hotel 
700 Wilshire Blvd., Santa Monica 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO 

Australian synth-pop band Cut Copy performs live on stage during a concert at Cine Joia on March 19, 2023 in Sao Paulo.

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Mauricio Santana

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Australian dance pioneers Cut Copy are playing the Proper Presents series in Santa Monica at the hotel’s chic rooftop. You can also splash out and reserve a table, but GA tickets are free, and the summer nights above Santa Monica are a great spot to get your groove on.

Through Wednesday, June 25
Hollywood Fringe Festival 2025
Multiple locations, Hollywood
COST: VARIES; MORE INFO 

With shows in previews until Tuesday and a big opening night party on Wednesday, the Hollywood Fringe is back with dozens of theater experiences on tap from indie creators, from mind-reading nights to one-woman spoofs, new musicals to magic shows, comedy performances, drag performances — you name it. While it can be tough to wade through the list of options, a couple of suggestions for this week include Too Much of a Good Thing at 4:30 p.m. on June 10, and Ms. Tucker Will See You Now at 6:15 p.m. on June 12.

Thursday, June 12, 6 p.m.
Pride Month Hike 
Harmon Canyon
7511 Foothill Road, Ventura
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

Now that the PCH has reopened, take a weekday drive up to Ventura for the Pride Month Hike at Harmon Canyon. The Ventura Land Trust and Diversity Collective are hosting a two-to-three-mile moderate hike through Harmon Canyon Preserve, Ventura's largest nature preserve, to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride Month.

Tuesday, June 10, 6:30 p.m.
Los Angeles Angels Pride Night
Angel Stadium of Anaheim
2000 E. Gene Autry Way, Anaheim
COST: FROM $37; MORE INFO 

Chris Taylor of the Los Angeles Angels hits a RBI double at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on June 7, 2025 in Anaheim, California.

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Jayne Kamin-Oncea

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The Angels take on the Athletics at this year’s Angels Pride Night down in Anaheim. Join fans in the Gate 5 Courtyard for pre-game Pride festivities. A Pride Night ticket package gets you discounted pricing and a Pride Night-themed Angels hat with proceeds benefiting O.C. Pride. Baby, I can see your halo.

Through Friday, July 25 
'Dream Stop' 
Adams Square Mini Park Gas Station
1020 E Palmer Ave., Glendale 
COST: FREE; MORE INFO

One of my top public art events of the year is the installation that pops up at the Adams Square Mini Park Gas Station. Art? At a gas station? I mean, you gotta love it.

This year, Glendale is hosting a piece called "Dream Stop" by Delight Art Foundation. The exhibit showcases artwork by young people and calls on visitors to “stop and take time to dream.” It features self-portraits on boxes that express the multiple sides of an artist's identity. Hanging from the ceiling, paper planes hold business cards that illustrate what kids would do in a world without adults.

Tuesday, June 10, 9 p.m. 
Open Folk L.A. 
Hotel Cafe
1623 N. Cahuenga Blvd., Hollywood 
COST: $12; MORE INFO 

Priced out of Mumford & Sons at the Hollywood Bowl? Head to Hotel Cafe’s folk night, Open Folk, where up-and-coming folk singer-songwriters perform each week in the club’s intimate space.

Viewing Pick

Wednesday, June 11, 6:30 p.m.
Twin Peaks: The Return, Episode 8 
Vidiots
4884 Eagle Rock Blvd., Eagle Rock
COST: FREE WITH RSVP; MORE INFO

Vidiots in Eagle Rock.

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Julie Leopo

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Will we ever get enough David Lynch around these parts? The correct answer is no, obviously. FANGORIA and streaming service MUBI are hosting a one-night-only free screening of episode 8 of Twin Peaks: The Return, Lynch’s “surreal atomic horror masterpiece.” The screening is hosted by FANGORIA Digital Editor Angel Melanson and features Twin Peaks trivia, a costume contest and exclusive giveaways.

Dine & Drink Deals

Thursday, June 12
Margherita Pizza & Margarita Time
Superfine Playa
12746 W. Jefferson Blvd. #2200, Playa Vista
COST: $25; MORE INFO 

Superfine Playa has paired up with The Book Jewel and writer and author Caroline Pardilla for an evening of pizza, cocktails and conversation as she discusses her new book, Margarita Time. Included is a signed copy of the book, a margarita, Margherita pizza from Superfine Playa, and a Q&A and book signing with Pardilla.

By the way, in case you missed it, LAist's Gab Chabran wrote about Pardilla's new book and why she calls the margarita L.A.'s unofficial cocktail in April.

Thursday, June 12, 8 p.m.
Zizou Anniversary Party 
Zizou
2425 Daly St., Lincoln Heights
COST: VARIES; MORE INFO

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Jorden DeGaetano

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Super cute French-Moroccan newcomer Zizou in Lincoln Heights celebrates a year of service with an anniversary party on their patio, featuring music by Mathieu Schreyer, El Marchante, Cassandra Dali and special guests.

California voters are split along party lines on two controversial proposed ballot measures — a billionaire tax and an initiative requiring voters to show government ID when they cast a ballot — according to a new poll.

The survey from UC Berkeley’s Institute of Governmental Studies found 52% of voters backing a proposed one-time, 5% tax on the net worth of billionaires. The money would be used to fund health care programs, which are being cut by the Trump administration; 33% of registered voters said they were opposed and 15% said they are still undecided.

Whether voters back the measure, which is being pushed by a health care labor union, is highly correlated to their partisan leanings: 72% of Democrats said they’d support the billionaire tax if it qualifies for the November ballot, while the same percentage of Republican voters are opposed. Voters with no party preference were more split, with 51% backing the wealth tax.

The voter ID ballot measure is more evenly divided, with 44% of voters in support and 45% opposed. Republican voters said they would overwhelmingly vote “Yes.” Democrats are unified in opposition, with only 19% in support.

IGS co-director Eric Schickler said that while neither measure has qualified yet for the ballot, most voters surveyed said they are aware of the proposals.

“The Billionaire Tax Initiative starts out in a relatively strong position, but with it polling just above 50%, that still leaves room for what will be an intense, expensive campaign,” he said. “The Voter ID Initiative looks like it faces an uphill climb: given the strong Democratic opposition, it needs very strong support among nonpartisan voters, and it currently seems to be falling short. But it is still very early.”

If they move forward, the campaigns around both measures are expected to be expensive and bruising. Democrats are split on the billionaires tax: Gov. Gavin Newsom is opposed, Silicon Valley Rep. Ro Khanna said he’s in support, and many other Democrats — including legislative leaders and candidates for governor — have offered support for the concept but expressed concerns with the details of this proposal.

Some billionaires have already left California, and others, like Google co-founder Sergey Brin, are lining up huge campaign war chests to fight the measure.

And Democrats are gearing up to fight the voter ID measure, which several Southern California Republican lawmakers are pushing. The proposed ballot measure comes as the U.S. Senate debates what’s known as the SAVE Act, a far more draconian voter ID measure.

Backed by President Donald Trump, that legislation would require a passport or birth certificate to register to vote, essentially eliminate mail-in ballots and require states to hand over their voter rolls to the federal government. It already passed the House but is facing a steep climb in the Republican-led Senate.

The poll was conducted between March 9 and 15 among more than 5,000 registered California voters. It has a sampling error of plus or minus 2 points.

The Los Angeles Unified board members who represent schools named for César Chávez are calling for their renaming.

A New York Times investigation published Wednesday found the famed labor leader Chávez sexually abused girls and women including United Farmer Workers co-founder Dolores Huerta.

“In light of this information, we believe it is necessary to move away from traditional César Chávez-centered celebrations and lessons tied to the state holiday and instead prioritize student safety, dignity and truth,” read a statement from board member Kelly Gonez and Vice President Rocío Rivas.

The renaming process would likely take months and include meetings with school staff, students and parents. In the meantime, district leaders and educators are grappling with how the allegations of abuse change lessons about a figure who helped galvanize generations of activists.

“ I think we are all deeply, deeply troubled by the allegations that have come forward over the last couple of days,” said Andres Chait, the acting Los Angeles Unified superintendent.

Chait said that March 27 will continue to be a school holiday (the currently named César Chávez Day, on March 31, falls during LAUSD’s spring break).

A district spokesperson provided a statement Wednesday that said a review of curriculum and resources related to Chávez is underway “to ensure the emphasis remains on the important work of the farmworker movement, not on any one individual.”

How are community members and educators reacting?

Last semester, students at STEM Academy of Hollywood learned about Chávez and the movement to unionize farmworkers in Irene Atilano’s ethnic studies class.

Atilano said students walked into her classroom Wednesday with questions after seeing the allegations of Chávez’s abuse on social media.

“ They were just like, ‘What do you think?’” Atilano said. “And I'm like, 'It doesn't matter what I think. What do you guys think? Let's learn together.'”

Their reactions ranged from “this really sucks,” to a sense of loss.

“This is why we don't try to idolize people,” Atilano said. “We want to make sure that we focus on the community, we focus on the movement.”

Atilano said she plans to teach ethnic studies again and is thinking about how misogyny and patriarchy intersect with political and social justice movements.

“It can be found everywhere,” Atilano said. “I’m trying to see how I can make those connections in the future, but it's a work in progress.”

On March 10, the LAUSD board unanimously approved a resolution recognizing Chávez — one of many such resolutions over the years — and pledging to provide curriculum and resources aligned with the foundation that promotes his legacy, education and economic development. The board last year also passed a resolution honoring Huerta.

In response to LAist’s questions about curriculum related to Chávez, an LAUSD spokesperson provided a statement that said the district is providing additional instructional materials “to support classroom learning, ensuring students continue to engage with themes of leadership, service and social justice in age-appropriate and meaningful ways.”

LAUSD board member Tanya Ortiz Franklin issued a statement Wednesday morning with links to resources related to sexual and domestic violence.

“Just my own team, we’re seven women … and our own triggers, our own stories are coming out,” Ortiz Franklin said. “You can imagine that happening everywhere in homes, in classrooms, the adults having to manage this, and then also, helping students process.”

César Chávez Elementary in El Sereno is one of several schools in Southern California named after the labor leader.

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How would renaming work?

Blanca Juarez was at César Chávez Elementary in El Sereno on Wednesday to pick up her daughter. With a father and grandmother who were both farmworkers, she said she was troubled by the news.

“He was like the only hope in those days — the only one speaking for all of the — and now, well, I don’t know. I don’t know what to say,” Juarez said.

She said it was too soon to be talking about renaming the school.

Gonez and Rivas said they would work with the communities surrounding the elementary school and the César Chávez Learning Academies in San Fernando to identify new names.

In recent years, the school renaming process has included meetings with staff, students, parents and community members and a public vote. The LAUSD board must vote to finalize any name changes.

LAist Deputy Managing Editor Fiona Ng contributed to this story.

SHEFFIELD, U.K., and JERUSALEM — Mediators have given Hamas a formal proposal to lay down its weapons, a senior U.S. official told NPR. The proposal calls for Hamas and all other militant groups in Gaza to hand over all weapons, making an emerging governing authority responsible for all arms.

The demilitarization proposal was handed over to Hamas last week in Cairo, an additional official in the region said.

A third person briefed on the proposal called it a comprehensive framework to ensure the "complete handover" and "full decommissioning" of arms belonging to Hamas and all other armed groups in Gaza, and that if Hamas accepts the proposal, it would ensure large-scale reconstruction of Gaza.

The person said Hamas has been asked to respond to the proposal in about a weeks time, after the Muslim Eid holiday. Senior Hamas officials did not immediately comment, and one Hamas official denied having received a proposal.

Hamas and Israel signed on to President Trump's ceasefire deal last October, in an effort to end two years of war that have devastated Gaza and triggered conflicts across the Middle East.

Trump's Board of Peace was established to oversee efforts to demilitarize Hamas, establish a multinational stabilization force for Gaza and ensure an Israeli military withdrawal from the territory. Hamas officials said they were willing to discuss their weapons but had been waiting for a formal proposal from mediators.

The work of the Board of Peace has been largely put on hold, however, since the U.S. and Israel launched the war against Iran on Feb. 28, triggering a new regional conflict that has engulfed more than a dozen countries.

The members of the new Palestinian transitional committee tasked to run postwar Gaza have still not entered the territory, and no new Palestinian police force or multinational force has been formed.

Despite the fragile truce agreement, Israeli forces have killed hundreds of Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities. Israel says the attacks targeted Hamas militants. Several Israeli soldiers have also been killed in attacks by militants.

Robert Danin, a former senior U.S. State Department and White House official specializing in the Middle East, said it was unlikely Hamas would be in any hurry to deliver its response to the demilitarization proposal or agree to it.

"Hamas sees time as being on its side right now," Danin said. "With each passing day, its influence and control on the ground in Gaza strengthens and expands, particularly as long as the Board of Peace's proposed alternative governance structures and forces for Gaza remain stuck outside of the strip. So the longer Hamas can prolong this status quo, the stronger it sees its hand growing for any day after."

Danin said the distraction caused by the war with Iran would also likely draw attention away from pressuring Hamas.

"This means that for the Board of Peace and those seeking to disarm Hamas, the key question is what tools does it have to see Hamas adopt this plan?" he said.

The Gaza war began on Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas-led militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people, according to Israel. Israel's massive military response killed more than 70,000 people in Gaza and left the coastal enclave in ruins, according to Palestinian health officials.

Despite the fragile ceasefire agreement, over the last six months Israeli forces have killed hundreds of Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Gaza health authorities, in what Israel says were attacks targeting Hamas militants. Several Israeli soldiers have also been killed in attacks by militants.
Copyright 2026 NPR

The South Pasadena City Council moved Wednesday not to renew a contract with Flock Safety, a controversial surveillance company that operates AI-powered automated license plate readers in thousands of communities across the U.S.

The move ends the use of 14 cameras installed around town while city officials seek alternative camera vendors.

The city still has a second contract with Flock for 13 operating cameras, which capture the license plate numbers and locations of passing cars. That information is temporarily stored in a database that's shared with law enforcement agencies across the state.

The council's decision follows public outcry after reports that some local law enforcement agencies in Southern California illegally shared license plate reader data with federal immigration agents. Those included the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, which South Pasadena shares its data with.

"We probably wouldn't be here tonight if it'd been a different federal administration. We could trust more, not so much chaos," City Councilmember Michael Cacciotti said at Wednesday's meeting. "Many of our residents are very concerned about the misuse and abuse of data."

The decision was not unanimous. City Councilmember Jon Primuth said he thought people speaking out against Flock did not represent the majority of residents in South Pasadena. He also expressed concern about moving to a different vendor for automated license plate readers, since so many surrounding cities use the Flock network. Pasadena and San Marino both have Flock cameras, as do many cities in the L.A. area.

"I don't think there's anything to be gained by canceling a contract right now," Primuth said.

Council members also discussed shortening the time period that the city holds onto its data from 30 to 15 days.

South Pasadena joins a handful of California cities that have reconsidered their contracts with Flock in recent months. The first was Santa Cruz, which killed its contract with Flock in January following reports that the city's data was accessed by agencies outside of California and shared with ICE.

The Oxnard Police Department also suspended its use of Flock license plate readers, after an audit revealed that data from the city's cameras was made available to federal law enforcement agencies between February and March of 2025 through a "nationwide query" setting, against the city's wishes and state law.

Flock responded to the incident, saying out-of-state law enforcement agencies' access to some of its camera networks was "inadvertent" and it had strengthened its protections. The company also says it does not work with ICE or any agency within the Department of Homeland Security.

The incidents have sparked a deeper debate around automated license plate readers, which have become ubiquitous in many communities without much notice. Local law enforcement agencies say the cameras have greatly enhanced their ability to solve crimes, while privacy advocates including the ACLU have called the technology a dangerous "dragnet."

While South Pasadena scales back Flock's presence, some of its neighbors are adding more. Pasadena has 61 Flock automated license plate readers and plans to install 11 additional cameras.