One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
Sean Penn's Nonprofit Is Working To Administer COVID-19 Tests To Angelenos
CORE Founder Sean Penn and LAFD (Courtesy CORE)
Sean Penn may be widely known as an A-list actor, but he’s also the founder of the nonprofit organization CORE — Community Organized Relief Effort. The organization has provided services following major disasters in Haiti and New Orleans, and is now working to increase testing for the coronavirus in Los Angeles.
To date, CORE has tested more than 20,000 Angelenos at six different sites in L.A. and Malibu.
Penn spoke with our newsroom in an interview with Nick Roman, who hosts KPCC's All Things Considered on 89.3 FM.
Penn said that the lessons he and his team members have learned over the past decade allowed them to act fast when COVID-19 hit.
“Because I had this organization with skill sets, with a lot of talented, very bright people, and very experienced, when this outbreak happened with this pandemic, I was able to quickly mobilize our people to respond,” said Penn.
With an eye toward expanding his test sites outside of L.A., Penn added that he hopes the pandemic will ultimately push Americans towards fact-based decision-making.
“It's my hope that this will be an experience that turns the light on and says, we've got to pay attention to science,” he said. “We have to have public policy that pays attention to science, supports science… I am an optimist almost enough to believe that this can really unify and move us forward.”
Sponsored message
Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: Sign up for our daily coronavirus newsletter. To support our non-profit public service journalism: Donate Now.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
