Today on AirTalk, we discuss Los Angeles city officials' plan to close Echo Park and look into how that decision impacts the area's homeless encampments. Also on the show, we go over the latest COVID-19 headlines; talk with museum owners about reopening plans; and more.
Biden Considering Using Executive Action For Gun Control. What Are The Political And Legal Considerations?
The Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing Tuesday on proposals for gun control. It is unclear whether any of the bills up for consideration — most of them involving more restrictive background checks — would have made a difference in the Colorado case. A 21-year-old man charged with killing eight people in the Atlanta area last week had purchased a 9 mm handgun hours before the murders, prompting advocates to push for longer waiting periods for purchases.
In brief remarks responding to the shooting, Biden urged Congress to move quickly to close the loopholes in the background check system and to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines — an effort that would be even more difficult to achieve politically. According to a police affidavit, the Colorado shooter had purchased an assault rifle six days earlier. According to reports, White House Spokeswoman Jen Psaki has said Biden is considering using executive action, which wouldn’t need approval from Congress. Today on AirTalk, we talk about the various gun control efforts and what executive action could mean politically and legally. Do you have thoughts or questions? Give us a call at 866-893-5722.
With files from the Associated Press
Guests:
Anita Kumar, White House correspondent and associate editor for POLITICO; she tweets
Adam Winkler, professor of law at UCLA where he specializes in constitutional law, the Supreme Court and gun policy; he tweets
DOC AMA: Transmission Rates Spike in LA County, California Vaccine Eligibility Expands And More
In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, we speak with UCSF’s Dr. Peter Chin-Hong.
Today’s topics include:
Transmission rate spike spurs fear of new coronavirus surge in LA County
Vaccinated people can get COVID-19, but it’s most likely very rare
Flu shots are linked to a drop in COVID-19 infections, and scientists aren't sure why
California's vaccine eligibility is expanding — if you live in the right places
California COVID-19 cases fall amid New York, Florida surges
Guest:
Peter Chin-Hong, M.D., infectious disease specialist and professor of medicine at the UCSF Medical Center; he tweets
The Echo Park Lake Homeless Community Is Bracing For City To Clear The Park
Homeless residents and advocates are bracing for the city of Los Angeles to close Echo Park Lake and clear a tent community that has become a flashpoint for debate over the city’s responsibility towards homeless encampments.
The coalition of community organizations, Services Not Sweeps, and people who live at the park say they have heard from sources at the city that the announcement to shut the park down will come on Wednesday and will presumably include a timeline for evictions.
“They’re doing it all in secret,” said Ayman Ahmed, who added that he has lived at the lake for more than a year.
A spokesman for City Councilman Mitch O’Farrell, who represents the area, would not confirm that timing, but indicated a closure was imminent.
“We are working with several City departments to temporarily close the park to repair more than half-a-million dollars in damage,” said Tony Arranaga. “When the official notice of the closure is posted by the Department of Recreation and Parks, our office will alert the public and the media.”
Arranaga emphasized that O’Farrell had partnered with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority to place “more than 100 people living at the lake into safe housing and shelter” in recent weeks through Project Roomkey, Project Homekey, and shorter term shelter beds.
“[The park] will close soon, and notices will go up, and then we’ll all know,” O’Farrell said today at an unrelated press conference when asked about the rumored city cleanup.
Ahmed estimated the current population of the encampment on the north side of the park to be about 50 people, not counting those living in cars and RVs parked around the lake. He’s planning on joining his neighbors and advocacy groups in a protest planned for 7 a.m. on Wednesday.
With files from LAist
Guest:
Libby Denkmann, KPCC politics reporter; she tweets
State Of The Arts: After A Year Of Closures, LA’s Indoor Museums Can Finally Open Their Doors Again. How Do They Plan To Do So?
When stay-at-home orders were issued last March in SoCal, few museums could imagine that their physical exhibitions would remain shut to visitors not just for weeks or months, but for an entire year.
Yet there is light at the end of the tunnel for these institutions. Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, Riverside and San Bernardino counties have transitioned into the red tier, which means that museums can now open indoors at 25% capacity. Though in-person services remain limited, it’s a significant development for institutions wanting to reconnect with visitors as they grapple with long-term financial damage from the pandemic. But there are still challenges— some museums may have laid off or furloughed workers, or need to train new employees. And while elements of the museum experience cannot be re-created online, many museums have experimented with digital innovation in order to stay connected with audiences and may permanently instate some of those changes.
Today on AirTalk, we are speaking with local museum leaders in Southern California as part of our week-long series about re-opening the arts. What museums are you excited to return to? Give us a call at 866-893-5722.
Guests:
John Echeveste, CEO of LA Plaza de Cultura y Artes, which is located downtown and is dedicated to exhibitions on Latino arts, history and culture in L.A.
Ann Burroughs, president and CEO of the Japanese American National Museum in Little Tokyo
Peter C. Keller, president of the Bowers Museum, which emphasizes cultural arts and is the largest museum in Orange County
Terry Karges, executive director of the Petersen Automotive Museum, located on Museum Row in Miracle Mile