Assembly Republican leader Mayes is replaced, simplifying the Cal Grant system, LA-based artist creates glass figures that deal with political themes.
State of Affairs: Assemblyman Chad Mayes gets replaced, Rendon reconsiders single-payer
This week on State of Affairs:
- There was a major shakeup in Sacramento this week as California's GOP leadership voted unanimously to replace Assembly Republican Leader Chad Mayes. Mayes bowed to pressure and stepped down.
- Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon is singing a different tune on single payer healthcare, unveiling a special committee on universal healthcare this fall.
- Also this week: California Democrats are leading attacks questioning Trump's mental health.
Press the blue play button above to hear the full segment.
California's Supreme Court undercuts a key part of Prop 66
When voters approved Proposition 66 last November, it was meant to fast track the appeals process for death row inmates and executions.
But after Thursday's decision from the California Supreme Court, that may no longer be the case.
So what does that mean for California inmates on death row?
Scott Shafer is the Senior Editor for KQED's Politics and Government desk.
"One of the key portions of Proposition 66 was that it was going to limit the appeals process, really what bogged down these death sentences. Sometimes these appeals drag on for decades. And so what voters ... thought they were voting for with Prop 66, was to limit those appeals to five years, telling the courts that all of these legal deals had to be wrapped up in 5 years. The Supreme Court yesterday, with a five to two decision, said, 'Well that's really kind of a goal. It's not mandatory, there's no penalty we're not going to enforce it.' That takes away a lot of teeth from Prop 66. That said, they did allow other parts of Prop 66 which should also expedite the process [for death row inmates]."
Quote has been edited for clarity.
To hear the full conversation, click the blue player above.
Cal Grant administrators look to simplify state's college financial aid program
College students across California are going back to school this month. At least 300,000 of them rely on Cal Grants to help fund their education.
The $2 billion a year program provides grants to California students based on family income and high school GPA. But a lot of applicants say navigating the system is confusing, because there are so many different types of grants and eligibility criteria.
So changes might be coming to the program to help simplify it. The state agency that administers the grant program recently announced it will hire a consultant to evaluate the program and suggest reform ideas.
Take Two spoke with Larry Gordon, who reported on this for EdSource.
To listen to the full segment, click the blue play button above.
How did plants and animals respond to the eclipse?
After a lot of hype and wind up, the solar eclipse finally came and went this week. So now, onto the analysis of how animals and plants were affected.
Some of that data was collected through an app created by the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco. It's called iNaturalist, and it received over 2,500 observations during the eclipse. They included:
Over 380 species– Such as dogs, cats, cows, deer and chickens. There were also many types of other birds from hummingbirds to crows to turkeys. Reptile observations were also submitted, including lizards, turtles, and frogs. Insects too, like crickets, bees, butterflies and spiders.
More than 600 participants–In three countries! There were participants in Canada and Mexico in addition to all across the U.S.
Not all animals, plants and insects seemed to respond to the eclipse, even if they were in the path of totality, but many of them did.
Elise Ricard supervises public programs for the museum. She's been poring over the data all week and she joined Libby Denkmann to share what it discovered.
Biggest surprise? The Okra flower
"There were a lot of cases, where we do have a few photos of flowers either beginning to close or in the case of the Okra plant actually closing up.
...Some of the plants, especially along the path of totality, might have been more sensitive. Because they are experiencing some very specific environmental triggers."
To listen to the full segment, click the blue play button above.
A SoCal artist tells the stories of immigrant children through blown glass
It was the summer of 2014. The United States was in the middle of an immigration crisis. Thousands of children from Central America poured over the U.S. border with Mexico, many fleeing violence at home.
The journey was perilous, sometimes deadly. Those who made it faced more uncertainty in detention centers.
Artist Jamie Guerrero watched these events unfold from his home in Southern California. The headlines would form the inspiration behind his new exhibit titled "Broken Dreams," which explores the immigrant experience through the art of blown glass. It's part of a series titled "Mano-Made," which showcases craft by Latino artists.
"The medium of glass is the most beautiful you can imagine," Guerrero says. "It's pretty much harnessing molten lava."
And harness it he has, creating multifaceted glass children that stand about 4 feet tall. They're comprised of several parts, and to make them, Guerrero enlisted the help of several assistants.
Each fragile figure tells a different story, according to Guerrero.
"One of them is on the window that could either be crying or playing hide and seek, to give that aspect of a [childlike] innocence," he says.
Is it a kid just being a kid, or is it something more? That's a central question in the work.
The three other glass children wear blindfolds. One appears to be hitting a pinata. Guerrero says it's almost as if they're at a birthday party, except these delicate glass children are surrounded by more glass — broken into shards.
"They don't know the dangers they're gonna face," he says. "They don't know if they're gonna survive the journey. They don't know if they're gonna get abducted or be detained. It's a journey that is very perilous."
It's an issue that's near to Guerrero's heart. He grew up in Boyle Heights in the 1980s.
"My neighborhood had just a portion of what some other affluent neighborhoods have," Guerrero says.
Guerrero would go on to attend California College of the Arts. That's where he learned how to blow glass. He was struck by the lack of access that communities like his had to the arts. So in 2008, he began teaching the trade to underserved kids.
Then came 2014, and the news: tens-of-thousands of unaccompanied children from countries like El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras came flooding over the U.S. border.
"A lot of them were alone, and our country was not very welcoming of them," he says. "Although they were escaping violence, a lot of them got put into detention centers."
That didn't sit well with Guerrero. He was determined to create a work to humanize the kids, finishing it just in time for it to find new relevance.
"We have millions of people currently migrating worldwide to escape violence," Guerrero says. "This is a very important issue right now that I think more people need to be made aware of."
Guerrero says his exhibit is not directly political, but he feels it's his duty as an artist to help people have meaningful conversations.
"It is for everybody. It's for the spectator that may not be aware of these things. It's also to the lawmakers that can influence in helping these children and not criminalizing them and not putting them in detention centers," he says.
There's a final piece to his exhibit: Visitors are invited to become part of it by sharing a handwritten letter telling their migration stories. Those stories will be hung on the walls, among the life-sized glass children at the Craft in America Center.
Press the blue play button above to hear more from Jamie Guerrero.