What's next for homelessness and pot local elections, why a day without women isn't possible for everyone and how to talk politics at work
Does the ‘day without a woman’ strike exclude some women?
It's been almost a month and a half since the international women's march drew thousands to downtown L.A. and other sites across the country and today, on international women's day, there's another action.
But this time, it's a strike
"A day without a woman" is happening right now, and a number of events are scheduled throughout the day:
L.A. Councilmember Nury Martinez will lead a demonstration by female city employees at today's council meeting.
There's a noon rally scheduled at the LA Civic Center.
And another at three this afternoon at the Federal Building.
The stated goal of the Day Without Women is to rally all gender-oppressed people in a demonstration of economic solidarity. But the execution of the idea has been drawing some criticism.
Maureen Shaw wrote about it in Quartz. She spoke to A Martinez about the strike's unintentional exclusion and how it could be executed better.
To hear the full segment, click the blue play button above.
City of San Bernardino accused of breaking law in letter to President Trump
After President Trump tweeted that he was poised to send in federal agents to combat crime in Chicago, San Bernardino city officials thought they should ask for some help themselves.
If Chicago doesn't fix the horrible "carnage" going on, 228 shootings in 2017 with 42 killings (up 24% from 2016), I will send in the Feds!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 25, 2017
San Bernardino has one of the highest crime rates in California with a per capita murder rate that exceeds Chicago's.
So, the city of San Bernardino sent a letter to the White House last month asking for help battling violent crime and drugs. It was signed by the mayor, all members of the city council, and several other officials, including the police chief.
Then controversy arose over how the letter came to be, and city officials were accused of breaking the law. A complaint was filed and demands were made to retract the letter.
For more on the motivation behind the letter and its fallout, Take Two's A Martinez spoke with Ryan Hagen, who has reported on this for the San Bernardino Sun.
To hear the interview, click on the blue Media Player above.
Workplace fighting has gotten worse since Nov. 9
Yes, it's because of the election.
"The level of aggression and antagonism between folks seems to be much, much greater than it has been in the past," says human resources consultant Mike Letizia.
He's gotten an increasing number of calls from employers asking for his help when employees are fighting about politics.
"There seems to be very little room for disagreeing any more," Letizia said. "You are either right or wrong."
Social media has seemed to add fuel to that fire, too.
One recent client asked him to help with two employees. They disagreed online about something the night before and brought the fight to the office the next morning when they got to their cubicles.
"It was loud enough that other employees could hear," he said, and [the other employees] got drawn in, too. "Honestly, it became a free-for-all in less than 40 minutes."
Here's Letizia's advice:
For employees
"The focus at work should always be work."
Your personal life and concerns for the country are important, but it's also important to come together with your colleagues.
"Get away from what is different and divisive."
For employers
Get them away from other co-workers.
"Pull them aside. Get them out of the office environment. Get them away from other employees where they could be disturbing other employees' work. Get them to calm down."
You can then be a mediator and show them that what they're doing is disruptive.
It's also a good idea to suggest that they continue their debate after work or during lunch, but not in the office.
"And find a way to get them to shut off their cell phones so that their alerts and social media things are not going off 24 hours a day, seven days a week."
What if the fight already happened?
Start with empathy and compassion. Those are important first steps to being a professional and re-approaching your co-worker.
"Go back to the person and tell them, 'I may not agree with what you think, but I respect you for being so passionate about what you believe.'"
The Styled Side: 'Feud,' and how to find vintage fashion
The new FX series "Feud" is about the famous tension between actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford, but it's also kicked some life into some old-school fashion.
"The series is drawing glowing reviews as much for its lush, candy-colored costumes as its title characters played by Jessica Lange and Susan Sarandon," says Michelle Dalton Tyree of Fashion Trends Daily.
Emmy-winning costume designer Lou Eyrich, a long-time collaborator of series creator Ryan Murphy, is behind the looks.
"She said that it was a challenge for a few reasons," says Tyree, who paid Eyrich a visit to her studio.
Vintage looks are in, which means that some from costume houses are too tired and out-of-shape from overuse.
"Then there's the little issue of people being so much larger now," adds Tyree. "Eyrich told me that in the 60s, the average waist was 25 and 26 inches."
Eyrich uses a network of vendors from around America to find 60s-era fashions, but also custom-makes about 40 percent of the outfits for the television show.
She offered some of her places to shop in Los Angeles to find your own vintage fashions to wear out on the town.
- Mid-City: Golyester and The Way We Wore
- Miracle Mile: Cannonball & Tilly on Fairfax.
- Burbank: Playclothes, Swift Vintage and Sloan Vintage