The Tenant Association

Introducing Smogland Radio, a news podcast by and for LA from Los Angeles Public Press. We’ll have reporting that holds powerful people accountable, advice on how to thrive in Los Angeles, and in-depth stories about the issues that affect all of us.

The first episode of Smogland Radio will be out on June 29th. It'll publish monthly for the first couple episodes, and then twice a month after that. Subscribe now to get episodes as soon as they're released!

This week, we’re going to the Southeast LA city of Huntington Park, where street vendors and vendor advocates have found themselves in an unsettling battle with the city. Plus, our correspondent Ruth tells us why her relationship with Staples is... complicated.

You can find the videos Ruth references in her story here (https://x.com/FilmThePoliceLA/status/1650613941071155200?s=20) and here (https://x.com/FilmThePoliceLA/status/1650228253251231744?s=20)

This week, we’ve got the second edition of Renter’s Hotline, our tenant advice segment. This time, Dominique called in about an issue that her dad is having at his apartment building in Paramount, where the landlord keeps raising the rent on Dominique’s father and other tenants with housing vouchers. She got advice from lawyer Gina Hong and organizer Chris Estrada from the Los Angeles Center for Community Law and Action. Plus, a dispatch from team Shampoolio at a MacArthur Park mutual aid event last week.

Disclaimer: Information in this episode isn’t a substitute for legal advice — please seek out a lawyer if you’re facing a legal issue. You can find some tenant legal clinics at lapublicpress.org/renters.

Most Sunday nights, Jamel will make a nice meal for himself and Daisy, and they’ll sit down to watch the football together.

Daisy is his best friend – a 14-year-old beagle.

Right now, Jamel and Daisy are living in a semi-converted garage. Jamel's looking for a better and more stable place to live – but he’s been turned away from housing because he refuses to be separated from Daisy.

Over the last few months, Jamel has been keeping an audio diary for LA Public Press, to give us a sense of what day-to-day life is like for him and Daisy. Reporter Clare Wiley collaborated with Jamel to bring us this snapshot of his life with Daisy.

Plus, a first preview of what we've been working on: one investigation told over four episodes. Our first mini-season, out this summer!

This week, we’re talking with LA Public Press city reporter Elizabeth Chou, who’s been reporting on a motel in Chatsworth where dozens of formerly-unhoused Valley residents now live. Mayor Karen Bass recently held a press conference at the hotel... but the residents weren’t invited to the press conference, or even told what it was about. Instead, they were told they had to stay in their rooms and listen through the windows. And some reported leaks during Hurricane Hilary on Sunday. Plus, headlines from this week’s news, including another Hillside Villa update, and news about Measure J, the encampment on Aetna Street, and your local tenants union.