Nithya Raman: A Progressive Champion in the Los Angeles Death Match

02/21/24 • 57 min

What's Next, Los Angeles? with Mike Bonin

Councilmember Raman has fought for renters, solutions to homelessness, strategies to combat climate change, and smart, effective programs to promote public safety. She has made significant progress — and now she is being punished for it. Special interests are spending a fortune to defeat her, reverse progress, and kneecap the progressive movement. She joins Mike and Peter Dreier to discuss their article in The Nation this week, reporting on the campaign against her. Their article, "Los Angeles Death Match", (the online title "LA’s Corporate Class Wants to Reverse Progressive Gains"), focuses on the combined assault of corporate landlords, the police and firefighters associations, and right-wingers are fighting like hell to defeat her. She talks about her love for LA, tackling big challenges, and fighting the bullshit.
The Nation: Los Angeles Death Match
Raman's re-election website: https://www.nithya2024.com/

What's Next, Los Angeles? is produced and hosted by Mike Bonin, in partnership with LA Forward.

What's Next, Los Angeles? is produced and hosted by Mike Bonin, in partnership with LA Forward.

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Aura Vasquez for City Council: Candidate Spotlight

Since 2020, L.A.'s 10th council district has had a revolving cast of councilmembers, both elected and appointed. Now, voters finally get to choose a permanent, voting representative on the council.There is a big and impressive field of candidates – and on this episode I talk with Aura Vasquez.
Aura Vasquez is an Afro-Latina Colombian immigrant, community leader, fearless environmental justice advocate, and renewable energy advisor. She served as a mayoral appointee to the Board of Water and Power Commissioners from 2017 to 2020. She has served as the Climate Justice Director for the Center for Popular Democracy. Prior to that, she advocated for state and federal immigrant rights with the PICO Network, fought for the the largest rooftop solar program in the country, and pushed for clean energy as an organizer with the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. She was elected to the Wilshire Center Koreatown Neighborhood Council (WCKNC) in 2012, where she became the only Latina and only non-Korean American on the board.
You can find out more about her at her campaign website: https://www.auraforthepeople.com/

What's Next, Los Angeles? is produced and hosted by Mike Bonin, in partnership with LA Forward.

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Jillian Burgos for City Council: Candidate Spotlight

Jillian Burgos is an essential healthcare worker, and a small business owner. She graduated from Emily’s List Ignite Change Fellowship and Los Angeles Democrats inaugural TAP Academy and now a 2023 New Leaders Council fellow. Jillian ran for office and was elected to the NoHo Neighborhood Council as the Arts Organization Representative. Shortly after she was appointed as Treasurer, Chair of the Outreach Committee and Housing and Services Committee. Since then she has created a Tenant Rights Workshop in partnership with The City of Los Angeles, Abundant Housing LA and SAJE, helped pass several Neighborhood Purpose Grants that fed many of NoHo’s Unhoused, and brought mental health services and mentorship to schoolchildren with PESA.
You can learn more about her at her campaign website: https://www.jillianforthevalley.com/

What's Next, Los Angeles? is produced and hosted by Mike Bonin, in partnership with LA Forward.