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I’m CalMatters reporter Adam Echelman and I’m filling in for Lynn today.
After students walked out of school to protest ICE in February, the Clovis and Los Angeles police departments threatened to arrest adults who helped them leave. No charges have been filed yet, but Alfred Aldrete expects a call from the police any day now.
On February 10, students in California protested federal immigration crackdowns after agents shot and killed a nurse in an intensive care unit Alex Pretty in Minneapolis. In Clovis, approximately 50 Buchanan High School students walked out of school that day, escorted by a group of community members, including Aldrete, one of the co-founders of the grassroots anti-ICE organizing group Fresno Resistance. Counter-protesters also descended on the school that day, including live streamer Josh Fulfer, who was present during the attack on the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
The Clovis Police Department said they are consider charging up to six adults for inciting students to run away from school, and Aldrete believes he is on the list because police officers asked for his name, date of birth and phone number during the mile-long walk.
- Aldrete: “And they didn’t stop any of those (counter-protesters) who were walking by, fuming, throwing water or yelling… But they did stop me and two of the other adults.”
In Oklahoma and Virginia, schools suspended students for walking out that day. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said he is investigating teachers in three school districts where students participated in the protest.
Students have a first amendment right to protest as long as their actions do not disrupt the school. A spokesman for the Clovis Unified School District said students could have protested at school instead of walking out.
Read more here.
California’s water crisis explained: CalMatters has a detailed look at how California can increase its water supplyand a a dashboard tracking the state’s water situation. There is a lesson plan ready version of the water explainer – specially designed for teachers, libraries and community groups – as part of CalMatters for learning initiative.
Other stories you should know
CA sues for housing discrimination
California’s top law enforcement official will take the Trump administration to court — hers 62nd case and increasingly — to defend the state’s right to enforce fair housing law on behalf of seniors, veterans and LGBTQ Californians.
The case challenges a memorandum issued by the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development last September that would “force states to drop their protections against housing discrimination,” according to court case filed Monday by Attorney General Rob Bonta and 15 other attorneys general.
Since 1968, the federal government has outsourced enforcement of fair housing laws to local agencies, which use federal dollars to prosecute those accused of civil rights violations.
In its September memo, HUD told those certified agencies, including California Civil Rights
The department said federal law only protects people based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, marital status and disability. Any agency that deviates from this list to protect groups based on “sexual orientation and gender identity or expression, language, criminal records, and source of income” risks losing its certification and funding.
The memo also prohibits fair housing agencies from promoting “gender ideology,” abortion, and illegal immigration, while more narrowly defining illegal discrimination — prohibitions against “waking up”. usually issued by the administration.
HUD responded to a request for comment by sharing a social media post from Secretary Scott Turner in which he characterized the lawsuit as seeking “additional rights for politically favored groups.”
How USC is selling an opioid-like plant to its students
Kratom leaves contain chemicals that interact with the brain like an opioid, potentially leading to insomnia, psychosis, addiction, and even death. Still, the University of Southern California has marketed a kratom product to its students, giving away free samples and promoting it at USC sporting events, reports Phoebe Huss of the CalMatters college journalism network.
The university signed a three-year deal around 2020 with beverage company Botanic Tonics to market the kratom drink, Feel Free, to USC students, according to Jose Eskenazi, the university’s former associate athletic director. After complaints that people were using the drink to get high, he said the university terminated the contract.
- Eskenazi: “In retrospect, I mean, could we have dug a little deeper? Maybe. But from what I remember, the research that was done, there was nothing negative that came up at the time.
Kratom is not legal for sale, but the California Department of Public Health only recently began to take it. In October, Gov. Gavin Newsom said the state had seized 5 million dollars in kratom and related products. MP Jasmeet BainsDemocrat of Bakersfield, introduced account last year to further restrict access to kratom. The bill is still making its way through the legislature.
Read more here.
California voices
CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: If a California-based billionaire moves to other states to avoid a potential wealth tax, it will reflect the tension Ayn Rand wrote about a long time ago.
Forest fires and climate change have caused the cost of homeowners insurance to outpace Californians’ ability to pay, writes Marcela Cranford. Homeowners need more protections, – she argued.
Other things worth your time:
Membership in public sector unions is declining. The Consequences of a 2018 Supreme Court Decision // Sacramento Bee.
A potential win for data privacy advocates. A judge partially allows a California law protecting the privacy of children’s data to go into effect. // San Francisco Chronicle
Southern states target Bay Area doctor in abortion legal battles. A Healdsburg doctor was indicted in Louisiana in January and faces lawsuits in Texas. // San Jose Mercury News
Downtown Los Angeles looks to San Francisco to help revitalize vacant storefronts. SF’s Vacant to Vibrant has helped revitalize some small businesses. // Los Angeles Times
Haitians are safe from deportation – for now. The long-term fate of some 350,000 Haitians with temporary protection status remains uncertain. // New York Times
The heat wave could further shrink California’s dwindling snowpack. California relies on the snowpack for water. // Los Angeles Times
War in Iran could raise prices of technology, home goods. The Strait of Hormuz is a key transport route for fertilizers, helium and semiconductors. // A politician
