Light rain and mist loomed over the quiet Boyle Heights Neighborhood on Friday morning as residents made their way towards a free farmer’s market at Mi Centro, a community center on South Clarence Street. There, they were greeted with a warm“buenos días” by program coordinator Norma Sánchez and guided into an adjacent room with crates of fresh produce and a table with mental health resources. 

Created in collaboration with team members from both the Los Angeles LGBT Center and the Latino Equality Alliance, Mi Centro doubles as a hub for information and resources as well as a sanctuary of respite and comfort for its Latine community members. It provides immigration services, legal clinics, housing rights panels, and a monthly free farmers’ market. This November, Mi Centro has organized an additional market with the support of collaborating organizations, including food justice ministry Seeds of Hope, to step up for community members after SNAP benefits were cut at the beginning of the month.

Combined with the increased presence of federal immigration agents in the county since June, this cut in essential funding has created additional strain for local Latine community members when it comes to accessing food and feeling safe when stepping outside. For staff members at Mi Centro, these issues impact the livelihoods and safety of the people and spaces most familiar and important to them. “This is the community where my family immigrated to,” Caín Andrade, Mi Centro’s program manager, told the Blade. “Now I feel like it’s not only my duty, but my pleasure and my privilege to come back to the same community and help.”

At Friday’s market, Andrade noted that it yielded one of the “biggest turnouts” despite the weather, and explained that Mi Centro has seen a steady increase in the need for food and resource assistance in the last couple of months. Several community members showed up to access groceries and look through the other resource tables at the market. One of these tables included information about benefits and insurance enrollment, and another included pamphlets from local health nonprofit QueensCare about free health screenings. All written materials were provided in both Spanish and English, and Sánchez made sure to speak with each resident about their needs.

“We really curated Mi Centro as a community center where people can feel like they belong,” said Andrade. “[We] provide a space that feels a little bit more like home to them: that’s warm, that’s got flowers and art, a couch to sit on, and just have somebody that listens to you — somebody that can speak Spanish and give them the opportunity to articulate what they’re going through in their language. We can see the sighs of relief.” 

Andrade also emphasizes the intergenerational teamwork that happens at Mi Centro: a synergy that is guided by “young, queer Latino community” voices that have been embedded within the neighborhood. Mi Centro’s queer staff are deeply shaped by these communities that have long been home to them — and they, in turn, are shaping these spaces to be more inclusive: where LGBTQ+ visibility is embraced and cherished.

With a team that “represents the entire rainbow,” residents see the advocates working to support them as “our kids, our nephews, our grandkids,” Andrade said. “We are equally protective of them. We want to make sure that they are being given access to everything that other communities might have easy access to.” 

Mi Centro’s next free farmer’s market takes place on Friday, Nov. 21st. More information can be found here.

You may not be too familiar with LA County Assessor Jeffrey Prang. You’ve probably never heard of the office of the LA County Assessor, or you might only have a vague notion of what it does.

But with a career in city politics spanning nearly thirty years, he’s among the longest-serving openly gay elected officials in the United States, and for his work serving the people of Los Angeles and championing the rights of the city’s LGBTQ people, the Stonewall Democratic Club is honoring him at their 50^th Anniversary Celebration and Awards Night Nov 15 at Beaches Tropicana in West Hollywood.

Prang moved to Los Angeles from his native Michigan after college in 1991, specifically seeking an opportunity to serve in politics as an openly gay man. In 1997, he was elected to the West Hollywood City Council, where he served for 18 years, including four stints as mayor.

“I was active in politics, but in Michigan at the time I left, you couldn’t really be out and involved in politics… My life was so compartmentalized. I had my straight friends, my gay friends, my political friends, and I couldn’t really mix and match those things,” he says.

“One of the things that was really impactful was as you drove down Santa Monica Boulevard and saw those rainbow flags placed there by the government in the median island. That really said, this is a place where you can be yourself. You don’t have to be afraid.” 

One thing that’s changed over Prang’s time in office is West Hollywood’s uniqueness as a place of safety for the queer community. 

“It used to be, you could only be out and gay and politically involved if you were from Silver Lake or from West Hollywood. The thought of being able to do that in Downey or Monterey Park or Pomona was foreign. But now we have LGBTQ centers, gay pride celebrations, and LGBT elected officials in all those jurisdictions, something that we wouldn’t have thought possible 40 years ago,” he says.

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Prang’s jump to county politics is emblematic of that shift. In 2014, amid a scandal that brought down the previous county assessor, Prang threw his name in contention for the job, having worked in the assessor’s office already for the previous two years. He beat out eleven contenders in the election, won reelection in 2018 and 2022, and is seeking a fourth term next year.

To put those victories in perspective, at the time of his first election, Prang represented more people than any other openly gay elected official in the world. 

Beyond his office, Prang has lent his experience with ballot box success to helping get more LGBT people elected through his work with the Stonewall Democrats and with a new organization he co-founded last year called the LA County LGBTQ Elected Officials Association (LACLEO).

LACLEO counts more than fifty members, including officials from all parts of the county, municipal and state legislators, and members of school boards, water boards, and city clerks.  

“I assembled this group to collectively use our elected strength and influence to help impact policy in Sacramento and in Washington, DC, to take advantage of these elected leaders who have a bigger voice in government than the average person, and to train them and educate them to be better advocates on behalf of the issues that are important for us,” Prang says.

“I do believe as a senior high-level official I need to play a role and have an important voice in supporting our community,” he says. 

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Ok, but what is the LA County assessor, anyway? 

“Nobody knows what the assessor is. 99% of people think I’m the guy who collects taxes,” Prang says.

The assessor makes sure that all properties in the county are properly recorded and fairly assessed so that taxes can be levied correctly. It’s a wonky job, but one that has a big impact on how the city raises money for programs.

And that wonkiness suits Prang just fine. While the job may seem unglamorous, he gleefully boasts about his work overhauling the office’s technology to improve customer service and efficiency, which he says is proving to be a role model for other county offices.

“I inherited this 1970s-era mainframe green screen DOS-based legacy system. And believe it or not, that’s the standard technology for most large government agencies. That’s why the DMV sucks. That’s why the tax collection system sucks. But I spent $130 million over almost 10 years to rebuild our system to a digitized cloud-based system,” Prang says.

“I think the fact that my program was so successful did give some impetus to the board funding the tax collector and the auditor-controller to update their system, which is 40 years behind where they need to be.”

More tangible impacts for everyday Angelenos include his outreach to promote tax savings programs for homeowners, seniors, and nonprofits, and a new college training program that gives students a pipeline to good jobs in the county.

As attacks on the queer community intensify from the federal government, Prang says the Stonewall Democrats are an important locus of organization and resistance, and he encourages anyone to get involved.

“It is still an important and relevant organization that provides opportunities for LGBTQ people to get involved, to have an impact on our government and our civic life. If you just wanna come and volunteer and donate your time, it provides that, if you really want to do more and have a bigger voice and move into areas of leadership, it provides an opportunity for that as well,” he says.

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Today marks the 37th day of the current government shutdown, the longest witnessed in the country’s history. As a result, people who receive federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits have not received their monthly aid for November. In Los Angeles, over 1.5 million people rely on these funds to purchase groceries. 

On Oct. 28th, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that California joined over 20 other states in suing the administration over its “unlawful refusal” to provide SNAP aid even though it has the funds to do so. Two federal judges ruled in favor of the lawsuit, though when and how much aid will be distributed remains inconclusive.

At a press briefing on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the administration is “fully complying” with the court order. “The recipients of the SNAP benefits need to understand: it’s going to take some time to receive this money because the Democrats have forced the administration into a very untenable position,” Leavitt continued. “We are digging into a contingency fund that is supposed to be for emergencies, catastrophes, for war.” 

On Wednesday morning, local leaders in Los Angeles held their own press conference at the Weingart East Los Angeles YMCA to denounce the administration’s inaction and to discuss alternative efforts that are trying to fill the gap as SNAP aid remains suspended. “We’re here today because the federal government has turned its back on millions of families, and we refuse to stay silent,” said District 54 Assemblymember Mark González. “This is more than a press conference. This is a plea for sanity, a demand for humanity, and a call to action…California is stepping up to do what Washington will not, and that’s to feed our people.”

Alongside a number of other local leaders and advocates, including Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel, Speaker of the California State Assembly Robert Rivas, Boyle Heights community leader Margarita “Mago” Amador, Congressman Jimmy Gomez, YMCA president Victor Dominguez, and Food Forward founder Rick Nahmias, González announced a partnership with the YMCA’s FeedLA program. $7.5 million has been secured to fund food distribution efforts across the county’s 29 YMCA sites.

Residents do not need to have a YMCA membership to take part. Resources like groceries, warm meals, and home deliveries will be available at various times throughout the week. There are currently no weekend distribution dates listed.

This announcement comes in the midst of other local efforts bolstering on-the-ground SNAP relief. On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a motion that will strengthen the Office of Food Systems (OFS), a partnership between county leaders and local philanthropic organizations aiming to create equitable food systems for residents. The motion would establish deeper connections between OFS and all County departments, as well as strengthen state and federal food policy coordination. 

The county has also funded a $10 million contract with the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, which will allow the organization to purchase more produce and create additional pantry and food distribution pop-up sites.

For many, these solutions offer a temporary landing pad as they hold out for their benefits to be reinstated. “Food pantries are not just places where a bag of food is handed out. They are a bridge of hope for our most vulnerable communities,” said Amador, at Wednesday’s press conference. “When a family comes to a pantry, many times they don’t just bring an empty bag. They also bring worries, stress and [the] fear of not being able to feed their children. They leave with a bag of food [and] they take with them a bit of dignity, relief, and a feeling that they are not alone.”

On Oct. 1st, the previous federal budget expired, and the government entered a shutdown after being unable to reach an agreement on how different government services would be funded moving forward. Namely, democratic officials are arguing for more affordable healthcare as well as a reversal of President Trump’s cuts to Medicaid and health agencies, as proposed in H.R. 1 — otherwise known as the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Without a compromise that Trump will agree to, several essential federal services remain stalled.

Now, the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as food stamps, will be indefinitely halted beginning Nov. 1st. This affects over 1.5 million Los Angeles residents who rely on CalFresh, the state’s equivalent of SNAP. BenefitsCal, the portal Californians can use to access and manage benefits that include food assistance, announced on Oct. 27th that “the U.S. Department of Agriculture (U.S.D.A.) is not sending money to states for November CalFresh (SNAP) benefits. This means your county cannot add money to your EBT card until federal funding is restored.”

For LGBTQ+ community members, this impact will be particularly damaging.

Over 665,000 LGBTQ+ adults live in Los Angeles County, and 32% of this population reported experiencing food insecurity from 2023 to 2024, according to data analysis completed by researchers at the Williams Institute. In comparison, 23% of non-LGBTQ+ adults reported experiencing food insecurity.

“I think it’s important to realize that many people who are on SNAP are either disabled and can’t work, or they’re caretaking for young children — and those tend to be the groups of people in the LGBTQ community,” Brad Sears, the Rand Schrader Distinguished Scholar of Law and Policy at the Williams Institute, told the Blade. “Over 60% of LGBTQ people on SNAP are disabled, and about 46% are raising children…There aren’t a lot of options for them in meeting their basic needs, [like] providing food for themselves and their families, besides SNAP benefits.” 

How can LGBTQ+ community members access food assistance in November?

Sears pointed out how, in times of social struggle, queer communities have turned to each other for support. He states that it is important, now more than ever, for local organizations and food distribution programs to stand in solidarity with LGBTQ+ people — many of whom face barriers to seeking resources due to various factors like the fear of discrimination. “This is an important time to send that message that they are inclusive, that their services are inclusive, and that everyone, including LGBTQ people, are welcome to access their resources,” Sears told the Blade.

The Hollywood Food Coalition is one of these spaces. The organization rescues and redistributes food through a community exchange program, and also provides hundreds of dinners to community members every day of the year. “We are open to anyone hungry. We’re proud to serve many LGBTQ+ guests and to offer a welcoming space where everyone can share a meal and feel safe, seen, and cared for,” Linda Pianigiani, the organization’s interim director of development, told the Blade.

The Los Angeles LGBT Center is also partnering with food justice organization Seeds of Hope to provide more free farmers’ markets this upcoming month. For Giovanna Fischer, the Center’s chief equity officer, this is an opportunity to champion intersectional queer empowerment in the midst of the administration’s actions. For marginalized community members, including those who are trans, disabled, or immigrants, organizers are thinking about multidimensional approaches as they support community members through crises like the indefinite end to SNAP benefits.

“Now we’re looking at an issue [that can be] compounded three times simply because of who that person is and the experience that they have in their life,” Fischer told the Blade. “There’s no single-issue analysis of anything that’s coming up for our community, because we’re not living single-issue lives…How are we thinking through things in a layered way to ensure that people with these intersectional identities have access to the things that they need?” 

How is the state and county responding?

On Tuesday, Governor Newsom announced that California is joining 20 other states in suing the administration for its “unlawful refusal” to continue funding SNAP. Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath also stated in a press release that the county is working to fund a $10 million contract with the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank to expand food purchasing capabilities and create more food assistance pop-up sites and community pantry locations. 

L.A. Care Health Plan is also investing up to $5.4 million to fund countywide food security and distribution efforts, as well as provide aid to nonprofit organizations that distribute fresh produce.

The limitations we’re facing

While these efforts are instrumental in delivering necessary food aid in SNAP’s absence, Sears is worried about the long-term strain the suspension of federal food assistance will have on LGBTQ+ communities and the organizations trying to support them. “A number of state and local governments are going to try to temporarily fill the gap, but…the resources to do that will likely be overwhelmed without SNAP benefits,” Sears told the Blade. “Nonprofit organizations are already feeling the pressure of funding cuts from the Trump administration.” 

Pilar Buelna, chief operations officer of the Hollywood Food Coalition, is seeing this pressure in real time. She notes that the increase in the need for local food assistance has been growing since the summer, and will only continue to grow with the quickly-approaching end to SNAP benefits. “Yesterday, actually, we ran out of food,” Buelna told the Blade, after the coalition gave out 300 meals but were still met with individuals in need of food. “We are concerned that the need is going to increase so much that we’re not going to be able to keep up…We are sending out a call to action to the community to donate food and funding. We need [these] to continue our operations.” 

The Blade will be shadowing various food distribution programs and efforts throughout November to track the impact of the end of SNAP on queer Angelinos, and the community-led efforts being organized to support them.

On Oct. 18th, a mosaic of Angelinos across generations and cultural backgrounds gathered outside of city hall as they proudly lifted handmade signs decrying President Trump and the current administration. This march was one of several rallies organized just within the city, and one of thousands others organized across the nation.

The protest was packed, with people standing nearly shoulder to shoulder as a number of local leaders including Black Women for Wellness Action Project policy analyst LaKisha Camese, TransLatin@ Coalition president Bamby Salcedo and Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, made rousing speeches and led passionate chants before the march began. Speakers like political commentator Brian Tyler Cohen did not hold back when they addressed the crowd. “[They are] so desperate to rebrand this thing as a ‘Hate America’ rally. But do you know what hating America looks like?,” asked Cohen.

Image captures by Blade reporter Kristie Song

“It looks like sending secret police accountable to no one into our cities…It looks like keeping the government closed because you are so hell bent on stripping away health care from 24 million Americans and trying to get their costs to double, triple or quadruple. So if you’re looking for the ‘Hate America’ rally, might I suggest the White House.”

Protestors cheered at the top of their lungs with each passing speech, and each clear and explicit denouncement of the current administration. “There’s no rally like what’s happening here in Los Angeles,” said Assemblymember Bryan. “This is where Black, brown, poor, indigenous, everyday people come together…Washington D.C. doesn’t care about us, and we know that. But, we care about each other, don’t we? We believe that health care is a human right, don’t we? We believe that housing is a human right, don’t we? We will stand up to authoritarianism, won’t we? Because when we fight together, what happens? We win!”

As people began to grow restless, the march finally began, taking them to a highway overpass.

As residents boarded a bus at Cesar E. Chavez and Broadway, they were halted by blocked roads as large congregations marched by. Transit riders looked on into the crowds, their faces mere inches from some of the passing protestors. Separated by a layer of window glass, one nodded along as protestors lifted their signs above their heads and chanted “ICE out of LA!” Some waved to people inside the stalled bus, inviting solidarity from those who weren’t marching alongside them.

When the road cleared, their calls could still be heard for a little longer.

On Tuesday morning, a downpour loomed heavy over the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration as leaders and supporters from grassroots coalitions like Immigrants are LA and the TransLatin@ Coalition gathered inside Room 140C. They were present for a press conference with County Supervisors Lindsey P. Horvath and Janice Hahn, who together co-authored a motion to proclaim a local emergency in Los Angeles County in regards to the federal government’s actions targeting immigrant communities. 

The press conference offered a moment of solidarity before the Board of Supervisors meeting happening immediately after, where the motion would be voted upon. “One of the grounds for declaring this emergency is that we can’t do it alone, and we know that county government cannot protect our residents alone,” Horvath told the Blade. “We need our cities to join with us. We need the state to join with us. That’s why declaring the state of emergency is so critical. That way, they know this isn’t business as usual. We need help.”

In the last four months, immigration operations and raids have become widespread in Los Angeles and throughout the country. In January, President Trump declared a national emergency targeting a “catastrophic immigration crisis” before issuing a proclamation “restricting the entry of foreign nationals” on the basis of national security in June. Three months later, the Supreme Court voted to pause restraining orders that would have limited immigration operations that, as advocates argued, violated civil rights.

In response to this, Supervisors Horvath and Hahn deemed it necessary to move forward with a proclamation of their own. But what does codifying and declaring a local emergency do?

“Clearing a local emergency allows the county to promulgate orders and regulations to provide for the protection of life and property,” explained Senior Assistant County Counsel Thomas J. Faughnan at the Board of Supervisors meeting. “It allows the county to request assistance from the state. It permits mutual aid to any affected area. It provides the county with certain legal immunities for emergency actions taken, and it permits the county to obtain vital supplies and equipment needed for the protection of life and property and the ability to require emergency services of county personnel.”

Supervisor Horvath also stressed that the declaration would allow local officials to accelerate various processes in locating and delivering support services to immigrant community members. “This is about action and speed. It means Los Angeles County can move faster. We can coordinate better. We can use every tool available to support and stabilize our communities,” Horvath said at the press conference. “Today, we declare an emergency — not from a place of panic, but from a place of purpose.” 

It would be several hours before the proclamation was addressed at the board meeting. Still, over 10 people were waiting to be patched through on the phone so they could voice their opinions. Over 10 more people waited in person, and 79 others submitted their public comments online.

Many residents who spoke voiced their support for the declaration, echoing the importance of providing protections to their immigrant neighbors. There were also a few individuals who expressed opposition and hesitation about the potential consequences of relief efforts. One person, who only identified themself as “Doreen,” opposed potential eviction relief that could follow the declaration’s passing. “I disagree with the consideration of an eviction moratorium for those who are vulnerable. I truly believe the Board of Supervisors is operating on emotions and retaliation,” said Doreen. “So you mean to tell me that you would like to bend the law to conform to those who are here illegally?” 

Amongst the five supervisors, there was general support for the declaration — but also some apprehension about what would come from it. “We see citizens and municipalities taking real, meaningful, tangible action against these federal agents being in their communities,” said Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell. “Is there anything in this declaration that would empower us to take similar action?” 

While these actions can only become clearer with the passing of the declaration, other matters were clarified through this discussion. For one, the declaration will not lead to requests to the federal government for mutual aid. Additionally, the Constitution’s Supremacy Clause — which states that, if conflicting with one another, federal laws take precedence over state laws — will not hold up in the instance of illegal actions committed by federal agents during their immigration operations. 

After deliberation, the motion was passed, with the only “no” vote coming from Supervisor Kathryn Barger. This declaration of local emergency remains in effect until terminated by the Board of Supervisors, and a press release from Supervisor Horvath’s office states that county departments will be able to take “necessary emergency actions to protect and stabilize” impacted communities. 

The Blade will follow up with further stories as these emergency actions are developed and rolled out.

In a new report published by the Williams Institute, a local research center focused on conducting studies around LGBTQ+ communities and public policy, analysts reviewed data from the 2023-2024 L.A. County Trans and Nonbinary Survey and concluded that transgender and nonbinary immigrants face significantly greater rates of unemployment and homelessness than trans and nonbinary Angelinos who are not immigrants. 

Created in partnership with the TransLatin@ Coalition (TLC), an organization that works to defend and advance the rights of trans, gender-expansive, and intersex (TGI) community members, and co-authored by TLC president Bamby Salcedo, the report looks more deeply into the 98 trans and nonbinary immigrants surveyed from a broader pool of 322 respondents in the initial 2023-2024 survey. 

What were the key findings?

73% of the trans and nonbinary immigrants — and 80% of trans Latine immigrants — who were surveyed live at or below the federal poverty level, compared to 44% of trans and nonbinary non-immigrants surveyed. These numbers are not meant to pit these communities against one another, but rather to highlight the disproportionate amounts of poverty that trans and nonbinary people of color and immigrants face in the city.

39% of the trans and nonbinary immigrants polled also reported being unhoused, compared to 19% of the non-immigrant participants. 47% of the immigrant participants reported that they were unemployed, compared to 22% of non-immigrant participants. 

Another wide discrepancy is revealed in access to educational resources. 30% of the TGI immigrant respondents, including 41% of TGI Latine immigrants, reported having less than a high school or GED level of education, compared to 8% of non-immigrants. Nearly half of the trans and nonbinary immigrants surveyed reported that they were unemployed, and 30% reported that they lacked health insurance and thus delayed seeking necessary medical care over the last year.

“It is essential that these communities are included in county-wide problem-solving and policymaking,” said Salcedo, in a press release about the study. Last month, the Blade reported on the TLC’s launch of its TGI: Housing Initiative, a campaign that would allow the organization to work with the county’s affordable housing solutions agency, LACAHSA, to invest funds into homelessness prevention resources for transgender, gender-expansive, and intersex community members. TLC members advocated for the initiative at LACAHSA’s board meeting on Sept. 17th. There have yet to be updates on whether or not the agency will support the initiative. 

Another related Williams Institute report is set to be published later this month.

On Wednesday afternoon, over 50 people gathered in the heat outside the Metropolitan Water District. They waved large transgender pride flags and chanted at the top of their lungs: “Aquí está la resistencia trans!” Here is the trans resistance.

Leaders of the TransLatin@ Coalition (TLC), an organization formed by transgender, gender-expansive and intersex (TGI) Latine immigrants to support their fellow community members, led these jubilant calls for action at their press conference yesterday. 

TLC organized this event to announce the launch of their new campaign, the TGI: Housing initiative. The group hopes to partner with the Los Angeles County Affordable Housing Solutions Agency (LACAHSA), an organization that was established in 2023 after the passing of SB 679: a bill aimed to increase affordable housing in the region.

What is TLC asking for? $20 million to invest into their communities. If approved, the funds would be allocated towards homelessness prevention resources like housing rental assistance and legal support clinics, specifically for TGI system-impacted individuals, seniors, transitional age youth, disabled community members and immigrants. “We are investing in people, not just programs,” said Queen Victoria Ortega at the press conference. Ortega is a chief visionary officer for the Connie Norman Transgender Empowerment Center. 

“Housing is the foundation for opportunity,” Ortega continued. “When you are able to be in a safe, warm home, you’re able to take your medications. You’re able to take a respite. You’re able to think about the next step that you’re going to take. And really, why wouldn’t you want that for your neighbor? I end with saying: invest in trans lives.” 

Authors of a June 2024 report published by the Williams Institute, a research center that informs public policy for LGBTQ+ communities, found that 47% of trans and nonbinary adults in the county live below 200% of the federal poverty level and face significant food insecurity and housing instability.

TLC is calling upon LACAHSA to utilize money from Measure A, a countywide half-cent sales tax that went into effect this April. The measure, meant to address the county’s homelessness crisis, generates over $1 billion annually and 33.75% of these funds are provided to LACAHSA. This amounts to over $380 million for the organization.

“Right now is the time for us to be invested in. We have a federal government who is trying to erase our existence,” said Bamby Salcedo, president and CEO of TLC, to the crowd. “That is why we’re calling on the LACAHSA board to commit to community engagement and partnership to ensure that this funding is community-led and that it is invested in all of us.”

Then, Salcedo led another chant. “Can we do it? When I say ‘People,’ you say ‘Power!’ People!” “Power!” Their voices carried like bells across the courtyard: a loud, clear and unbroken chorus.

As the press conference came to an end, TLC leaders encouraged community members to attend the LACAHSA board meeting happening right after, at 1 p.m. ChiChi Navarro, an active local advocate and a policy intern at TLC, explained how to make the most of their allotted minute during public comment. “Focus on your experiences,” said Navarro. “Focus on what you’ve gone through whenever you’ve tried to acquire housing. We understand that as a community, sometimes we’re affected simply for being who we are — and they need to listen to that. We are here in numbers so we won’t be silenced. Aquí está la resistencia trans!”

Many walked into the board room together at the Metropolitan Water District. Over ten community members took to the podium to share their personal experiences with homelessness, in both Spanish and English.

“As transgender, non-conforming and intersex individuals, we face unique challenges, especially those of us who are people of color, disabled or trans women who’ve experienced violence,” said Arianna Taylor, who was unhoused for three years. “$20 million allocated for TGI housing represents more than just funding. It represents hope, dignity and safety for people who, like me, have been forced to navigate a world of violence, stigma and exclusion.” 

As Salcedo and her fellow TLC staff wait to hear more updates from LACAHSA, they will return to their work: empowering their community. “I’m really grateful that people are understanding that they have to advocate for themselves,” Salcedo told the Blade. “It is important for us to speak about what our needs are, and also try to find a solution. And please do come to our organization and see how we can support you.”

Since June, federal agencies began conducting mass immigration operations in Los Angeles and other major cities. For just as long, local residents, leaders, and advocacy groups have challenged their arrest and detainment practices, citing that their methods have violated constitutional rights. 

In July, individual workers were joined by organizations like the Los Angeles Worker Center Network and the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights in filing a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), arguing that federal agents had been illegally arresting people based on their perceived race, language and work — a violation of the Fourth Amendment.

As a result, two temporary restraining orders were issued, barring federal agents from stopping individuals without reasonable suspicion. DHS was also ordered to provide access to legal counsel for detainees.

On Monday, the Supreme Court voted to end this and granted the federal government’s application for a stay — or pause — of the temporary restraining orders. This will allow immigration operations to continue, and how they will proceed worries local leaders. 

“This Supreme Court ruling strikes at the heart of who we are as a nation—allowing immigration agents to stop and detain people for little more than speaking Spanish or having brown skin,” wrote District 51 Assemblymember Rick Chavez Zbur, a longtime advocate for LGBTQ+ civil liberty. “This endangers our communities, undermines our democracy, and erodes constitutional rights.” 

Some city officials hope to continue providing resources and support to affected community members. “As the raids were taking place across the region and in our own City, we took immediate action to ensure there are adequate resources to care for and support immigrants and their families,” wrote West Hollywood mayor Chelsea Byers. “This work will continue.”

West Hollywood was one of several Los Angeles county municipalities that filed a motion to intervene in the ongoing lawsuit, calling for the court to stop the federal government from conducting unlawful stops and searches that were based on assumed race and not on probable cause. It also activated its West Hollywood Responds program to raise awareness on available services like legal toolkits and training, consultations, access to free meals and more.

Local organizations are also extending their support. “The Supreme Court’s ruling is a devastating setback for Latine and immigrant communities, especially LGBTQ+ people who already face immense barriers to safety and belonging,” wrote Terra Russell-Slavin, the Los Angeles LGBT Center’s chief strategy officer. Russell-Slavin explained that the center has expanded free legal clinics both virtually and throughout the city to provide Know Your Rights workshops and other immigration and asylum support services.

“You are not alone,” Russell-Slavin continued. “And the Center will continue to stand with you.” 

On September 24, the federal district court will hold a hearing to consider additional evidence and a possible preliminary injunction that will pause this most recent ruling.

Kristie Song reports for the Blade courtesy of the California Local News Fellowship

Williams Institute at UCLA has released its latest report, highlighting the intersection between LGBTQ and immigration issues and the impact of the U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) raids across Los Angeles on LGBTQ people. 

According to the brief, LGBTQ immigrants who hold legal status, but who are not naturalized citizens may also face challenges to their legal right to reside in the U.S. 

Recent reports indicate that non-citizens with legal status are being swept up in immigration operations and several forms of legal status which were granted at the end of the Biden administration are being revoked. Those include: Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for some Venezuelan immigrants, as well as those from Afghanistan and Cameroon, while Haitian nationals are now facing shortened protection periods, by up to six months. 

The Justice Department has proposed a new rule which grants the government border authority to revoke green card holders’ permanent residency status at any time. This rule is currently under review by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, which could significantly affect non-citizens who are currently documented to reside in the county legally. 

Supervisorial District 1, under Supervisor Hilda L. Solis, and Supervisorial District 2, under Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell would particularly be affected as it contains the city center of Los Angeles and nearly 29,000 LGBTQ, noncitizens would face the harshest impact. Those two districts contain many of the county’s historically Black, Latin American and Asian, Pacific Islander neighborhoods. 

For transgender, nonbinary and intersex immigrants arrested or detained by ICE, there are additional impacts regarding how federal law defines biological sex and gender identity. The Trump administration has signed an executive order which redefines “sex” under federal law to exclude TGI individuals. This adds an extra thick layer of possible violence when TGI individuals are placed in detention centers or in holding that does not correspond to their identity.

According to the report, ‘transgender, non-binary, and intersex immigrants must navigate an

immigration and asylum system without information about how federal agents will respond to their gender identity and with the risk of greater violence if placed in detention centers, given the effects of this executive order.’

The brief estimates the number or foreign-born adults in Los Angeles County who will be potentially affected by the Trump administration’s executive orders on mass deportations. 

Graphic courtesy of Williams Institute at UCLA.

Using previous data from other Williams Institute Studies and reports from the University of Southern California Dornsife Equity Research Institute and data from the Pew Research Center, the latest brief states that there are over 1.35 million LGBTQ-identifying people across the U.S., with 30% of them residing in California. 

The report further points to 122,000 LGBTQ immigrants who reside within LA County specifically, making Los Angeles County home to about 10% of all LGBTQ adult immigrants in the U.S. 

While 18% of those Angelenos are foreign-born, only around 7%, or 49,000 of them do not hold legal status. 

Using research from the Pew Center and applying an estimate, that means that there are approximately 23,000 undocumented LGBTQ across LA County and the remaining 26,000 LGBTQ immigrants in the county have some form of legal status. 

Among the LGBTQ population of adult immigrants in California, approximately 41,000 are transgender or nonbinary. That figure also points toward approximately 5,200 of them residing in LA County. According to the proportions applied for this estimate, the Williams Institute approximates that around 3,100 transgender and nonbinary immigrants in LA County are naturalized citizens, over 1,100 have legal status and just under 1,000 are undocumented. 

According to a brief released in February by the Williams Institute, ‘mass deportations could impact 288,000 LGBTQ undocumented immigrants across the U.S.