On September 24th, 13 Congress members penned a letter to the governor, asking him to sign AB 554 — or the PrEPARE Act of 2025 — into law. If passed, the bill would strengthen existing state laws around health insurance coverage and access to preventative medication for individuals affected by HIV/AIDS. 

AB 554 would require health plans and insurers to cover all FDA-approved PrEP medications, including injectable forms, without prior authorization or step therapy. The bill’s co-authors and supporters emphasize the need to bolster support for impacted individuals and communities, ensuring that they can access effective treatment plans with as few systemic barriers as possible. The bill also includes protections for community clinics, so that they are reimbursed promptly and able to provide medication for impacted people.

In this letter, co-signed by local elected officials including District 42 Representative Robert Garcia, District 43 Representative Maxine Waters, and District 34 Representative Jimmy Gomez, the coalition of Congress members cites a number of reasons for this call to action. 

Namely, they state that the Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.’s reported desire to oust all members of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force — an independent panel of disease prevention experts that provides recommendations to insurance companies, doctors, and other health professionals — is a move that “risks reversing decades of progress in the fight against HIV, one of the most devastating epidemics in history.” 

They also write in the letter that insurance cost-sharing restrictions are especially harmful towards Black and Latine communities, who “accounted for over 70% of new HIV diagnoses [in the state] yet remain significantly underrepresented among PrEP users compared to their White counterparts.” 

In a separate letter addressed on September 25th, over 90 advocacy groups and public health organizations similarly stressed the importance of AB 554 to the governor. Here, they discussed CVS Health’s decision to not approve coverage for Yeztugo, the first twice-yearly injectable PrEP medication, even though it was approved by the FDA in June. 

The organizations that have signed on include LGBTQ+ civil rights organization Equality California, as well as resource outreach groups such as the AIDS Healthcare Foundation and the California LGBTQ Health & Human Services Network. They write that CVS’s “dangerous decision underscores the urgent need for additional clarity in state law to ensure that all FDA-approved PrEP medications are covered without cost-sharing, guaranteeing that lifesaving innovations are available to Californians without delay.”

The letters highlight a need to address equity and accessibility for those impacted by HIV/AIDS, specifically those who belong to marginalized communities. AB 554 received a majority vote of support by both the California State Assembly and Senate on September 10th, and now waits in limbo for Governor Newsom’s signature. He has until October 12th to sign or veto the bill.

In the meantime, Equality California encourages community members to visit their website to learn more about the bill, other pending LGBTQ+ state legislation, and how they can support these movements.

Vice President Kamala Harris announced today that she will not run for Governor of California in 2026, putting to rest long-standing speculation about her political future. In a public statement, Harris said she spent the past six months reflecting on “the best way for [her] to continue fighting for the American people and advancing the values and ideals [she holds] dear.”

From her time in the courtroom to the Senate floor and the White House, Harris has built a career within the political system. But her latest message hints at a shift in strategy.

“We must be willing to pursue change through new methods and fresh thinking,” she wrote, “committed to our same values and principles, but not bound by the same playbook.”

While stepping back from the governor’s race, Harris made it clear she’s not stepping away from politics. She plans to campaign for Democrats nationwide and suggested more details about her next chapter are on the horizon.

Her announcement comes at a time when the Democratic Party is facing urgent questions about whether it will fully defend trans lives amid rising attacks. California Governor Gavin Newsom recently called it “deeply unfair” for transgender athletes to participate in girls’ sports. Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg echoed the same framing, saying, “most reasonable people agree that it’s a serious fairness issue.” These are not harmless statements; they are capitulations to anti-trans narratives that frame our right to exist and participate as something debatable.

These statements from two of the party’s most visible figures aren’t outliers either; they reflect a broader trend of Democratic leaders hedging their language or pandering to the center instead of standing firmly for trans people’s dignity and rights. While Harris didn’t mention trans issues in her statement, her record is also mixed. She has caused harm in the past but has shown signs of growth, becoming more publicly supportive of trans rights in recent years. Still, symbolic gestures are no longer enough. The real question now is: what comes next?

As Harris, Newsom, and Buttigieg emerge as likely contenders for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination, transgender Americans and our allies are paying close attention. We are tired of being treated as a liability, a distraction, or a political bargaining chip. We are not a wedge issue.

We are voters. We are organizers. We are human beings. And we deserve to know which of these potential leaders will truly fight for us, not just when it’s politically safe, but when it matters most.

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President Donald Trump is making good on his threat to punish California officials for allowing transgender female student-athletes to compete with cisgender girls in school sports. 

On Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it is suing the state’s Department of Education, claiming California’s policy to allow trans students to compete with other girls violates Title IX, the federal law that bans discrimination in education based on sex. The DOJ’s suit says California’s rules “are not only illegal and unfair but also demeaning, signaling to girls that their opportunities and achievements are secondary to accommodating boys.”

As the Washington Blade reported in June, this lawsuit follows a warning by the Trump administration to end the trans participation policy within 10 days or face referral to the DOJ as well as the loss of federal education funding.

And California may merely be the first to face legal action, according to U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi, who warned that the 21 other states which permit trans girls to compete in female athletics could also face challenges by the federal government.

“If you do not comply, you’re next,” she said in a video posted on the DOJ website. “We will protect girls in girls sports.” Bondi was joined by Secretary of Education Linda McMahon. 

The DOJ suit named California’s Education Department and the California Interscholastic Federation, the governing body for high school sports. A spokesperson for the CIF told the Associated Press the organization would not comment on pending litigation.

A spokesperson for Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom deferred to the CIF and the Department of Education in declining to comment on the lawsuit since the governor was not named a defendant. But Newsom’s office told the AP that the Trump administration’s attacks on its policies protecting transgender athletes are “a cynical attempt” to distract from the federal government’s withholding of funds for all students who benefit from after-school and summer programs.

Newsom, however, has come under criticism — most notably by the Human Rights Campaign — for remarks he made in March, that allowing transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports was “deeply unfair,” as the Blade reported. 

For more than a decade, California law has allowed students to participate in sex-segregated school programs, including on sports teams, and use bathrooms and other facilities that align with their gender identity.

But headlines about AB Hernandez, an out trans female high school student-athlete who won titles in the California track-and-field championships last month, drew condemnations from Assistant U.S. Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon, and President Trump himself. 

Following the meet, Dhillon wrote in a letter to the California Interscholastic Federation that it violated the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution by allowing trans girls to compete against other female athletes.

As for the lawsuit, DOJ claims California’s policies “ignore undeniable biological differences between boys and girls, in favor of an amorphous ’gender identity.’”

“The results of these illegal policies are stark: girls are displaced from podiums, denied awards, and miss out on critical visibility for college scholarships and recognition,” the suit says.

Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear two cases challenging state bans on trans student-athletes, as the Blade reported. More than 20 states have limited trans girls from participating on girls sports teams, barred gender-affirming surgeries for minors and required parents to be notified if a child changes their pronouns at school. More than two dozen states have laws barring trans women and girls from participating in certain sports competitions. Challenges to some of those policies are still being decided by courts across the country. 

Back in February, the president signed an executive order that bans trans girls and women from participating in sports that match their gender identity, as the Blade reported.

Supporters of banning trans girls and women from competing include the conservative California Family Council, which has posted a petition online, arguing a ban would restore fairness in athletic competitions. Opponents like Equality California say bans are an attack on transgender youth.

“Local schools and athletic associations are the ones who should be handling these issues, and they are already creating policies that protect transgender youth and ensure a level playing field for all students. A federal ban that overrides those rules could require young girls to answer inappropriate personal questions or even be subjected to genital inspections by strangers if they want to participate in sports,” the organization said in a statement in February.

“The head of the NCAA, himself a former Republican Governor, recently told a U.S. Senate panel that he knew of less than 10 out transgender athletes among the 510,000 currently competing in college sports—less than .002 percent of all NCAA athletes.

“Studies confirm that participation in sports provides kids with invaluable life skills such as teamwork, leadership, discipline, and cooperation—fundamental lessons that every young person deserves the chance to experience. Beyond the field, sports also contribute significantly to students’ overall well-being, fostering better mental health, boosting academic performance, and enhancing self-esteem and confidence.”

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.

In the heart of South Central Los Angeles lies Trinity Recreation Center, known as Trinity Park, considered what some might refer to as a “hood staple.”

Although there is no denying the park’s history of gang-related incidents and even death, for many, the park is also a place full of profound memories, cherished as one of the only green spaces and gathering places within a community that is often underserved. The park sits in the city’s 9th Council District (CD-9), a district known for its lack of green spaces. 

 South Central L.A. is often characterized by an over concentration of liquor stores and a lack of quality, affordable grocery stores and sit-down restaurants, contributing to high rates of heart disease, diabetes and premature death among South L.A. residents. 

For me, the park brings me back to a time when life was easier. It was the place where I made my first friend. This park was my large family’s front yard for over three years and a place that I have passed by and walked through for over two decades. 

Trinity Park was one of the first places I have memories of. A year after my family immigrated to the U.S., we moved into a three-bedroom house across the street from the park. The first year in the states was difficult for my mother, who juggled two jobs. 

For me, understanding very little English and not being able to speak it made it extremely difficult to communicate or connect with other kids and adults at school. My thick accent was always a point of concern and embarrassment. 

Trinity Park, which in the early 2000s was even more notorious for crime and shootings, was a special place for my family and me during the almost three years that we lived neighboring it. 

When my mother worked long hours, my aunts and uncles would take me to the park at least twice a week, where I would run uncontrollably and ride the swings for as long as possible. The park, in a sense, saw me grow up and helped me build a close sense of community at a time when I felt very alone and isolated. 

That, too, is what the park has been to many of the kids and community living in the park’s surroundings. Trinity Park, is also located 12 minutes from downtown L.A., in an area of South Central L.A. known as Historic South Central within CD-9, where the majority of the population is composed of Black and Latino working-class families. 

The Trinity Recreation Center opened its doors in 1968. In the last few years, there have been significant upgrades and additions to the park, including the 2016 opening of a synthetic soccer field and a skate park, which officially opened in 2021. 

To what to many outsiders might look like an unsafe and unpredictable piece of land, Trinity Park holds dear memories for many of those who have passed through or hung out in the park at some point in their lives. 

The park was also where I remember making my first true friend in L.A., a friendship that wasn’t sparked because we went to the same class or because our parents knew each other, but because of a simple connection between kids while playing. I don’t remember her name, but the photo below was taken the day I met her at Trinity Park. 

My mother, on one of her only days off, had taken me to the park. It was the summer of 2004 and we arrived at the park close to sunset. I wish I could recall more than us playing tag and running around the park, but I remember the feeling of making my first friend, one I had made on my own. We probably spent three to four hours together that day playing and at the end of it all, my mother ran across the street to bring her camera. I think she, too, wanted to preserve the memory, the feeling of seeing her daughter connect with another kid after what had been a very tough time in both of our lives. 

Brenda’s friend she made in Trini Park (L) and Brenda (R) pose together at Trinity Park in 2004.

(Photo courtesy of Brenda Fernanda Verano)

That was also the park where I taught myself to ride a bike and that gave me confidence, something that was hard for me to find as a kid. 

Later in life, although we moved out of the home across the street from the park, my family and I continued living in that same neighborhood and all throughout my high school journey, I walked through that park every day to get to school. In middle school, the park was also a meetup place for my friends and me after school, where we would hang out and share music playlists. 

The park has been a silent but consistent entity from childhood to now — adulthood — always in the background of pieces and times in my life.

EDITORS NOTE: This article was published through the Bezos Fellowship grant provided by the Ethnic Media Services, which recently changed its name to American Community Media. The article was written by Brenda Fernanda Verano, an award-winning journalist and reporter for CALÓ News, a local non-profit newsroom focusing on the Latin American community of Los Angeles.

ICE raids have taken place across Los Angeles County over the last few days and tens of thousands of Angelenos have taken to the streets to protest against the raids and the police brutality involved in the arrests.

The Trump administration has threatened to arrest Governor Gavin Newsom and L.A. Mayor Karen Bass if they were to interfere with the ICE raids. In response, California has now filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration.

Early Monday morning, the U.S. Northern Command announced that it activated around 700 Marines, after the Pentagon and the Trump administration deployed around 2,000 National Guard troops to Los Angeles over the weekend. As of today, Trump has deployed double the amount of National Guard troops and ICE raids are said to continue for the next 30 days. The deployment is set to cost $134 million and last 60 days or more according to Secretary Pete Hegseth and a senior defense official. 

Reporters have been hit with rubber bullets, batons and have been tear gassed while trying to document the protests. There are eyewitness reports and video footage showing police officers trampling people over with horses, running people over with squad cars and detaining people who have legal status.

In a broadcast interview with CNN, Mayor Bass stated that she believes that if ICE raids hadn’t happened on Friday, we would not be seeing the type of disorder we are seeing. The Los Angeles Police Department declared Downtown L.A. an unlawful assembly area after union president David Huerta was detained by ICE along with several undocumented immigrants. Huerta appeared in court on Monday and was released on a $50,000 bond. 

LAPD Chief Jim Donnell says they have adapted their tactics to arrest people, but that they are ultimately “overwhelmed” by the number of protesters. 

“We have adapted our tactics to take these people into custody and to be able to hold them accountable,” said Chief Donnell. “We are overwhelmed as far as the number of people out there engaged in this type of activity,” 

Mayor Bass said she was “completely in sync” with what the police chief stated, adding that she believes there is enough video footage to prosecute protestors even if they did not get arrested on scene.

“Some people might think that just because they haven’t gotten arrested on the spot, that they’ve gotten away with it and the message I would send is: there’s ton of video tape and people who didn’t get arrested today for committing violent acts — don’t plan on the fact that you get off because you can get arrested in the next few days,” said Mayor Bass. 

Mayor Bass doubled-down on her statement regarding the ICE raids and how L.A. is a city of immigrants and ICE raids will continue to affect the local economy. 

There have also been reports that ICE raids are taking place across schools and graduation ceremonies. 

Los Angeles Unified School District is set to deploy school police to set up safe zones around graduations and school campuses amid these raids targeting celebrations. According to the LA Times, school police will patrol and guard campus entrances when ICE and Border Patrol are seen in the area. Graduation ceremonies will become sanctuaries for families until immigration agents disperse from the area. 

Medical providers like St. John’s Community Health released a statement on the issue. 

“The aggressive increase in ICE activity is forcing already vulnerable people to fear going to the doctor, school, or even the grocery store — and putting countless families in danger,” said Jim Mangia, president and CEO of St. John’s Community Health.

Community leaders like Tony Hoang, executive director at Equality California stated that as a child of immigrants, it deeply saddens him to see the ICE raids take place across Los Angeles.

“Equality California joins Governor Newsom and Attorney General Bonta in calling for an end to National Guard deployment. We condemn the raids that have occurred and are continuing, which are xenophobic and traumatizing to families, individuals, and communities,” he said.

“We stand in solidarity with immigrant communities across Los Angeles and the state—and we call on every leader, at every level of government, to reject this assault on our values and take urgent action to protect those under threat.”

A lot happened at last weekend’s high school state track and field championship meet in
Clovis, Calif. Parents of cisgender student-athletes booed the one and only transgender
girl competing. Police and security officers showed up in large numbers to keep
protestors apart and safeguard the competitors. Police made an arrest outside the
stadium after a demonstrator brandishing a transgender pride flag allegedly assaulted a
man described as a conservative activist and caused damage to his vehicle.

The trans student — 16-year-old AB Hernandez — finished a winner. But she wasn’t “the” winner.

As CBS News reported, “Hernandez took home first place medals in both high jump and
triple jump and she placed second in the long jump event. Following a rule change by
the California Interscholastic Federation, a co-winner was named in each of the three
events in which Hernandez placed.”

You didn’t misread that. Hernandez shared the podium with “co-winners.”

As the Blade reported last week, the CIF introduced a new “pilot entry process” that for
the first time, allowed judges to score trans athletes separately from cisgender
competitors, so there were three winners in every event: a cisgender male winner, a
cisgender female winner and a trans student-athlete winner.

The new policy was announced hours after President Donald Trump threatened to pull
“large scale federal funding” from the state if officials allowed trans athletes to compete
according to their gender identity.

Despite the policy change, the U.S. Department of Justice announced on social
media it was investigating State Attorney General Rob Bonta, State Superintendent of
Public Instruction Tony Thurmond, the Jurupa Unified School District, and the CIF for
potential violations of Title IX, as the Blade reported.

So what happens now? As KXTV reported, President Trump issued another threat to
pull funding on Monday in a post to his Truth Social account, not naming Hernandez but
labeling her “a biological male” and using his favorite derogatory nickname for
California’s Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“A Biological Male competed in California Girls State Finals, WINNING BIG, despite the
fact that they were warned by me not to do so. As Governor Gavin Newscum fully
understands, large scale fines will be imposed!!!”

Now, the pundits are weighing-in. Sara Pequeño wrote in USA Today how she was
encouraged to see Hernandez share the 2nd place podium with Brooke White and “put
their arms around each other.”

“They’re setting an example for how all of us should treat our trans neighbors, i.e.,
treating them like human beings, not enemies,” she wrote.

As Pequeño noted, Save Women’s Sports, an anti-trans advocacy group, could only
identify five trans students in the entire United States who were competing on girls’
teams from kindergarten through grade 12 in 2023. “That group’s entire existence is to
hate trans athletes, and they found very little to hate,” she wrote.

According to the president of the NCAA, there are fewer than 10 student-athletes
who publicly identify as transgender out of the more than 500,000 competing at the
collegiate level.

Pequeño was not alone in finding joy in the rules change that brought cisgender and
transgender girls together on a podium, each of them a “co-winner.” So did self-
proclaimed “trans advocate” Cyd Zeigler.

He’s one of the co-founders of the LGBTQ+ sports site Outsports, who in 2023
infamously came close to endorsing Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis for
president, only to offer his regrets, following a backlash from readers. Zeigler penned an
op-ed Wednesday originally titled “California trans athlete policy is something everyone
can embrace.”

“Everyone?” Not this sports editor.

He called the new CIF policy “the best possible path in 2025 to trans participation in
sports.”

In celebrating this change, Zeigler also trashed “goal-post-moving trans advocates” and
policies in California and Connecticut that allow “a trans girl to run in boys track meets
and, without a medical transition, later compete in girls meets,” meaning high school
competitions. “That’s bad policy,” declared Zeigler without evidence.

That policy in Connecticut has stood since 2011 and is enshrined in state law, and so far
has withstood legal challenges once again being heard in federal court.

Outsports at some point changed the headline of his screed to “New California trans
athlete policy is something we can embrace” and apparently made another significant
choice: Despite quoting the outlet’s one and only remaining transgender contributor,
Karleigh Webb, who opposes the rules change, Zeigler did not mention her by name.
Why?

In an article published before the championship, Webb wrote: “If AB Hernandez wins,
why should she have to share the spoils with someone else if’s not a tie? That’s what
professional transphobes like Jennifer Sey and Riley Gaines try to sell. Awarding a
duplicate medal gives their nonsense credence to the detriment of the sport and the
athletes.”
Webb is right. Zeigler and the CIF and Gov. Newsom are wrong. You either win, or you
lose, or if you prefer, you come in second, third, whatever. But “co-winners?”

That’s a crock.

Imagine if the Dodgers and Yankees shared the World Series trophy. Why shouldn’t the
49ers also win the Super Bowl alongside the Chiefs? Maybe Kamala Harris should be
declared a “co-winner” of last November’s election?

Personally, I’m glad to see Hernandez embraced by her cisgender peers. I’m relieved to
know that crowds cheering these amazing girls last weekend drowned out the hecklers
who showed up to boo a child. I’m encouraged that even if she had to share the win,
Hernandez was given her rightful place among the teens competing and proved she
was not only worthy of competing but did not win in every event.

So, she’s hardly “unbeatable.” Most trans athletes actually lose, as Zeigler wrote almost
six years ago, back before he started echoing anti-trans inclusion activists Martina Navratilova, Renee Richards and Nancy Hogshead-Makar.

If he really thinks the CIF “co-winners” rule is going to silence anti-trans forces, I think
he’s going to be very surprised by Riley Gaines and her crowd.

While it’s easy for Zeigler to concede public opinion has shifted, he should know
better than to blame those who pushed for inclusion, when it’s clear that conservative
voices in media and politicians, like his, are the ones responsible for influencing that
move to reject trans women’s right to compete in women’s sports. It’s a pendulum swing
that in time will undoubtedly swing back, once the science proves that trans women and
girls don’t always win. In fact, researchers have already proven some trans athletes are
at a disadvantage compared to their cisgender competitors.

Just as Parker Molloy reported that a Republican-commissioned study on gender
affirming care in Utah actually found “that youth who received care before age 18 had
better outcomes, especially around depression, anxiety and suicidality. Hormonal
treatments were associated with positive mental health and psychosocial functioning
outcomes.”

I believe the science is on the side of transgender Americans. Americans love a
winner. Not a “co-winner.”

Over the last three weeks, glendaleOUT — a local LGBTQ group based in Glendale, California and city leadership have been at odds over securing financial support of a family-friendly Pride event set to happen on Saturday, June 7. As of Tuesday, Glendale’s city council voted 3-2 in favor of funding the event, ending a weeks-long argument over securing the funds.

The controversy began when the group highlighted how neighboring cities have visibly demonstrated support for Pride Month celebrations across the county, while the City of Glendale has yet to sponsor events with banners, city logos and financial sponsorship. 

Councilmember Dan Brotman proposed $5,000 in sponsorship funds, noting that the city has funded other cultural events with much larger amounts. 

Local leaders, but specifically Mayor Ara Najarian — who was just re-elected for a fifth term — are pushing back and opposing the proposal for funding. According to sources, Mayor Najarian openly opposed the proposal, stating a distant conflict of interest as the reason for the opposition. 

LGBTQ advocates have been quoted as saying this is a “bad-faith political tactic, not grounded in any real conflict of interest.” 

The next potential vote is expected to happen today at a city council meeting. Organizers say that the Pride event will happen regardless, but that they still hope to shed light on the patterns of sexual orientation-based discrimination in the city council. 

For more information about the free community Pride event, visit glendaleOUT’s website.

The LA County Board of Supervisors and the LA County LGBTQ+ Committee gathered on Tuesday, June 3, to officially kick off Pride Month across the county with a blessing from The Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence, who purified the space with their sacred chicken, then led everyone in blessing the Progress Pride flag before raising it at the Kenneth Hall of Administration. 

“By raising this flag, the emblem of our souls and of our souls, of our love, of our survival, and of the gifts we offer to every Angeleno in this county — you all declare and you declare to everyone both here and abroad, that we are your people and you affirm that this is our home too,” said Sister Unity. “This needs to be done, because once again, our county and our nation houses people who want us gone, who wish us harm.” 

LA County Supervisors and other community leaders gathered on Tuesday at the Kenneth Hall of Administration to raise the Progress Pride flag in honor of Pride Month. (Photo credit to Diandra Jay)

Supervisors Janice Hanh, Holly J. Mitchell, Lindsey P. Hovarth and Hilda L. Solis spoke on the importance of representation in the face of discrimination, homophobia and transphobia. 

Supervisor Hahn mentioned in her speech that her father, Kenneth Frederick Hahn designed the LA County flag and it was clear to her that he believed that a flag was more than just a piece of fabric. 

“My dad, the original Supervisor Hanh, designed the LA County flag and he understood that a flag is not just fabric. A flag is a symbol. It’s a visual representation of who we are, what we value and what we stand for.” 

Two years ago, Supervisor Hahn started the tradition to raise the flag alongside the one her father designed and then it was Supervisor Horvath who suggested that the Pride flag be flown on all county facilities across Los Angeles. 

“Now, in every corner of our vast county — from our lifeguard stations on our beaches, to every library, fire station — and may I add: all eight county buildings in the city of Downey. Wherever there is a county facility, the Progress Pride flag will send a clear, powerful message to our LGBTQ residents: ‘your county government unequivocally and unapologetically has your back.’”

The comment about the city of Downey is in regards to a controversial Pride flag ban that was enacted last year. 

Supervisor Hahn then introduced LA County Assessor Jeff Prang, one of the longest-serving, out, elected officials in the state of California. Due to his long history in government and as a member of the LGBTQ community, Assessor Prang helped launch the LA County LGBTQ Elected Officials Association with over 50 active members from all levels of government. 

“We are in a moment of crisis in the nation. Across the country, an extremist movement is working to dismantle LGBTQ rights — from banning books to criminalizing gender-affirming care, to silencing drag performers, to targeting our youth and families with cruelty disguised as policy,” said Assessor Prang. “These are not isolated incidents, this is a campaign of fear and repression.” 

Héctor Trinidad-Plascencia, the Chair of LGBTQ+ Commission, encouraged attendees who are not from the queer and trans communities, to remove the blockages that keep them from being in solidarity with queer and trans people. 

“With your solidarity, we are creating a different world together starting in our county home and for the nation to follow,” they said.

Healing and uplifting communities through music and unity is the foundation of this event space created by Zacil “DJ Sizzle Fantastic” Pech and Norma “Normz La Oaxaqueña” Fajardo. 

For nearly a decade DJ Sizzle has built a reputation in the queer POC and Spanish-speaking undocumented communities for making the space for them to come together to celebrate their culture and partake in the ultimate act of resistance — joy. 

Couples, companions, comadres all dance together on the dancefloor at Cumbiatón. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

Cumbiatón was created during the first Trump administration as a direct response to the erasure, racism, homophobia and xenophobia that was engrained into the administration’s mission for those first four years. Now that the second Trump administration is upon us, the racism, homophobia, transphobia and xenophobia are tenfold.

This event space is a ‘party for the hood, by the hood.’ It is led by women, queer and trans people of color in every aspect of the production process.

The recent fires that burned through Altadena and Pacific Palisades made DJ Sizzle decide to step back from marketing the event in Los Angeles, an area where people had just lost their businesses, homes and where their lives were completely thrown for a loop. 

Now they’re back, doubling-down on their mission to bring cumbias, corridos and all the music many of us grew up listening to, to places that are accessible and safe for our communities. 

“I started Cumbiatón back in 2016, right after the election — which was weirdly similar because we’re going through it again. And a lot of us come from the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) movement. We were the ones to really push for that to happen along with the DREAM Act.”

DJ Sizzle says that she wanted to create a space out on the streets to celebrate life and come together, because of how mentally and physically taxing it is to be a part of the marginalized communities that were and still are, a major target for ongoing political attacks.

Edwin Soto and Julio Salgado pose for a photo at a Cumbiaton event in 2024. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

“We need these spaces so that we can kind of refuel and rejoice in each other’s existence,” said DJ Sizzle. “Because we saw each other out on the street a lot, but never did we really have time to sit down, have a drink, talk, laugh. So I found that music was the way to bring people together and that’s how Cumbiatón got started. It was honestly like a movement of political resistance through music.”

DJ Sizzle is an undocumented community organizer who aims to not only bring awareness to the issues that her communities face, but also to make space to celebrate the wins and bond over the music that brings people in Latin America, East L.A., Boyle Heights and the Bay area together.  

Julio Salgado, a queer, visionary artist and migrant rights activist from Ensenada, Baja California with roots in Long Beach and the Bay Area, connected with DJ Sizzle over their shared passion in advocating for immigrant rights. 

“Cumbiatón was created during the first [Trump] administration, where you know, a lot of people were really bummed out and so what Sizzle wanted to create was a place where people could come together and celebrate ourselves,” said Salgado. “Fast-forward to the second [Trump] administration and we’re here and feel a little bit more like: ‘oh shit, things are bad again.’ But, things have always been bad.”

Salgado is involved with Cumbiatón through his art. He is a mixed-media artist who creates cartoons using his lived experience with his sobriety journey, undocumented status and queer identity.

With a background in journalism from California State University, Long Beach, Salgado documents what activists do in the undocumented spaces he has been a part of throughout his life. 

In 2017, Salgado moved back to Long Beach from the Bay Area, and at the time he started doing political artwork and posters for protests against the first Trump administration, but because the nature of that work can be very tiring, he says that he turned to a more uplifting version of his art where he also draws the joy and unity in his communities. 

When he and Sizzle linked up to collaborate during that time, he thought he could use his skills to help uplift this brand and bring it to the forefront of the many events that saturate the party landscape. 

DJ Sizzle doing her thing on stage, giving the crowd the music they went looking for. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

“We are familiar with using the dance floor as a way to kind of put the trauma a little bit away just for one night, get together and completely forget,” said Salgado. 

Coming from an undocumented background, Salgado and Sizzle say that their experience with their legal status has made them very aware of how to go about the ID-check process at the door for their events. 

“When you’re undocumented, you have something called a [High Security Consular Registration (HSCR)] and it’s kind of like your ID and many of these heterosexual clubs would see that and say it was fake,” said Salgado. “But at the gay club, they didn’t care.” 

Just being conscious of what that form of ID looks like and knowing that it’s not fake, helps many of the hundreds of people who come through for Cumbiatón, feel just slightly more at ease. 

Edwin Soto, who is another community activist and leader in the undocu-queer community, is also involved in the planning and organizing of the event. 

In the long journey of making Cumbiatón what it is now, they say that they have all been very intentional about who they bring in, making sure that whoever they are, they also understand the experience of being undocumented and accepted anyway. 

“Something that Sizzle and the team have been very intentional about is making sure that [the security at the door] knows that someone might be using their consulate card,” said Soto. 

Bringing together this event space is no easy task, considering the fact that their events are deeply thought out, intentional and inclusive of not just people of color, but also people with differing abilities and people who do not reflect the norm in West Hollywood clubs. 

“We created the space that we were longing for that we did not see in West Hollywood,” he said. “[Cumbiatón] is what life could really be like. Where women are not harassed by men. Where people are not body-shamed for what they’re wearing.” 

When it comes to their lives outside of Cumbiatón and partying, Sizzle says that it does get exhausting and planning the event gets overwhelming. 

“It is really difficult, I’m not going to lie,” said DJ Sizzle. “We are at a disadvantage being queer and being undocumented because this administration triggers us to a point that, anyone who is not a part of those identities or marginalized communities would ever be able to understand,” said Sizzle. “There are times where I’m just like: ‘I’m going to cocoon for a little bit’ and then that affects the marketing and the communication.” 

Usually, the events bring in hundreds of people who are looking for community, safety and inclusion. (Photo courtesy of Cumbiatón).

That’s a little bit about what goes on behind the scenes — which really shouldn’t come as a surprise for anyone who is out there fighting for basic human rights, while also making the space to party and enjoy themselves.

“I’m really trying to find balance and honestly my life raft are my friends and my community,” she said. “Like, being able to share, being able to have this plática, and be like ‘bitch, I see you and I know its fucked up, but we got each other.’”

Cumbiatón was made with the purpose of making space to include and invite the many different people in these communities who are otherwise sidelined in broader conversations and in party scenes where they are not as inclusive or thoughtful about their attendees. 

“How beautiful is it to be queer and listen to rancheras and to norteñas and cumbia, and to just own it,” said Soto. 

To join Cumbiatón at their next party, visit their Instagram page.