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From save our state to sanctuary, California’s immigration views have shifted dramatically

Hundreds of Fullerton College students march through Fullerton in protest of Proposition 187 on Nov. 2, 1994. Photo by Bruce Chambers, Orange County Register via Getty Images

California voted to bar immigrants from schools and social services in 1994. Now most Californians see immigrants as a benefit to the state

by Ben Christopher and Mikhail Zinshteyn

CalMatters

In 1994, a 26-year-old Alex Padilla, sporting a newly minted engineering degree from MIT, was back at home living with his parents in the San Fernando Valley when that fall’s most heated ballot measure campaign dragged him into a life of politics.

Proposition 187, the Save Our State initiative, would bar undocumented immigrants across California from using public schools, taxpayer-funded social services and non-emergency medical care.

“I had to get involved, so that families like mine, communities like mine, would not continue to be scapegoated or targeted,” Padilla, whose parents immigrated to the United States from Mexico, said in an interview in 2018.

That attitude put him in the political minority at the time. Backed by then-Gov. Pete Wilson, a Republican who made the campaign a centerpiece of his reelection, Prop. 187 passed with a commanding 58 percent, including majorities in 51 out of 58 counties. That included Padilla’s Los Angeles County, where it won by eight percentage points.

California has changed in the three decades since, a political and cultural transformation that is in many ways personified by Padilla’s career. In just a single generation, the political clout immigrants hold in California has soared. So have the legal protections afforded even to those immigrants who are unauthorized to live here. On the whole, public opinion on immigration policy, border security and the rightful role of immigrants in American life has inverted from 31 years ago. Prop. 187 was voided by a federal judge shortly after its passage, but its effect on California politics endures.

Case in point: Padilla, the reluctant young activist, is now the first Latino U.S. senator to represent California. In that role he has become one of the most visible symbols of the clash of values between the nativism of President Donald Trump’s administration and California’s liberal consensus on immigration. After last week’s jarring altercation, in which Padilla was forcibly removed from a press conference held by Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem and briefly handcuffed, elected officials across California lined up to lionize and defend him.

This isn’t Pete Wilson’s California anymore.

Immigration policy a ‘settled issue’ in California

Pollster Mark Baldassare has been chronicling the change for decades. In 1998, he and his colleagues at the Public Policy Institute of California began asking Californians a simple question: Are immigrants a “benefit” or a “burden” to California?

Respondents were evenly split in the first survey. Ever since, a majority — one that has grown with each decade — has come to see immigrants as a boon to our state. In February, when PPIC most recently asked the question, 72 percent of respondents chose “benefit.” That included 91 percent of Democrats and 73 percent of political independents, though only 31 percent of Republicans.

“This is pretty much a settled issue,” said Baldassarre.

Part of that sweeping change can be explained by the state’s shifting demographics. If the U.S. is the land of immigrants, California is doubly so. More than a quarter of the state’s population was born abroad, and almost half of California’s children were born to an immigrant parent. More than half of California’s immigrants are naturalized U.S. citizens.

And California’s immigrant community is diverse: 49 percent are originally from Latin American countries and 41 percent from Asia. For the past decade, more immigrants from Asia have entered California than from Latin America.

But California’s changing demographics are only part of the reason immigration politics have seen such a radical shift in such a relatively short period of time, said Adrian Pantoja, a political science and Chicano studies professor at Pitzer College in Claremont.

It’s not a law of nature that Latinos and other demographic groups with sizable immigrant populations should favor the Democratic Party. Plenty of Latinos and Asian Americans, for example, hold traditionally conservative opinions — on specific border and immigration-related policies and a host of other issues.

Had the GOP “reached out effectively to Latinos, to Asian American voters — populations that were inclined and trending toward the Republican Party” the state GOP might still be an electoral force, said Pantoja.

Instead, the state party hitched its political future to a ballot measure aimed at penalizing undocumented immigrants and their children — and hasn’t won a statewide race since 2006.

Still, as in much of the nation, Latino support for Republicans in the last presidential election ticked up in California. In nine of 12 counties where Latinos are the largest demographic group, support for Trump increased from 4 to 6 percentage points between the last two presidential contests, depending on the county.

The legacy of Proposition 187

Three decades after that great California political rupture, the fruits of Prop. 187 are apparent in who holds power in California.

Padilla is California’s senior U.S. senator. Both chambers of the state Legislature have elected Latino leaders — Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas of Salinas and Senate President Pro Tem-elect Monique Limón of Santa Barbara. In the early 1990s, the count of Latinos in the Legislature bounced around the single digits. Today, there are a combined 42 members in the Democratic and Republican parties’ respective Latino caucuses out of 120 members.

That rise in political power has translated to changes in policy.

In 2017, then-Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 54, California’s sanctuary state law that largely bars state and local law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. The bill’s author, Kevin de Leon, also traces his start in politics to Prop. 187.

More recently, the state has expanded Medi-Cal, the state’s health insurance program for low-income Californians and those with disabilities, to all immigrants without legal status. Newsom signed successive expansions into law starting in 2020.

Where Prop. 187 was authored to deprive undocumented immigrants of social services, California’s Medi-Cal expansion was its antithesis.

The generational impact of that ballot measure was demonstrated in 2010, when immigrants were mobilized to vote and shift the state further to the left.

By then, a quarter of the state’s electorate was Latino, said Thad Kousser, a professor of California politics at UC San Diego.

“Latinos become this voting block that helps deliver the state to Jerry Brown, and then the state becomes Democratic in every single statewide office, in every election” since, he said.

That year, Brown defeated billionaire businesswoman Meg Whitman in an acrimonious gubernatorial race, showcasing California as an outlier in the national red wave and ending a run in which Republicans won the governor’s race six times out of the previous eight elections. Democrats lost no congressional seats in California even as the party was routed nationally.

By 2016, the respective leaders of the State Assembly and Senate were Latino, a first in California.

But not all efforts to reverse the conservatism of the 1990s in California have succeeded. In 2020, a ballot measure to largely reverse the state’s ban on using race, ethnicity or gender as factors in public university admissions and government grant-making failed to woo voters. In the state’s population center of Los Angeles County, a majority of Asian voters shot down the proposal while only 55 percent of Latino voters backed it.

And immigrants or their children make up a sizable chunk of the GOP in the state capital. When voters in 2020 elected Redlands Republican Rosilicie Ochoa-Bogh, the child of Mexican immigrants, she became the first GOP Latina state senator in California’s history. Today the Republican Senate caucus has at least three members who are immigrants or whose parents were born abroad, according to their public biographies — 30 percent of the caucus. Before being elected to the Assembly as a Republican, Tri Ta became the first Vietnamese American to serve as mayor of a U.S. city.

Medi-Cal rollback shifts views

Recent polling shows the latest wave of Medi-Cal expansions may have gone too far even for California’s immigrant-friendly electorate. A majority of Californians — 58 percent — oppose health coverage for immigrants without permanent legal status, according to PPIC’s June 2025 survey.

Other polls show a majority of likely voters still support health insurance for immigrants.

This mixed picture emerges as California grapples with a third successive fiscal year of multibillion-dollar deficits and sharply increasing Medi-Cal costs. While those data may indicate softening political support for the boldest of California’s policies aimed at helping undocumented immigrants, it doesn’t spell a political realignment, said Kousser.

“California moved so far to the left that there’s almost nowhere to go other than the slight counter-reaction,” he said.

Baldassare of PPIC agreed, saying the Medi-Cal survey results may simply reflect a growing concern about the state’s finances. He noted that Newsom has proposed freezing enrollment.

On some other measures affecting immigrants, Democratic lawmakers and Newsom have diverged. Last year the Legislature approved a bill to essentially adopt a novel legal theory to permit public college students without legal authorization in the U.S. to work on their campuses. Newsom vetoed the bill.

Anti-ICE protests: A new Prop. 187 moment?

There is some indication that California’s philosophical support for immigrants is, at least in part, accelerated by Trump. The share of respondents who called immigrants a “benefit” in PPIC’s surveys shot up during the first Trump administration and ebbed during Joe Biden’s stint in the White House. The most recent survey, the first since Trump returned to power, saw another spike.

That has some immigrant rights advocates hoping that the Trump administration’s current sweeping deportation policy will galvanize a new generation of political activists in California.

“Whether it’s post-Prop. 187 or post-9/11 for middle eastern South Asian communities, at some point you realize that you are being endlessly and inhumanely targeted and if you don’t speak up, and if you don’t practice your First Amendment rights, and if you’re not civically engaged, then you’ll be taken advantage of,” said Masih Fouladi, executive director of the California Immigrant Policy Center. “I think those are really the things that brought people together then, and what are bringing people to the streets now.”

He said if he were asked a few months ago whether California elected leaders were shifting to the center on immigration, he’d have said yes. But Trump’s immigration raids in Los Angeles are “allowing elected officials to come out more strongly” against the apprehensions, he said.

Christian Arana, vice president of policy at the Latino Community Foundation, was just six years old when Prop. 187 was on the ballot. He has distinct memories of marching with his family, everyone clad in white shirts, surrounded by a wide array of his neighbors chanting delightfully brash slogans about someone named Pete Wilson.

“For six-year-old me, what I understood was that my parents, my neighbors, my community was under attack because some man — in that case the governor of California — was blaming California’s problems on them,” he said. “I wonder how young children are experiencing this moment now.”

Fifteen-year-old Nathon Ponce has an answer: He feels vulnerable. The rising high school sophomore at USC Hybrid High College Prep stood with his aunt several hundred feet from law enforcement as they fired projectiles and less-lethal rounds at protesters in downtown Los Angeles on Saturday. He wants to see the government create a legal pathway to citizenship for immigrants without that status, “instead of pushing them away.”

More broadly, he was there to support his community, which “some people consider a vulnerable group, like Hispanics and low-income working people,” he said. “And I just want to show my support by, like, actually attending a protest.”

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Pope Francis’ Jubilee Committee needs to address problems of debt, usury

The Catholic Church has never deviated from considering usury a sin

by David James

For decades the cruelest part of the global financial system has been the impoverishment of economically weaker countries due to unsustainable debt. Last February, Pope Francis convened the Jubilee Commission, an international panel of economists, legal scholars, and development academics, to address the issue and reimagine the global financial architecture so that it better serves countries trapped in a cycle of dependency. The aim was to outline the “financial foundations for a sustainable people-centered global economy.”

The panel has released its findings in The Jubilee Report – the title a reference to 2025 being a Jubilee Year for the Catholic Church, a tradition of institutional renewal dating back to the Jewish practice of periodically forgiving all debts. The implication, although not stated, is that there should be some cancelation of the developing world’s debt.

The report meticulously details the way the financial markets have forced the leadership of indebted nations to service interest on loans at the expense of spending on education, health, and infrastructure. For those concerned about international economic injustice, this is a good place to identify the principal mechanism of exploitation and unfairness.

Yet it is what the report does not include that is most telling. The problem is not the type of debt, or its configuration, although the report does point out that the so-called vulture funds that prey on financial weakness in the developing world are especially pernicious. The problem is debt itself.

Why do international financial institutions like the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank, which are supposedly tasked with improving economic development in poorer countries, only lend? Why do they never provide equity capital (stock markets are based equity) that does not have an interest rate on it?

These institutions repeatedly pretend to solve the problem of excessive debt by increasing the debt – with predictable consequences. It is not that they do not understand the problem. This writer had a conversation with a senior representative of the IMF in Papua New Guinea who said they were exploring ways of providing equity capital rather than more debt to PNG because there was a realization that a new way had to be found. It is yet to happen, however.

If poorer countries received equity capital they would not get trapped by the compounding of the interest payments and would be far less likely to suffer currency collapses which destroy their ability to pay debt denominated in a foreign currency. Yet there is no consideration of this possibility in the report. The only mention of the word “equity” is in relation to social equality.

It is true that providing equity instead of debt would require significant investment in the financial architecture of developing nations. A higher level of trust is required, and there would need to be a preparatory effort to build up governance systems if local stock markets are to be used. But if the trust can be created that in itself would be massively beneficial to the country’s financial system and wider society.

An advantage of equity capital markets is that, unlike debt markets, they do not break when there is a negative repricing. This is because equity markets price the future whereas debt markets typically price the present. It is why problems in debt markets, the kind that routinely afflict developing nations, are so damaging. Equity capital acts a bit like a shock absorber because stock markets usually bounce back after a correction. Debt does not. When things get bad in markets subject to compound interest, the system ultimately breaks, something that has occurred for thousands of years.

Another advantage of equity capital is that it is easier to develop local industries and harder for foreign corporations, especially in the extraction industries, to take the profits out of the country. In an especially vicious twist, these profits are often “returned” to the country in form of loans, a device especially favoured by European banks. It is essentially theft twice over.

The second absence in the Jubilee report is a moral issue. There is no reference to an important element in Christian moral teaching: the long standing admonition against usury. This is no doubt a tactical decision, a way of staying within the bounds of policy pragmatism and avoiding being overtly theological or confrontational. But it reveals the gravitational pull of the existing order. The report stops short of indicting the system’s moral logic, which impedes the ability to imagine an alternative.

The report says: “the purpose here … is not to assess blame” for the damaging effects of the financial markets. One wonders, Why not? By taking the view that it is just a matter of correcting errors in the system, as if the people involved have no choices, the report is inadvertently falling into the trap of seeing the financial architecture as principally a numbers-driven machine, rather than made up of human beings making decisions. That is not the way to find a more.

Providing moral leadership on usury has the potential to at least limit some of the worst behavior. Many of the people involved in causing damage to developing countries are Catholics, and they may be moved to exercise their consciences.

The Catholic Church has never deviated from considering usury a sin, although there is an acceptance that some lending with interest is acceptable provided the rate is not excessive, however that is defined. But this concession only focuses on the interest rate, not the size of the debt.

When the amount of debt gets sufficiently large, as is repeatedly the case in the developing world, the effect is crippling even if the interest rate is low. Similar problems can be seen in developed countries such as Australia, Canada, and the UK, where uncontrolled bank lending has created house price bubbles that have burdened younger people with ridiculously large mortgages and distorted entire societies.

The Jubilee report does a comprehensive and rigorous job of describing the depth of the problem and proposing tweaks within the existing system. It notes that “dysfunctional behaviour reflects deeper flaws in the architecture of global finance,” especially “misaligned incentives.”

That is surely true, but what is required is something from outside the existing architecture. For all its language about “people-centred” economies, the report remains firmly within the current paradigm of development economics, as if justice might emerge from better calibration alone.

It is unarguably an important contribution to helping the world’s vulnerable and the fact that the Vatican has weighed in is symbolically important. But there is still an adherence to the assumptions behind the financial systems of the global North where debt, even when ruinous, is normalized. That tends to preclude the application of the moral imagination, which is essential if there is ever to be some justice. LifeSite.

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The Endless Honeymoon Podcast Kicks Off Tour

by Magdy Zara

For a unique evening, Natasha Leggero and Moshe Kasher kick off their tour, offering marriage advice in casual conversations with a special guest, Kamau Bell, in an original and humorous way.

Natasha and Moshe are husband and wife comedians who are using their hard-won relationship wisdom and leveraging their hit Netflix special to help others by offering love advice to callers while also examining the ups and downs of their own relationships.

During their conversations, they help a listener overcome the shame of their “disastrous” past and discuss how best to share it. They also hear some new secrets.

The selected venue for this tour is Yoshi’s, located at 510 Embarcadero West, Oakland, this Sunday, July 6, starting at 7 p.m. Tickets range from $39-$89.

Latin Street Party in Valencia SF

As an initiative of the Valencia Corridors Merchants Association, every second Thursday of each month from May through October, a Latin street party will be held, featuring mambo, Colombian cumbiamba, Bayonics, and Raio de luz samba.

This party will feature three stages of live music and activities for the whole family. Don’t miss the fun and special offers from local restaurants and bars throughout the neighborhood. There will be happy hours, Indigenize crafts, traditional food and drinks, and live music in the streets. Guests will also find BayGrass, Guaijron, Susana y Su Orquesta Adelante, Loco Bloc, Karimba Afrikans, Loco Tranquilo, Bolero, and DJ Walkin’ Love.

The event is on Valencia Street between 16th and 19th Streets, in the Native American Cultural District, this Thursday, July 10, starting at 5 p.m. Admission is free.

Registration is now open for the 2025 World Arts West Dance Festival

Registration is now open for the 2025 World Arts West Dance Festival. According to its organizers, the festival is a three-weekend global dance and music festival. This year, it focuses on the theme “Dance as Health and Healing,” exploring what constitutes a healthy community and how we use dance to connect and foster solidarity.

The festival’s goal is to showcase dance and art forms rooted in cultural traditions, including the sacred, the social, and the contemporary.

Prices start at $15 pre-sale and $20 in person for the workshop or individual activity. The full-day package is $25 pre-sale and $60 in person, or $5, as no one will be turned away due to lack of funds.

The festival will take place on July 12 and 13; August 16 and 17 and September 7 at Push Sanctuary Dance Company, located at 447 Minna Street, 3rd Floor, San Francisco.

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Turki Alalshikh Announces Benavidez vs. Yarde as Ring IV Main Event in Riyadh, Nov. 22

by the El Reportero‘s wire services

Turki Alalshikh officially announced The Ring IV, “Night of The Champions,” today, headlined by David Benavidez vs. Anthony Yarde on Nov. 22 at the ANB Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The event will be shown on DAZN.

WBO welterweight champion Brian Norman Jr. defends against Devin Haney in the co-feature bout. Haney (32-0, 15 KOs) gets a quick title shot after making his debut at welterweight last May. There’s a kickoff press conference this Friday at the Hard Rock Times Square.

Full The Ring IV card revealed

  • David Benavidez vs Anthony Yarde
  • Devin Haney vs Brian Norman Jr
  • Abdullah Mason vs Sam Noakes
  • Jesse “Bam” Rodriguez vs Fernando Martinez

WBC super flyweight champion Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez (21-0, 14 KOs) has a unification fight against WBO champion Phumelela Cafu (11-0-3, 8 KOs) on July 19th that he must win for him to face WBA champ Fernando Martinez (18-0, 9 KOs) on Nov. 22.

The fights on the card had been leaked last week, but without a date in November. Today, Turki filled in the date and the venue in Riyadh.

Using Anthony Yarde (27-3, 24 KOs) as the challenger for WBC light heavyweight champion Benavidez (30-0, 23 KOs) hasn’t pleased fans. The ones who know Yarde have seen him knocked out twice in failed world title challenges. And they’re not interested in paying to see him get blown out of the water by Benavidez.

A better choice would have been to use Artur Beterbiev as the opponent for Benavidez. The trilogy that Beterbiev, 40, thought would happen this year against Dmitry Bivol is no longer happening. It’s now unknown when it will happen.

Boxing Pay-Per-View fatigue

Fans are still waiting to find out if the event will be shown on PPV and for how much. With pay-per-view events seemingly taking place every week, fatigue is beginning to set in among the boxing public. The events that fans used to see as part of their regular subscription are now behind a paywall on pay-per-view.

 

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José Benítez’s Nierika Wixárika Table: Sacred Huichol Art

by México Desconocido

José Benítez’s Nierika Wixárika table is a sacred work that reveals myths, deities, and symbols of the Huichol spiritual universe.

The Nierika Wixárika table created by José Benítez is not only a piece of art, but also a sacred portal, a visual narrative that unravels the complex cosmogony of the Huichol people. Those who pause to look at it calmly discover that they are looking at a map of the universe: a divine face, an ancestral territory, and a mystical vision all in one.

This yarn mosaic, entitled The Vision of Tatutsi Xuweri Timaiweme, is considered one of the most complete and powerful works of contemporary Indigenous art. Through vibrant colors and enigmatic forms, Benítez captured a living story inhabited by deities, myths, and symbols that explain the origin of the world according to Wixárika tradition.

What is a Wixárika nierika tabla?

Wixárika art has distinguished itself by depicting the invisible. Nierika tabla—whose name means instrument for seeing—are visual pieces that allow us to look beyond the apparent. Originally, they were small ritual objects used by mara’akate (shamans) to connect with the gods and their ancestors during ceremonial journeys.

Over time, this tradition evolved into larger, more narrative formats. Using colored yarn bonded with wax on wooden surfaces, artists began to construct complex scenes: cosmogonic stories, sacred maps, and portrayals of visions obtained with peyote. José Benítez took this tradition to the limit, and his most famous work is proof of this.

José Benítez: Artist Who Saw with the Eyes of the Spirit

Yukaiye Benítez Sánchez, also known as José Benítez, was born in 1938 in Wautia, Jalisco. From a young age, he felt the calling to become a mara’akame, the spiritual guide of his community. His mission was not only to learn traditional songs and rituals, but also to capture the visions of his ancestors in images.

Benítez wasn’t content with repeating patterns: he transformed the Wixárika nierika panel into a language of his own. His narrative style, sometimes abstract and sometimes saturated with symbols, made him one of the greatest exponents of 20th-century Huichol art. For him, every stroke had meaning, every color contained a message. His art was not decoration, but a form of knowledge.

The Wixárika nierika panel, a representation of the indigenous worldview

Tatutsi Xuweri Timaiweme’s vision, created in 1980, measures more than two meters wide. On that surface, Benítez integrated thirteen deities, nine founding myths, and nine sacred symbols. It is a complex work that requires time and patience to understand. The protagonist is Tatutsi Xuweri Timaiweme, Our Great-Grandfather, an ancestral figure who embodies the divine worldview. Also featured are Tayau (the Sun), Tatewari (Fire), Tatei Yurianaka (the Earth), the Blue Deer, and peyote, among other central elements of Wixárika thought.

The tablet simultaneously represents an illuminated face, a constellation of gods, and a territory charged with spiritual energy. Its lines intertwine mythical time, the ceremonial present, and the cycles of nature. It is a work that begs to be read as if it were a modern codex: each figure reveals something, but also holds a secret.

Speaking Symbols: Arrows, Snakes, and the Blue Deer

Within Benítez’s nierika Wixárika tablet, essential figures for the Huichol people’s worldview are repeated. The arrows, for example, represent prayers offered to the spiritual world. The snakes embody the power of underground rivers and the energy of transformation. The deer, a sacred guide, symbolizes communication with the gods.

Another key element is the nierika itself, represented as a disc or a rhombus. This symbol refers to the vision acquired through peyote and the ability to see the hidden. It is no coincidence that the entire panel is constructed as a gigantic nierika: contemplating it, one enters the very vision of the artist and his tradition.

A preserved legacy

Benítez’s panel was safeguarded by anthropologist Juan Negrín and later donated to the National Museum of Anthropology, where it now forms part of the INAH collection. Although it began as a spiritual revelation, today it is also a heritage work that preserves the voice of a people.

Through it, visitors can gain a glimpse into the way the Wixaritari explain the world: not with academic words, but with sacred images. The painting is a testament to a living legacy, one that continues to beat in the altars, in pilgrimages, in the songs, and in the visual memory that artists like Benítez left behind.

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Cal Grant expansion can help Californians overcome the hurdles that deter most students

Students in class at Los Angeles Pierce College in Woodland Hills on May 8, 2025. -- Estudiantes en clase en Los Angeles Pierce College en Woodland Hills el 8 de mayo de 2025. Foto de Jules Hotz para CalMatters.

by Rukshan Samaranayake, CalMatters

Commentary

My journey to a college degree has been filled with detours.

After high school, I attended college for two semesters before I joined the U.S. Army. When I concluded my service as a combat engineer — deployed overseas and with two Purple Heart medals to boast — I returned to California and enrolled in community college. But financial difficulties got in the way.

Unsurprisingly, money is the primary reason most students stop or drop out of college. I was fortunate to have GI Bill benefits to pay for my education, but most Californians don’t have that option. I eventually returned to college, completed my associate’s degree and transferred to National University, where I earned my bachelor’s.

Financial aid made all the difference in my college journey — and my life. California lawmakers have the opportunity to strengthen a financial aid program that’s serving as a lifeline for hundreds of thousands of Californians who are seeking a college credential to improve their lives.

This year, the Cal Grant program is supporting nearly 700,000 low- and middle-income Californians who are pursuing degrees at public and independent postsecondary institutions across the state. Two-thirds of new Cal Grant recipients are seeking to become the first college graduates in their families. Nearly a third are adult learners — many with family, job and other responsibilities — who are returning to school after time away from formal education.

Cal Grant makes it possible to pursue a credential at the institutions that have powered California’s economy for decades. Today, 56 percent of California adults have a postsecondary degree or credential, a nine-point increase since 2014. Enhancing the state’s financial aid program would help more Californians open up the pathways to high-wage careers that keep California globally competitive. But the award amounts from the Cal Grant program have not kept pace with the rising cost of college.

Assembly Bill 402, which is now under consideration in the state Senate, would accomplish two critical things to support people like me who took a less traditional path.

First, by restoring Cal Grant scholarship amounts to 2001 levels, the bill would provide additional aid to eligible students. AB 402 would raise the maximum Cal Grant award to students attending independent institutions by $350 to $9,708 annually starting in 2025-26. This increase would directly support nearly 31,000 Californians attending private nonprofit colleges and universities.

Second, the bill would ensure that nontraditional students like myself who transfer from a community college to one of the more than 85 independent California colleges or universities can maintain their Cal Grant eligibility.

In 2024, these campuses welcomed more than 3,300 community college transfer students. If transfer students can maintain Cal Grant eligibility, it would open up additional opportunities to better serve the diverse needs and realities for community college students.

Thanks to the financial aid that supported my college journey, I went from a college dropout to college graduate. In January, I earned my bachelor’s degree with distinction from National University.

I chose to remain there to pursue my master’s while serving as vice president of the student veterans’ organization, volunteering through the California Volunteers program and supporting two military-affiliated organizations, The Mission Continues and the Wounded Warrior Project.

AB 402 represents a small investment in postsecondary opportunities that could make a big difference in peoples’ lives. Every college journey is different, but everyone should have a chance to get the financial support they need to reach the finish.

 

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Are you already in vacation mode? Keep These Travel Budget Friendly Tips in Mind 

Shot of a young woman using a laptop and going through paperwork while working from home

Sponsored by JPMorganChase

Summer is here, and for many Americans, it’s vacation season.

It’s also one of the most expensive seasons to travel. With warm weather, school breaks and slower work schedules encouraging many to hit the road or book a flight during the summer months, prices for flights, hotels and destinations often reach their peak, which could put a damper on your dream vacation plans.

If you’re looking to get away and maximize your time out of office, these tips and tricks can help make seeing the world, or even just the U.S., a bit more affordable.

Start saving & take advantage of travel perks

Planning your vacation can start any time simply by saving money for your travel expenses. Look at where your money is currently going and see if there are items you can cut, such as subscriptions, entertainment and dining out.

Don’t underestimate the power of credit card points – they can make travel more rewarding and help offset costs.  Explore the travel rewards your credit card offers. Travel cards can help you build up miles or rewards points to put toward flights, hotel stays or rental cars by rewarding you for everyday purchases.

Timing is everything

If your plans are more flexible, you may also want to consider traveling during the off-season for lower prices. Think about traveling in the month or two on either side of the peak season when tourists are less likely to visit. Whenever you travel, however, aim to book plane tickets about two months in advance, and start looking up flights as early as possible to get the lowest prices.

Sign up for airline price drop alerts and follow airlines via email newsletters and social media to keep atop any deals. Check for package deals as well, as airlines and hotels will often offer package deals at a discount to make sure no seats or rooms go empty.

As you make your itinerary, look for discounts at popular destinations. Many museums offer free tickets on certain days or at certain times of the day. Ticket and booking deals are often available for members of certain professions, such as education, health care and the military. Other cities offer museum passes that allow you to visit multiple museums for a flat rate.

Know what to skip

Once you’re at your destination, consider passing on expensive guided tours or private transit like taxis or ride shares. Instead, create your own city tour, look online for free walking tours or get around on public transportation.

If you’re visiting a popular monument or famous street, pass the “tourist trap” stores and restaurants and do your shopping and dining a few blocks away where prices are likely to be lower.

Broaden your horizons

Sometimes, you can have more fun at a lesser-known destination. Try some smaller towns over big cities, which can offer better prices on your hotel and dining experiences. Additionally, if you’re within driving distance of a big city, you can still go and enjoy it for a day.

If you are staying in a larger area, find a hotel outside of the most expensive part of the city but close enough that you’re not spending much getting to the sights.

Plan a staycation

If a big trip still isn’t in your budget, that’s OK. There are still plenty of ways to get away, even if you stay in the comfort of your own home.

Take a day trip to a nearby town or plan a longer road trip through your state. You’ll still get to see new places and try new hotels. If you’re planning to visit a friend or family member, explore a new venue while you’re in that town. Exploring lesser-known destinations can offer unique charm without the usual crowds and costs.

The U.S. also has extensive state and national park systems with a reasonable per-car entrance price. To save even more money, bring a picnic!

The bottom line

Travel enriches our lives, and with some creative planning, you can enjoy memorable adventures without overspending. Using budget travel tips can help you add adventure to your life this summer without breaking the bank. Have fun finding strategic ways to cut costs while still having an enjoyable and fulfilling trip.

For more financial health tips,  visit chase.com/financialgoals.

For informational/educational purposes only: Views and strategies described on this article or provided via links may not be appropriate for everyone and are not intended as specific advice/recommendation for any business. Information has been obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but JPMorgan Chase & Co. or its affiliates and/or subsidiaries do not warrant its completeness or accuracy. The material is not intended to provide legal, tax, or financial advice or to indicate the availability or suitability of any JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. product or service. You should carefully consider your needs and objectives before making any decisions and consult the appropriate professional(s). Outlooks and past performance are not guarantees of future results. JPMorgan Chase & Co. and its affiliates are not responsible for, and do not provide or endorse third party products, services, or other content.

Deposit products provided JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. Member FDIC. Equal Opportunity Lender.

 © 2025 JPMorgan Chase & Co.

 

 

 

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Is it worth it to keep buying meat? Prices are skyrocketing while chicken remains an affordable option

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by the El Reportero staff

Although red meat has been a staple in many families’ diets for generations due to its high content of animal protein, iron, zinc, and B vitamins, today it has become a luxury that is difficult to afford. The price per pound of quality beef has reached astonishing levels, and consumers are thinking twice before adding it to their shopping cart.

Visit any membership store like Costco and you’ll immediately notice the change. Just a couple of years ago, a package of seven or eight quality steaks cost around $25. Today, that same package can easily exceed $60, and even reach $80, depending on the cut. This represents an increase of more than 200 percent. The natural question that arises is: is it worth continuing to buy meat at these prices? And why has it risen so much?

The average cost of a pound of ground beef has been climbing toward $6 over the past few years. The average price was $5.98 in May, the highest ever, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The joke circulating among shoppers is that cows may have gotten a raise, but the reality behind the rise in meat prices is more complex. Several factors have contributed to the rise in prices: from the rising cost of cattle feed and transportation to the drought affecting cattle-raising regions in the United States and Latin America. Furthermore, the pandemic has left deep scars on the supply chain, decreasing production and increasing consumer prices.

But consumers are not without options. One strategy some are proposing is to reduce or temporarily suspend consumption of red meat. The logic is simple: if demand falls, the price will eventually drop. “Let the butchers eat it themselves,” some shoppers say sarcastically. Meanwhile, many are opting to replace beef with chicken, an alternative that remains relatively affordable and nutritious.

Chicken, in addition to being cheaper, is also an excellent source of animal protein. It contains less saturated fat than beef, making it a healthier choice for the heart. It’s also rich in niacin (vitamin B3), phosphorus, selenium, and vitamin B6. Although beef provides a greater amount of heme iron—which is easier for the human body to absorb—and vitamin B12, a balanced diet with chicken can adequately meet many of the body’s nutritional needs.

From a culinary standpoint, chicken has one advantage: its versatility in the kitchen. There are hundreds of ways to prepare it, and many of them are quick, tasty, and healthy. Roasted, stewed, baked, grilled, curried, breaded, in tacos, soups, broths, Asian or Caribbean style… the list is endless. All it takes is a little creativity and a willingness to explore new or traditional flavors.

For example, a single whole chicken can be used to prepare several meals: garlic chicken breasts, barbecued chicken legs, vegetable broth, or Latin American-style chicken rice. You can also use the bone to make a nutritious consommé.

In addition, chicken is ideal for those watching their weight or who have high cholesterol, as its fat content is much lower if eaten without the skin. In contrast, beef, especially richer cuts like ribeye or T-bone, contain high levels of fat, which can be harmful if consumed in excess.

On an economic level, there is no comparison. A family pack of chicken thighs or breasts at Costco can still be purchased for less than $20, enough to feed a family of four for several days. Even at conventional supermarkets, whole chicken remains one of the most affordable proteins.

Of course, this isn’t about demonizing beef or eliminating it completely from the diet. For those who enjoy it or consider it indispensable for cultural or nutritional reasons, there’s always the option of consuming it in moderation and less frequently. You can also opt for cheaper cuts like lean ground beef or stew cuts.

Another option for many price-conscious consumers is to seek out local alternatives. Buying directly from ranchers, at farmers markets, or through cooperatives can be a way to get quality meat at a more reasonable price.

Meanwhile, the average consumer continues to grapple with the daily dilemma in the supermarket aisles: exorbitantly priced beef or chicken with multiple options. And at this crossroads, chicken seems to be winning the battle, not only because it’s cheaper, but also because of its flexibility in cooking and its health benefits.

Will the price of chicken also rise? Maybe. And when that happens, perhaps we will hear it said with

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Political group aligned with Trump, GOP seeks official party status in Mexico

by the El Reportero‘s wire services

A political group professedly aligned with U.S. President Donald Trump and the Republican Party is seeking to register as an official party in Mexico.

The self-styled conservative political association known informally as the Mexican Republican Party has expressed support for Trump’s immigration raids while criticizing the Mexican government for not engaging in similar actions.

Juan Iván Peña Neder, president of the association, has decried what he considers the government’s failure to address the root causes of illegal migration to and from Mexico.

“Lamentably, … the [Mexican government] has eluded responsibility by relying on empty rhetoric not translated into concrete policies, thus perpetuating the conditions that lead to migration,” he said.

México Republicano, the formal name of the organization that has been described as “ultra-right [and] … confessional,” announced over the weekend that it would soon begin recruiting and registering members in order to become an official national party.

The organization must hold assemblies in at least 20 states and sign up at least 60,000 registered voters in order to join the federal registry of political parties. It was authorized to pursue official party status by the National Electoral Institute (INE) in January.

In a statement issued in February, México Republicano declared itself “the only republican and conservative political organization willing to take on the existing statist and clientelistic model of government” in Mexico.

It also said it will fight to promote economic growth, to support the free market and to consolidate a strong and independent middle class.

In April, Peña Neder further outlined his organization’s ideology: “I believe our sympathy with President Trump and our ideological identification with the Republican Party makes us distinct in this hemisphere,” he said.

Even as Trump’s tariff policies were causing turmoil in Mexico, Peña Neder said his organization would not distance itself from its ideological ties to Trump, saying the alignment positioned his group as the only genuine opposition to Mexico’s government.

Earlier this month, México Republicano reiterated its ideological concurrence with Trump in a statement posted on social media. The statement criticized the violence associated with the anti-ICE protests in Los Angeles which have resulted in the arrests of dozens of Mexican nationals.

“We strongly condemn all acts of violence disguised as protest in countries that have provided opportunities for Mexicans,” the statement reads. “Gratitude and respect for the law must guide our actions, both at home and abroad.”

The statement urged Mexico and the United States “to strengthen agreements for dignified and orderly labor migration.”

The strongly anti-abortion organization, which originated as a local party in the northern state of Chihuahua, was formed in 2022 with support from evangelical groups and conservative businessmen, according to the newspaper La Jornada.

Larry Rubin, a former CEO of the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico, president of the American Society of Mexico and official representative of the U.S. Republican Party in Mexico, is among the group’s advisers.

With reports from La Jornada, Excelsior, Milenio and Infobae

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Homelessness is top of mind for many Californians. Why does the proposed budget eliminate funding for it?

California’s main source of homelessness funding would drop from $1 billion last year to $0 this year in the proposed state budget

by Marisa Kendall

CalMatters

State leaders have been talking a lot lately about cleaning up California’s homeless encampments and moving people indoors. But the tentative budget they’ve drawn up for the upcoming year has many asking: With what money?

Both Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Legislature have proposed gutting the state’s main source of homelessness funding in the 2025-26 budget, sending a wave of panic through the cities, counties and service providers that have been relying on that money for years. Now, those critics warn that thousands of Californians could end up back on the streets, undoing the tenuous progress the state has made in addressing the problem.

“It’s extremely frustrating,” said San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, whose city had been receiving about $30 million a year from that pot of homelessness funding — enough to pay for about 1,000 interim housing placements. “Residents of California tell us consistently that ending unsheltered homelessness is one of their very top priorities…So the idea that the state can’t make a substantial, consistent investment in residents’ top priority makes me question whether or not they’re really listening to the people of California.”

The Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention program has doled out funds for cities and counties to spend on everything from temporary shelter to services to permanent housing since its creation six years ago. It started with $650 million in the 2019-20 budget, and has since grown to $1 billion last year.

Since 2023, the program has provided housing for more than 57,000 Californians, according to the Bring California Home Coalition, made up of affordable housing providers, advocates for homeless individuals and government staff.

But with the state facing an expected deficit of $12 billion this year, those funds ended up on the chopping block. The 2025-26 budget proposed by the Legislature June 9 allocates $0. Lawmakers passed a placeholder Friday, but the budget still has to undergo additional negotiations between Newsom and lawmakers before it becomes final. Even so, the governor already has indicated he’s fine with stripping homelessness funding.

At the same time, California could soon also be reeling from federal cuts. President Donald Trump’s proposed budget would reduce funding to the Housing and Urban Development department by 44 percent, slashing the rental subsidies and federal homelessness funding that flows to California.

Newsom has, in a sense, been preparing cities and counties for a blow to state funds. He has for years resisted calls to make homelessness money permanent, instead preferring to dole it out year by year in a one-time grant — making it easier to cut in a tough budget year.

Despite ramping up spending on the issue to unprecedented levels after taking office (last year the Legislative Analyst’s Office found the administration had spent $24 billion on housing and homelessness), the governor changed his tune in recent months. His message now is more along the lines of: I’ve done my part, now cities need to step up and take care of the crisis on their streets.

Newsom recently suggested cities do that by passing ordinances banning encampments.

“I’m not interested anymore, period full stop, in funding failure,” Newsom said last month,  a refrain he’s been repeating often.

But the cities and service providers that rely on those funds say it appears he’s no longer interested in funding success, either: While California’s homeless population remains the biggest in the nation — with more than 187,000 people sleeping on the street and in shelters — it increased just 3 percent last year, compared to a nationwide increase of about 18 percent.

Critics worry gutting funding will erode that modicum of progress.

“Simply put, this choice will lead to more people moving onto California’s streets and fewer avenues off the streets,” the Bring California Home Coalition said in a statement.

In San Jose, the state homelessness funding has been crucial in the city’s push to move people out of encampments and into temporary placements in tiny homes and converted motels. Like other cities, San Jose still is waiting to receive its homelessness allocation from the last budget. But once that money is spent, probably by next summer, San Jose will feel the hit, Mahan said. When that happens, the city probably won’t have to close existing programs, because it’s lucky enough to have other funding sources, he said. But it won’t be able to build new units, effectively stalling the city’s plan to get everyone off its streets.

Mahan and other California mayors have for months been urging state leaders to reconsider ever since Newsom’s initial January budget proposal zeroed out the homelessness funds.

Instead, the Legislature suggested adding $500 million back into the state homeless funding program — but not until in the 2026-27 fiscal year. That would be a 50 percent reduction from last year’s allocation. And there’s no guarantee that money will come through at all. In addition, lawmakers proposed reducing another, smaller homelessness program — which provides money to cities specifically for cleaning up encampments and moving occupants indoors — by $100 million.

It’s not all bad news, pointed out Ben Metcalf, managing director of UC Berkeley’s Terner Center for Housing Innovation. The Legislature’s budget includes $500 million in low-income housing tax credits to fund the construction of new affordable housing, and $120 million for the Multifamily Housing Program, which provides loans for low-income housing.

But the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention program may have been politically easier to gut, Metcalf said. That program doesn’t benefit from deep-pocketed lobbyists defending it in Sacramento.

And because of the complex, intractable nature of the homelessness crisis, the money hasn’t produced the kind of tangible, grand-slam results voters want to see on their streets. Instead, homelessness remains a persistent problem, and encampments still dot California’s cities.

But without that money, some shelters and housing programs are likely to close, Metcalf said. Others could simply become less effective. The state program provided funding for the types of counseling, case workers and other services that help people transition from shelters into permanent housing, he said. Without that extra help, people often languish in shelters.

“So what you end up with, probably, is more Band-Aids,” Metcalf said, “or patchworks of systems that are providing some modest amount of (improvement in) the quality of life but not really helping transition people permanently out of homelessness.”

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