Good morning. It’s Wednesday, April 19.
- A third of California students are chronically absent.
- Parents resist looming teacher strike in Oakland.
- And Coronado gets away with flouting housing law.
Statewide
1.
“If it’s three months, I don’t know, that becomes a really difficult question. If it’s a couple of weeks? I’m fine with it.”
— Sen. John Hickenlooper
“It creates a real dilemma for us.”
— Sen. Peter Welch
“This isn’t just about California; it’s also about the nation.”
— Sen. Amy Klobuchar
Senate Democrats aren’t actively calling for the resignation of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, whose prolonged medical absence has stalled judicial nominees. But they are now signaling they won’t wait indefinitely. Politico
2.
Nearly a third of California’s public school students are chronically absent from school, roughly double the proportion recorded in years prior to the pandemic. A new analysis found that chronic absenteeism — defined as missing 10% or more of the school year — has failed to significantly improve since schools returned to in-class instruction. Some education leaders say it’s a crisis that is getting far too little attention. “This is a hair-on-fire emergency, and we are not alone; it’s across the state,” said Leslie Reckler, a Bay Area school official. EdSource | CalMatters
3.
In 2016, California lawmakers outraged by a “bathroom bill” in North Carolina countered with a law barring publicly funded travel to states that restrict gay and transgender rights. Seven years later, with the number of boycotted states now 23, some of California’s most prominent Democrats have joined a movement to repeal the law. In a new column, Nicholas Goldberg said the bans have done little to change hearts, but worse than that, they’ve further divided the country. L.A. Times
4.
The trip between Los Angeles and San Francisco is one of the nation’s busiest flight routes. But it’s been more than 50 years since an overnight train connected the cities. Now a Newport Beach startup, Dreamstar, is seeking approvals to offer its version of a “hotel train” that would allow passengers to get a night’s sleep before waking up at their destination. They could start running by the summer of 2024. L.A. Times | SFGATE
Northern California
5.
In a rare show of resistance, hundreds of Oakland families are pushing back against a looming teacher walkout after labor leaders initiated a strike vote on Monday. In a petition opposing the strike, parents accused the teachers’ union of using children as bargaining chips. “We’ve seen this pattern,” said Lakisha Young, who runs a nonprofit aimed at boosting literacy. “Every time it’s time to negotiate, there’s always a strike. We’ve become indoctrinated into this behavior like it’s OK.” S.F. Chronicle
- Los Angeles teachers reached a contract deal Tuesday that would lift their average salary to $106,000 a year. L.A. Times | LAist
6.
San Jose businesses have grown increasingly frustrated by repeated property crimes and theft. Responding to the complaints, Mayor Matt Mahan took a casual shot at the city’s neighbor up the peninsula. “I take these issues very seriously,” he said. “I will say emphatically that San Jose will not become San Francisco. I think everyone deserves to live in a safe and clean environment.” Mercury News
7.
“What exactly have we been doing here for the last decade and a half?”
Willy Staley wrote eloquently about the deranging effect that Twitter has had on society. He quoted a Twitter researcher who noted that most people don’t use the platform, and of those who do just a tiny fraction produce almost all of the posts. Those people, he added, “are a weird group of people.” N.Y. Times Magazine
Southern California
8.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has talked tough about enforcing quotas for housing construction across the state. Yet his administration has so far ignored what is arguably the most flagrant violator of the law: Coronado. Elected officials on the wealthy island city in San Diego Bay have thumbed their noses for years at Newsom and state regulators, calling the process “central planning at its worst.” Its required housing plan is now two years overdue. L.A. Times
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9.
In the 1950s, the authorities in Palm Springs evicted Black and Latino residents from a close-knit community near downtown. Then they tore the neighborhood down so that hotels, spas, and casinos could rise in its place. The destruction of the area known as Section 14 has now become a focus of the state’s reparations task force. On Sunday, former residents disclosed the amount they think they are owed: $2.3 billion, or nearly $1.2 million per family. A.P.
10.
Local officials often repeat the claim that people on the streets refuse offers of shelter in San Diego, which is now weighing an ordinance banning homeless encampments. But it’s also true that people seeking shelter are commonly turned away for lack of room. Kenny, 52, said he tried multiple times to find a bed. “You give your name, you sit in front of the building two or more hours, and then they tell you they have no beds,” he said. “I got tired of hearing that, so I got a tent.” S.D. Union Tribune
11.
People are ziplining over California’s poppy fields. Nestled along Temescal Valley, Skull Canyon Ziplines has rigged lines as high as 300 feet off the ground that zigzag through a series of folds in the foothills, blanketed at the moment by countless colorful wildflowers. One tip: Don’t try your luck recording video with your cellphone. Drop it, co-owner Yvette Liston said, and it’s “gone.” L.A. Times
California archive
12.
Pretty much everyone has seen Dorothea Lange’s iconic “Migrant Mother” photo, captured in the Central Coast town of Nipomo in 1936. But it was not a one-off. Many works by Lange, who spent years documenting California’s migrant camps, are as evocative of the weariness, beauty, despair, and dignity of laborers in the era of the Great Depression. The Oakland Museum of California has a wonderful collection. Museumca.org
Below, a few favorites.
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