Los Angeles

Gentrifying Skid Row

In 2013, the homeless population in the United States sat… References and Footnotes“Homelessness in the United States: Trends and demographics” December 4, 2014, http://journalistsresource.org/studies/government/health-care/homelessness-u-s-trends-demographics ↩“Los Angeles Confronts a Spike in Homelessness Amid Prosperity,” June 12, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/14/us/los-angeles-confronts-a-spike-in-homelessness-amid-prosperity.html ↩“L.A. City Council vote makes it easier to clear homeless camps,” June 17, 2015, http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-homeless-belongings-20150617-story.html ↩“The gentrification of Skid Row - a story that will decide the future of Los Angeles,” March 5, 2015, http://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/mar/05/gentrification-skid-row-los-angeles-homeless ↩L.A. City Council vote makes it easier to clear homeless camps,” June 17, 2015, http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-homeless-belongings-20150617-story.html ↩L.A. City Council vote makes it easier to clear homeless camps,” June 17, 2015, http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-homeless-belongings-20150617-story.html ↩“Garcetti shifts stance, won't enforce tough new homeless measures,” June 30, 2015, http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-garcetti-homeless-20150630-story.html ↩The U.S. Cities Where It Takes the Longest to Be Able to Afford to Buy a Home,” March 16, 2015, http://www.citylab.com/housing/2015/03/the-us-cities-where-it-takes-the-longest-to-be-able-to-afford-to-buy-a-home/387766 ↩“Shelter Beds Stay Empty as Homeless Resist Confinement,” December 27, 2000, http://articles.latimes.com/2000/dec/27/local/me-5180 ↩“Gentrification and affordable housing can coexist in Los Angeles,” January 24, 2014, http://www.dailynews.com/opinion/20140124/gentrification-and-affordable-housing-can-coexist-in-los-angeles-richard-j-riodan-and-tim-rutten ↩

The Wage Is Too Damn Low

The federal minimum wage peaked in 1968… References and Footnotes“Minimum wage since 1938,” CNN Money, 2013, http://money.cnn.com/interactive/economy/minimum-wage-since-1938/[/ref] If you adjust for inflation that's an impressive $10.79. However, the current federal minimum wage sits at $7.25 – thirty-two percent less than it was forty-seven years ago. And while it has increased twenty-one percent since 1990, so has the cost of living – by sixty-seven percent. “Overworked America: 12 Charts That Will Make Your Blood Boil,” Mother Jones, July/August 2011, http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2011/06/speedup-americans-working-harder-charts[/ref] Nineteen million U.S. workers currently earn at or below the federal minimum wage, with nearly half of them being over twenty-four years old. “5 Facts about the Minimum Wage,” Pew Research, December 2013 http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2013/12/04/5-facts-about-the-minimum-wage/ ↩ “Studies Look at What Happened when Cities Raised Minimum Wage,” The Seattle Times, March 2014, http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/studies-look-at-what-happened-when-cities-raised-minimum-wage/ ↩ “The Great Decoupling of the US Economy,” Andrew McAfee, December 2012, http://andrewmcafee.org/2012/12/the-great-decoupling-of-the-us-economy/ ↩“As Cities Raise Their Minimum Wage, Where's the Economic Collapse the Right Predicted?” Mother Jones, April 2015, http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2015/04/economic-collapse-prediction-minimum-wage-raise ↩ Lynn Thompson, Seattle Times, March 12, 2014, accessed May 21, 2015, http://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/studies-look-at-what-happened-when-cities-raised-minimum-wage/. ↩ “Will a Higher Minimum Wage Close a Beloved Bookstore?” The New Yorker, February 2015, http://www.newyorker.com/business/currency/minimum-wage-dilemma-san-francisco ↩“Do Small Businesses Deserve Exemptions From the Minimum Wage?” Mother Jones, May 2015 http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2015/05/small-businesses-exemptions-minimum-wage ↩ “Here's How America's Minimum Wage Stacks Up Against Countries Like India, Russia, Greece, And France” Business Insider, August 2013, http://www.businessinsider.com/a-look-at-minimum-wages-around-the-world-2013-8 ↩ “Marco Rubio says He Opposes Minimum Wage Laws. What About the Other GOP 2016 Hopefuls?” Daily Kos, February 2013, http://www.dailykos.com/story/2013/02/14/1187136/-Marco-Rubio-says-he-opposes-minimum-wage-laws-What-about-the-other-GOP-2016-hopefuls ↩ “Jeb Bush Calls For The Elimination Of The Federal Minimum Wage,” Think Progress, March 2015 http://thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/03/17/3634877/jeb-bush-minimum-wage/ ↩“Sen. Cruz: Minimum Wage Hike Would Cost Jobs for Young People, Hispanics, African Americans” CNS News, February 2013, http://cnsnews.com/news/article/sen-cruz-minimum-wage-hike-would-cost-jobs-young-people-hispanics-african-americans ↩“Fact Sheet #32: Youth Minimum Wage - Fair Labor Standards Act,” U.S. Department of Labor, July 2008, http://www.dol.gov/whd/regs/compliance/whdfs32.pdf ↩