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New laws sought in custody deaths – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
LOS ANGELES — In March 2016, Lisa Hines spent four agonizing days searching for her 36-year-old daughter — calling jails, visiting police stations and demanding answers. It wasn’t until a commander handed her a phone number that she finally got the truth. The voice on the other end said: “Coroner’s Office.”
“I dropped the phone. I fell out.”That’s how Hines remembers the moment she learned her daughter, Wakiesha Wilson, had died in LAPD custody.
“My baby ha...

Former gang members working to keep the peace – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

The National Action Network staged a peace march in Watts in 2014. The Watts Gang Task Force has helped keep the peace in the community since 2005.File photo
By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
WATTS — The December 2005 shooting of a prominent gang leader sparked 18 days of retaliatory violence between Watts gangs, leaving multiple residents dead and the community demanding action.
“We couldn’t understand it—why nobody was responding,” said Donnie Joubert, a longtime resident and co-founder o...

Activists frustrated over delays on reparations – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Chris Lodgson, lead organizer with the Coalition for a Just and Equitable California, speaks at a reparations town hall March 15. The town hall focused on demands for direct payments and frustration over legislative delays in California’s reparations efforts.Photo by Stephen Oduntan
By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
CRENSHAW — The demand for reparations for Black Californians reached a boiling point at a March 15 town hall, where community members voiced frustration over what they see as de...

LAUSD ignoring death threats, N-word taunts? – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
LOS ANGELES — Thirteen-year-old Ramin Salari sat in class at a Los Angeles Unified School District middle school as students taunted him with racial slurs that included the N-word.
When he reported it, his teacher acknowledged the complaint — but nothing changed. The slurs continued daily. His Latino classmates never faced consequences.Then, one day, a student escalated the abuse.
“I’ll shoot you in the head,” the student threatened.
Ramin’s mother expected...

Hollywood coming to Baldwin Hills? – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

An artist’s rendering of the Stocker Street Creative, a planned development that would bring state-of-the-art soundstages, production offices and a rooftop restaurant to Baldwin Hills to allow Black creatives to create in their own neighborhood. Developers hope to break ground on the project later this year.Courtesy photo
By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
BALDWIN HILLS — A bold new creative hub is rising in Baldwin Hills, positioning South Los Angeles as a major force in the entertainment i...

Watts residents want pipes tested for lead  – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan
Contributing Writer
WATTS — Local residents concerned about lead contamination in their homes want city and state officials to require landlords of older properties in the area to test for lead. 
“The government needs to mandate lead testing in older homes,” said Tim Watkins, leader of the Better Watts Initiative, who has been vocal about the need for stronger oversight. “We can’t rely on landlords to self-regulate. If City officials continue to insist the water meets safety s...

Hate crimes in county reach historic levels – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing Writer


LOS ANGELES — Hate crimes in Los Angeles County reached historic levels last year, officials announced Dec. 11, with significant increases reported in incidents targeting African Americans, Asian Americans, Jewish individuals, and members of the LGBTQ+ community. 


The report also documented a rise in anti-immigrant sentiment and white supremacist ideology.The Wave to host town hall on hate. See story, page 11.


“African Americans were again overr...

ANALYSIS: The road forward: Black voices look ahead in 2025 – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

By Stephen OduntanContributing Writer


LOS ANGELES — As 2025 begins, members of the Black community are questioning how to not only survive but thrive in the face of systemic barriers? From calls for reparations to grassroots organizing, advocates are addressing housing, economic obstacles, and long-standing injustices with renewed urgency.


“We’re being squeezed out by forces we can’t control,” said Billion Godsun, sitting in the Lion Arts Gallery in Leimert Park — a section of the city act...

Fire victims don’t want handout, Sharpton says – Los Angeles Wave Newspaper Group

Activists call for ‘same justice’ as Palisades, Malibu


With attorney Ben Crump at his left, Rev. Al Sharpton addresses the media outside a Pasadena church Feb. 6 where he spoke to victims of the Eaton fire that damaged Pasadena and Altadena last month. Sharpton said ‘Altadena will rise from the ashes — on our terms.”


Photo by Lorenzo Gomez


By Stephen Oduntan


Contributing WriterPASADENA — The Rev. Al Sharpton criticized previous disaster recovery efforts for Black property owners, say...