Features
Healing Old Wounds
Elizabeth Barnert puts dedication to social justice into work for children
Special Report: The Case of CASA
Charity Chandler-Cole comes to CASA/LA as both critic and champion
Fighting for Dignity: Tamika Butler
An influential advocate and her quest for transportation equity
Special Report: Old Tool, New Potential
Time-limited subsidies deliver results in field where failure is common
Karen Bass: On Housing ‘My People’
Mayor takes on L.A.’s most difficult issue with deep determination
Kevin Shird: The Long Recovery
Shird once ran a drug ring. Now he writes and speaks — and helps others to recover
Racial Bias and Suicide
Bias has long distorted diagnoses of Black children with emotional distress. The results are tragic.
Special Report: Schools and Intolerance
Battered by COVID-19, schools now confront intolerance
Development and Its Discontents
The struggle to improve living standards while protecting the environment
Eric Garcetti: Reflections from L.A.’s mayor
Crime and COVID, rising homelessness and restive politics — Garcetti looks back on nine years as chief executive of Los Angeles.
Special Report: Critical Race Theory and UCLA
Critics bent on squelching conversations about race have assailed the idea, usually without bothering to study it
Antonia Hernandez: The Optimism of Experience
Shrewd philanthropy and political acumen guide the work of the California Community Foundation
L.A. Housing: Racism, skyrocketing prices and now a homeless crisis
How housing has shaped the landscape of Los Angeles. And vice versa
COVID’s Losses: Lives, Jobs, Hope
The unequal toll of a devastating year and the challenge ahead
Barbara Lee: A Life of Service and Action
From her childhood in El Paso to representing California’s East Bay: unyielding dedication to progress
Focus on Policing: To Abolish or To Reform?
Lorenzo Jones and the deep questions of American policing
Special Report: The League of Women Voters
At age 100, the League combines a history of protest with a commitment to fairness and civility
The Facts About Immigration
President Trump and his supporters claim illegal immigrants are bringing danger to America. They’re not.
Bill McKibben: Sounding the Alarm
Climate change is not a problem for the future. Heat, drought, storms and fires are upon us now
Housing: One size does not fit all
Housing advocates bump up against politics in the attempt to confront one of California’s most difficult problems
Strategies for Schools
The challenges of measuring what works — and what does not — in education
Karen Bass: On Truth, Power, Public Office
Karen Bass is a native of Los Angeles and a rising force in Congress
Do the Poor Bring Crime with Them?
Michael Lens challenges assumptions about the poor, housing and crime
Sketches
Closing Note: How Best to Help Children
Whether improving foster care or recovering from fire, the region’s needs are great and urgent
Closing Note: Of challenges and opportunities
Los Angeles faces a difficult future, but does so with resources and potential
“A Lighter Look” – On Aliens
Rick Meyer’s regularly appearing column takes a lighter look at politics and public affairs around the world. This month: Aliens and their values
The Struggles of Family
Zachary Slobig on the combined effects within his family of COVID-19 and national policing protests
Closing Note: Hope in the Ruins
This year of crisis has upended politics, public health and policing, among many other walks of life. It now moves to an election.
The Electoral College and Democracy
Online Table Talk: Martin Gilens on the Electoral College
Welcome to Blueprint on Homelessness
Blueprint turns to homelessness, a growing tragedy in California and beyond
L.A. Grapples With Homelessness, Not Always Well
A case-study in Los Angeles’ struggle to address homelessness
Trump and policing — the consent decree
Donald Trump and former AG Jeff Sessions say consent decrees have increased crime. Are they telling the truth?
The Dangers of an Unequal Society
With our second issue, Blueprint moves its focus to income and wealth inequality, subjects at the center of modern American politics.