NNPA NEWSWIRE — “I will begin my first day in office at the emergency operations center of our community, where I will issue a proclamation of an emergency regarding homelessness. My emergency declaration will acknowledge the seriousness of our situation and pave the way for future emergency declarations so that we can move people inside quickly and permanently. According to Los Angeles Mayor-Elect Karen Bass, it will establish the framework required for us to have a real, comprehensive, and citywide plan to get us started on the road to ending homelessness.
By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass will declare a state of emergency against homelessness in an announcement at the Emergency Operations Center in her first act as mayor.
The new Mayor asserts that the move “will allow her to take aggressive executive actions to confront the homelessness crisis in Los Angeles. The declaration will recognize the gravity of Los Angeles’ crisis and forge new ground in order to maximize the ability to move people inside as quickly as possible.”
On November 16, 2021, during an interview on Black Press USA’s daily morning show Let It Be Known, Bass discussed homelessness, calling it a “humanitarian crisis” and stating that there were “40,000 people in the city unhoused, many living in tents all over the city.”
Clearly, Mayor Bass is making homelessness a top priority during her first weeks in office.
Bass, 69, was sworn in as Los Angeles’ 43rd mayor on December 11 in a historic ceremony presided over by Vice President Kamala Harris. Her predecessor, Mayor Eric Garcetti, stood in City Hall with thousands of others, taking in the moment’s history. Karen Bass received more votes than any other candidate in Los Angeles history.’ Bass defeated Rick Caruso, who spent $100 million on his campaign, in the most expensive election ever. Bass was the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and represented California’s 33rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2011 to 2022.
She was also a member of the California State Assembly from 2004 to 2010, where she served as Speaker of the California House in her final years.
In the audience, Bass recognized California’s first female Lieutenant Governor, Eleni Kounalakis, as well as Los Angeles’ all-female County Board of Supervisors.
“I think that key moments call for analysis, I think it’s time for Angelenos to ponder on our origins and identity. During the Great African American Migration following World War 2, my father left Jim Crow Texas. He was a letter carrier for the postal agency. It was a union position, and thanks to his salary, my mother was able to stay at home with my brothers and I. In her inaugural address, Bass stated, “When I think about the dreams of working people today, I reflect on the reality that my mother and father were able to purchase a home in Los Angeles for their family of six with one paycheck.
She then made a remark about the high cost of housing in Los Angeles.
“Tragically, our city has earned the shameful crown as being home to some of the most crowded neighborhoods in the nation—Pico Union, South L.A., East L.A., the East Valley. “We know what we have to do: we have to build housing in every neighborhood,” Mayor Bass said.
The new Mayor then focused on homelessness, which is a major issue in Los Angeles and across the country.
“I will begin my first day as mayor at our city’s Emergency Operations Center, where my first act as mayor will be to declare a state of emergency on homelessness. My emergency declaration will recognize the gravity of our crisis and pave the way for us to urgently and permanently relocate people inside. “It will lay the groundwork for us to have a true, unified, and citywide strategy to put us on the path to ending homelessness,” Bass said.
“We need a single strategy to unify our city and county, involve the state, the federal government, the private sector, and every other stakeholder if we want to draw Angelenos inside and advance our city in a new direction. I therefore encourage our City Council, City Attorney, and City Controller to carry on the work we began during the transition on a coordinated and urgent plan to end homelessness. The new mayor addressed the crowd, saying, “I call on the County of Los Angeles to lock arms with me because it has jurisdiction over health, including mental health and substance abuse. We have already begun these talks.
Bass’ four years as mayor of a community with many problems will undoubtedly be eventful. However, she will undoubtedly benefit from her extensive political background and expertise as a community activist and establishment figure in local, state, and federal government as she navigates policy over the course of her next four years in office.
Lauren Victoria Burke is a freelance journalist who hosts the podcast BURKEFILE. She is a political analyst who frequently appears on #RolandMartinUnfiltered.
She can be reached at LBurke007@gmail.com and @LVBurke on Twitter.