Friends and Citizens

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan sits down with Mike McPhate, journalism professor and creator of the California Sun newsletter. They speak about news media in California, subscription based journalism and other content, secessionist groups, 2018 governor’s race, California’s relationship with the federal government, and much more.

In this episode, Arlan sits down with philanthropist and CEO of Heart of Los Angeles, Tony Brown. They discuss after school programs in LA and overall, how revenue from Prop 64 should be spent, the importance of making sure we as citizens get what we vote for, the impact of small gestures in a child's life, community involvement, and the importance of listening to students first. An extended version of this conversation is available on SoundCloud at the link provided below. That conversation includes personal stories from Heart of LA, Tony's thoughts on education policy in California, a detailed account of what it took to break ground on the HoLA Recreation Center project at Lafayette Park and much more.  https://soundcloud.com/user-996962046/7-after-school-with-tony-brown-extended-version

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan sits down with Aubrie Davis. Aubrie is an activist and the creator of Burrito Coalition, a volunteer effort to make and hand out vegan burritos to the homeless in Los Angeles. She has travelled the nation for demonstrations and progressive conferences. She and Arlan discuss the roots of her activism, the value of demonstrations, the factor of luck in our lives, flaws in vegan activism, and the important themes of compassion and unity.

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan sets the scene and prepares you for the next big earthquake along the southern segment of the San Andreas fault.

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan sits down with State Assemblyman Brian Dahle, a Republican who represents California's 1st Assembly District in northeastern California. They discussed the recent gas tax increase and the ways by which it will affect some Californians disproportionately more than others, the pension crisis looming over California and its effects on one small northern California town, the Internet for All Now Act, sharing the uniqueness of the 1st Assembly District with members from other parts of the state, and Brian's bipartisan approach to state politics.

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan sits down with music journalist and culture writer, Jemayel Khawaja. Jemayel has written articles for the Guardian, Vice, Deadspin, Billboard, Mixmag, LA Weekly, LA Magazine, and is editor-at-large for Thump, Vice’s electronic music culture channel. In this conversation they discussed fringe candidates in California’s 2016 and 2018 elections, transhumanism, the state of optimism, Russia, harm reduction services at electronic music festivals, unreliable news sources, homeless culture in Downtown Los Angeles, and much more.

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan sits down with Robert Meacher, who is the city manager of Portola, California and was a county supervisor in Plumas County for 20 years. They speak about water, representation, natural resource management, wildfires, and how all these things, California's economy, and climate change are all interconnected. Robert shares his perspective gained from over two decades representing the northeastern part of the state.

In this episode of Friends and Citizens, Arlan speaks with four-term State Assemblyman from Los Angeles Mike Gatto about the structure of California government, the importance of Prop 13, the water war between northern and Southern California, a bit about Calexit and the State of Jefferson, the way we approach down-ballot races, and other topics.