The 13th annual Topanga Film Festival will be held February 10-12, 2017 at the Topanga Film Institute &#038; Colab, 1111 N. Topanga Canyon Blvd, Topanga, CA 90290. Tickets are now available through the fest&#8217;s&nbsp;website www.topangafilminstitute.org. This year the organizers plan to pair&nbsp;classic cinema with explorations on immersive storytelling, including virtual reality. Some of the best…

13th Annual Topanga Film Festival ~ Feb 10th – 12th

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<p>Nya Manneh is a 22-year-old Master&#8217;s student from Minnesota studying at the University of Southern California. She is passionate about writing stories that highlight underrepresented voices and meeting new people from all walks of life.</p>


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<p>Professional punk and Editor-In-Chief for James Beard Award-winning L.A. TACO. Associate Producer for JBA-winning Las Crónicas Del Taco. Former restaurant scout for Jonathan Gold. Co-author of &#8220;Oaxaca: Home Cooking From the Heart of Mexico (2019, Abrams) and &#8220;Asada: The Art of Mexican-Style Grilling&#8221; (2023, Abrams).</p>


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<p><span style="font-weight: 400">Blending her time in the kitchen as a line cook with her passion for storytelling, Lauren Bethke writes about community, inclusivity and the city she loves the most—Los Angeles.</span></p>


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<p><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif">Emilio Valdez is a street-level photographer with a special interest in documenting the ever-changing neighborhoods of Central and East Los Angeles</span><span style="font-family: arial, sans-serif">. His work focuses on bringing the past and present discrimination of marginalized people of color to light.</span></p>


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<p>Julianne Lê graduated from UCLA in 2025 with a major in English and minor in Asian American Studies. Maybe it&#8217;s because she isn&#8217;t jaded yet, but she is super eager to peek into the overlooked corners of L.A. and write about them. Lê is the former editor-in-chief of UCLA&#8217;s Pacific Ties Newsmagazine and was a finalist for the Associated Collegiate Press&#8217; &#8220;Podcast of the Year&#8221; award in 2024.</p>


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Photo Essay: East Hollywood Gay Club Famous for Its “Vaquero Nights” Turns 35

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<div dir="ltr">Shylah Featherstone is a journalism student at Cerritos College and an intern at L.A. TACO, where she covers food, culture, and community stories across Los Angeles. Passionate about amplifying underrepresented voices, she hopes to build a career in multimedia journalism that connects people through thoughtful storytelling.</div>
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<p>Jaylyn Preslicka is a reporter from the greater Los Angeles area who specializes in investigative reporting. She has covered immigration, health, politics, and policy for various outlets.</p>


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Jaylyn Preslicka

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Escondido Resident Is 58th to Die in ICE Custody Under Trump Administration

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<p><span style="font-size: large"><strong>Dr. Gabriel Buelna</strong> holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from Claremont Graduate University and serves as a faculty member in the Chicana/o Studies Department at California State University, Northridge. He is the founder and principal attorney of The Buelna Law Firm, A.P.C., based in South Pasadena, where he focuses on Family and Criminal Law. In addition to his academic and legal work, Dr. Buelna serves as an elected Trustee for the Los Angeles Community College District.</span></p>
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<p><span style="font-size: large">Dr. Buelna is <strong>fully bilingual in English and Spanish</strong>, allowing him to effectively serve and advocate for diverse communities across Los Angeles. He can be reached at <strong><a href="mailto:gabriel@buelnalaw.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener">gabriel@buelnalaw.com</a></strong>. Follow him on TikTok <strong>@TacosAndLaw</strong> or visit <a href="http://www.buelnalaw.com" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=http://www.buelnalaw.com&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1750964813950000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1Njv5I6LbOH4Mhu0M6otpZ">www.buelnalaw.com</a>.</span></p>
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Gabriel Buelna

<p style="text-align: left"><span style="font-weight: 400">Enrique M. Buelna is a faculty member in the History Department at Cabrillo College. He specializes in Chicano history with an emphasis on class, race, labor, radical activism, civil rights, immigration, culture, and identity. He is the author of Chicano Communists and the Struggle for Social Justice (2019). Dr. Buelna earned his doctorate in history from the University of California, Irvine, and holds an M.A. in Public Administration from the University of Washington, Seattle.  </span></p>


Enrique M. Buelna

Opinion

Final Notice: Democrats Must Abolish ICE If They Win On Election Day

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<div>Frank Shyong is a freelance journalist who writes the Lunch Box newsletter on Substack, which publishes original reported essays on food, diaspora, and history. He was a reporter and columnist for the <em>L.A. Times</em> for more than 12 years, covering the San Gabriel Valley, AAPI communities, and life in Los Angeles.</div>
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Frank Shyong

Politics

SGV Organizers Step Up to Stop Data Centers By Running Against the Politicians Who Failed Them

<div>Ivan Ehlers is an Ecuadorian-American cartoonist and writer. He is a regular contributor to <i>The New Yorker</i>, <i>MAD Magazine</i> and the <i>Los Angeles Times</i>.</div>
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Ivan Ehlers

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<p>3rd-generation Angeleno Mike Sonksen, aka Mike the PoeT, is a poet, professor, journalist, historian and tour guide. Sonksen’s read poetry at over 100 academic institutions, appeared on radio and television and hosted at the Getty Center. His latest books are <em>Traces, Places, Faces</em> and <em>Poets of My City: A Collective Effervescence</em>. Sonksen was recently appointed the Long Beach Design District&#8217;s first Poet-in-Residence.</p>


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