Lexis-Olivier Ray is an award-winning staff investigative reporter for L.A. TACO known for holding powerful people in Los Angeles accountable and his reporting on Los Angeles culture. As well as an artist and filmmaker. In 2022, the Society of Professional Journalists' Los Angeles chapter named Ray one of their "distinguished journalists." In 2023, Ray won a second place Anthem Award in their Health Innovation category for a texting service geared towards the unhoused community and service providers that he launched in 2021 with L.A. TACO and Subtext. Ray was a 2020 USC Center For Health Journalism (CHJ) Data Fellow. As well as a 2022 CHJ Impact Fellow. As a freelancer, Ray has contributed to the L.A. Times, Men's Health Magazine, KCET and SFGATE.
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EXCLUSIVE: Cuban Asylum Seeker Deported to Africa Without ID, Money, or Cell Phone
Around 80 detainees were forcibly deported to the Central African Republic, which the U.S. strongly advises against visiting due to potential danger. L.A. TACO spoke with 37-year-old Aristides Fernandez Garcia, who has no idea what the future looks like after his 90-day visa expires.
August 11, 2026
How (and Why) to Remove Yourself From Data Miners Tracking You, Using California’s New Privacy Website
Data brokers sell everything they know about you—browsing history, pregnancies, Social Security numbers—to organizations like ICE and CBP, under a recent LexisNexis contract worth up to $22.1 million.
August 11, 2026
Watts’ Viral Tri-Tip BBQ Smoker Just Wanted to Feed His Sick Dad. Now He Feeds a Community
Raul Martinez Jr. of 105BBQ tells L.A. TACO, "Pre-orders sell out within days of posting." People DM him offering to pay in advance, just to hold a spot.
August 10, 2026
Cockroach Found in Adelanto ICE Detention Cell
A detainee from Adelanto ICE Detention Center showed L.A. TACO a live cockroach during a video call. It’s not the first time they have found roaches in their cell.
August 7, 2026
Three DIY Zine Makers to Support In a Time When Their Craft Is Criminalized
Followed by federal immigration agents or asked to take down their zines, these artists are aware of the danger that comes with speaking out and still going strong.
August 7, 2026
A Persian-Mexican Jam For Hoja Santa Lamb Shanks and Flash Tattoos
“There's . . . nowhere else, other than L.A., where you’d find these two cultures in such proximity, which is also why there are so many half-Persian, half-Mexican people,” the party organizer says.
August 7, 2026
