California is set to raise the minimum wage to $10 an hour, the highest of any state in the country. Governor Brown said he would sign the bill, recently passed by the legislature. The two-dollar wage hike may be welcome news for many in the state, home to the highest total number of poor working families in the U.S. Will the raise be enough to lift families out of poverty and give the economy a shot in the arm? We talk with the bill’s author about this and other legislations.
Guest: Luis Alejo, Assemblymember, representing the 30th district, California Assembly, Watsonville, CA, http://www.asmdc.org/members/a30/
ALSO, AFTER THE PRISONER HUNGER STRIKE. Inmates at the maximum security prison of Pelican Bay orchestrated the largest hunger strike ever in California. An estimated 30,000 prisoners refused meals at the height of the two-month strike, which ended recently after legislators promised hearings on the state’s indefinite solitary detention practices. Some inmates, held in solitary confinement for decades, say their punishment amounts to torture. Are prison reforms on store?
Guests: Ron Ahnen, Political Science Professor at St. Mary’s College, Member of the mediation team for prisoners, Moraga, CA, http://www.stmarys-ca.edu/; Luis Rodríguez, author, activist and California gubernatorial candidate, Los Angeles, CA, www.luisjrodriguez.com
For more information about Linea Abierta click here
To visit Linea Abierta audio archives go to archivosderb.org
