latimes--2020-04-24--Inside teachers' never-ending crisis shifts: 'You just keep going all day and all night'

It ’ s just past 8 a.m. at the Inglewood elementary school where sixth-grade teacher Aba Ngissah has taught for seven years .
The blinds on classroom windows , normally open , are drawn , and hundreds of parents and students , rather than rushing for the start of class , are lining up outside the front gate waiting for food .
Ngissah is starting her day in the cafeteria — against a backdrop of giant tissue-paper flowers that are slowly falling apart more than a month after she and her students made them for Read Across America Day .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Inglewood school district staff , filling hundreds of brown paper bags with boxed cereal , sandwiches , milk , apples and cookies .
It ’ s been about a month since Hudnall Elementary School shut down , its 400 students among the 6.1 million K-12 California students whose campuses are closed .
After every bag is claimed on this recent Friday , Ngissah will help give out laptops .
In the afternoon , she goes home , washes her hands and changes her clothes to protect her elderly mother , who is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , she ’ ll sit down at her computer and begin her real job .
“ You just keep going all day and all night , ” she says .
That ’ s just what it means to be a teacher right now .
Nothing — not her classroom experience , her skills as a teachers union organizer nor her work introducing online learning tools — prepared Ngissah for this moment when her classroom would be locked and her students sent home to isolate themselves against the novel coronavirus .
Her first priority @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
At Hudnall , 90 % of students come from low-income households and qualify for free or reduced-price lunch , so the safety net of school meals has always been important .
Right now , it ’ s vital .
At times , Ngissah and other teachers and staff members use their own money to buy toilet paper , cleaning supplies , ramen noodles , rice and meat for families .
It all happened so abruptly , this radical change to schooling .
When schools closed in mid-March , Ngissah sent books and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weeks .
When it became clear that the closures would continue , she joined others in the district and started distributing laptops along with bags of food .
Then , from her living room , she set up a Google Classroom as it sunk in that she ’ d have to start teaching her kids via pixels on a screen .
Ngissah has been a teacher for more than 20 years , and the main allure to the job has always been the relationships she develops with students and parents .
A UCLA @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year at a school in Los Angeles .
But when the year ended , she wasn ’ t sure if she could bear getting to know students again and again only to have them move on .
“ I thought , ‘ This is too much.
’ To me , you get attached and then they leave .
It was very emotional , ” Ngissah said .
With time , she learned that strong bonds endure — former students come back to say hello , invite her to graduations and let her know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ next year , she took a job at Crozier Middle School in Inglewood , where the paint was coming off the walls and there weren ’ t enough books for every student .
The district , which is 56 % Latino and 40 % black , has long struggled financially — in 2012 , it was taken over by the state Department of Education , nearly insolvent and in need of millions of dollars in loans to stay afloat .
It is currently overseen by a county administrator .
Test scores reflect the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , only 30 % of students met or exceeded standards in English language arts , and 18 % met or exceeded standards in math .
That first year in her Inglewood classroom , Ngissah found herself looking for books that her students wouldn ’ t have to share .
She uncovered a stash of unclaimed copies of “ The Phantom of the Opera ” and “ A Raisin in the Sun ” and had her students read them together and act out the stories .
“ My gosh , those students did @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ I think I fell in love at that point.
” In a classroom , learning can be contagious .
That ’ s what Ngissah loves about teaching — the way students come alive when they make connections between their own lives and her lessons , the way one student ’ s question can spark a moment of understanding for others , the way she can see students ’ faces light up when a point suddenly clicks .
In sixth grade , especially , moments like that can be crucial for kids .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ another , ” she says , the students channeled toward success or struggle .
That ’ s why personal connections are so important .
“ A student , once they feel that you really care about them and that you really want what ’ s best for them no matter what , you ’ re going to push them and they won ’ t break , ” Ngissah says .
When the last person in line receives their food , and the volunteers clean and ready the cafeteria for the next giveaway , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and sits down at her couch with her laptop to start teaching .
A couple of weeks into distance learning , about half of her 35 students had not signed on to her Google Classroom , and she had taken on a new role as missing-student sleuth .
She started calling homes , talking to parents when they picked up food , asking absent students ’ friends to reach out to them .
She began to piece together why they were missing .
Some parents and students didn ’ t know how to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ parents to put their children on the phone and walk them through , step by step , how to open their email , how to find the dots in the corner of the page that lead to the online classroom , how to enter the code for her class .
“ You ’ re in !
You ’ re in !
” she said when she could see on her own computer that they had signed on .
Some students did not want to take a school laptop because they had a family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that one shared computer leaves a student little time to do their work .
Other students lost their passwords , so she reset them .
Others needed help getting internet access , and she directed them to the principal , who was coordinating with district officials .
Still others spent all of their time on a few online learning games such as Nitro Type — a car racing game meant to improve typing skills — but had not looked at their other assignments .
It took nearly a month , but Ngissah finally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of her students are doing their work .
She also knows a few students simply have too much going on in their home lives and can ’ t make a school a priority .
“ It ’ s not like they don ’ t want to , ” she says .
“ People are dealing with stuff.
” She uses her phone to record herself presenting lessons , such as writing math equations with a pencil on a piece of notebook paper .
“ Hello , everyone .
I hope you guys are @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” she says in the first video .
“ I ’ m learning along with you guys , so if I make any mistakes or anything like that , that ’ s OK. ” As she walked students through how to solve problems , like Z x Z when Z=3 , she stopped occasionally to ask questions , as she would in the classroom , to gauge their understating .
Silence .
So she started answering her own questions for them .
“ Are we substituting Z for 3 or 3 for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I hope you all said 3 for Z.
” At one point , the camera image got blurry .
She restarted the video .
Still blurry .
“ I ’ m doing something wrong , ” she said .
“ I can ’ t figure it out , though .
So hopefully you can see what it ’ s doing.
” Text and type , the new reality Ngissah can take questions from students using a chat function in Google Classroom .
But it ’ s nothing like the energy of a physical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ask questions at different hours of the day , sometimes as late as 9 p.m. , possibly the only quiet time they have to do schoolwork .
She finds herself responding again and again to the same question because “ it ’ s not like I can say , ‘ Go look through this chat and find the answer.
’ ” When she explained that students would no longer be using the books she sent home with them , confusion reigned in a chain of messages : “ Why did they give us @ @ @ @ @ @ @ What about the book we ’ re supposed to be doing ?
” “ Why did we get the book ?
” When she forgot to post a quiz and posted a message explaining the mistake , more messages cascaded in : “ Where ’ s the quiz ?
” “ I don ’ t see the quiz.
” “ Where are the questions ?
” Each needed to be individually answered .
“ In the classroom , ” she says , “ students have questions and you ’ ll answer the question @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and say , ‘ Do you understand or do I need to explain it a different way ?
’ ” Now that back-and-forth is time-consuming .
“ Texting and typing , what you say and think you ’ re saying may not be what they ’ re getting , ” she says .
Sandra Lopez , the mother of one of her students , said Ngissah constantly emails her to make sure her daughter is getting her assignments .
And when her daughter has questions , she takes her to the food distribution @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from a distance .
“ She misses school , ” Lopez said .
“ She never thought she would miss school this much.
” As president of the Inglewood teachers union , Ngissah is also fielding calls from educators trying to navigate their new reality .
She ’ s heard from teachers who want to use online meetings but worry that students may not be safe or comfortable having their peers see their homes or having family members in the background .
Many teachers still have missing students , some “ radio silent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Everybody is antsy , ” Ngissah says .
“ They say , ‘ I have certain students who still haven ’ t logged on .
I ’ ve called them , the principal has called them .
They keep saying OK , OK , but they ’ re not logging on.
’ You have to ask yourself , is it because there are some families that are dealing with other stuff ?
” Ngissah worries about the long-term effect of these months .
“ To just have a sudden , ‘ Bam @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re not coming back to school.
’ Just that sudden .
And then the fear of watching the news every day and they ’ re reading it on their phones and hearing more and more people dying .
I think we ’ re going to see the aftereffects of this for many years to come , ” she says .
But she tries not to dwell too much on those worries .
Right now , it feels like she ’ s in a race against the clock to get her students ready for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is trying to figure out how to replicate the bonds forged in a classroom from afar .
And it ’ s 9 p.m. , and questions are still coming in .

Sixth-grade teacher Aba Ngissah, right, and a colleague unload fruits and vegetables for meal bags at Hudnall Elementary School in Inglewood.
It’s just past 8 a.m. at the Inglewood elementary school where sixth-grade teacher Aba Ngissah has taught for seven years.
The blinds on classroom windows, normally open, are drawn, and hundreds of parents and students, rather than rushing for the start of class, are lining up outside the front gate waiting for food.
Ngissah is starting her day in the cafeteria — against a backdrop of giant tissue-paper flowers that are slowly falling apart more than a month after she and her students made them for Read Across America Day. She works quickly alongside other volunteer teachers and Inglewood school district staff, filling hundreds of brown paper bags with boxed cereal, sandwiches, milk, apples and cookies.
It’s been about a month since Hudnall Elementary School shut down, its 400 students among the 6.1 million K-12 California students whose campuses are closed.
After every bag is claimed on this recent Friday, Ngissah will help give out laptops. In the afternoon, she goes home, washes her hands and changes her clothes to protect her elderly mother, who is staying with her. About 1 p.m., she’ll sit down at her computer and begin her real job.
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“You just keep going all day and all night,” she says.
That’s just what it means to be a teacher right now.
Parents line up early April 4 in front of Hudnall Elementary School for meal bags. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times)
An unprecedented moment
Nothing — not her classroom experience, her skills as a teachers union organizer nor her work introducing online learning tools — prepared Ngissah for this moment when her classroom would be locked and her students sent home to isolate themselves against the novel coronavirus.
Her first priority is making sure her kids are fed.
At Hudnall, 90% of students come from low-income households and qualify for free or reduced-price lunch, so the safety net of school meals has always been important. Right now, it’s vital.
At times, Ngissah and other teachers and staff members use their own money to buy toilet paper, cleaning supplies, ramen noodles, rice and meat for families.
It all happened so abruptly, this radical change to schooling.
When schools closed in mid-March, Ngissah sent books and work packets with lessons to cover two weeks. When it became clear that the closures would continue, she joined others in the district and started distributing laptops along with bags of food.
Then, from her living room, she set up a Google Classroom as it sunk in that she’d have to start teaching her kids via pixels on a screen.
Advertisement
Enduring bonds
Ngissah has been a teacher for more than 20 years, and the main allure to the job has always been the relationships she develops with students and parents.
A UCLA history graduate, she taught her first year at a school in Los Angeles. But when the year ended, she wasn’t sure if she could bear getting to know students again and again only to have them move on.
“I thought, ‘This is too much.’ To me, you get attached and then they leave. It was very emotional,” Ngissah said. With time, she learned that strong bonds endure — former students come back to say hello, invite her to graduations and let her know when their babies are born.
The next year, she took a job at Crozier Middle School in Inglewood, where the paint was coming off the walls and there weren’t enough books for every student.
The district, which is 56% Latino and 40% black, has long struggled financially — in 2012, it was taken over by the state Department of Education, nearly insolvent and in need of millions of dollars in loans to stay afloat. It is currently overseen by a county administrator.
Test scores reflect the depth of its academic challenges. Last year, only 30% of students met or exceeded standards in English language arts, and 18% met or exceeded standards in math.
Getting free internet is hard for poor students despite provider promises, survey finds Low-income L.A. families are struggling to get students connected to the internet even with promises of help from phone and cable providers. A survey found 16% still unconnected.
That first year in her Inglewood classroom, Ngissah found herself looking for books that her students wouldn’t have to share. She uncovered a stash of unclaimed copies of “The Phantom of the Opera” and “A Raisin in the Sun” and had her students read them together and act out the stories.
“My gosh, those students did amazingly well,” she recalls. “I think I fell in love at that point.”
In a classroom, learning can be contagious. That’s what Ngissah loves about teaching — the way students come alive when they make connections between their own lives and her lessons, the way one student’s question can spark a moment of understanding for others, the way she can see students’ faces light up when a point suddenly clicks.
In sixth grade, especially, moments like that can be crucial for kids.
“You can go one way or another,” she says, the students channeled toward success or struggle.
That’s why personal connections are so important. “A student, once they feel that you really care about them and that you really want what’s best for them no matter what, you’re going to push them and they won’t break,” Ngissah says.
A strange new role
When the last person in line receives their food, and the volunteers clean and ready the cafeteria for the next giveaway, Ngissah goes home, changes her clothes and sits down at her couch with her laptop to start teaching.
Sixth-grade teacher Aba Ngissah works on her online classroom from home. (Aba Ngissah)
A couple of weeks into distance learning, about half of her 35 students had not signed on to her Google Classroom, and she had taken on a new role as missing-student sleuth. She started calling homes, talking to parents when they picked up food, asking absent students’ friends to reach out to them.
She began to piece together why they were missing.
Some parents and students didn’t know how to log on. So she would ask parents to put their children on the phone and walk them through, step by step, how to open their email, how to find the dots in the corner of the page that lead to the online classroom, how to enter the code for her class.
“You’re in! You’re in!” she said when she could see on her own computer that they had signed on.
Some students did not want to take a school laptop because they had a family computer at home. She convinced them that one shared computer leaves a student little time to do their work.
Other students lost their passwords, so she reset them. Others needed help getting internet access, and she directed them to the principal, who was coordinating with district officials. Still others spent all of their time on a few online learning games such as Nitro Type — a car racing game meant to improve typing skills — but had not looked at their other assignments.
It took nearly a month, but Ngissah finally reached every parent, and almost all of her students are doing their work. She also knows a few students simply have too much going on in their home lives and can’t make a school a priority.
“It’s not like they don’t want to,” she says. “People are dealing with stuff.”
Students are in ‘desperate need’ of computers amid coronavirus distance learning Coronavirus: Gov. Newsom announced donations and other efforts to provide computers to students during closures, but it falls far short
She uses her phone to record herself presenting lessons, such as writing math equations with a pencil on a piece of notebook paper.
“Hello, everyone. I hope you guys are doing well. This is Ms. Ngissah,” she says in the first video. “I’m learning along with you guys, so if I make any mistakes or anything like that, that’s OK.”
As she walked students through how to solve problems, like Z x Z when Z=3, she stopped occasionally to ask questions, as she would in the classroom, to gauge their understanding. Silence. So she started answering her own questions for them.
“Are we substituting Z for 3 or 3 for Z?” she asked. “I hope you all said 3 for Z.”
At one point, the camera image got blurry. She restarted the video. Still blurry.
“I’m doing something wrong,” she said. “I can’t figure it out, though. So hopefully you can see what it’s doing.”
× Aba Ngissah, a sixth-grade teacher at Hudnall Elementary School in Inglewood, walks students through how to solve a math problem during one of her teaching sessions from home.
Text and type, the new reality
Ngissah can take questions from students using a chat function in Google Classroom. But it’s nothing like the energy of a physical classroom. Students do their work and ask questions at different hours of the day, sometimes as late as 9 p.m., possibly the only quiet time they have to do schoolwork.
She finds herself responding again and again to the same question because “it’s not like I can say, ‘Go look through this chat and find the answer.’”
When she explained that students would no longer be using the books she sent home with them, confusion reigned in a chain of messages:
“Why did they give us the book at school?”
“What about the book we’re supposed to be doing?”
“Why did we get the book?”
Column One A showcase for compelling storytelling from the Los Angeles Times. More stories
When she forgot to post a quiz and posted a message explaining the mistake, more messages cascaded in: “Where’s the quiz?” “I don’t see the quiz.” “Where are the questions?” Each needed to be individually answered.
“In the classroom,” she says, “students have questions and you’ll answer the question and you can go more in depth and say, ‘Do you understand or do I need to explain it a different way?’”
Now that back-and-forth is time-consuming.
“Texting and typing, what you say and think you’re saying may not be what they’re getting,” she says.
Sandra Lopez, the mother of one of her students, said Ngissah constantly emails her to make sure her daughter is getting her assignments. And when her daughter has questions, she takes her to the food distribution line to talk to a masked Ngissah from a distance.
“She misses school,” Lopez said. “She never thought she would miss school this much.”
As president of the Inglewood teachers union, Ngissah is also fielding calls from educators trying to navigate their new reality.
She’s heard from teachers who want to use online meetings but worry that students may not be safe or comfortable having their peers see their homes or having family members in the background. Many teachers still have missing students, some “radio silent,” Principal Dawnyell Goolsby said.
“Everybody is antsy,” Ngissah says. “They say, ‘I have certain students who still haven’t logged on. I’ve called them, the principal has called them. They keep saying OK, OK, but they’re not logging on.’ You have to ask yourself, is it because there are some families that are dealing with other stuff?”
Ngissah worries about the long-term effect of these months.
“To just have a sudden, ‘Bam you’re done, you’re not coming back to school.’ Just that sudden. And then the fear of watching the news every day and they’re reading it on their phones and hearing more and more people dying. I think we’re going to see the aftereffects of this for many years to come,” she says.
But she tries not to dwell too much on those worries.
Right now, it feels like she’s in a race against the clock to get her students ready for seventh grade. She misses them and is trying to figure out how to replicate the bonds forged in a classroom from afar.
And it’s 9 p.m., and questions are still coming in.


latimes--2020-04-24--The anti-vaccine and anti-lockdown movements are converging, refusing to be 'enslaved'

While most of the world hungers for a vaccine to put an end to the death and economic destruction wrought by COVID-19 , some anti-vaccine groups are joining with anti-lockdown demonstrators to challenge restrictions aimed at protecting public health .
Vaccine critics suffered serious setbacks in the last year , as states strengthened immunization laws in response to measles outbreaks sparked by vaccine refusers .
California tightened its vaccine requirements last fall despite protests during which anti-vaccine activists threw blood on state senators , assaulted the vaccine bill ’ s sponsor and shut down the Legislature .
Now , many @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a fight against stay-at-home orders and business shutdowns intended to stem the spread of the coronavirus , which had killed more than 48,800 Americans as of Thursday afternoon .
“ This is just a fresh coat of paint for the anti-vaccine movement in America , and an exploitative means for them to try to remain relevant , ” said Dr. Peter Hotez , a professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston .
Hotez said anti-vaccine groups are seizing on the anti-government sentiment stoked by conservative-leaning protesters to advance their cause .
A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ whose members last year stood on chairs and chanted at public hearings on the California vaccine bill , say governors are abusing their power by shutting down gun shops and other businesses .
Many anti-vaccine activists — who have claimed that diseases such as measles aren ’ t that serious — now contend the coronavirus isn ’ t dangerous enough to justify staying home .
They agree with President Trump that the “ cure ” for the pandemic could be worse than the disease itself .
That ’ s led some vaccine foes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has encouraged on Twitter — in staging demonstrations in state capitals to “ reopen America.
” “ This is the time for people to take notice and really evaluate the freedoms they ’ re giving up , all in the name of perceived safety , ” said Freedom Angels co-founder Heidi Munoz Gleisner in a Facebook video .
“ People need to get back to work , get back to life , get back into contact with their loved ones who they ’ re isolated from , they need to be able to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Tara Thornton told the Sacramento Bee , which interviewed her during the demonstration .
“ This is the grounds they will enslave us upon.
” Freedom Angels did not respond to requests for interviews .
The group ’ s website mentions plans for additional rallies and includes photos from Monday ’ s demonstration , such as one in which a protester holds a sign proclaiming “ No Mandatory Vaccines.
” But after the Monday event , the California Highway Patrol announced it had revoked the group ’ s permit for future protests because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people — violated the governor ’ s social distancing order .
The Highway Patrol has now banned all group events at the Capitol during the pandemic to avoid spreading the coronavirus .
The anti-vaccine movement has never been limited to one political party .
Left-leaning vaccine critics — such as Children ’ s Health Defense , led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — include environmentalists who are suspicious of chemical pollutants , corporations and Big Pharma .
The Kennedy group ’ s website attacks Dr. Anthony Fauci , director of the National Institute @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rushing “ risky and uncertain coronavirus vaccines ” into development as part of a “ sweetheart deal ” for drug companies .
On the other side of the political spectrum , many anti-vaccine conservatives oppose state immunization requirements because they distrust “ big government.
” • A group called Texans for Vaccine Choice has called on the governor to promise that no one will be forced to get a coronavirus vaccine in order to go to work or school .
• Posts on the Facebook page of Californians for Vaccine Choice , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , question stay-at-home orders and accuse government officials of refusing to admit the orders are a mistake .
• In a video on the Freedom Angels ’ Facebook page , its founders describe stay-at-home orders as an abuse of government authority , and the closure of California gun shops as an assault on the Second Amendment .
The group notes that guns could be essential for protection from rioters and looters looking to steal food during the pandemic .
In many ways , the conservative arm of the anti-vaccine movement is a natural @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” rallies , said Dr. David Gorski , an oncologist and managing editor of the Science-Based Medicine site .
Both groups harbor suspicions about government authority .
Vaccine critics , for example , have long championed the false claim that vaccines cause autism , and that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tried to cover up that information , Gorski said .
Trump has at times linked vaccines with autism , although he came out strongly in favor of vaccinations during the 2019 measles epidemic .
Anti-vaccine groups are now rebranding @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” a stance that could attract libertarians to their cause , said Madelyn Webb , a research reporter at First Draft News , a nonprofit that fights misinformation .
Protests against social distancing began in Michigan but have spread to state capitols in Texas , Colorado , Nevada , Maryland , Wisconsin and elsewhere , with more planned .
Most protests have been small , limited to a few hundred or fewer people .
Yet the anti-vaccine movement doesn ’ t speak for everyone on the right .
Stephen Moore , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ conservative advocacy group that has been helping to publicize the protests , said he ’ s unfamiliar with the Freedom Angels or its rallies .
“ I ’ m personally pro-vaccine , ” said Moore , a member of the White House council to reopen the economy .
“ Especially when it comes to coronavirus.
” And some heroes of the anti-vaccine movement say they support coronavirus lockdowns .
Dr. Jay Gordon , a Santa Monica pediatrician popular among vaccine foes for downplaying the risks of measles , said the risk of COVID-19 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the lockdown , “ and we have to keep it up.
” Dr. Richard Pan , a pediatrician and California state senator who has championed stronger vaccine mandates , described anti-vaccine and anti-lockdown protesters as “ essentially selfish ” because they put other people at risk .
“ One of the hallmarks of the anti-vaccine movement is this sense of selfishness and lack of concern for other people ’ s health , ” said Pan , who was assaulted by an anti-vaccine activist last year .
“ They like to talk about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ really want is freedom without consequences.
” Both anti-vaccine parents and those who want to relax social distancing assume that the medical system will come to their rescue if they become sick , said Pan , who noted that thousands of healthcare workers have died while fighting the pandemic .
Fauci has said that relaxing stay-at-home orders is dangerous as long as the virus — for which there are no approved treatments or vaccines — is actively spreading .
Reopening businesses too soon could spark a second wave of infections .
More than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trying to develop vaccines , which are seen as a key weapon against the novel coronavirus .
In the meantime , the CDC says that social distancing measures — such as working from home and avoiding large gatherings — are critical to slowing the spread of the coronavirus and preventing patients from overwhelming hospitals .
Health leaders say it won ’ t be safe to reopen the country until widespread testing shows the coronavirus has died down .
Americans overwhelmingly support vaccination , according to surveys , and polling by the Kaiser Family @ @ @ @ @ @ @ want lockdowns to continue .
Only 19 % said social distancing orders placed an unnecessary burden on the economy .
( Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the foundation . )
Neither the anti-vaccine nor anti-lockdown demonstrators represent the opinions of most Americans , Pan said .
“ Let ’ s put this movement into proper context , ” he said .
“ They ’ re loud , they ’ re noisy and they ’ re small.
” This story was produced by Kaiser Health News ( KHN ) , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ independent service of the California Health Care Foundation .
KHN is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente .

A driver takes a picture of the rally on Main Street in Huntington Beach against business closures due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Conservative activist rally on Main Street in Huntington Beach against business closures due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Conservative activist rally on Main Street in Huntington Beach against business closures due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Police keep an eye on Trump supporters at a rally on Main Street against business closure due to COVID-19 pandemic. Huntington Beach, CA. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Kira Beattie, center, joins rally in Huntington Beach against the lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Conservative activist rally on Main Street in Huntington Beach against business closures due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
Sarah Mason, of Covina, rallied in Huntington Beach against the stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic. (Irfan Khan/Los Angeles Times)
While most of the world hungers for a vaccine to put an end to the death and economic destruction wrought by COVID-19, some anti-vaccine groups are joining with anti-lockdown demonstrators to challenge restrictions aimed at protecting public health.
Vaccine critics suffered serious setbacks in the last year, as states strengthened immunization laws in response to measles outbreaks sparked by vaccine refusers. California tightened its vaccine requirements last fall despite protests during which anti-vaccine activists threw blood on state senators, assaulted the vaccine bill’s sponsor and shut down the Legislature.
Now, many of these same vaccine critics are joining a fight against stay-at-home orders and business shutdowns intended to stem the spread of the coronavirus, which had killed more than 48,800 Americans as of Thursday afternoon.
“This is just a fresh coat of paint for the anti-vaccine movement in America, and an exploitative means for them to try to remain relevant,” said Dr. Peter Hotez, a professor at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston.
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Hotez said anti-vaccine groups are seizing on the anti-government sentiment stoked by conservative-leaning protesters to advance their cause.
“Unfortunately, their strategy may work.”
A group calling itself the Freedom Angels, whose members last year stood on chairs and chanted at public hearings on the California vaccine bill, say governors are abusing their power by shutting down gun shops and other businesses.
Many anti-vaccine activists — who have claimed that diseases such as measles aren’t that serious — now contend the coronavirus isn’t dangerous enough to justify staying home. They agree with President Trump that the “cure” for the pandemic could be worse than the disease itself.
That’s led some vaccine foes to join the protesters — whom Trump has encouraged on Twitter — in staging demonstrations in state capitals to “reopen America.”
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“This is the time for people to take notice and really evaluate the freedoms they’re giving up, all in the name of perceived safety,” said Freedom Angels co-founder Heidi Munoz Gleisner in a Facebook video.
The group organized a Monday rally in Sacramento called “Operation Gridlock.”
“People need to get back to work, get back to life, get back into contact with their loved ones who they’re isolated from, they need to be able to have a paycheck,” group co-founder Tara Thornton told the Sacramento Bee, which interviewed her during the demonstration. “This is the grounds they will enslave us upon.”
Freedom Angels did not respond to requests for interviews. The group’s website mentions plans for additional rallies and includes photos from Monday’s demonstration, such as one in which a protester holds a sign proclaiming “No Mandatory Vaccines.”
But after the Monday event, the California Highway Patrol announced it had revoked the group’s permit for future protests because the gathering — which included dozens of people — violated the governor’s social distancing order. The Highway Patrol has now banned all group events at the Capitol during the pandemic to avoid spreading the coronavirus.
A Big Tent
The anti-vaccine movement has never been limited to one political party. Left-leaning vaccine critics — such as Children’s Health Defense, led by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. — include environmentalists who are suspicious of chemical pollutants, corporations and Big Pharma.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wrote a 2005 article in Rolling Stone and Salon.com linking autism and vaccines. (Michael Buckner / Getty Images)
The Kennedy group’s website attacks Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, for rushing “risky and uncertain coronavirus vaccines” into development as part of a “sweetheart deal” for drug companies.
On the other side of the political spectrum, many anti-vaccine conservatives oppose state immunization requirements because they distrust “big government.”
A group called Texans for Vaccine Choice has called on the governor to promise that no one will be forced to get a coronavirus vaccine in order to go to work or school.
Posts on the Facebook page of Californians for Vaccine Choice, which also opposed California’s vaccine laws, question stay-at-home orders and accuse government officials of refusing to admit the orders are a mistake.
In a video on the Freedom Angels’ Facebook page, its founders describe stay-at-home orders as an abuse of government authority, and the closure of California gun shops as an assault on the Second Amendment. The group notes that guns could be essential for protection from rioters and looters looking to steal food during the pandemic.
In many ways, the conservative arm of the anti-vaccine movement is a natural ally for those leading “reopen America” rallies, said Dr. David Gorski, an oncologist and managing editor of the Science-Based Medicine site. Both groups harbor suspicions about government authority.
Vaccine critics, for example, have long championed the false claim that vaccines cause autism, and that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has tried to cover up that information, Gorski said. Trump has at times linked vaccines with autism, although he came out strongly in favor of vaccinations during the 2019 measles epidemic.
Anti-vaccine groups are now rebranding themselves as advocates of “medical freedom,” a stance that could attract libertarians to their cause, said Madelyn Webb, a research reporter at First Draft News, a nonprofit that fights misinformation.
Protests against social distancing began in Michigan but have spread to state capitols in Texas, Colorado, Nevada, Maryland, Wisconsin and elsewhere, with more planned. Most protests have been small, limited to a few hundred or fewer people.
Yet the anti-vaccine movement doesn’t speak for everyone on the right.
Stephen Moore, the senior economic contributor for FreedomWorks, a conservative advocacy group that has been helping to publicize the protests, said he’s unfamiliar with the Freedom Angels or its rallies.
“I’m personally pro-vaccine,” said Moore, a member of the White House council to reopen the economy. “Especially when it comes to coronavirus.”
And some heroes of the anti-vaccine movement say they support coronavirus lockdowns.
Dr. Jay Gordon, a Santa Monica pediatrician popular among vaccine foes for downplaying the risks of measles, said the risk of COVID-19 is real. Gordon said he approves of the lockdown, “and we have to keep it up.”
Containing The Pandemic
Dr. Richard Pan, a pediatrician and California state senator who has championed stronger vaccine mandates, described anti-vaccine and anti-lockdown protesters as “essentially selfish” because they put other people at risk.
“One of the hallmarks of the anti-vaccine movement is this sense of selfishness and lack of concern for other people’s health,” said Pan, who was assaulted by an anti-vaccine activist last year. “They like to talk about rights and freedom. But what they really want is freedom without consequences.”
Both anti-vaccine parents and those who want to relax social distancing assume that the medical system will come to their rescue if they become sick, said Pan, who noted that thousands of healthcare workers have died while fighting the pandemic.
Fauci has said that relaxing stay-at-home orders is dangerous as long as the virus — for which there are no approved treatments or vaccines — is actively spreading. Reopening businesses too soon could spark a second wave of infections.
More than 75 companies and research groups worldwide are trying to develop vaccines, which are seen as a key weapon against the novel coronavirus.
In the meantime, the CDC says that social distancing measures — such as working from home and avoiding large gatherings — are critical to slowing the spread of the coronavirus and preventing patients from overwhelming hospitals. Health leaders say it won’t be safe to reopen the country until widespread testing shows the coronavirus has died down.
Americans overwhelmingly support vaccination, according to surveys, and polling by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 80% of Americans want lockdowns to continue. Only 19% said social distancing orders placed an unnecessary burden on the economy. (Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the foundation.)
Neither the anti-vaccine nor anti-lockdown demonstrators represent the opinions of most Americans, Pan said.
“Let’s put this movement into proper context,” he said. “They’re loud, they’re noisy and they’re small.”
This story was produced by Kaiser Health News (KHN), which publishes California Healthline, an editorially independent service of the California Health Care Foundation. KHN is not affiliated with Kaiser Permanente.


latimes--2020-04-24--California's April heat wave is a time to be extra cautious about children and pets in parked cars

With the coronavirus outbreak , it might be tempting to leave a child in the car — for just a few minutes , to avoid exposing her to the virus — while you run into the grocery store or pharmacy .
First of all , it is illegal to leave a child unattended in a motor vehicle in California .
Secondly , heatstroke can occur quickly , even on relatively cool days .
During a heat wave , such as what Southern California is experiencing , it can be lethal in minutes .
“ People always underestimate how hot a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meteorologist Jan Null , who has studied the danger and created NoHeatStroke.org .
Heatstroke can come quickly , occurring when the body ’ s core temperature reaches 104 degrees .
If the body ’ s core temperature reaches 107 degrees , it is usually fatal .
And a child ’ s body warms three to five times faster than an adult ’ s .
“ And leave the pets at home , ” Null adds .
“ Their threshold is about the same.
” Some 849 children have died of pediatric vehicular heatstroke @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — in the U.S. since 1998 , and 100 % of these deaths could have been prevented .
In 2019 there were 52 such deaths nationally .
The average annual number of such child heatstroke deaths from 1998 to 2019 is 39 .
The children ranged in age from 5 days to 14 years , with more than half under the age of 2 years .
Null studied the circumstances of these deaths and found that about 54 % had been forgotten by a caregiver ; 25 % gained access to the car @ @ @ @ @ @ @ knowingly left by a caregiver ; and the remaining 1.5 % died under unknown circumstances .
Null also studied how fast a car can heat up .
He found that two-thirds of the heating takes place in the the first 20 minutes .
“ Cracking ” the windows — leaving the window open slightly — had little effect .
That made a difference of less than three degrees .
Exterior color of the vehicle also made little difference , but the vehicle ’ s interior color was a big factor .
The sun @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
This is shortwave radiation , Null explains .
The windows and air are essentially transparent , and are warmed a little .
But this shortwave radiation heats the objects it strikes .
A dark dashboard , steering wheel or seat can be warmed from 180 to more than 200 degrees .
These objects , including a child seat , then heat the surrounding air by conduction and convection , and give off longwave radiation .
Thus , these surfaces and objects very efficiently warm the trapped air inside the vehicle .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a 72-degree day , the temperature will rise an average of 43 degrees , to 115 degrees , in an hour .
On a 90-degree day , the interior of the car could reach 133 degrees in an hour .
The interior temperature of a car can be 50 degrees higher than the temperature outside , and 80 % of the heat increase happens in the first 30 minutes .
So a child shouldn ’ t be left in a car for even a short time .
Null found that the highest number @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Friday , possibly suggesting a correlation with fatigue later in the workweek .
About 30 % of the deaths were among children less than a year old .
And Null found that forgetting a child in a car has happened to people in all walks of life , from barbers to baristas , from students to teachers and principals , from lawyers , judges and administrators to waiters , police officers and tradesmen .
“ It can happen to anybody , ” Null concluded .
Under Kaitlyn ’ s Law , signed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ illegal in California to leave a child 6 years or younger in a car when conditions such as heat or cold could threaten the child ’ s life , or when the vehicle is running or has keys in the ignition or both .
The law is named for Kaitlyn Russell of Corona , a 6-month-old who died after being left by a babysitter in a parked car for more than two hours .
Breaks in daily routine — which have been common features for many during the coronavirus outbreak — can lead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ warn .
They suggest creating reminders , such as placing a briefcase , purse or cellphone on the back seat next to the child — something you will need to go into the back seat to retrieve upon arrival at your destination .
Cars should always be kept locked so kids can ’ t get into them on their own , and special care should be taken when loading and unloading , officials say .
Officials urge that if you see a child alone in a car , immediately call 911 .
Emergency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ situations .

Temperatures can quickly reach deadly levels in an enclosed vehicle, even on relatively cool days.
With the coronavirus outbreak, it might be tempting to leave a child in the car — for just a few minutes, to avoid exposing her to the virus — while you run into the grocery store or pharmacy.
Don’t do it.
First of all, it is illegal to leave a child unattended in a motor vehicle in California.
Secondly, heatstroke can occur quickly, even on relatively cool days. During a heat wave, such as what Southern California is experiencing, it can be lethal in minutes.
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“People always underestimate how hot a car can get,” said veteran meteorologist Jan Null, who has studied the danger and created NoHeatStroke.org.
Heatstroke can come quickly, occurring when the body’s core temperature reaches 104 degrees. If the body’s core temperature reaches 107 degrees, it is usually fatal. And a child’s body warms three to five times faster than an adult’s.
“And leave the pets at home,” Null adds. “Their threshold is about the same.”
Some 849 children have died of pediatric vehicular heatstroke — being left in or gaining access to a hot car — in the U.S. since 1998, and 100% of these deaths could have been prevented. In 2019 there were 52 such deaths nationally. The average annual number of such child heatstroke deaths from 1998 to 2019 is 39.
The children ranged in age from 5 days to 14 years, with more than half under the age of 2 years. Null studied the circumstances of these deaths and found that about 54% had been forgotten by a caregiver; 25% gained access to the car on their own; 19% were knowingly left by a caregiver; and the remaining 1.5% died under unknown circumstances.
Temperatures can rise to dangerous levels in minutes. (Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)
Null also studied how fast a car can heat up. He found that two-thirds of the heating takes place in the the first 20 minutes. “Cracking” the windows — leaving the window open slightly — had little effect. That made a difference of less than three degrees.
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Exterior color of the vehicle also made little difference, but the vehicle’s interior color was a big factor.
The sun’s rays pour through the windows. This is shortwave radiation, Null explains. The windows and air are essentially transparent, and are warmed a little. But this shortwave radiation heats the objects it strikes. A dark dashboard, steering wheel or seat can be warmed from 180 to more than 200 degrees. These objects, including a child seat, then heat the surrounding air by conduction and convection, and give off longwave radiation. Thus, these surfaces and objects very efficiently warm the trapped air inside the vehicle.
As the chart above shows, even on a 72-degree day, the temperature will rise an average of 43 degrees, to 115 degrees, in an hour. On a 90-degree day, the interior of the car could reach 133 degrees in an hour.
The interior temperature of a car can be 50 degrees higher than the temperature outside, and 80% of the heat increase happens in the first 30 minutes. So a child shouldn’t be left in a car for even a short time.
California is third in heatstroke deaths nationwide. (Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)
Null found that the highest number of child heatstroke deaths occurred on Thursday and Friday, possibly suggesting a correlation with fatigue later in the workweek.
About 30% of the deaths were among children less than a year old. And Null found that forgetting a child in a car has happened to people in all walks of life, from barbers to baristas, from students to teachers and principals, from lawyers, judges and administrators to waiters, police officers and tradesmen. “It can happen to anybody,” Null concluded.
Under Kaitlyn’s Law, signed into law in 2001, it is illegal in California to leave a child 6 years or younger in a car when conditions such as heat or cold could threaten the child’s life, or when the vehicle is running or has keys in the ignition or both.
Heatstroke deaths can occur in cooler, northern states. (Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)
The law is named for Kaitlyn Russell of Corona, a 6-month-old who died after being left by a babysitter in a parked car for more than two hours.
Breaks in daily routine — which have been common features for many during the coronavirus outbreak — can lead to momentary lapses in memory, officials warn. They suggest creating reminders, such as placing a briefcase, purse or cellphone on the back seat next to the child — something you will need to go into the back seat to retrieve upon arrival at your destination.
Cars should always be kept locked so kids can’t get into them on their own, and special care should be taken when loading and unloading, officials say.
Officials urge that if you see a child alone in a car, immediately call 911. Emergency personnel are trained to respond to such situations.


latimes--2020-04-23--20 people have died in Yucaipa from coronavirus. All but two were residents of one skilled-nursing f

20 people have died in Yucaipa from coronavirus. All but two were residents of one skilled-nursing facility

Eighteen residents of a Yucaipa skilled nursing facility are dead after a coronavirus outbreak at the facility , and more than 100 residents and staff members have tested positive for COVID-19 .
The deaths at Cedar Mountain Post Acute Rehabilitation account for nearly a quarter of San Bernardino County ’ s 77 coronavirus-related deaths , according to the county ’ s latest numbers .
Although Yucaipa has a population of about 53,600 , it is reporting the third-most COVID-19 cases behind two larger cities , Fontana and San Bernardino , and leads with the highest number of reported deaths at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the highest publicly identified death tolls at a single nursing facility in the state .
In Tulare County , 16 residents have died at one Visalia facility , where more than 160 residents and staff members have tested positive .
The state is not releasing information on coronavirus-related deaths at facilities identified with outbreaks , a representative from the California Department of Public Health wrote in an email .
San Bernardino County health officials first announced an outbreak at Cedar Mountain on March 28 after a dozen residents tested positive and one died @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when the county announced 75 residents and staff had tested positive and five residents had died .
Currently , 71 residents and 34 staff members are infected .
When the county reported the five deaths at Cedar Mountain , it also the creation of the Nursing Facilities Task Force , which consists of county , state and federal health officials to help address virus spreads at the 171 state-licensed nursing facilities that care for about 6,600 patients .
On the same day , acting county Public Health Officer Dr. Erin Gustafson issued an @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wear protective gear , forbids them from entering facilities if they ’ re showing symptoms and strongly recommends facilities to cease using staff working at other nursing facilities .
County spokesman David Wert said the task force has helped provide protective gear and testing to nursing facilities .
At places where outbreaks have been identified , all patients and staff are tested , even if they ’ re not displaying symptoms , to identify potential carriers , Wert said .
Cedar Mountain was identified as the first facility with an outbreak in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ death toll may not only be due to many residents being in their 70s or older , but they often have multiple underlying health conditions , he said .
“ Once these people became infected ... it has gradually taken its toll , ” he said .
San Bernardino Supervisor Dawn Rowe , who represents Yucaipa , said it was “ absolutely heartbreaking ” to see the number of reported deaths at the facility .
“ This virus wreaked havoc not just there but in hundreds of skilled nursing facilities throughout California , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Elizabeth Tyler , a spokeswoman for Cedar Mountain , could not be reached for comment Thursday .
Previously , Tyler said the first five fatalities were residents nearly 90 or older and all had suffered from preexisting health conditions .
Healthy patients were separated from infected patients , many of whom were asymptomatic at the time , she said .
A second skilled nursing facility in Yucaipa , Calimesa Post Acute , is also dealing with an outbreak that has grown rapidly in the last few days : 41 residents and one staff @ @ @ @ @ @ @ person has died at the 82-bed facility , the county reported .
The facility ’ s administrator , Dwayne Whitehead , could not be reached for comment .
Together , the outbreaks at the facilities make up 154 of the town ’ s 167 reported cases .
Efforts to address the spread at the state-regulated facility have been led at the county and state levels .
Still , Mayor David Avila expressed sadness Thursday at how the disproportionately high death toll and cases reflect on his community .
The rural town , set @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mountains , is a tightknit community and has many locally owned shops , he said .
Many residents have followed the stay-at-home directives , but with many being elderly , the odds are against them , he said .
“ On the outside , it doesn ’ t look good for us , ” he said .

Cedar Mountain Post Acute Rehabilitation staff member Navi Cavaltera water a flower pot put up by community to show their support for the nursing staff of the facility in Yucaipa. Eighteen of 20 coronavirus-related deaths in Yucaipa were residents of the Cedar Mountain Post Acute Rehabilitation skilled nursing facility.
Eighteen residents of a Yucaipa skilled nursing facility are dead after a coronavirus outbreak at the facility, and more than 100 residents and staff members have tested positive for COVID-19.
The deaths at Cedar Mountain Post Acute Rehabilitation account for nearly a quarter of San Bernardino County’s 77 coronavirus-related deaths, according to the county’s latest numbers. Although Yucaipa has a population of about 53,600, it is reporting the third-most COVID-19 cases behind two larger cities, Fontana and San Bernardino, and leads with the highest number of reported deaths at 20.
Cedar Mountain has one of the highest publicly identified death tolls at a single nursing facility in the state. In Tulare County, 16 residents have died at one Visalia facility, where more than 160 residents and staff members have tested positive. The state is not releasing information on coronavirus-related deaths at facilities identified with outbreaks, a representative from the California Department of Public Health wrote in an email.
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San Bernardino County health officials first announced an outbreak at Cedar Mountain on March 28 after a dozen residents tested positive and one died. The situation escalated nine days later when the county announced 75 residents and staff had tested positive and five residents had died. Currently, 71 residents and 34 staff members are infected.
When the county reported the five deaths at Cedar Mountain, it also announced the creation of the Nursing Facilities Task Force, which consists of county, state and federal health officials to help address virus spreads at the 171 state-licensed nursing facilities that care for about 6,600 patients.
On the same day, acting county Public Health Officer Dr. Erin Gustafson issued an order that requires nursing home staff to wear protective gear, forbids them from entering facilities if they’re showing symptoms and strongly recommends facilities to cease using staff working at other nursing facilities.
County spokesman David Wert said the task force has helped provide protective gear and testing to nursing facilities. At places where outbreaks have been identified, all patients and staff are tested, even if they’re not displaying symptoms, to identify potential carriers, Wert said.
Cedar Mountain was identified as the first facility with an outbreak in the county, Wert said. The high death toll may not only be due to many residents being in their 70s or older, but they often have multiple underlying health conditions, he said.
“Once these people became infected ... it has gradually taken its toll,” he said.
San Bernardino Supervisor Dawn Rowe, who represents Yucaipa, said it was “absolutely heartbreaking” to see the number of reported deaths at the facility.
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“This virus wreaked havoc not just there but in hundreds of skilled nursing facilities throughout California,” she said in a statement.
Elizabeth Tyler, a spokeswoman for Cedar Mountain, could not be reached for comment Thursday. Previously, Tyler said the first five fatalities were residents nearly 90 or older and all had suffered from preexisting health conditions. Healthy patients were separated from infected patients, many of whom were asymptomatic at the time, she said.
A second skilled nursing facility in Yucaipa, Calimesa Post Acute, is also dealing with an outbreak that has grown rapidly in the last few days: 41 residents and one staff member have tested positive, and one person has died at the 82-bed facility, the county reported. The facility’s administrator, Dwayne Whitehead, could not be reached for comment.
Together, the outbreaks at the facilities make up 154 of the town’s 167 reported cases.
Efforts to address the spread at the state-regulated facility have been led at the county and state levels. Still, Mayor David Avila expressed sadness Thursday at how the disproportionately high death toll and cases reflect on his community.
The rural town, set in the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains, is a tightknit community and has many locally owned shops, he said. Many residents have followed the stay-at-home directives, but with many being elderly, the odds are against them, he said.
“On the outside, it doesn’t look good for us,” he said.
Times staff researcher Scott Wilson contributed research.


latimes--2020-04-23--Coronavirus prompts Gov. Gavin Newsom to suspend California's plastic bag ban

Gov .
Gavin Newsom has suspended California ’ s ban on grocery stores providing single-use plastic bags amid concerns that clerks may be at risk for exposure to the coronavirus if shoppers are required to supply their own reusable bags to carry their purchases home .
Newsom announced Thursday that he signed an executive order to suspend the 2016 plastic bag ban for 60 days after hearing concerns from the California Grocers Assn .
about shoppers bringing reusable bags from home that are handled by store clerks filling them with groceries .
“ We are being cautious to make sure @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” said Dave Heylen , a vice president for the grocers ’ group .
He said the grocers will go back to abiding by the plastic bag ban when the order expires .
The executive order signed Wednesday does not affect the more than 100 cities and counties that adopted their own ordinances banning or regulating single-use plastic bags .
The governor ’ s executive order also approves a 60-day pause in redemption of beverage containers in stores and a mandate for recycling centers to operate a minimum number of hours .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ are “ critical to protect the public health and safety and minimize the risk of COVID-19 exposure for workers engaged in essential activities , such as those handling reusable grocery bags or recyclable containers where recycling centers are not available.
” Mark Murray , executive director of Californians Against Waste , which had supported the Legislature ’ s approval of the ban , said the order is unnecessary .
“ Reusable bags are perfectly safe , and pose zero threat to store employees and other customers as long as consumers take responsibility to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said .
The California Legislature approved the ban on single-use plastic bags to rid beaches and streets of litter , allowing retail stores to charge customers 10 cents to provide paper or reusable plastic bags when shoppers do not bring their own bags .
The measure was opposed at the time by a group of bag-makers , the American Progressive Bag Alliance , which said the ban would hurt the economy while enriching grocery stores that can charge customers for paper and reusable bags .
Officials with the alliance and other industry groups @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not immediately respond to calls for comment on the governor ’ s order .
The plastic bag ban was supported by groups including Heal the Bay and Californians Against Waste , which said similar policies in cities were reducing plastic-bag litter and pollution and reducing greenhouse gas emissions .

The executive order does not affect cities and counties that adopted their own ordinances banning or regulating single-use plastic bags.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has suspended California’s ban on grocery stores providing single-use plastic bags amid concerns that clerks may be at risk for exposure to the coronavirus if shoppers are required to supply their own reusable bags to carry their purchases home.
Newsom announced Thursday that he signed an executive order to suspend the 2016 plastic bag ban for 60 days after hearing concerns from the California Grocers Assn. about shoppers bringing reusable bags from home that are handled by store clerks filling them with groceries.
“We are being cautious to make sure there is no transmission of the virus,” said Dave Heylen, a vice president for the grocers’ group. He said the grocers will go back to abiding by the plastic bag ban when the order expires.
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The executive order signed Wednesday does not affect the more than 100 cities and counties that adopted their own ordinances banning or regulating single-use plastic bags.
The governor’s executive order also approves a 60-day pause in redemption of beverage containers in stores and a mandate for recycling centers to operate a minimum number of hours.
Newsom’s order said the suspensions are “critical to protect the public health and safety and minimize the risk of COVID-19 exposure for workers engaged in essential activities, such as those handling reusable grocery bags or recyclable containers where recycling centers are not available.”
Mark Murray, executive director of Californians Against Waste, which had supported the Legislature’s approval of the ban, said the order is unnecessary.
“Reusable bags are perfectly safe, and pose zero threat to store employees and other customers as long as consumers take responsibility to bag their own groceries,” Murray said.
The California Legislature approved the ban on single-use plastic bags to rid beaches and streets of litter, allowing retail stores to charge customers 10 cents to provide paper or reusable plastic bags when shoppers do not bring their own bags.
The measure was opposed at the time by a group of bag-makers, the American Progressive Bag Alliance, which said the ban would hurt the economy while enriching grocery stores that can charge customers for paper and reusable bags.
Officials with the alliance and other industry groups including the Plastic Industry Assn. did not immediately respond to calls for comment on the governor’s order.
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The plastic bag ban was supported by groups including Heal the Bay and Californians Against Waste, which said similar policies in cities were reducing plastic-bag litter and pollution and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.


latimes--2020-04-23--Hydraulic failure caused military jet to crash into warehouse, report says

A loss of hydraulic pressure prevented a military pilot from controlling an F-16 jet that crashed into a warehouse last year just outside March Air Reserve Base in California , according to a newspaper report Thursday .
The pilot ejected and parachuted to safety before the Air National Guard F-16 slammed into the warehouse on May 16 .
There was no explosion from the crash and no serious injuries among workers at the business .
Two valves were improperly installed on the jet , resulting in damage that caused hydraulic fluid to leak , according to a 22-page U.S. Air @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The valves were part of a flight-control system that was overhauled in January 2019 .
They were installed in the aircraft months later after a possible hydraulic leak was discovered , according to the report dated April 14 .
“ The evidence also indicated an inadequate overhaul process that lacked an effective procedure to identify improper installation of ISA check valves , ” the report said .
The F-16 was one of two jets performing drills 120 miles east of the air base on the border of the cities of Riverside and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only person on board , burned off fuel before ejecting , according to the report .
The F-16 was assigned to the 114th Fighter Wing at Joe Foss Field in South Dakota and ran some missions for the 144th Fighter Wing at March , the newspaper said .

This photo taken from video provided by KABC-TV shows where an F-16 fighter jet crashed into a warehouse just outside March Air Reserve Base in Riverside on May 16, 2019.
A loss of hydraulic pressure prevented a military pilot from controlling an F-16 jet that crashed into a warehouse last year just outside March Air Reserve Base in California, according to a newspaper report Thursday.
The pilot ejected and parachuted to safety before the Air National Guard F-16 slammed into the warehouse on May 16. There was no explosion from the crash and no serious injuries among workers at the business.
Two valves were improperly installed on the jet, resulting in damage that caused hydraulic fluid to leak, according to a 22-page U.S. Air Force report obtained by the Riverside Press-Enterprise.
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The valves were part of a flight-control system that was overhauled in January 2019. They were installed in the aircraft months later after a possible hydraulic leak was discovered, according to the report dated April 14.
“The evidence also indicated an inadequate overhaul process that lacked an effective procedure to identify improper installation of ISA check valves,” the report said.
The F-16 was one of two jets performing drills 120 miles east of the air base on the border of the cities of Riverside and Moreno Valley.
The pilot, the only person on board, burned off fuel before ejecting, according to the report.
The F-16 was assigned to the 114th Fighter Wing at Joe Foss Field in South Dakota and ran some missions for the 144th Fighter Wing at March, the newspaper said.


latimes--2020-04-23--Federal judge blocks California's ammunition purchase law

A federal judge Thursday blocked a California law requiring background checks for people buying ammunition , issuing a sharply worded rebuke of “ onerous and convoluted ” regulations that violate the constitutional right to bear arms .
U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez in San Diego ruled in favor of the California Rifle & Pistol Assn.
, which asked him to stop the checks and related restrictions on ammo sales .
“ The experiment has been tried .
The casualties have been counted .
California ’ s new ammunition background check law misfires and the Second Amendment rights of California citizens @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wrote in a 120-page opinion granting the group ’ s motion for a preliminary injunction .
Voters approved toughening California ’ s already strict firearms laws in 2016 , and the restrictions took effect last July .
“ The law ’ s red tape and state database errors made it impossible for hundreds of thousands of law-abiding Californians to purchase ammunition for sport or self-defense , ” said Chuck Michel , the association ’ s general counsel .
“ The court found that the flimsy reasons offered by the government to justify these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the state to appeal the ruling , but said that in the meantime “ Californians can sleep a little easier tonight knowing their Constitutional rights were restored and strengthened by this decision.
” The state attorney general ’ s office said only that it is reviewing the decision .
It did not immediately say if it will appeal or seek to stay the order , which takes effect immediately at a time when some California gun stores have been ordered shut because of the coronavirus .
Among the places where the shops were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and San Jose .
The same judge ’ s decision last year striking down the state ’ s ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines sparked a weeklong buying frenzy before he halted sales while the state appeals his ruling .
Gun owners similarly rushed to stockpile ammunition before the new restrictions took effect last summer .
“ Criminals , tyrants and terrorists don ’ t do background checks , ” he wrote .
“ The background check experiment defies common sense while unduly and severely burdening the Second Amendment rights of every responsible , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” While it is intended to keep ammunition from criminals , it blocked sales to legitimate , law-abiding buyers about 16 % of the time , he wrote .
Moreover , he ruled that the state ’ s ban on importing ammunition from outside California violates federal interstate commerce laws .
State Atty .
Gen. Xavier Becerra said in a court filing this month that the background checks stopped more than 750 people from buying bullets illegally from July 2019 through January 2020 , not including those who didn ’ t even try @ @ @ @ @ @ @ eligible .
The law requires buyers who already are in the state ’ s firearm background check database to pay a $ 1 fee each time they buy ammunition , while others can buy longer-term licenses if they do not have certain criminal convictions or mental health commitments .
It took an average of less than 5 minutes to complete the background checks , according to state court filings .
“ There is no substantial impediment , ” the state said in court documents .
“ Ammunition purchasers must pass an eligibility check @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases , delays a purchase by a few minutes.
” Benitez ruled that the ammunition law illegally locks out-of-state vendors from California ’ s market , and that it conflicts with a federal law allowing gun owners to bring their firearms and ammunition through California .
The lawsuit by California Rifle & Pistol Assn .
was joined by out-of-state ammunition sellers and California residents , including Kim Rhode , who has won six Olympic shooting medals .

A federal judge Thursday blocked a California law requiring background checks for people buying ammunition, issuing a sharply worded rebuke of “onerous and convoluted” regulations that violate the constitutional right to bear arms.
U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez in San Diego ruled in favor of the California Rifle & Pistol Assn., which asked him to stop the checks and related restrictions on ammo sales.
“The experiment has been tried. The casualties have been counted. California’s new ammunition background check law misfires and the Second Amendment rights of California citizens have been gravely injured,” Benitez wrote in a 120-page opinion granting the group’s motion for a preliminary injunction.
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Voters approved toughening California’s already strict firearms laws in 2016, and the restrictions took effect last July.
“The law’s red tape and state database errors made it impossible for hundreds of thousands of law-abiding Californians to purchase ammunition for sport or self-defense,” said Chuck Michel, the association’s general counsel. “The court found that the flimsy reasons offered by the government to justify these constitutional infringements were inadequate.”
He expected the state to appeal the ruling, but said that in the meantime “Californians can sleep a little easier tonight knowing their Constitutional rights were restored and strengthened by this decision.”
The state attorney general’s office said only that it is reviewing the decision. It did not immediately say if it will appeal or seek to stay the order, which takes effect immediately at a time when some California gun stores have been ordered shut because of the coronavirus. Among the places where the shops were not deemed essential businesses are Los Angeles and San Jose.
The same judge’s decision last year striking down the state’s ban on high-capacity ammunition magazines sparked a weeklong buying frenzy before he halted sales while the state appeals his ruling. Gun owners similarly rushed to stockpile ammunition before the new restrictions took effect last summer.
Benitez called the ammunition background check law “constitutionally defective.”
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“Criminals, tyrants and terrorists don’t do background checks,” he wrote. “The background check experiment defies common sense while unduly and severely burdening the Second Amendment rights of every responsible, gun-owning citizen desiring to lawfully buy ammunition.”
While it is intended to keep ammunition from criminals, it blocked sales to legitimate, law-abiding buyers about 16% of the time, he wrote. Moreover, he ruled that the state’s ban on importing ammunition from outside California violates federal interstate commerce laws.
State Atty. Gen. Xavier Becerra said in a court filing this month that the background checks stopped more than 750 people from buying bullets illegally from July 2019 through January 2020, not including those who didn’t even try because they knew they weren’t eligible.
The law requires buyers who already are in the state’s firearm background check database to pay a $1 fee each time they buy ammunition, while others can buy longer-term licenses if they do not have certain criminal convictions or mental health commitments.
It took an average of less than 5 minutes to complete the background checks, according to state court filings.
“There is no substantial impediment,” the state said in court documents. “Ammunition purchasers must pass an eligibility check that, in the vast majority of cases, delays a purchase by a few minutes.”
Benitez ruled that the ammunition law illegally locks out-of-state vendors from California’s market, and that it conflicts with a federal law allowing gun owners to bring their firearms and ammunition through California.
The lawsuit by California Rifle & Pistol Assn. was joined by out-of-state ammunition sellers and California residents, including Kim Rhode, who has won six Olympic shooting medals.


latimes--2020-04-23--'Disturbing Zoom-bombing' incident hits Fresno State students, officials say

A “ disturbing Zoom-bombing ” incident took place during a remote class at Cal State Fresno this week , officials said Thursday .
Students were bombed with child pornography , public information officer Lisa Boyle said .
In light of the coronavirus outbreak , more businesses and schools have turned to virtual meetings , and social gatherings have been relegated to device screens .
As daily Zoom users have increased from 10 million to 20 million from December to March , there ’ s been an influx of reported “ bombings , ” in which users infiltrate Zoom sessions and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ slurs and pornography .
“ We are actively working to educate our campus community about best practices they can put into place to secure online meetings and virtual instruction and prevent this from happening , ” Boyle said .
The university has used Zoom for several years and plans to continue to rely on the platform to conduct virtual instruction and remote work .
Last week , university officials addressed concerns about Zoom in a statement shared with faculty and staff that singled out the free version of the the tool , which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ The Fresno State community has found Zoom to be an effective and important tool to support virtual instruction and remote work .
Most [ California State University ] campuses have been using Zoom for several years now and support its continued use while applying best practices to safeguard meetings from disruption , ” chief information officer Michael Berman and chief information security officer Ed Hudson said in a statement .
In response to the bombings , Zoom is releasing a security update that is meant to help hosts better secure meetings and @ @ @ @

A “disturbing Zoom-bombing” incident took place during a remote advising session at Cal State Fresno this week, officials said Thursday.
Students and faculty were bombed with child pornography, public information officer Lisa Boyles said.
In light of the coronavirus outbreak, more businesses and schools have turned to virtual meetings, and social gatherings have been relegated to device screens. As daily Zoom users have increased from 10 million to 200 million from December to March, there’s been an influx of reported “bombings,” in which users infiltrate Zoom sessions and post unsettling images, often of racist slurs and pornography.
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“We are actively working to educate our campus community about best practices they can put into place to secure online meetings and virtual instruction and prevent this from happening,” Boyles said.
The university has used Zoom for several years and plans to continue to rely on the platform to conduct virtual instruction and remote work. Last week, university officials addressed concerns about Zoom in a statement shared with faculty and staff that singled out the free version of the the tool, which has posed the greatest security risk.
“The Fresno State community has found Zoom to be an effective and important tool to support virtual instruction and remote work. Most [California State University] campuses have been using Zoom for several years now and support its continued use while applying best practices to safeguard meetings from disruption,” Vice President for information technology and chief information officer Orlando Leon said in a campus-wide message.
In response to the bombings, Zoom is releasing a security update that is meant to help hosts better secure meetings and protect their data.


latimes--2020-04-24--Bay Area likely to extend stay-at-home order, San Francisco mayor says

San Francisco Mayor London Breed said it ’ s likely the Bay Area ’ s shelter in place order will get extended beyond the current expiration date of May 3 .
“ People are asking about this : Will the public health order get extended ?
The likelihood that that will happen is very likely .
And what that means is another few weeks , or even a month , of asking you all to comply and to remain at home and to continue to follow the social-distancing orders that we put forth , ” Breed said .
Her statements @ @ @ @ @ @ @ others have said — that stay-at-home must be maintained until it ’ s clear that easing restrictions won ’ t cause greater illness and economic disruption in the battle against the coronavirus .
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“ How we reopen is going to be important to ensuring that we do it responsibly so that we don ’ t go backwards , ” he said .
Breed added that testing and personal protective equipment must be adequate before any lifting of the order , and hospitals must be ready for another surge of infections .
Los @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to , but four key benchmarks must first be met .
“ We don ’ t want to undo all the good we ’ ve done and accomplished so far , ” Supervisor Kathryn Barger said Friday .
“ We are not yet on the other side of this pandemic and we don ’ t want to prematurely ease restrictions.
” She said the county will first need to make sure that its hospitals are adequately staffed , have enough resources to perform testing , and have a sufficient number of ventilators and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as well as possible influxes of COVID-19 patients .
Second , the county must ensure that protections are in place for the most vulnerable , including the elderly , homeless people and those who live in institutional settings or don ’ t have access to services .
Third , the county must have the capacity to test , isolate and quarantine all those who are ill , as well as to conduct surveillance to prevent further spread .
And fourth , the county must maintain physical distancing and infection control measures , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ guidance to ensure that the rules can be followed when they reopen .
Newsom said this week that most of the six milestones he set to consider loosening the stay-at-home order he issued last month have not been met .
The only change the governor has made is to allow some elective surgeries to again be scheduled in hospitals , citing sufficient capacity .
The six goals include the ability to closely monitor and track potential cases ; prevent infection of high-risk people ; prepare hospitals to handle surges ; develop therapies to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and child-care facilities can support social distancing ; and develop guidelines for when to ask Californians to stay home again if necessary .

Angie Muscat, 6, hula hoops as mom Christina Dam (left), dad Jason Muscat (second from left), grandmother Becky Muscat (second from right) and grandfather Bob Muscat (right) look on at the Main Parade Grounds in the Presidio in San Francisco.
San Francisco Mayor London Breed said it’s likely the Bay Area’s shelter-in-place order will get extended beyond the current expiration date of May 3.
“People are asking about this: Will the public health order get extended? The likelihood that that will happen is very likely. And what that means is another few weeks, or even a month, of asking you all to comply and to remain at home and to continue to follow the social distancing orders that we put forth,” Breed said.
Her statements echoed what Gov. Gavin Newsom and others have said — that stay-at-home must be maintained until it’s clear that easing restrictions won’t cause greater illness and economic disruption in the battle against the coronavirus. .
“How we reopen is going to be important to ensuring that we do it responsibly so that we don’t go backward,” he said.
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Breed added that testing and personal protective equipment must be adequate before any lifting of the order, and hospitals must be ready for another surge of infections.
Los Angeles County officials are developing a plan to slowly ease stay-at-home orders , but four key benchmarks must first be met.
“We don’t want to undo all the good we’ve done and accomplished so far,” Supervisor Kathryn Barger said Friday. “We are not yet on the other side of this pandemic and we don’t want to prematurely ease restrictions.”
She said the county will first need to make sure that its hospitals are adequately staffed, have enough resources to perform testing, and have a sufficient number of ventilators and other medical supplies to handle routine care as well as possible influxes of COVID-19 patients.
Second, the county must ensure that protections are in place for the most vulnerable, including the elderly, homeless people and those who live in institutional settings or don’t have access to services.
Third, the county must have the capacity to test, isolate and quarantine all those who are ill, as well as to conduct surveillance to prevent further spread.
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And fourth, the county must maintain physical distancing and infection control measures, including by providing businesses with educational materials and guidance to ensure that the rules can be followed when they reopen.
Newsom said this week that most of the six milestones he set to consider loosening the stay-at-home order he issued last month have not been met. The only change the governor has made is to allow some elective surgeries to again be scheduled in hospitals, citing sufficient capacity.
The six goals include the ability to closely monitor and track potential cases; prevent infection of high-risk people; prepare hospitals to handle surges; develop therapies to meet demand; ensure schools, businesses and child-care facilities can support social distancing; and develop guidelines for when to ask Californians to stay home again if necessary.
On Wednesday, the health officer for Santa Clara County, Dr. Sara Cody, said the discovery this week that the coronavirus was infecting people — undetected — earlier than they had thought illustrated how important the shelter-in-place order is to slow the spread of the virus.
The earlier deaths demonstrate how “community transmission had arrived much earlier than we were able to detect it,” Cody said. “And I think it really highlights the importance of the shelter-in-place [order] in protecting the community and preventing hospitalizations and deaths from COVID-19.”
Cody did not directly answer a question asked at a news conference Wednesday about what she thought about relaxing the stay-at-home order.
“We anticipate that this pandemic is going to be going on for a very, very, very long time. We know that we do not have immunity in the population. Nor do we have a vaccine,” Cody said. “So any time that we let up on our mitigation measures, we are going to expect to see a spike in cases, hospitalizations and deaths. That is certain.”
Two northern Bay Area counties have already extended their stay-at-home orders. Solano County, which includes Vallejo and Fairfield, extended its order til May 17.
Napa County announced its stay-at-home order will now be in effect indefinitely, but with the following changes:
• Permits construction with proper physical distancing.
• Permits drive-in religious services with proper physical distancing.
• Permits in-person residential real estate viewings with proper protocols.
• Permits landscaping and gardening maintenance that is not purely for cosmetic purposes.
• Allows the use of golf courses and driving ranges with documented protocol.
• Strongly recommends the use of cloth face coverings when outside the home.
Lin reported from San Francisco and Wigglesworth from Southern California.


latimes--2020-04-24--San Diego County eases restrictions on ocean access, mandates face coverings

San Diego County officials Friday announced that restrictions limiting ocean access will be lifted , paving the way for cities across the region to reopen beaches as soon as Monday .
The decision was made as the county logged another 183 cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths .
The higher case total was partly attributed to a higher number of tests conducted the day before .
Officials said 3,122 tests were conducted Thursday — 867 more than the day before .
County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher stressed that individual jurisdictions will need to decide for themselves when and how they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ choose to be more restrictive .
“ We certainly understand the special importance the ocean has to our community , to our society , to our way of life , ” Fletcher said .
“ It ’ s where we swim , surf and recreate .
The ocean is a symbol of who we are as San Diegans , and it ’ s appropriate at this point that we open limited access to the ocean.
” The change to the region ’ s public health order goes into effect Monday and reopens the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and paddleboarding .
The decision does not apply to state beaches , and parking lots will remain closed .
Group activities and boating will remain banned .
While residents can walk and run along the beach , they can not sit or lie down .
“ We believe that we can take this step and this action in a way that does not compromise our efforts to protect public health , but we need the public ’ s help to ensure compliance , ” Fletcher said .
Officials are also mandating that residents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ covering if they are going to be within six feet of an individual who is not a housemate .
“ We believe this is going to be a part of life in the new normal , ” Fletcher said .
“ Until such time that we have a vaccine or a widely available therapeutic drug , there are going to be parts of life that are going to change .
And getting used to having a face covering when you leave your house — that ’ s going to be a part of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ effect May 1 , but county officials are encouraging residents to comply with it immediately .

San Diego County officials Friday announced that restrictions limiting ocean access will be lifted, paving the way for cities across the region to reopen beaches as soon as Monday.
The decision was made as the county logged another 183 cases of COVID-19 and two more deaths. The higher case total was partly attributed to a higher number of tests conducted the day before. Officials said 3,122 tests were conducted Thursday — 867 more than the day before.
County Supervisor Nathan Fletcher stressed that individual jurisdictions will need to decide for themselves when and how they open their beaches. Cities can also choose to be more restrictive.
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“We certainly understand the special importance the ocean has to our community, to our society, to our way of life,” Fletcher said. “It’s where we swim, surf and recreate. The ocean is a symbol of who we are as San Diegans, and it’s appropriate at this point that we open limited access to the ocean.”
The change to the region’s public health order goes into effect Monday and reopens the ocean to swimming, surfing, kayaking and paddleboarding. The decision does not apply to state beaches, and parking lots will remain closed.
Group activities and boating will remain banned. While residents can walk and run along the beach, they cannot sit or lie down.
“We believe that we can take this step and this action in a way that does not compromise our efforts to protect public health, but we need the public’s help to ensure compliance,” Fletcher said.
Officials are also mandating that residents who leave their homes wear a face covering if they are going to be within six feet of an individual who is not a housemate.
“We believe this is going to be a part of life in the new normal,” Fletcher said. “Until such time that we have a vaccine or a widely available therapeutic drug, there are going to be parts of life that are going to change. And getting used to having a face covering when you leave your house — that’s going to be a part of the change.”
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That change goes into effect May 1, but county officials are encouraging residents to comply with it immediately.
Winkley writes for the San Diego Union-Tribune.