What's Next, Los Angeles? with Mike Bonin
Los Angeles is at a turning point. We are living in a defining moment. What happens next is up to us. Over the past few years, problems and challenges have shaken this city -- and tremendous opportunities for change have presented themselves. How do we rise to this moment and emerge a better place to live? What will it take to create a more just and a more equitable community? Working together, how are we going to create a stronger, forward-thinking Los Angeles? Mike Bonin, writer, teacher, progressive activist and former City Councilmember, looks at the issues and problems facing Los Angeles, examines ideas, and talks with the people who will lead us to a brighter future.
Produced in partnership with LA Forward.
What's Next, Los Angeles? with Mike Bonin
SARA HERNANDEZ: Candidate for State Senate District 26
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Sara Hernandez, an attorney, educator, and member of the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees, is running for State Senate District 26, ans she joins me on this episode of What's Next, Los Angeles.
District 26, currently represented by Maria Elena Durazo, is a dense, urban district centered in Los Angeles, including Downtown LA, Boyle Heights, Echo Park, and surrounding neighborhoods. It’s home to largely Latino and immigrant communities, with a mix of working-class families and renters, and it sits at the center of many of the city’s biggest challenges — from housing affordability and homelessness to economic inequality and access to public services.
Hernandez has spent her career working at the intersection of education, housing, and public policy. She began as a middle school teacher in LAUSD, where she founded the nonprofit Helping Young People Excel, or HYPE, to support low-income students through high school and into college. Her work with students facing homelessness, food insecurity, immigration challenges, and barriers to opportunity led her to pursue a career in law and public service.
After earning her law degree, Hernandez worked in Los Angeles City Hall, helping lead community revitalization efforts through investments in housing, transportation, infrastructure, and economic development. She now practices as a housing and environmental attorney and has done extensive pro bono work representing immigrants in asylum proceedings and assisting students navigating the DACA process.
In 2022, she was elected to the Los Angeles Community College District Board of Trustees, where she has focused on expanding access to education, increasing enrollment, connecting students to housing resources, and growing apprenticeship programs in the building trades.
Hernandez is also active in grassroots organizing, including founding DTLA Strong, a community group that helped significantly increase voter turnout in downtown Los Angeles.
https://www.sarahernandez.com/
What's Next, Los Angeles? is produced and hosted by Mike Bonin, in partnership with LA Forward.