Want an honest answer? Ask a kid.
There is nothing quite as pure and honest as the unfiltered opinions of kids.
At Playa Vista elementary school, kindergartners prep for Valentine’s Day and wax poetic on what love truly is.
Here’s my full story that aired on my show The Evening Beat on Spectrum News 1.
From a special one month retrospective long form piece on spectrumnews1.com produced by and hosted by Angela Sun.
On the night of Nov. 7, a gunman walked into the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks and killed 12 people.
So far this year, there have been 328 mass shootings in the United States, according to The Gun Violence Archive. The organization defines a mass shooting as a single incident in which four or more people, not including the shooter, are “shot and or killed” at “the same general time and location.”
After living through the Borderline tragedy, several survivors recently got together for a barbecue in Camarillo. Since the shooting, they have started a Facebook group and lean on each other for support.
One month after the shooting, we meet many of the survivors who have forged a unique bond amidst adversity. Some of them were also survivors of the Route 91 Harvest Festival mass shooting in Las Vegas last year, where 59 people died, including the gunman.
After each mass shooting, critics on both sides of the gun debate have shared their points of view.
Collin Hymes is a film and TV stuntman and a Marine veteran, as well as a big brother of sorts to many. He survived a bullet wound to the neck in the Thousand Oaks shooting and a shattered knee from jumping out of a window to escape.
“As a Marine and understanding history, you want to be able to protect yourself from tyranny, so you want to be able to have the ability to rise up against a government to subdue its people,” he said about gun ownership. “But at the same time, too many guns in the hands of wrong people cause mass shootings. So where is the happy medium, where we can protect ourselves from dictatorship and protect ourselves at home that’s really hard to say.”
The Orfanos family has been grieving the loss of their son, Telemachus “Tel” Orfanos. Tel was good friends with many of the survivors at the BBQ. His mother’s impassioned plea for gun control after the shooting went viral on social media. She later spoke to Inside the Issues host Alex Cohen, and urged the nation’s leaders to restrict access to automatic weapons, semi-automatic weapons, and expanded magazines.
She went on to say she couldn’t hug her son in the mortuary to say goodbye, because of the severe wounds inflicted on his body.
“No parent should have that picture in their head,” she said.
California has some of the strictest gun laws in the nation, while many other neighboring states are less restrictive. The semi-automatic gun used by the Borderline shooter was purchased legally, but the expanded magazine authorities say he used is illegal here.
The shooting that night lasted nine minutes, but to the victims it lasted an eternity. While the physical injuries of these survivors are starting to heal, the mental wounds remain raw.
A Go Fund Me page has been set up to help support the victims of the Borderline shooting. You can find the link here.
Olivia is happy, she’s been out of her stall all day and she loves being around people.
Olivia is one of the many animals rescued From Big Heart Ranch in Malibu, which was threatened by the Woolsey fire. The therapy goat traveled a long way with Phoebe Scott, a boardmember from the ranch.
A total of 26 horses, donkeys, goats, chickens, pigs and more were saved from the fire and brought to the Silver Spur Stables in Glendale, including Olivia.
“Bambi, Daisy and Renee are three rescues from their restorative herd, all evacuated from the fire. Renee and some of the goats stayed overnight with me at my house,” Scott explained.
Suzanne Pika has been the manager at Silver Spur Stables for the last 20 years. She said she hasn’t gotten much sleep the last few days, but the overwhelming support from strangers who’ve stepped in at this time of need has kept her going.
One of the good Samaritans and animal rescuers was Christopher Devon. He and his friend, a first responder, were able to get behind the fire lines and save many of the larger animals.
“Chris is our hero, he went out there when it first started and picked up horses in every direction,” said Pika, referring to the young man who drove out to help save animals in the Malibu area as the fire quickly approached.
“It was like Dante’s Inferno, all the telephone lines were burned through,” said Chris.
“There were 30 or 35 people here yesterday, talking like this… they all got together and were talking about what happened to them… so that was very therapeutic for most people because it was very traumatic for everybody,” added Pika.
As the Woolsey fire continues to burn, there has been a public outcry on social media over the thousands of animals that have been displaced and potentially left behind by their owners.
Many Southern California residents have expressed concern about the welfare of animals in the fire’s path, particularly in areas like Malibu.
Thankfully as we’ve seen from the way volunteers have stepped forward to help animals in need, a community can come together to make a difference.
Big Heart Ranch is a donation based organization that exists to help with therapy programs for autistic and inner city kids and veterans with PTSD. At this time they said monetary donations are most helpful as they transition.
Visit the ranch’s website to donate.
I’m excited to announce that I have joined Spectrum News 1 SoCal as the 5 PM evening anchor!
Spectrum News 1 is a new 24/7 local news channel committed to serving communities in Southern California. Our network will be focused on hyper local news and stories in and around Los Angeles and is the west coast version of Spectrum News NY1 with a uniquely California twist!
Living in LA for the last 20 years, and California all my life, it’s a storyteller’s dream to be able to shed light on issues, events, and focus on people where it matters most, the neighborhoods we live and play in.
I’m fortunate to join such a passionate, dedicated team, who are focused on good journalism.
Check us out on Spectrum cable Channel 1 and spectrumnews1.com or tune in LIVE to the Evening Beat, Mondays-Fridays at 5pm!
This past week, I went before the Santa Monica City Council to speak out against single-use plastic and to encourage the Council to adopt amendments that would ban all non-marine degradable single-use plastics within the city.
It’s important that we understand and dive into the issues surrounding single-use plastics because there is a lot of green washing going on. While utensils that are made from corn, starch, or other plant-based materials may seem like viable eco-friendly alternatives, they actually have to be heated up at high temperatures at a commercial composting facility to be composted. Many municipalities don’t have those resources.
Bio-plastics say they’re “compostable” but in reality, they aren’t actually composted because there are no systems set up in southern California and many other areas.
After speaking before the Santa Monica City Council, alongside 30+ Surfrider LA volunteers, they unanimously passed the amended ordinance. Kudos to the staff, Surfrider, and so many activated community members on this momentous victory! I commend the City of Santa Monica for moving this amendment forward!
That’s why I’m excited to partner up with Blue Uprising this week for their next “I Surf. I Vote” event. This event allows nonprofits, campaigns, businesses, and political organizations to come together in a non-partisan manner with one goal: to galvanize the surfing community’s voice for the ocean.
Join me at Santa Monica Beach at Tower 20 this Sunday, August 19, at 6:30 pm and let’s speak up together!
I’ve traveled the world and have spoken to a diverse array of audiences about single-use plastics and I often get asked about what we as consumers can personally do about this issue. It all starts with education and awareness, lead by example by bringing your own and refusing single-use plastic. This issue may seem insurmountable but when you start locally, tangible change is possible. When you use your voice and vote on the local level, you really are making a difference.
Join me this Sunday at “I Surf, I Vote” as I share my perspective on the importance of voting in local elections, based on my experiences as an advocate for environmental causes.
We will assemble a minimum of nineteen surfboards to spell out “VOTE” in the sand and use a drone to capture an iconic image. You can also join in as they will be asking participants to record their “I Surf, I Vote” videos on site.
Here is the timeline for the “I Surf, I Vote”:
If you love the ocean, love to surf, or simply want to speak out against single-use plastic, we want you to join us on Sunday! Bring your surfboard, bring a friend, and help us rise up against single-use plastics!
Yu Darvish may come from a cultural background that is polite and courteous, but I grew up as an Asian American, and his response showed what a class act he is, but it doesn’t discount Yuli Gurriel’s COMPLETELY OFFENSIVE behavior on international television/online where millions of viewers and KIDS are watching. So yeah, its great to say lets focus on moving forward but I, like many other Asian Americans and other Asians ARE OFFENDED.
I grew up having that same squinty eye gesture being done towards me many a time, as well as being made fun of for my traditional Asian lunches I would bring to school (which in hindsight were amazing & homemade, i cant believe i wanted nasty kraft cheese and ham-thanks mom!). Being one of the few Asian kids in the entire school, I definitely got made fun of for what I looked like. So yeah, dont tell me what i can and cannot be offended by.
MLB’s soft admonishment sets a precedent that an Asian racial slur means less…could you imagine what would happen if someone dropped the N word? Oh, lets wait til next season to punish you? Imagine every time your kid misbehaves, oh i’ll wait ’til next year to punish you…Except that ‘kid’ is 33 and a professional baseball player who has played in Japan and should have known better. It sounds absolutely ridiculous to delay punishment & sets a precedent.
Gurriel chose his setting. And it is in that setting Gurriel should have served his penalty. The later the October, the bigger the game, the greater the responsibility. I think MLB handled the situation wrong, but why would they change anything if we don’t speak out? Just let this egregious behavior pass??
I work in baseball media, and that Asian stereotype of being the model minority or being passive just doesn’t fly with me. If we don’t speak up on what a double standard this is, who will?? We should cover it, write about it, talk to our kids about it, and continue the conversation…because if we don’t, no one else will. If you are still reading, thank you for reading this long diatribe, I hope you join me in continuing the conversation that racism should NEVER BE TOLERATED. #zerotolerance #notthisasian
Thank you to Yahoo Sports Tim Brown for thinking the same. https://sports.yahoo.com/world-series-yuli-gurriel-suspended-game-4-220924278.html
Full article here at CSN
MESA, Ariz. — From reporting on-site at the Winter Olympics to investigating ocean contamination in the Pacific, Angela Sun’s career resume is diverse and wide-ranging.
Now she tackles another challenge as CSN California’s new A’s in-game reporter, where she’ll interact with players, coaches and fans to bring viewers a fresh perspective during home telecasts at the Coliseum.
Sun joins the A’s broadcast team during a time of increased optimism surrounding the franchise’s future, with an announcement expected this year about a location for the A’s to build a new ballpark in Oakland.
“I’m excited about Oakland, and the A’s organization specifically, because there’s just so much energy and good vibes right now,” Sun said. “Oakland is such a special place, and I feel like there are so many things that have yet to be discovered. I’m really excited to explore that, to share fans’ stories, to showcase really all that it has to offer.”
A Saratoga native who attended UCLA, Sun has been somewhat of a trailblazer, becoming the first Asian American female sportscaster to appear on ESPN, Yahoo Sports, Tennis Channel, Fox Sports Net and NBC.
She hosted the Yahoo Sports’ NFL-themed show “Outside The Game,” where her stories ranged from Josh Cribbs’ fashion style to Alan Page’s post-football career as a Minnesota Supreme Court justice. In 2010, she reported for Yahoo on site from Vancouver at the Winter Olympics.
