• Slug: Mexican Repatriation California. 765 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Brandelyn Clark
Cronkite News

LOS ANGELES — On Thursday, Sens. Lena Gonzalez (D-Long Beach) and Josh Becker (D-Menlo Park) officially launched the Mexican Repatriation Memorial Project in Los Angeles.

The project aims to commemorate the 2 million Mexican Americans and Mexican immigrants who were forcibly deported from the United States during the Great Depression, including approximately 400,000 individuals from California. Senate Bill 537, authored by Gonzalez and Becker, was signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September. It will enable a selected nonprofit to construct and maintain a memorial in a public area of Los Angeles. The memorial is planned for completion before the 2026 World Cup and 2028 Summer Olympics in LA.

Continue reading “California launches Mexican Repatriation Memorial Project to honor residents deported during Great Depression”

• Slug: Arts Field Trips. 470 words.
• Photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Hayden Larkin
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Nonprofit organization Act One funded a school trip to the Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix to see the Tetra String Quartet on Wednesday, which kicked off the organization’s 2024-25 season.

“I just think it was so beautiful,” said Milani Duran, a sixth grader from Sunland STEAM Academy. “Seeing all the different (things), seeing the violin, the cello, it was very different.”

Continue reading “Act One helps Title I students connect to the arts with string quartet at Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix”

• Slug: Ventanilla de Salud. 650 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below).
• Audio voiceover available.

By Lizeth Adriana Calderon
Cronkite News

PHOENIX — People line up outside the Consulate General of Mexico in Phoenix, one of the five Mexican consulates in Arizona.

They’re seeking assistance with visa application, consular and voter registration, community agendas and more. And while they wait, they learn about the free health services the consulate offers. Approximately 200 to 300 people use the consulate’s services daily, according to Consul General Jorge Mendoza Yescas.

Continue reading “Ventanilla de Salud initiative in Phoenix provides preventative health screenings for people with Mexican roots”

• Slug: Sports – Biden Indigenous Apology, 1,100 words.
• 2 photos available.

By Gabrielle Wallace and Marshall Baker
Cronkite News

LAVEEN VILLAGE – President Joe Biden on Friday formally apologized for the 150 years of abuse and harm suffered by Indigenous children that were put into the federal boarding school system. 

“I believe it is important that we do know there was generations of Native children stolen, taken away to places they didn’t know, with people they never met, who spoke a language they never heard,” Biden said during a visit to the Gila River Indian Community in front of an emotional crowd. “The federal government has never formally apologized, until today.”

This apology comes after an extensive investigation by the Department of Interior. The Federal Indian Boarding School Initiative began in 2021 and was designed to recognize the long-term impacts of Indian boarding schools from 1819 to 1970.  Continue reading “Biden issues formal apology for treatment of Indigenous children within federal boarding schools”

• Slug: Trump in Tempe. 1,000 words.
• 3 photos available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Aaron Stigile
Cronkite News

TEMPE – A normally frozen Mullett Arena hosted heated rhetoric about immigration, the economy, Vice President Kamala Harris and faith during a campaign rally for former President Donald Trump on Thursday.

The crowd, which filled much of the 5,000-seat arena save a smattering of empty seats,  consistently broke out into chants of “fight, fight, fight” before Trump came on stage, a reference to the words he said after an assassination attempt in July. 

“Immediately upon taking office, I will launch the largest deportation in American history,” Trump said. “I will rescue every town across America that’s been invaded and conquered.”  Continue reading “Donald Trump focuses on immigration at Tempe campaign rally just 12 days before election”

• Slug: SALT Expiration. 1,050 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Grace Monos
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – Arizona’s higher-income residents and homeowners with steep property taxes have felt a pinch since Congress capped the state and local tax (SALT) deduction at $10,000, but the presidential election could lead to changes in the tax code.

The SALT cap and other provisions in former President Donald Trump’s Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) are set to expire next year. Even Trump has said he wants to let the cap expire.

Continue reading “Will tax deduction cap expire under Kamala Harris or Donald Trump? Experts weigh potential impact on Arizona taxpayers”

• Slug: Phoenix Heat Recap. 700 words.
• Photo available (thumbnail, caption below).

By Jalen Woody
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Summer is the most brutal time in Phoenix, especially for those surviving without basic needs like water and cool places to rest. This year, the city offered 24-hour heat relief spaces that skyrocketed in demand. City officials say 92% of visitors were experiencing homelessness, and the centers are a means to help them get off the streets and into safer places.

The Maricopa Association of Governments (MAG) implemented the centers to provide people experiencing homelessness with much needed necessities to survive the temperatures.

Continue reading “Phoenix says visits to heat relief centers skyrocketed during record-breaking summer, and 92% were from people experiencing homelessness”

• Slug: Toss the Tusk. 1,040 words.
• 3 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Aryton Temcio
Cronkite News

PHOENIX – Since 1989, the international commercial trade of ivory has been banned in an effort to rebuild the dwindling population of elephants and other species poached for their ivory. Although these animals are found primarily in Africa and Asia, many agencies think the ramifications of ivory poaching are felt around the world.

The United States only adopted a near-total ban in 2016. Despite the bans on commercial trading, ivory is still legal to possess in the U.S., and many people still do.

Continue reading “‘Toss the Tusk’ educates Phoenix Zoo guests on illegal ivory trading, allows ivory surrender”

• Slug: Guerrilla Gardening. 1,350 words.
• 3 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Brandelyn Clark
Cronkite News

LOS ANGELES – Amid the barren patches of dirt scattered throughout Los Angeles’ bustling streets, a movement for social change is taking root. Community gardens and local plants flourish in underused land, bringing much-needed green to the city’s concrete jungle.

Starting as a necessity for people who didn’t own land seeking to provide food for their communities, guerrilla gardening has evolved into a powerful tool for social rebellion and environmental activism.

Continue reading “Flourishing Los Angeles: Activists reclaim urban spaces through guerrilla gardening”

• Slug: PFAS Water Contamination. About 1,000 words.
• 2 photos available (thumbnails, captions below).

By Amelia Monroe
Cronkite News

WASHINGTON – An estimated 97% of Americans have detectable levels of invasive “forever chemicals” in their bloodstreams – many are unaware that they’re drinking them.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – or PFAS – are man-made synthetic chemicals manufactured and commercialized since the 1940s. This class of chemicals includes roughly 14,000 variations, widely used in consumer and industrial products – nonstick cookware, waterproof clothing, cosmetics and firefighter foam – due to their grease-, oil- and water-resistant properties.

Continue reading “Arizona is launching PFAS mitigation efforts ahead of the EPA deadline. But critics say it isn’t enough”