It was icy cold, dark and deathly quiet. At 4 a.m. on Feb. 24, 2022 in Kharkiv, Ukraine, 15-year-old Amaliia Ripko stumbled into the living room and found her father huddled in front of the TV. He was watching a U. N. conference discussing a possible Russian attack on her country. Suddenly, the sound of loud explosions shook the apartment.“We...

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Except for people who geek out on politics, people in the U. S. haven’t considered these terms for generations. But lately, they are making a big comeback in the news, in congressional debates, in college classes and all over social media. Here, El Camino professors and other academics weigh in on their significance for everyone in the South Bay and...

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“He’s got a gun!”On March 20, 2025, screams and high-pitched warnings came from a group of three children who rushed into the classroom where I was facilitating a workshop at Fred Roberts Park on the east side of South Central Los Angeles. I ran outside and found a nine-year-old boy holding a realistic black BB gun resembling an automatic pistol...

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Throughout history, humans and our ancient ancestors have always made murals. Whether outlawed, permitted or paid for, on buildings, trains and tombs, graffiti artists have painted the planet. From Watts to Wilmington, here is where to see some of the best graffiti in South L. A. Top pick for “throw-ups” Freeway overpasses, concrete-covered river beds and rail yards are favored...

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With human-caused climate change increasing temperatures, decreasing rain and snowfall, and escalating the frequency and severity of storms and wildfires, Southern California’s four seasons are now fire, flood, mud and drought. Here are five ways professors and programs at El Camino are supporting students, staff and faculty to beat the heat. Prepare and protect first respondersClimate change has increased the...

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Seventeen years ago, Cass Cisneros stood on the sidewalk outside the North Hollywood office of the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS), terrified to step inside with her four-year-old daughter, Savannah. Earlier that day, DCFS called to say they needed an updated photo of the toddler and ordered Gonzalez to come to the office before 5...

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Volt was the only squirrel El Camino College’s humans ever named. On Nov. 21, 1997, ECC classes were canceled due to a power outage. Two weeks later on Dec. 4, The Union newspaper ran an editorial crediting the blackout to a squirrel that student reporters called “Volt” because he “fried” himself – a particularly cruel choice of words – on...

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Got weed? Despite legalization, finding cannabis in the South Bay isn't easy. The bright green areas on the map - the cities of LA and Hawthorne - indicate the only areas where operating shops that sell marijuana products for medical and recreational use, deliveries, manufacturing, cultivation for sales, and growing for personal use are all allo...

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Nearly 50 years ago, James Marks was sitting on the couch of his family’s home in Long Beach’s Carmelitos Housing Projects watching Saturday morning cartoons. In an explosion of noise and confusion, five people burst through the front door. One of them shouted, “Where that b—ch at?”Without waiting for an answer, they tore through the apartment, making their way upstairs...

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The fight started 78 years ago. No blood was spilled. No fists thrown. But the debate has been brutal. And, the conflict? It’s still not settled. Since its start, El Camino College has searched for its identity, including its name, logo and mascot. Early in the fall term of 1946 – before ECC's official founding in 1947 – the student...

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