The Los Angeles City Council convened on Thursday, May 21, 2026, to consider and adopt the proposed 2026-27 city budget. The meeting followed a recess from the previous day and included a page-by-page review of the Budget and Finance Committee report, consideration of 28 budget motions, and final adoption of the budget as amended. The council also heard closing remarks from several members highlighting fiscal discipline, public safety investments, and community priorities.
To the people of America, there's nothing to fear but fear itself, and this galvanized the people and brought the country up. And then when the bombing of Peroga Harbor happened, everybody went crazy. And we have to look like the people that bomb Pearl Harper. And he saw us as the enemy. And as great a man as Roosevelt was, Roosevelt was a human being. He got swept up in the hysteria. There are people on the West Coast that look exactly like the people that bomb our armor. Who knows what could be a spy. They might be planning to bomb San Pedro. After a year of that unjust imprisonment, the government realizes there's a wartime manpower shortage. And here are all these young people, men and women that they've categorized just arbitrarily as enemy aliens. We're Americans. Born, raised, and imprisoned by America, born here. They just made up this enemy alien thing. But now they need us. So they come down with a loyalty questionnaire. What's the matter with this government? They should have asked that before they imprisoned us, before they took our homes, destroyed my father's business. People hearing this story, I keep telling people the ideals of democracy are noble, a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. That's us, the people. And my father said, we have to be involved, all of us. At that time, the civil rights movement was going on. He said what the black people are doing is that they are out speaking up for themselves. They have a history. That's a part of American history. And you said you when you get the vote, you are the part of the people that speak for this country. I am so grateful to be sitting here with Hina Knowles to have a chance to hear a little bit more about your work and the creation of the Waco Theater Center. The creation of the Waco Theater Center has been a dream of mine since I was a teenager because I had a mentor actually gave me exposure to the arts. And it made me feel seen and heard. So I know the effect of the arts on the community and especially on kids who don't have great opportunities. And that is what Waco is all about. We started this charity very small in a little tiny 100 seat theater. So we spent all our money on busting them to North Hollywood. And so this is a dream come true because we're in that community. We can do community programs. How cool is that? I came out here to go to one of the shops on the main street here, which I thought was amazing because it was all these black-owned artistic businesses. So that was exciting within itself. And then my friend Mark Bradford brought me here. And of course, it was before all the renovations, and I was like, oh my God, this is just sitting here, are you kidding me? It looked completely different. And so when I heard that it was being restored, it was music to my ears. And when there was an opportunity for us to help manage this place, it was like a dream come true. And for it to be a place where this community can easily access. And so that's what we're hoping for this place. We're praying that it is a cultural community center, which it was meant to be in the first place. The history, the legacy that is in this building, if the walls could talk. We are so lucky here in the city of Los Angeles to be able to celebrate and to be able to do that through our theaters, through our art center, through our grantee program, through public art. It's all about helping people feel comfortable and confident with where they are and who they are. I really have to commend the city of Los Angeles.