Zócalo Public Square

We're LIVE from MacArthur Park! Tonight we ask: “Can Hip-Hop Be the Soundtrack for Change?” A pre-concert conversation with Medusa, the “Godmother of West Coast Hip-Hop,” and reparations advocate and business manager to the stars @IAMFridayJones. With @Levitt_LA.

Might California’s solution to stopping masked federal agents from seizing its people lie in a half-century-old story from Humboldt County? Read @joemmathews’ latest: zps.la/4nYTyIL

What does California's poet laureate Lee Herrick recommend you read this summer? Check out Zócalo's summer reading list to see: zps.la/4ebANgV

In 1972, a federal agent killed an unarmed man during a botched drug raid in Humboldt County. The agent claimed to be above state law. But then a local grand jury indicted him for murder. @joemmathews on the lasting relevance of Clifton v. Cox: zocalopublicsquare.org/california-pol…

Each week at Zócalo, a new poem. Read our latest: "After" by Nancy Miller Gomez. zps.la/4eT3Yp7

Is "The Violence of Love" by Kit W. Myers on your summer reading list? Check out why California's poet laureate Lee Herrick thinks it should be, and read other recommendations from Zócalo's friends and contributors. zps.la/4ebANgV

.@FareedHaque is a guitarist and the co-director of the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra. He joins us Aug 15 for “How Is Migration Woven Into America?”—an event with @Stanford IAJS, @zhoubartcenter, & @OhArtFoundation. RSVP now: zps.la/iajs2

Taking out the trash after dark sometimes feels like a visit to Bloomingdale’s fragrance counter, writes Molly Selvin, of her L.A. garden:zps.la/4lVCNMK

Summer lingers in Los Angeles, and the Meyer lemons have ripened into big, juicy softballs; the Valencia blossoms, into countless tiny green oranges. An essay on the seasons of L.A., and the seasons of life, by Molly Selvin: zps.la/4lVCNMK

Eclectic but curated. Smart without snark. Ideas journalism with a head and heart. Sign up for the Zócalo newsletter to get our latest essays, poems, and updates on our (always) free events. zps.la/newsletter

Zócalo publishes new poetry each week. Read our latest poem: "After" by Nancy Miller Gomez.zps.la/4eT3Yp7

.@FareedHaque is a guitarist and the co-director of the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra. He joins us Aug 15 for “How Is Migration Woven Into America?”—an event with @Stanford IAJS, @zhoubartcenter, & @OhArtFoundation. RSVP now: zps.la/iajs2

Vancouver has faced alarming heat, formerly unimaginable, in recent summers. Journalist Paloma Pacheco on why she's come to dread the season:zps.la/45ba9l9

Summer wouldn’t be summer without textiles, writes Virginia Postrel, author of The Fabric of Civilization:zps.la/4o1Y8WQ

Writer Molly Selvin has lived in her L.A. home for nearly 45 years. As summer lingers, her garden reminds her of life's preciousness. zps.la/4lVCNMK

.@KamalaHarris may be debating a run for California governor or another presidential campaign. But our columnist @joemmathews suggests she create her own job (as Californians do), leading a new agency to counter Trump’s war on CA. bit.ly/40jftjJ

Hip-hop is a struggle for collective liberation, writes @UCLA Hip Hop Initiative director H. Samy Alim. He takes us from South Africa to Los Angeles: bit.ly/4lG7Pc0

Zócalo publishes new poetry every Friday. Our latest: "After" by Nancy Miller Gomez. zps.la/4eT3Yp7

Six months after the L.A. fires, Zócalo is thinking about how we are rebuilding. Architectural researcher Jia Yi Gu considers how Angelenos can build using better materials. zps.la/3TANb0o

Keep up with Zócalo. Sign up for our newsletter to get our latest essays, poems, and updates on our (always) free events. zps.la/newsletter