Last year, Eunisses Hernandez ousted incumbent Los Angeles City Council member Gil Cedillo to represent District 1. An activist and community organizer, she's part of a progressive wave of candidates elected to citywide office.
Hernandez joined Lisa McRee on "LA Times Today."
In the wake of a mass shooting in Monterey Park, Hernandez shared her thoughts on possible ways to prevent such events from happening again.
"This tragic event has impacted us in many ways," she said. "It's the beginning of the year, and we saw 10 people's lives taken because we have not invested enough in the infrastructure that provides mental health services, that deals [with] and supports intimate partner violence. I am really looking forward to figuring out how we can support our local leaders, our federal leaders and our state leaders in addressing gun violence, but also getting the resources to make sure that we can prevent these issues by providing more access to mental health services and intimate partner violence support."
In 2020, the LA City Council passed Measure J, which took a small portion of county funds and redirected them to social services like mental health services rather than prisons and jails. Hernandez talked about whether she'd support any increased spending on law enforcement.
"The LAPD receives a significant portion of our budget. Yet, when I was knocking on doors, our community still did not feel safe," she said. "What I want to prioritize is how we move resources that would fund the things which are qualified under Measure J, which is support and services for young people, housing, mental health services, and drug treatment. Because we need to work on preventing harm and violence, not just responding to it. And if we're going to be fiscally responsible, we need to reflect and reassess how we're spending our precious city budget."
Last fall, it was revealed Hernandez was discussed in the audio tape in which former Council members Nury Martinez, Gil Cedillo and Kevin De León were making racist comments. While that conversation was hurtful, Hernandez said she wants to move on and get to work.
“Jan. 31 is when the eviction moratorium ends and the COVID-19 protections end. And we are a district that is heavily renters," she said. "Sixty percent of our constituents are renters. That’s what I want to focus on. I have gone through a roller coaster of emotions since the tapes have come out, but I have no more capacity for that because I see the urgency of my constituents."
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