The swift time changes throughout the seasons used to bother me. It can feel like jet lag. But this season, I’ve grown more accustomed to practice gratitude. I am alive and well. I’ve fallen in love with Daylight Savings Time. Time seems to be moving as a lightyear’s pace and getting some extra sun in the late afternoon/evening is good for your girl, OK?

(I’ve also been on a Roy Ayers kick since he last week, and it’s been positively impacting my mood).

How can you not smile and feel good knowing that spring is just around the corner?

Spring represents more than blossoming flowers like the California Lilac, it symbolizes new beginnings, renewal and growth.

Speaking of growth, AfroLA has been blooming lately. We just released our 2023-2024 Impact Report which features some amazing achievements these first two years.

Here are just five of the many things we are proud of.

1. Investigating L.A.’s thirst for water…and power

   We partnered with The Guardian US and print weekly The Sheet to co-publish an investigation into the L.A. Department of Water and Power’s presence in the Eastern Sierra and its impact on rural Californians. As a part of producing the first stories in our Water and Power series, investigative data reporter Katie Licari made herself part of the community. She hosted office hours at a locally-owned coffee shop. An online voice mailbox was set up to engage with community members who weren’t able to attend or who wanted to leave an anonymous tip. The first story published in May 2024 reached the No. 1 spot on the entire Guardian site within hours of being published online, and reached 240,000 page views (and counting) within the first 24 hours.

   

   The snow-capped White Mountains rise behind Line Street in downtown Bishop on Feb. 17, 2024. (Dana Amihere/AfroLA)

2. Documenting environmental injustices ‘Next Door’

   Last June, our Next Door photo and reporting project was displayed at the Los Angeles Center of Photography. Local high school students and professionals with Black Women Photographers were paired to document the impacts of environmental and racial injustices around L.A. They interviewed residents in predominately Black and Latine communities more disproportionately impacted. Students produced mini-podcasts accessible in the exhibit by QR code to create an immersive experience.

   

   An L.A. youth soccer league frequently plays games at the Kenneth Hahn Soccer Fields, which sit alongside the Inglewood Oil Field where hundreds of pump jacks drill for oil. (Credit: Tara Pixley)

3. Election 2024

   We provided necessary and in-depth coverage on key election issues and how these policies impacted Black communities in L.A. We partnered with the The Beta Psi Lambda Chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. and the Alpha Gamma Omega Chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. for community engagement events on election night.

   

   (Credit: iStock)

4. Kudos and awards

   In 2024, our first year of eligibility, we were nominated for 8 SoCal Journalism Awards from the Los Angeles Press Club. We brought home 5 awards!

5. Expanding our reach

   In 2023 and 2024, our total Breakdown subscribers increased about 57%. That tells us that we have steady, incremental growth in our newsletter subscriber base (aka cool people like yourself).

We have so many more wins to celebrate, and we’re already building upon successes in 2025. Help inform our next steps by answering below.

Please let us know what you think. Email me at [email protected].

FEATURED STORY

What L.A.’s fading sno-ball industry tells us about local Creole culinary traditions

By Ural Garrett

New Orleans-style sno-balls have become a staple in Black Los Angeles.

That's why reporter Ural Garrett believes the recent losses of local sno-ball storefronts like The SnoBall Shop and Fluffy's Sno-Balls feel like heartbreak.

As someone who spent his college years in Louisiana, the culture of the southern state was always present in the air he breathed growing up—woven into the food, music, and language that surrounded him. It felt like home.

But over time, that presence in L.A. started to fade. Ural writes it's a sign that L.A. is losing its vibrant Creole culinary soul brought to life ub neighborhoods like View Park, Leimert Park, West Adams, and Jefferson during the Second Great Migration. In fact, Fluffy's Sno-Balls became so popular it was rated restaurant the No. 1 Ice Cream Shop in California and No. 5 in both the U.S. and Canada on Yelp.

Fluffy's co-owner Darren Lee-Willington reflected on a conversation he had with his late husband Kevin about their shop: “He always said, ‘Babe, I want this place to be like the modern-day Saved by the Bell. I want kids to come from school, hang out here, and their parents know that they’re good.’”

But challenges, like constant break ins, stymied the success of Fluffy's and other sno-ball storefronts. Economic downturns and the COVID-19 pandemic ultimately shuttered the SnoBall Shop, and the unexpected death of Fluffy's Sno-Ball's co-founder Kevin Lee-Willington rocked a community. Area sno-ball shops' financial struggles are an indicator of wider struggles for L.A.'s Black businesses.

“It’s not just a Creole thing," said Long Beach journalist Jackie Rae about the broader issue of Black-owned sno-ball shop closures in L.A. "It is Black-owned restaurants across the board.” She criticized the lack of proactive support from city officials. “The city should try to do what they can to help businesses thrive, and they just don’t do that,” she said, highlighting the struggles Black entrepreneurs face in accessing resources and advertising. Read Ural's personal story about the loss of L.A.'s sno-ball shops and broader implications on local communities.

SUPPORT AFROLA

Read through our Impact Report and you will see how far your donations go. In order for us to keep on blossoming, we need your help. Our reporters need you to support their continued hard work for the underserved communities in Los Angeles.
Help us continue to deliver quality journalism into your inbox.

We wholeheartedly appreciate your generosity.

 Donate to us today. We need your support to keep this momentum going.

THE ROUNDUP

Dangerous chemicals were detected in 100% of the braiding hair we tested

By Leigh-Ann Jackson (Consumer Reports)

It would take A LOT for me to stop wearing braids, but this Consumer Reports article might just do it.

Their team found carcinogens in 10 of the most popular synthetic braiding hair products in the beauty supply stores.

Now, what’s a Black girl to do?

They broke down how they tested synthetic braiding hair and what specific cancer-causing chemicals they found in the hair. They also give recommendations on what consumers can do in the future.

* * *

The Education Department is being cut in half. Here’s what’s being lost.

By Cory Turner (NPR)

What used to be an agency of 4,133 employees is now 2,183. Several areas of the education department have been cut due to the Trump’s administration’s gutting of the agency. Civil rights enforcement, resources for student loans and college financial aid and other types of funding have been drastically reduced. The question of if the layoffs are legal is not clear, though some states are suing the Trump administration. Read this NPR story for more.

* * *

Breonna Taylor’s mother remembers

By Errin Haines (The 19th)

My world stopped the day I saw the video of 26-year-old Breonna Taylor’s death. She was killed by Louisville Metro Police Department officers on March 13, 2020. Tamika Palmer, Breonna Taylor’s mother spoke with The 19th about her journey to find answers and push for justice throughout the five years since her daughter’s death. Read more.

MORE STORIES

How should Los Angeles rebuild? The answer may exist in our building codes.

by Elizabeth Moss

January’s wildfires, including the Palisades and Eaton Fires, leveled at least 10,000 homes. Now, many people are wondering, HOW do we rebuild?

One place to look for answers is California’s strong building codes, which address threats of wildfire to structures.

California's state codes, including Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) standards, ensure that homes built in wildfire high risk areas are armored with fire-resistant materials that can withstand encroaching blazes.

But here’s the rub: The most updated standards only apply to homes built after 2008, meaning much of L.A.’s aging housing stock is not up to code. Many of the homes that were engulfed in flames in the Palisades and Eaton fires were built more than 25 years ago. And even if homes are within the WUI standards, the law is not always enforced.

When the codes are enforced, studies show they work.

In a study of homes lost during 2018’s Camp Fire, which devastated the city of Paradise, researchers found that 86% of single-family homes were built before 1990. Of those, roughly 12% survived. The odds of housing survival jumped to 43% for homes built after 2008.

“The California Building Code wildfire provisions are state of the art. They are the best way to design a home to be resistant to fire,” said Ann Jeffers, an associate professor at the University of Michigan whose research focuses on fire safety engineering. While California has building codes to address risks to destructive fires like the distance between homes, defensible space and radiant heat, there’s still so much work to be done to research, update and enforce better codes for today’s standard. Read Elizabeth Moss’s latest story to read what experts consider the way to rebuild for California’s current reality.

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