journojames

Candlelight Vigil, 9/11 Memorial

Post author:journojames
Post published:January 13, 2012
Post category:Feature Interview News

Originally published Sept. 13, 2010

Los Angeles Japanese-American community groups held a candlelight vigil last night to observe the 9th anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks and to express support for Muslim Americans who have come under attack.

Members from the Nikkei for Civil Rights and Redress (NCRR), the Japanese-American Citizens League, the Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, among others, gathered in downtown’s Little Tokyo, to hold candles and banners in remembrance of the victims of the 9/11 attacks and to bring attention and to oppose the current anti-Muslim sentiments in the U.S. (more…)

Ride-Along With Officer Salcido

Post author:journojames
Post published:January 12, 2012
Post category:Feature Interview

Originally published Sept. 7, 2010

Patrol Officer John Salcido has dreams of one day becoming a motorcycle officer, but tonight, his focus is strictly on his job: serving the people of South Pasadena and getting home safely to his 15-month-old daughter.

It’s close to 8 PM on a warm September Saturday night and Officer Salcido’s stereo in his police vehicle is tuned to Amp Radio. Katy Perry can be faintly heard in the background while short bursts from the dispatch operator fill the car from time to time with calls. He’s just pulled over and issued a ticket to a man for using his cell phone while driving. It’s amazing Salcido was able to see such a subtle action from across the street, three lanes away as he was driving the opposite way, but he thinks nothing of it. He’s had to do this several times today but the danger is treating it like a routine. (more…)

Thank You For Honking

Post author:journojames
Post published:January 11, 2012
Post category:Feature Interview

Originally published Aug. 29, 2010

He’s part messenger. He’s part showman. And he’s all about the car horn.

Stephen Sharp, 62, a claim training instructor for Farmers Insurance during the working week, has two simple messages for the people of Los Angeles: “celebrate peace” and “spread love.” His messages are boldly written on a large homemade sign made out of aluminum, cardboard and bound with tape. When he takes his old, beat-up sign out into the L.A. streets, he only wants one thing: a simple honk of a car horn in support of his messages.

Every Friday evening at 5 PM at the bustling intersection where Sunset, Hollywood, Hillhurst, and Virgil Streets converge, this family man puts on his gloves and takes over the sidewalk on the northeast corner near the Vista Theater. This becomes his workspace. For the next two hours, he performs like a great musical conductor, attempting to create a symphony from the horns of cars he hopes to hear. (more…)