California is also where many of the most pressing issues raised by the pontiff – from climate change to LGBTQ rights and immigration – remain at the fore of political debate. YouthWire asked its youth reporters to weigh in on some of the Pope’s positions on climate change, gay rights and immigration, and what his message might mean for their communities.
Discussions of police misconduct in mainstream and social media outlets have reduced it to a black and white, and decidedly urban issue – African Americans on one side, white officers on the other. New America Media asked youth reporters in rural, and predominantly Latino, areas of California to survey people in their community about how they perceive local law enforcement.