1 00:00:00,560 --> 00:00:02,080 Speaker 1: Hey, hey, hey, hey, get us. 2 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:07,200 Speaker 2: Latino USA is celebrating thirty years today, ain't that akos? 3 00:00:07,280 --> 00:00:09,880 Speaker 2: And we would love to hear from you. Dear listener, 4 00:00:10,440 --> 00:00:13,160 Speaker 2: Do you want to share with us exactly what Latino 5 00:00:13,240 --> 00:00:15,560 Speaker 2: USA has meant to you? Do you have a birthday 6 00:00:15,560 --> 00:00:19,160 Speaker 2: wish for us? Leave us a voicemail at six four 7 00:00:19,280 --> 00:00:22,880 Speaker 2: six five seven to one one two two four. That's 8 00:00:23,239 --> 00:00:27,280 Speaker 2: six four six five seven to one one two two four, 9 00:00:27,480 --> 00:00:30,400 Speaker 2: and we might feature your message in an upcoming show 10 00:00:30,800 --> 00:00:34,720 Speaker 2: grass Yas. This is Latino USA, the radio journal of 11 00:00:34,800 --> 00:00:38,720 Speaker 2: news and curlture Latino USA, latin Us, Latino USA. 12 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:40,120 Speaker 1: I'm Maria Inojosa. 13 00:00:40,440 --> 00:00:43,800 Speaker 2: We bring you stories that are underreported but that mattered 14 00:00:43,840 --> 00:00:45,960 Speaker 2: to you, overlooked by the rest of the media, and 15 00:00:46,000 --> 00:00:48,080 Speaker 2: while the country is struggling to deal with these, we 16 00:00:48,200 --> 00:00:51,200 Speaker 2: listen to the stories of black and Latinos. Studio United 17 00:00:51,320 --> 00:00:56,120 Speaker 2: Latino Front, a cultural renaissance organizing at the forefront of 18 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:56,720 Speaker 2: the movement. 19 00:00:57,440 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 1: I'm Maria Inojosa. Nose Bayan. 20 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:06,800 Speaker 2: Marta Lopez was sitting in the passenger seat of the 21 00:01:06,840 --> 00:01:11,200 Speaker 2: family car in October of twenty twenty one while her 22 00:01:11,240 --> 00:01:16,280 Speaker 2: husband Freddie drove through the streets of Los Angeles. She 23 00:01:16,440 --> 00:01:19,040 Speaker 2: was checking the local news on her phone when something 24 00:01:19,120 --> 00:01:21,399 Speaker 2: on Univision caught her attention. 25 00:01:21,760 --> 00:01:26,119 Speaker 1: There is Milo Sintras Families cal do Asta. 26 00:01:27,360 --> 00:01:30,480 Speaker 2: The city of Los Angeles was launching a new program 27 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:35,480 Speaker 2: to support low income families, especially those hit hard by 28 00:01:35,600 --> 00:01:40,520 Speaker 2: the pandemic. But it all sounded Martha thought just too 29 00:01:40,560 --> 00:01:43,759 Speaker 2: good to be true. The program would give them one 30 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:51,080 Speaker 2: thousand dollars a month for one year. Martha's husband had 31 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:54,080 Speaker 2: lost his job early in the pandemic and she was 32 00:01:54,120 --> 00:01:56,440 Speaker 2: a stay at home mom taking care of their two 33 00:01:56,520 --> 00:02:00,480 Speaker 2: young daughters, so the family hadn't had a stable income 34 00:02:00,560 --> 00:02:05,960 Speaker 2: for more than six months. Those way up, so Martha 35 00:02:06,040 --> 00:02:09,520 Speaker 2: decided to apply for the program. About six months later, 36 00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:15,600 Speaker 2: she got the call. 37 00:02:13,240 --> 00:02:17,560 Speaker 3: Yeah you medi here on Yosa sikomon chok o Hami No. 38 00:02:18,480 --> 00:02:22,120 Speaker 2: She couldn't believe she had been selected. It felt like 39 00:02:22,240 --> 00:02:23,400 Speaker 2: a miracle. 40 00:02:23,000 --> 00:02:30,400 Speaker 4: She says, Anda youady a media Yes, yes, staff to 41 00:02:30,520 --> 00:02:32,720 Speaker 4: Premier mild is the miss. 42 00:02:33,360 --> 00:02:36,720 Speaker 2: And then Martha got her debit card with the first 43 00:02:36,919 --> 00:02:40,160 Speaker 2: one thousand dollars on it, ready for her to use. However, 44 00:02:40,320 --> 00:02:50,919 Speaker 2: she wanted no rules, no restrictions, no receipts needed from 45 00:02:51,000 --> 00:02:54,600 Speaker 2: Futuru media and pr X. It's Latino USA. I'm Maria 46 00:02:54,720 --> 00:02:59,480 Speaker 2: no Josa today, no strings attached. What happens when people 47 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:02,480 Speaker 2: who are ruggling to make ends meet get a stable 48 00:03:02,600 --> 00:03:05,960 Speaker 2: income from the government. We look at how this strategy 49 00:03:06,000 --> 00:03:13,600 Speaker 2: could help tackle inequality in the United States. Maybe you've 50 00:03:13,760 --> 00:03:21,360 Speaker 2: heard this term before. Universal basic income. It's the idea 51 00:03:21,400 --> 00:03:26,120 Speaker 2: of giving people cash regularly and unconditionally, so that they 52 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:28,960 Speaker 2: can spend the money as they wish, regardless of their 53 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:30,280 Speaker 2: economic status. 54 00:03:30,160 --> 00:03:31,120 Speaker 1: Or immediate need. 55 00:03:31,960 --> 00:03:35,800 Speaker 2: It's all to ensure a basic living standard for everyone. 56 00:03:37,000 --> 00:03:39,800 Speaker 2: It's a concept that's become pretty popular in recent years, 57 00:03:39,960 --> 00:03:43,880 Speaker 2: especially with the fear of technological advances leaving more and 58 00:03:44,000 --> 00:03:48,760 Speaker 2: more people out of work. In his twenty twenty presidential campaign, 59 00:03:49,240 --> 00:03:53,160 Speaker 2: tech entrepreneur Andrew Yang ran on the promise to provide 60 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:57,560 Speaker 2: people universal basic income. It was the first time a 61 00:03:57,720 --> 00:03:58,920 Speaker 2: candidate had done that. 62 00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:00,600 Speaker 5: Soniversal can Come. 63 00:04:01,240 --> 00:04:05,280 Speaker 2: Would be one thousand dollars dividend for every American adult 64 00:04:05,360 --> 00:04:10,480 Speaker 2: citizen every month under my plan. Cash programs aren't new. 65 00:04:11,240 --> 00:04:16,000 Speaker 2: Different variations have existed for decades, both inside and outside 66 00:04:16,120 --> 00:04:20,040 Speaker 2: of the US. They often target specific groups in need, 67 00:04:20,640 --> 00:04:24,440 Speaker 2: and they try to promote certain behaviors like restricting what 68 00:04:24,600 --> 00:04:28,240 Speaker 2: people can or can't spend the money on. But the 69 00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:31,920 Speaker 2: idea of the government handing people free money is something 70 00:04:31,960 --> 00:04:37,440 Speaker 2: that some Americans still find uncomfortable, or maybe many did 71 00:04:37,920 --> 00:04:41,480 Speaker 2: before the stimulus checks received during the pandemic made us 72 00:04:41,680 --> 00:04:43,680 Speaker 2: a lot more familiar. 73 00:04:43,480 --> 00:04:44,200 Speaker 1: With this idea. 74 00:04:45,000 --> 00:04:48,840 Speaker 6: Federal stimulus checks are being distributed this week, and it's 75 00:04:48,839 --> 00:04:51,839 Speaker 6: a welcome relief for those out of work and hoping 76 00:04:51,960 --> 00:04:52,960 Speaker 6: for better days to come. 77 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:58,160 Speaker 2: Even before the pandemic, California was already leading a kind 78 00:04:58,200 --> 00:05:03,479 Speaker 2: of renaissance of the basic income idea. More than one 79 00:05:03,560 --> 00:05:07,960 Speaker 2: hundred guaranteed income programs have launched across the country, and 80 00:05:08,200 --> 00:05:12,760 Speaker 2: most are found in the state of California. All of 81 00:05:12,839 --> 00:05:16,159 Speaker 2: them are still in the pilot phase. They usually run 82 00:05:16,320 --> 00:05:20,400 Speaker 2: for one or two years. The results have been interesting, 83 00:05:20,920 --> 00:05:25,760 Speaker 2: but these conversations have mostly stayed inside city councils and 84 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:30,920 Speaker 2: university classrooms. So what's it like for the people who 85 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:34,960 Speaker 2: are participating in these programs? How is a guaranteed income 86 00:05:35,120 --> 00:05:36,240 Speaker 2: making a difference for them? 87 00:05:36,640 --> 00:05:37,080 Speaker 1: If at all? 88 00:05:38,560 --> 00:05:42,400 Speaker 2: Latino USA Senior producer Marta Martinez spent a month in 89 00:05:42,520 --> 00:05:46,280 Speaker 2: Los Angeles following two women who participated in one of 90 00:05:46,320 --> 00:05:50,719 Speaker 2: the biggest guaranteed income programs in the country and where 91 00:05:50,839 --> 00:05:57,920 Speaker 2: half of the beneficiaries are Latinos and Latinas. Here's Marta 92 00:05:58,240 --> 00:05:59,240 Speaker 2: with the story. 93 00:06:04,120 --> 00:06:08,640 Speaker 3: Ola p Pasa see Oh Stuck here a Plan. 94 00:06:11,200 --> 00:06:14,040 Speaker 1: It's January twenty fifth, and the twenty fifth of the 95 00:06:14,160 --> 00:06:17,720 Speaker 1: month is when everything starts for participants of Big Leap. 96 00:06:18,839 --> 00:06:21,840 Speaker 1: That's the guaranteed basic income program the City of Los 97 00:06:21,880 --> 00:06:26,960 Speaker 1: Angeles launched in twenty twenty two. Marta Lopev, who we 98 00:06:27,080 --> 00:06:29,440 Speaker 1: met at the beginning of the show, is one of 99 00:06:29,560 --> 00:06:33,760 Speaker 1: over thirty two hundred people who got selected, and almost 100 00:06:33,839 --> 00:06:35,520 Speaker 1: eighty percent of them are women. 101 00:06:36,240 --> 00:06:40,200 Speaker 4: Nokamira for Tunaa Perosi is the Kreya Mucco. 102 00:06:41,240 --> 00:06:44,960 Speaker 1: Marta feels very lucky. More than fifty thousand people applied. 103 00:06:49,120 --> 00:06:52,600 Speaker 3: Sandamlas Say is the La man Larba. 104 00:06:53,960 --> 00:06:57,040 Speaker 1: Marta, who is from Honduras, has been running around the 105 00:06:57,120 --> 00:07:00,400 Speaker 1: house since six am. She's also thirty eighty years old, 106 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:04,760 Speaker 1: the median age of Bigly participants. She has straight, dark 107 00:07:04,839 --> 00:07:08,080 Speaker 1: chocolate hair cut in the perfect horizontal line right above 108 00:07:08,120 --> 00:07:12,800 Speaker 1: her shoulders. Her prominent cheeks and forehead are sprinkled with freckles. 109 00:07:14,240 --> 00:07:17,000 Speaker 1: Media the program coordinators put me in touch with Martha 110 00:07:17,240 --> 00:07:23,240 Speaker 1: and some other participants who feel comfortable sharing their experiences publicly. Today, 111 00:07:23,440 --> 00:07:26,040 Speaker 1: Martha will get a transfer of one thousand dollars on 112 00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:29,480 Speaker 1: her program debit card for her to spend however she wants. 113 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:33,680 Speaker 1: Martha only has three deposits left. Her twelve months are 114 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:38,800 Speaker 1: almost up. Today, Martha hasn't been able to go to 115 00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:41,840 Speaker 1: the ATM to retreat the money, as she usually does 116 00:07:41,880 --> 00:07:42,840 Speaker 1: on the twenty fifth of the. 117 00:07:42,880 --> 00:07:47,440 Speaker 7: Month if on the Yoma is protecting Locala. 118 00:07:51,040 --> 00:07:54,240 Speaker 1: Her daughter, Lizzie, who is eight years old, is sick again, 119 00:07:54,680 --> 00:07:56,800 Speaker 1: so Martha had to stay home and take care of 120 00:07:56,880 --> 00:08:04,080 Speaker 1: her water in Lawuka, the skinny girl with black, shiny 121 00:08:04,160 --> 00:08:08,200 Speaker 1: eyes and two missing frontis, has asthma, and the unusually 122 00:08:08,280 --> 00:08:12,000 Speaker 1: cool temperatures California has been experiencing this winter are testing 123 00:08:12,080 --> 00:08:15,200 Speaker 1: her health. She's been missing school more often than Martha 124 00:08:15,240 --> 00:08:19,600 Speaker 1: would like to beta, and because Lizzie didn't go to school, 125 00:08:20,040 --> 00:08:23,239 Speaker 1: her little sister, Sophia, who is five years old, didn't 126 00:08:23,240 --> 00:08:27,200 Speaker 1: want to go either. No yeah, yeah, yeah. 127 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:31,080 Speaker 7: Chow. 128 00:08:31,560 --> 00:08:34,520 Speaker 1: Sophia prefers to spend the afternoon hanging from her mother's 129 00:08:34,640 --> 00:08:37,280 Speaker 1: neck and kissing her. She's the clown of the house. 130 00:08:37,520 --> 00:08:40,080 Speaker 1: You never know what will come out of her unfiltered mouth. 131 00:08:46,480 --> 00:08:48,960 Speaker 1: The family of four lives in a one bedroom apartment 132 00:08:49,160 --> 00:08:52,400 Speaker 1: in South Lay, tacked between the One and Freeway and Broadway, 133 00:08:53,120 --> 00:08:55,280 Speaker 1: immersed in the never ending buzz of traffic. 134 00:08:57,800 --> 00:09:02,000 Speaker 7: It's a wainbow. She loves rainbows. 135 00:09:03,240 --> 00:09:06,160 Speaker 1: It's a welcoming home. The living room is filled with toys, 136 00:09:06,360 --> 00:09:09,120 Speaker 1: and there are studio pictures of Lizzie and Sophia hanging 137 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:10,080 Speaker 1: on several walls. 138 00:09:14,679 --> 00:09:18,520 Speaker 3: Preparing caldo gaina una ros blanco. 139 00:09:22,679 --> 00:09:27,000 Speaker 1: Marta is preparing Lizzie's favorite food, calo hen soup to 140 00:09:27,120 --> 00:09:34,839 Speaker 1: help her recover from her cold. Well she cuts the vegetables. 141 00:09:35,040 --> 00:09:37,280 Speaker 1: Martha shares some tips on how she tries to save 142 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:38,400 Speaker 1: money Parta. 143 00:09:38,160 --> 00:09:47,240 Speaker 3: De casa, manera massabien and too pecto rodinero bradio La 144 00:09:47,960 --> 00:09:50,000 Speaker 3: casa so significant. 145 00:09:52,200 --> 00:09:54,839 Speaker 1: She cooks at home every day because it's healthier and 146 00:09:54,920 --> 00:09:55,839 Speaker 1: cheaper than eating out. 147 00:09:56,840 --> 00:10:04,599 Speaker 4: Termina sien dome na al gore let's to burget mohrhence. 148 00:10:06,360 --> 00:10:06,640 Speaker 3: Mano. 149 00:10:06,720 --> 00:10:09,640 Speaker 1: Also, eating out can be more of a concern than 150 00:10:09,800 --> 00:10:12,960 Speaker 1: a fun experience for the family because, besides having asthma, 151 00:10:13,400 --> 00:10:17,120 Speaker 1: Lizzie has a severe allergy to cow's milk. Lizzie's fragile 152 00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:20,040 Speaker 1: health has limited MARTA's options to find a full time 153 00:10:20,120 --> 00:10:22,079 Speaker 1: job because she needs to keep a clothes eye on 154 00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:26,120 Speaker 1: her at all times. The family's earnings are under the 155 00:10:26,200 --> 00:10:29,600 Speaker 1: federal poverty line that was less than twenty seven dollars 156 00:10:29,640 --> 00:10:32,440 Speaker 1: a year for a family of four in twenty twenty one, 157 00:10:33,160 --> 00:10:35,640 Speaker 1: and they rely on food stems for their food supply 158 00:10:36,360 --> 00:10:40,319 Speaker 1: that's usually enough for the month. Lately, inflation has made 159 00:10:40,360 --> 00:10:43,400 Speaker 1: things tighter, but Martha says there are some items that 160 00:10:43,520 --> 00:10:46,840 Speaker 1: she just cannot not buy, like cooking oil. 161 00:10:46,960 --> 00:10:52,800 Speaker 3: Lotre go cord mediavo uno inmoteroluso Martin. 162 00:10:52,920 --> 00:10:55,600 Speaker 1: It's oil to fry food or to make her seasonings. 163 00:10:55,880 --> 00:10:59,000 Speaker 1: So instead of buying two bottles now she buys one 164 00:10:59,240 --> 00:11:03,679 Speaker 1: and moderates use. Having the extra help of one thousand 165 00:11:03,720 --> 00:11:06,480 Speaker 1: dollars a month through the city's program has allowed the 166 00:11:06,559 --> 00:11:09,680 Speaker 1: family to afford themselves a caprico every once in a. 167 00:11:09,679 --> 00:11:14,520 Speaker 3: While prove tacos so they were sen. 168 00:11:14,520 --> 00:11:21,360 Speaker 1: Guando Sunday is smartas day to rest and be with 169 00:11:21,480 --> 00:11:25,960 Speaker 1: her family. Sometimes they eat out, usually tackles, and during 170 00:11:26,040 --> 00:11:28,559 Speaker 1: the summer, she took the girls to the aquarium or 171 00:11:28,600 --> 00:11:38,640 Speaker 1: the beach, Sophia Lizzie. Dinner is ready, but only Sophia 172 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:42,200 Speaker 1: shows up with her bubbly eyes and mischievous smiles. Lizzie 173 00:11:42,240 --> 00:11:46,320 Speaker 1: has fallen asleep in the bedroom while watching cartoons. Well 174 00:11:46,360 --> 00:11:50,120 Speaker 1: we eat caloa. Sofia tells me where babies come from. 175 00:11:50,960 --> 00:11:52,480 Speaker 1: She says, parents buy them. 176 00:11:52,360 --> 00:11:55,640 Speaker 7: At stores, My mom my Fami. 177 00:12:08,760 --> 00:12:12,120 Speaker 1: Marta came to the United States in twenty fourteen. It 178 00:12:12,280 --> 00:12:15,600 Speaker 1: wasn't her first time visiting, but this time Martha wasn't 179 00:12:15,600 --> 00:12:20,040 Speaker 1: traveling alone. She was pregnant with Lizzi. She first lived 180 00:12:20,080 --> 00:12:23,079 Speaker 1: with her sister in Philadelphia, and that's where she gave 181 00:12:23,160 --> 00:12:26,599 Speaker 1: birth to Lizzi on her own. Her husband, Freddi was 182 00:12:26,640 --> 00:12:33,200 Speaker 1: still back in on duras im Asalio. Lizzie was beautiful, 183 00:12:33,559 --> 00:12:36,319 Speaker 1: like a little doll, Marca says, but it was a 184 00:12:36,400 --> 00:12:37,320 Speaker 1: difficult time for her. 185 00:12:37,679 --> 00:12:46,760 Speaker 3: Not dino yo barra barastra, mihiirago vien duruwa is dressed. 186 00:12:47,360 --> 00:12:49,840 Speaker 1: Martha didn't have money to buy clothes for her daughter, 187 00:12:50,280 --> 00:12:53,360 Speaker 1: not even when they left the hospital. So when Lizzie 188 00:12:53,440 --> 00:12:55,960 Speaker 1: was three months old, Martha had to start working at 189 00:12:55,960 --> 00:12:59,920 Speaker 1: a factory packaging fruit. She worried about so many things. 190 00:13:05,000 --> 00:13:15,199 Speaker 1: Ami Freddie wasn't there to support her. She had to 191 00:13:15,240 --> 00:13:18,400 Speaker 1: earn money to pay for rent a babysitter, to cover 192 00:13:18,559 --> 00:13:21,760 Speaker 1: for her daughter's basic needs and her own. On top 193 00:13:21,800 --> 00:13:25,120 Speaker 1: of the financial stress Martha was dealing with. This was 194 00:13:25,240 --> 00:13:27,880 Speaker 1: nine months old when she was diagnosed with a severe 195 00:13:27,960 --> 00:13:32,200 Speaker 1: allergy to cow's milk. Martha felt like she had failed. 196 00:13:33,320 --> 00:13:36,840 Speaker 1: She started having trouble sleeping, She lost her appetite, her 197 00:13:36,880 --> 00:13:38,000 Speaker 1: hair started falling off. 198 00:13:44,559 --> 00:13:48,080 Speaker 3: But as dion Dia k. 199 00:13:51,280 --> 00:13:53,920 Speaker 1: One day, when she got back from work, she felt 200 00:13:54,040 --> 00:13:57,280 Speaker 1: like her body was exploding. You imps. 201 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:01,680 Speaker 3: Or Media fell on a party. 202 00:14:01,800 --> 00:14:07,400 Speaker 1: Scared, she couldn't breathe. A tingling sensation spread across the 203 00:14:07,480 --> 00:14:08,480 Speaker 1: left side of her body. 204 00:14:09,000 --> 00:14:11,760 Speaker 3: To the girl, let's say you memor your memoir. 205 00:14:13,080 --> 00:14:18,760 Speaker 1: Martha thought she was going to die. At the hospital, 206 00:14:19,200 --> 00:14:22,360 Speaker 1: doctors told her she had had a panic attack. She 207 00:14:22,440 --> 00:14:25,760 Speaker 1: had never heard that term before, but Marta knew that 208 00:14:25,960 --> 00:14:29,520 Speaker 1: going back to Honduda's was not an option. Two of 209 00:14:29,600 --> 00:14:32,280 Speaker 1: her brothers, who run a bus company, had been killed 210 00:14:32,320 --> 00:14:35,600 Speaker 1: by criminal gangs who demanded a quota, a monthly payment 211 00:14:35,800 --> 00:14:43,200 Speaker 1: in exchange for their safety. Meha Caparos, Martha was scared 212 00:14:43,280 --> 00:14:52,800 Speaker 1: that in Honduras. She could get killed at any moment. Eventually, 213 00:14:52,880 --> 00:14:55,440 Speaker 1: Freddie came to the US and the family moved to 214 00:14:55,520 --> 00:14:59,360 Speaker 1: Los Angeles. Martha gave birth to their second daughter, Sophia, 215 00:15:00,000 --> 00:15:09,480 Speaker 1: and became a stay at home mamuando. When they moved, 216 00:15:09,720 --> 00:15:13,040 Speaker 1: she asked Freddy half jokingly to live near her hospital. 217 00:15:13,760 --> 00:15:17,880 Speaker 3: Well, sim maybe then well. 218 00:15:18,520 --> 00:15:21,680 Speaker 1: Martha says that after the panic attack, her life has 219 00:15:21,800 --> 00:15:33,200 Speaker 1: never been the same. The next day, on January twenty sixth, 220 00:15:33,680 --> 00:15:36,240 Speaker 1: I accompany Marta to get her big lip deposit at 221 00:15:36,240 --> 00:15:43,640 Speaker 1: an ATM inside a supermarket in South La Liza didn't 222 00:15:43,680 --> 00:15:46,720 Speaker 1: go to school today either. She still hasn't fully recovered 223 00:15:46,760 --> 00:15:56,240 Speaker 1: from her code. This is the ATM Marta uses most 224 00:15:56,280 --> 00:15:58,680 Speaker 1: of the time to get her cash from the program. 225 00:15:59,440 --> 00:16:05,640 Speaker 1: She inserts the card into the ATM slot, A button 226 00:16:05,720 --> 00:16:08,440 Speaker 1: appears on the screen that allows her to directly withdraw 227 00:16:08,560 --> 00:16:12,200 Speaker 1: one thousand dollars at once. The program decided to distribute 228 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:15,120 Speaker 1: the money through prepaid debit cards because they were looking 229 00:16:15,160 --> 00:16:18,200 Speaker 1: for a system that would be flexible but also safe. 230 00:16:18,880 --> 00:16:22,160 Speaker 1: Some of the participants don't have bank accounts, and some 231 00:16:22,280 --> 00:16:24,840 Speaker 1: people aren't used to making card payments. 232 00:16:26,480 --> 00:16:29,680 Speaker 3: Gussie its list. 233 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:33,600 Speaker 1: In less than a minute. Martha has the cash in 234 00:16:33,720 --> 00:16:36,080 Speaker 1: her hands and she quickly puts the stack of bills 235 00:16:36,160 --> 00:16:38,640 Speaker 1: inside of her purse, except for a couple of twenties 236 00:16:38,760 --> 00:16:39,840 Speaker 1: she keeps in her pocket. 237 00:16:40,800 --> 00:16:43,640 Speaker 3: Yeah, thank you and nich manus putla Ana. 238 00:16:47,520 --> 00:16:47,840 Speaker 8: Met with. 239 00:16:50,400 --> 00:16:53,560 Speaker 1: These deposits make Martha feel secure and give her the 240 00:16:53,680 --> 00:16:56,000 Speaker 1: confidence that she'll be able to pay for her basic 241 00:16:56,120 --> 00:17:00,320 Speaker 1: expenses each month, which are around fifteen hundred dollars without rent. 242 00:17:01,040 --> 00:17:03,400 Speaker 1: The family pays a little over one thousand dollars a 243 00:17:03,480 --> 00:17:07,919 Speaker 1: month for their one bedroom apartment. Martha uses five hundred 244 00:17:08,160 --> 00:17:11,000 Speaker 1: from the Big Leap program for rent and the other 245 00:17:11,119 --> 00:17:14,720 Speaker 1: half well, in recent months, she started investing the money 246 00:17:14,880 --> 00:17:20,160 Speaker 1: on something she's very excited about. Well. 247 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:22,399 Speaker 3: In Bertier and Loquez San Pres. 248 00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:27,960 Speaker 1: Martha has been investing the other five hundred on what 249 00:17:28,119 --> 00:17:29,800 Speaker 1: she calls her small business. 250 00:17:35,320 --> 00:17:38,040 Speaker 2: Coming up on letting the USA, we find out how 251 00:17:38,119 --> 00:17:41,160 Speaker 2: Martha is investing the other half of the cash from 252 00:17:41,200 --> 00:17:44,520 Speaker 2: the Guaranteed Income program, and we learn about the origins 253 00:17:44,760 --> 00:17:49,240 Speaker 2: of universal basic income. Stay with us not themas. 254 00:18:08,600 --> 00:18:18,040 Speaker 9: Get usuena umo jote came through Muchasa mucho amor Inlardino 255 00:18:18,680 --> 00:18:24,359 Speaker 9: Musical and Miss Agri and Milman much at the Ponto. 256 00:18:39,160 --> 00:18:42,560 Speaker 2: Hey, we're back before the break. You met Marta Lopez, 257 00:18:42,960 --> 00:18:46,960 Speaker 2: one of the participants of Big Leap. It's the guarantee 258 00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:50,080 Speaker 2: basic income program the city of Los Angeles, launched in 259 00:18:50,240 --> 00:18:53,560 Speaker 2: twenty twenty two and one of the biggest in the country. 260 00:18:54,160 --> 00:18:57,960 Speaker 2: Participants get one thousand dollars a month for a year 261 00:18:58,480 --> 00:19:02,240 Speaker 2: without any restrictions how to spend the money. Marta has 262 00:19:02,280 --> 00:19:05,920 Speaker 2: been investing half of the money on something very special 263 00:19:06,000 --> 00:19:08,440 Speaker 2: for her. But before we find out what that is, 264 00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:13,520 Speaker 2: we're gonna meet Michaela, another program participant. Here's Latino USA 265 00:19:13,600 --> 00:19:16,639 Speaker 2: Senior producer Marta Martinez once again with the story. 266 00:19:25,240 --> 00:19:27,720 Speaker 1: It's Saturday morning and we're in the car with Mikaela. 267 00:19:28,400 --> 00:19:32,200 Speaker 1: We're not using Mikaela's last name because she's undocumented. The 268 00:19:32,240 --> 00:19:34,879 Speaker 1: Big LEAG program didn't ask about legal status in its 269 00:19:34,880 --> 00:19:38,320 Speaker 1: application because the city wanted to broaden access as much 270 00:19:38,359 --> 00:19:41,719 Speaker 1: as possible. This is also the first time Mikaela has 271 00:19:41,760 --> 00:19:47,160 Speaker 1: ever gotten any aid from the government. We're heading from 272 00:19:47,240 --> 00:19:49,600 Speaker 1: South la where she lives, to a food bank in 273 00:19:49,680 --> 00:19:52,760 Speaker 1: Korea Town. Mikhaela's landlord is driving. 274 00:19:55,440 --> 00:19:55,800 Speaker 8: TIEMP. 275 00:20:00,920 --> 00:20:03,359 Speaker 1: Mikhayela is fifty one years old and she doesn't have 276 00:20:03,480 --> 00:20:05,600 Speaker 1: a car, so she can only go to the food 277 00:20:05,640 --> 00:20:08,520 Speaker 1: bank whenever her landlord can drive her. She says, you 278 00:20:08,520 --> 00:20:12,480 Speaker 1: wouldn't be able to afford a n uber. Mikaela sits 279 00:20:12,520 --> 00:20:14,919 Speaker 1: in the front and most of her face is covered 280 00:20:14,920 --> 00:20:18,160 Speaker 1: by a black face mask, but her eyes are delicately 281 00:20:18,280 --> 00:20:20,960 Speaker 1: made up with a rose colored eyeshadow and a touch 282 00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:24,040 Speaker 1: of glitter. She has a curly mop of blonde hair, 283 00:20:24,359 --> 00:20:27,720 Speaker 1: almost white at the top. Her nails are painted light pink, 284 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:29,360 Speaker 1: but they look worn down. 285 00:20:30,520 --> 00:20:34,359 Speaker 8: Rat They are rat pour k as the pis fasi. 286 00:20:40,440 --> 00:20:44,240 Speaker 1: Mikhaela says she's very thrifty. In this country, people spend 287 00:20:44,320 --> 00:20:46,879 Speaker 1: money on things they don't need, but she can't afford 288 00:20:46,920 --> 00:20:49,720 Speaker 1: to do that. Mikhayela is a siamstress and a single 289 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:53,359 Speaker 1: mother of two. The majority of Bigley participants are single 290 00:20:53,440 --> 00:20:57,040 Speaker 1: mothers like her. She came to the US almost thirty 291 00:20:57,119 --> 00:20:59,960 Speaker 1: years ago from Mexico with the father of her two boys, 292 00:21:00,760 --> 00:21:05,600 Speaker 1: but he was physically abusive and they soon separated. Mikaela 293 00:21:05,680 --> 00:21:08,800 Speaker 1: says he has never provided any support for her sons, 294 00:21:08,960 --> 00:21:10,200 Speaker 1: who are now in their twenties. 295 00:21:10,640 --> 00:21:17,119 Speaker 8: Mos Con La Costa for Que Malaga. 296 00:21:17,119 --> 00:21:19,920 Speaker 1: Mikaela relies on her sewing, but it's not a well 297 00:21:20,000 --> 00:21:22,680 Speaker 1: paying job. On a good week, she says she makes 298 00:21:22,720 --> 00:21:26,320 Speaker 1: six hundred dollars, but that means working every day from 299 00:21:26,400 --> 00:21:30,359 Speaker 1: seven am till eleven pm. She rents two rooms in 300 00:21:30,400 --> 00:21:33,320 Speaker 1: her landlord's house, one for her and one for her 301 00:21:33,400 --> 00:21:36,880 Speaker 1: oldest son, who is twenty five years old. She pays 302 00:21:36,960 --> 00:21:39,160 Speaker 1: eight hundred and fifty dollars a month for the rooms, 303 00:21:39,320 --> 00:21:42,120 Speaker 1: and she's been using most of her program money on rent. 304 00:21:43,160 --> 00:21:47,040 Speaker 1: She's also been supporting her youngest son through college in Merced, California. 305 00:21:48,080 --> 00:21:50,720 Speaker 1: He got a scholarship, but it didn't fully cover his tuition, 306 00:21:51,320 --> 00:21:54,080 Speaker 1: so Mikaela sent him about five hundred dollars a month 307 00:21:54,240 --> 00:21:56,600 Speaker 1: to pay for his classes and other things he needed, 308 00:21:57,119 --> 00:21:59,200 Speaker 1: depending on how much she was able to make sewing 309 00:21:59,560 --> 00:22:02,120 Speaker 1: or how much she could borrow from friends and acquaintances. 310 00:22:02,720 --> 00:22:04,879 Speaker 8: Listen dian Naervio's with Hi. 311 00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:10,560 Speaker 1: Mikhaela always worried would she be able to make ends meet, 312 00:22:11,200 --> 00:22:14,000 Speaker 1: and it wasn't just a tuition. He always needed something. 313 00:22:14,480 --> 00:22:20,719 Speaker 8: Then God tample Mansa Kokoopoo pastades Kokopo cal Setenis. 314 00:22:21,359 --> 00:22:25,960 Speaker 1: He texted her saying he needed soap, toothpaste, socks. As 315 00:22:25,960 --> 00:22:28,320 Speaker 1: a single mom, Mikaela has to figure out ways to 316 00:22:28,359 --> 00:22:30,880 Speaker 1: save money all the time, and that's how she found 317 00:22:30,920 --> 00:22:34,200 Speaker 1: out about this food bank. She's been going there for 318 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:42,000 Speaker 1: ten years now. Nikayla comes every two or three weeks 319 00:22:42,040 --> 00:22:44,240 Speaker 1: to stock up for her and her son, and for 320 00:22:44,359 --> 00:22:47,000 Speaker 1: fifty dollars, she can get as much food as she wants. 321 00:22:48,560 --> 00:22:50,000 Speaker 8: Fat In the end, you say that. 322 00:22:53,280 --> 00:22:53,760 Speaker 5: Mikhaela. 323 00:22:54,840 --> 00:22:57,879 Speaker 1: Mikaela got her twelve and last cash transfer from the 324 00:22:57,920 --> 00:23:01,360 Speaker 1: Big Lee program this month. She was among those who 325 00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:04,920 Speaker 1: were first randomly selected to participate. The City of Los 326 00:23:04,960 --> 00:23:08,159 Speaker 1: Angeles partnered with the University of Pennsylvania to manage the 327 00:23:08,240 --> 00:23:11,440 Speaker 1: selection process, as well as all other research aspects of 328 00:23:11,520 --> 00:23:15,760 Speaker 1: the program. Angelina's were able to apply either online or 329 00:23:15,960 --> 00:23:18,840 Speaker 1: in person during a period of ten days. In the 330 00:23:18,920 --> 00:23:20,600 Speaker 1: fall of twenty twenty one, we. 331 00:23:20,680 --> 00:23:23,200 Speaker 6: Had two hundred and fifty thousand people visit our website 332 00:23:23,600 --> 00:23:26,240 Speaker 6: and in the air little over fifty thousand people applied 333 00:23:26,320 --> 00:23:26,919 Speaker 6: for the program. 334 00:23:27,840 --> 00:23:31,120 Speaker 1: This is Abigail Marquez, the General manager of the Community 335 00:23:31,160 --> 00:23:34,480 Speaker 1: Investment for Families Apartment with the City of Los Angeles. 336 00:23:35,119 --> 00:23:37,800 Speaker 1: Her unit is in charge of implementing the Big leap program. 337 00:23:39,920 --> 00:23:42,800 Speaker 1: Abigail says that the fact that over fifty thousand people 338 00:23:42,880 --> 00:23:48,399 Speaker 1: applied illustrates how big the need is. Some ten thousand 339 00:23:48,480 --> 00:23:52,320 Speaker 1: people who applied actually didn't respond when the program informed 340 00:23:52,359 --> 00:23:54,080 Speaker 1: them that they had been randomly selected. 341 00:23:54,600 --> 00:23:58,639 Speaker 6: People distrust government, and so people felt like, this is 342 00:23:58,680 --> 00:24:00,840 Speaker 6: a catch. How is it that that we're getting one 343 00:24:00,880 --> 00:24:01,600 Speaker 6: thousand dollars. 344 00:24:01,680 --> 00:24:02,399 Speaker 1: It's unheard of. 345 00:24:02,840 --> 00:24:03,879 Speaker 6: It really is unheard of. 346 00:24:04,600 --> 00:24:08,800 Speaker 1: Another five thousand out of fifty thousand didn't fulfill the 347 00:24:08,880 --> 00:24:12,280 Speaker 1: selection criteria, that is being an adult living in the 348 00:24:12,359 --> 00:24:15,280 Speaker 1: city of Los Angeles under the twenty twenty one federal 349 00:24:15,359 --> 00:24:19,720 Speaker 1: poverty line and having at least one child that means 350 00:24:19,880 --> 00:24:22,480 Speaker 1: making less than eighteen thousand dollars a year for a 351 00:24:22,560 --> 00:24:26,520 Speaker 1: family of two. Because of the people who either didn't 352 00:24:26,560 --> 00:24:30,359 Speaker 1: respond or didn't qualify in the first selection round, some 353 00:24:30,520 --> 00:24:33,239 Speaker 1: participants got their first CATSH trend first a little bit 354 00:24:33,320 --> 00:24:36,760 Speaker 1: earlier than others, about a couple of months apart. That's 355 00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:39,159 Speaker 1: why Marta, the woman we met at the beginning of 356 00:24:39,200 --> 00:24:43,119 Speaker 1: the show, still has some deposits left, but Mikaela doesn't. 357 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:47,600 Speaker 6: The pandemic created an opportunity for us to do something 358 00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:50,159 Speaker 6: different as local government in the way that we were 359 00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:54,560 Speaker 6: responding to the needs and challenges, primarily those from communities 360 00:24:54,600 --> 00:24:57,840 Speaker 6: of color. But I think it's an opportunity to reflect 361 00:24:57,960 --> 00:25:00,520 Speaker 6: on how we could do things differently moving forward. 362 00:25:04,359 --> 00:25:07,320 Speaker 1: In early twenty twenty, Mikhaela was working at a textile 363 00:25:07,400 --> 00:25:08,359 Speaker 1: factory and. 364 00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:16,080 Speaker 10: La Pandemias and dicaol Mundo and Sima servajo mebermas carrillos. 365 00:25:16,160 --> 00:25:19,240 Speaker 1: With a pandemic. The world fell apart for her. She 366 00:25:19,359 --> 00:25:22,200 Speaker 1: got COVID, she lost her job. Then she started sewing 367 00:25:22,280 --> 00:25:24,359 Speaker 1: face masks on her own to get. 368 00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:35,560 Speaker 10: By janoomere no poor mir Pergatia, Bantos, dress, Santiacae, Sali, 369 00:25:35,840 --> 00:25:37,920 Speaker 10: Jello so Caveza. 370 00:25:38,400 --> 00:25:41,520 Speaker 1: She couldn't eat, she couldn't sleep. Her head hurts so 371 00:25:41,720 --> 00:25:45,760 Speaker 1: much she felt her eyes would fall out. She had takikardias. 372 00:25:46,160 --> 00:25:48,680 Speaker 1: Her heart started pounding in the middle of the night, 373 00:25:49,280 --> 00:25:52,159 Speaker 1: and she was falling deeper and deeper into dead. To 374 00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:53,480 Speaker 1: help her youngest son. 375 00:25:53,640 --> 00:25:58,399 Speaker 8: For Doma Trasco Noja. 376 00:26:00,040 --> 00:26:02,440 Speaker 1: He was going to graduate from college soon and she 377 00:26:02,520 --> 00:26:06,840 Speaker 1: felt she couldn't leave him hanging. It was actually her 378 00:26:06,920 --> 00:26:09,560 Speaker 1: youngest son who found out about the Big Clip program. 379 00:26:09,800 --> 00:26:13,480 Speaker 8: See applicat meal Manzueles Punao. 380 00:26:16,280 --> 00:26:19,080 Speaker 1: He helped her fill out the online application because Mikaela 381 00:26:19,280 --> 00:26:22,600 Speaker 1: barely speaks English and she's not great with technology either. 382 00:26:23,560 --> 00:26:26,000 Speaker 1: Six months later, she got a message from the City 383 00:26:26,040 --> 00:26:29,080 Speaker 1: of Los Angeles. She had already forgotten what it was about, 384 00:26:29,320 --> 00:26:32,080 Speaker 1: but she went to the government office anyway, and then 385 00:26:32,320 --> 00:26:34,160 Speaker 1: they gave her a debit card tray. 386 00:26:34,480 --> 00:26:44,879 Speaker 8: So inclusive Chao yallow a ladio is positively di Jossi. 387 00:26:45,800 --> 00:26:49,240 Speaker 1: Mikaela couldn't believe it. At first. She thought she was 388 00:26:49,320 --> 00:26:51,760 Speaker 1: going to have to work in exchange for the cash, 389 00:26:52,080 --> 00:26:54,280 Speaker 1: and she worried about how she would combine that with 390 00:26:54,400 --> 00:26:57,280 Speaker 1: her sewing. When she found out that she didn't need 391 00:26:57,359 --> 00:26:59,879 Speaker 1: to do anything, just use the money as she needed, 392 00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:01,760 Speaker 1: she thought she was going to pass. 393 00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:04,760 Speaker 8: Out semi Yeah, not a lass. 394 00:27:06,560 --> 00:27:13,280 Speaker 10: Like you in this difficult tekastoid omega manalo sayula milan. 395 00:27:13,680 --> 00:27:17,119 Speaker 1: For someone who's poor, Mikhaila says, one thousand dollars a 396 00:27:17,240 --> 00:27:23,160 Speaker 1: month is a lot of money. She closed her eyes 397 00:27:23,240 --> 00:27:25,720 Speaker 1: and said, now I have to give it my own. 398 00:27:30,280 --> 00:27:32,800 Speaker 1: The City of Los Angeles has invested more than thirty 399 00:27:32,880 --> 00:27:36,400 Speaker 1: six million dollars into the Big Lee program. The city 400 00:27:36,440 --> 00:27:39,679 Speaker 1: is tapping money from its general fund, which also finances 401 00:27:39,760 --> 00:27:44,760 Speaker 1: it's public safety and infrastructure, among other services. And all 402 00:27:44,840 --> 00:27:48,600 Speaker 1: of that gets funded through taxes, fines, and other fees 403 00:27:48,800 --> 00:27:53,760 Speaker 1: local government collects. This year, for example, LA's general fund 404 00:27:53,960 --> 00:27:57,159 Speaker 1: has a budget of almost eight billion dollars, and so 405 00:27:57,320 --> 00:28:01,520 Speaker 1: the Bigley program is barely making a dent. At the 406 00:28:01,560 --> 00:28:03,879 Speaker 1: heart of the program is the idea that there are 407 00:28:03,960 --> 00:28:06,840 Speaker 1: no rules or guidance on how to spend the money. 408 00:28:09,880 --> 00:28:12,080 Speaker 1: Here's Abigail Marquez again from the city. 409 00:28:12,760 --> 00:28:16,359 Speaker 6: I fundamentally believe that if we remove barriers from people 410 00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:20,480 Speaker 6: to access programs and we empower them to make decisions 411 00:28:20,560 --> 00:28:23,800 Speaker 6: for themselves, they are in the best position to make 412 00:28:23,880 --> 00:28:28,359 Speaker 6: those decisions. Oftentimes, in my opinion, government is overly prescriptive. 413 00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:31,560 Speaker 6: We have too many requirements, too many rules. 414 00:28:32,040 --> 00:28:35,240 Speaker 1: So far, data the city has collected shows that participants 415 00:28:35,280 --> 00:28:37,920 Speaker 1: are spending the money on covering their basic needs. 416 00:28:38,560 --> 00:28:41,200 Speaker 6: Many are spending the money on helping to cover their 417 00:28:41,240 --> 00:28:44,600 Speaker 6: rent costs. Thirty four percent of our participants are spending 418 00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:48,080 Speaker 6: money on food and groceries. They're not spending money on 419 00:28:48,400 --> 00:28:51,560 Speaker 6: purchasing a new car or anything that's lavish. 420 00:28:56,200 --> 00:28:59,280 Speaker 1: We could say that there's a new wave of guaranteeing 421 00:28:59,360 --> 00:29:03,080 Speaker 1: come program, and probably the one that initiated it and 422 00:29:03,440 --> 00:29:06,080 Speaker 1: got a lot of media attention was the one Michael 423 00:29:06,160 --> 00:29:09,120 Speaker 1: Tobs started when he became the mayor of Stockton, a 424 00:29:09,200 --> 00:29:12,680 Speaker 1: city of over three hundred and twenty thousand people in California, 425 00:29:12,720 --> 00:29:13,520 Speaker 1: a central body. 426 00:29:14,640 --> 00:29:16,520 Speaker 11: I told my staff to look at like, how are 427 00:29:16,560 --> 00:29:18,800 Speaker 11: we going to get rid of poverty? At art meet 428 00:29:19,400 --> 00:29:21,880 Speaker 11: and they came back with this idea of giving people money, 429 00:29:22,440 --> 00:29:24,320 Speaker 11: And honestly, at first I was a little bit nervous. 430 00:29:24,640 --> 00:29:28,479 Speaker 11: It felt very bold and very radical, a little bit 431 00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:29,440 Speaker 11: of a crazy idea. 432 00:29:30,040 --> 00:29:32,760 Speaker 1: The program started in twenty nineteen and it gave one 433 00:29:32,840 --> 00:29:35,680 Speaker 1: hundred and twenty five people five hundred dollars a month 434 00:29:35,880 --> 00:29:36,560 Speaker 1: for two years. 435 00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:40,160 Speaker 12: So Stockton is very important because it was the first 436 00:29:40,480 --> 00:29:43,720 Speaker 12: city led or mayor led pilot in the US. 437 00:29:44,040 --> 00:29:47,400 Speaker 1: This is Juliana bi Dada Nure, a political philosopher and 438 00:29:47,480 --> 00:29:50,600 Speaker 1: the faculty director of the Stanford Basic Income Lab. 439 00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:55,240 Speaker 12: After one year into the program, people reported feeling less stressed, 440 00:29:55,800 --> 00:29:59,040 Speaker 12: there was an uptick in employment, and also people spend 441 00:29:59,080 --> 00:29:59,880 Speaker 12: the money wisely. 442 00:30:00,320 --> 00:30:03,600 Speaker 1: Juliana is from friends and the concept of universal basic 443 00:30:03,680 --> 00:30:07,200 Speaker 1: income or UBI can actually be traced back to the 444 00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:11,080 Speaker 1: French Revolution in the late eighteenth century with William Thomas 445 00:30:11,200 --> 00:30:12,880 Speaker 1: Pain's idea of a dividend. 446 00:30:13,720 --> 00:30:16,520 Speaker 12: Essentially the idea that we are all owed a share 447 00:30:16,960 --> 00:30:20,720 Speaker 12: of what we own in common. Could be natural resources, 448 00:30:21,160 --> 00:30:23,080 Speaker 12: you could frame it as the wealth of the earth, 449 00:30:23,680 --> 00:30:25,920 Speaker 12: but it's also connected with the idea that we are 450 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:28,560 Speaker 12: all owe a share of the wealth generated by previous 451 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:29,960 Speaker 12: generations and. 452 00:30:30,680 --> 00:30:34,360 Speaker 1: The wealth that we could create as current generations. A 453 00:30:34,440 --> 00:30:38,360 Speaker 1: similar idea became popular among neo liberals as well, who 454 00:30:38,480 --> 00:30:41,280 Speaker 1: saw basic income as a tool to keep the government 455 00:30:41,360 --> 00:30:45,120 Speaker 1: out of people's lives. Even President Richard Nixon in the 456 00:30:45,200 --> 00:30:48,440 Speaker 1: late nineteen sixties pushed for a reform of the national 457 00:30:48,480 --> 00:30:52,200 Speaker 1: welfare system that actually sounded pretty similar to providing a 458 00:30:52,240 --> 00:30:52,920 Speaker 1: basic income. 459 00:30:53,720 --> 00:30:57,320 Speaker 13: And that is why tonight, I therefore propose that we 460 00:30:57,520 --> 00:31:02,000 Speaker 13: abolish the present welfare system and that we adopted its 461 00:31:02,040 --> 00:31:05,840 Speaker 13: place a new family assistance system. 462 00:31:09,000 --> 00:31:12,680 Speaker 1: Nixon's Family Assistance program aimed to give families of four 463 00:31:13,160 --> 00:31:17,240 Speaker 1: sixteen hundred dollars a year, which today it would amount 464 00:31:17,280 --> 00:31:21,200 Speaker 1: to a little over thirteen thousand dollars, so actually pretty 465 00:31:21,240 --> 00:31:23,760 Speaker 1: similar to the amount of money participants of the Los 466 00:31:23,760 --> 00:31:29,520 Speaker 1: Angeles program got this year. But Senators rejected Nixon's plan twice. 467 00:31:30,160 --> 00:31:33,960 Speaker 1: It was a complex process, but basically Republicans thought the 468 00:31:34,040 --> 00:31:38,760 Speaker 1: program was too expensive and expensive, and Democrats thought it 469 00:31:38,920 --> 00:31:43,160 Speaker 1: wasn't enough money for the families. Around the same time, 470 00:31:43,440 --> 00:31:47,600 Speaker 1: in the nineteen sixties and seventies, universal basic income also 471 00:31:47,680 --> 00:31:51,600 Speaker 1: became a central fight for feminists. They saw UBI as 472 00:31:51,680 --> 00:31:54,280 Speaker 1: a way to pay for all the unpaid care work 473 00:31:54,360 --> 00:31:56,840 Speaker 1: that women were doing at home, and a tool to 474 00:31:56,920 --> 00:32:00,200 Speaker 1: rebalance the power relationships between men and women men. 475 00:32:01,640 --> 00:32:05,120 Speaker 12: There's also a really interesting origin that comes from Martin 476 00:32:05,240 --> 00:32:08,200 Speaker 12: Luther King, the Black Panther Party, and also the National 477 00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:10,040 Speaker 12: Welfare Rights Organization. 478 00:32:10,120 --> 00:32:13,760 Speaker 1: That was an organization for mostly by black matters, and. 479 00:32:14,200 --> 00:32:17,120 Speaker 12: The idea here was really to ensure that no one 480 00:32:17,760 --> 00:32:20,520 Speaker 12: was reduced to live in poverty without access to the 481 00:32:20,560 --> 00:32:23,480 Speaker 12: means of survival that was supposed to be key to 482 00:32:23,680 --> 00:32:25,000 Speaker 12: the notion of economic freedom. 483 00:32:25,480 --> 00:32:29,480 Speaker 1: More recently, UBI has become very popular in Silicon Valley 484 00:32:29,720 --> 00:32:33,160 Speaker 1: among tech millionaires who see this concept almost as a 485 00:32:33,280 --> 00:32:37,760 Speaker 1: magic wand that could quote unquote disrupt the social welfare 486 00:32:37,800 --> 00:32:42,440 Speaker 1: system and fix all social problems, some problems created by 487 00:32:42,480 --> 00:32:46,720 Speaker 1: these millionaires themselves. For example, Jack Dorsey, the founder of 488 00:32:46,800 --> 00:32:50,880 Speaker 1: Twitter donated fifteen million dollars to a mayor's coalition created 489 00:32:50,920 --> 00:32:51,960 Speaker 1: by the Mayor of Stockton. 490 00:32:52,800 --> 00:32:57,920 Speaker 12: Now, the tendency of billionaires to like quick fixes that 491 00:32:58,080 --> 00:33:00,720 Speaker 12: do not really address the root causes of inequalities and 492 00:33:00,760 --> 00:33:04,840 Speaker 12: poverty makes them really sub optimal advocates of basic income, 493 00:33:05,160 --> 00:33:07,560 Speaker 12: because I think the idea of basic income is really 494 00:33:07,640 --> 00:33:11,360 Speaker 12: one of building a very robust safety net. It's not 495 00:33:11,560 --> 00:33:15,000 Speaker 12: one that makes a system that produces so much inequality 496 00:33:15,640 --> 00:33:16,560 Speaker 12: work a little better. 497 00:33:17,560 --> 00:33:21,960 Speaker 1: There are ubi supporters coming from very different political backgrounds, 498 00:33:22,440 --> 00:33:26,560 Speaker 1: but there are also many critics. Probably the most common 499 00:33:26,640 --> 00:33:29,800 Speaker 1: criticism is the belief that if you give people money, 500 00:33:30,280 --> 00:33:31,240 Speaker 1: they will stop working. 501 00:33:31,680 --> 00:33:34,760 Speaker 12: There is considerable evidence that people want to work and 502 00:33:34,960 --> 00:33:38,360 Speaker 12: will work when given the transfer, and throughout the world 503 00:33:38,640 --> 00:33:41,520 Speaker 12: with cashtroms for our programs, what we've seen is that 504 00:33:41,680 --> 00:33:45,280 Speaker 12: people use the cash to retrain, to get a driver's license, 505 00:33:45,440 --> 00:33:48,720 Speaker 12: to pay for childcare, to do what is needed to 506 00:33:48,840 --> 00:33:50,600 Speaker 12: do to remove barriers to employment. 507 00:33:51,400 --> 00:33:55,960 Speaker 1: Another criticism targets the universal aspect of this concept. Why 508 00:33:56,080 --> 00:33:57,680 Speaker 1: give money to people who don't need it? 509 00:33:58,240 --> 00:34:02,000 Speaker 12: Universality is really key to this sigmatized public assistance. We've 510 00:34:02,120 --> 00:34:05,719 Speaker 12: created this system that is so stigmatizing that a lot 511 00:34:05,800 --> 00:34:09,520 Speaker 12: of eligible people end up not claiming benefits, in part 512 00:34:09,640 --> 00:34:13,400 Speaker 12: by fear of being demonized as welfare queens and benefits scrounders. 513 00:34:14,080 --> 00:34:15,920 Speaker 12: So these stereotypes are very damaging. 514 00:34:16,719 --> 00:34:20,160 Speaker 1: A quick note here, the pilot programs that have launched 515 00:34:20,239 --> 00:34:23,800 Speaker 1: in recent years across the US are not fully universal. 516 00:34:24,120 --> 00:34:26,719 Speaker 1: They all target groups in need, like people living in 517 00:34:26,800 --> 00:34:30,239 Speaker 1: poverty or above a certain age. But they're similar to 518 00:34:30,440 --> 00:34:33,520 Speaker 1: UBI in that they provide a stable income and don't 519 00:34:33,600 --> 00:34:36,400 Speaker 1: have any restrictions on how people can use the cash. 520 00:34:37,800 --> 00:34:40,960 Speaker 1: And then, of course there's the criticism that UBI is 521 00:34:41,160 --> 00:34:44,759 Speaker 1: too expensive. It's undeniable that these programs cost a lot 522 00:34:44,800 --> 00:34:48,280 Speaker 1: of money, But Julianna says there are other important social 523 00:34:48,400 --> 00:34:49,040 Speaker 1: costs in. 524 00:34:49,080 --> 00:34:55,160 Speaker 12: The equation poverty object Poverty costs enormously to communities. You 525 00:34:55,320 --> 00:34:58,880 Speaker 12: just have to think about the costs in terms of health, 526 00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:02,239 Speaker 12: in terms of crime, of the clustering of this advantage 527 00:35:02,280 --> 00:35:05,880 Speaker 12: that happens when people start losing an income, losing their homes, 528 00:35:06,520 --> 00:35:10,200 Speaker 12: and then it becomes extremely costly on the long run. 529 00:35:10,360 --> 00:35:12,439 Speaker 12: I mean, of course, the human cast, the moral cost 530 00:35:12,600 --> 00:35:15,359 Speaker 12: is the most important one, but even in monetary terms, 531 00:35:15,440 --> 00:35:23,120 Speaker 12: it's it's a disaster. So once you start building that 532 00:35:23,320 --> 00:35:25,640 Speaker 12: in and once you start thinking about the fact that 533 00:35:25,719 --> 00:35:29,160 Speaker 12: actually giving people cash can even grow the economy, you 534 00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:31,359 Speaker 12: realize that it's not as bad as it looks. 535 00:35:50,120 --> 00:35:51,920 Speaker 3: Royal Hanna's Taipei. 536 00:35:54,480 --> 00:35:57,359 Speaker 1: We're on a busy block on Manchester Avenue in South 537 00:35:57,520 --> 00:36:01,120 Speaker 1: LA with Martha, the woman from Andudas met earlier, and 538 00:36:01,239 --> 00:36:02,160 Speaker 1: her daughter Lizzie. 539 00:36:02,520 --> 00:36:05,279 Speaker 7: I'm pretty sure my light slow and they're like, berg, 540 00:36:05,440 --> 00:36:06,040 Speaker 7: think it not. 541 00:36:06,600 --> 00:36:11,360 Speaker 1: In left leg, Martha shows me this big empty space 542 00:36:11,600 --> 00:36:18,719 Speaker 1: with very tall ceilings and freshly painted white walls. This 543 00:36:19,160 --> 00:36:21,600 Speaker 1: is how Martha has been investing the other half of 544 00:36:21,680 --> 00:36:24,360 Speaker 1: the big leap money. She's about to open her own. 545 00:36:24,239 --> 00:36:26,640 Speaker 3: Store, well La Mayoria de Cosa so on. 546 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:34,280 Speaker 1: The Martha will sell mostly clothes, but also toys, shoes, 547 00:36:34,600 --> 00:36:38,799 Speaker 1: women's accessories. She buys these carded palettes from big retailers 548 00:36:38,880 --> 00:36:41,880 Speaker 1: like Target or Costco, and then she sells the items 549 00:36:41,920 --> 00:36:44,680 Speaker 1: at an affordable price in her neighborhood. 550 00:36:47,280 --> 00:36:48,000 Speaker 3: And musium. 551 00:36:51,360 --> 00:36:54,200 Speaker 1: Martha is excited about opening the store, but when she 552 00:36:54,320 --> 00:36:56,960 Speaker 1: thinks about having to make rent for the space and 553 00:36:57,239 --> 00:37:00,319 Speaker 1: about starting something new, she gets a little scared too. 554 00:37:01,480 --> 00:37:04,960 Speaker 1: Her husband, Freddy isn't fully on board with Marthas and Davers. 555 00:37:05,480 --> 00:37:09,439 Speaker 1: He thinks it's a huge financial risk. Her daughters aren't 556 00:37:09,520 --> 00:37:12,480 Speaker 1: very supportive either, because they aren't used to her mother 557 00:37:12,560 --> 00:37:15,640 Speaker 1: spending so much time out of the house. But none 558 00:37:15,680 --> 00:37:26,680 Speaker 1: of that stops Marta la. It's a dream Martha has 559 00:37:26,719 --> 00:37:29,160 Speaker 1: had for a long time, but she was too busy 560 00:37:29,280 --> 00:37:32,920 Speaker 1: taking care of her daughters. She feels confident about taking 561 00:37:33,000 --> 00:37:35,760 Speaker 1: this step because she knows how to run a store. 562 00:37:36,120 --> 00:37:38,520 Speaker 1: She's done it before me Mama. 563 00:37:40,320 --> 00:37:42,680 Speaker 3: Tormented the pas of Pecanos. 564 00:37:43,920 --> 00:37:47,680 Speaker 1: Back in Onduras, Marta studied marketing in college. In the 565 00:37:47,719 --> 00:37:50,440 Speaker 1: small city of Choloma in the northwest of the country, 566 00:37:50,920 --> 00:37:54,840 Speaker 1: her mother opened a mini market. The family business started small, 567 00:37:55,080 --> 00:37:58,320 Speaker 1: selling groceries, and Martha helped her mother manage the store. 568 00:37:59,040 --> 00:38:01,800 Speaker 1: She loved it and she was good at it. The 569 00:38:01,920 --> 00:38:04,680 Speaker 1: business grew and the family soon owned three stores. 570 00:38:05,360 --> 00:38:11,720 Speaker 4: Sstaalas Jimmy Mama's Diversifico muchosun Negosha followed Exito Total. 571 00:38:12,320 --> 00:38:15,799 Speaker 1: When criminal gangs killed her two brothers, Marta and her 572 00:38:15,840 --> 00:38:21,000 Speaker 1: mother decided to close the businesses. And when Marta left Ondudas, 573 00:38:21,160 --> 00:38:24,080 Speaker 1: her dream of following in her mother's steps became more 574 00:38:24,239 --> 00:38:28,279 Speaker 1: and more distant. When the pandemic hit and Freddi lost 575 00:38:28,320 --> 00:38:31,520 Speaker 1: his job and then injured his hand. The family was 576 00:38:31,640 --> 00:38:34,600 Speaker 1: left without a stable source of income for many months. 577 00:38:35,360 --> 00:38:38,000 Speaker 1: They barely survived on the three to four hundred dollars 578 00:38:38,040 --> 00:38:41,280 Speaker 1: Freddy was able to make every week with spontaneous gigs. 579 00:38:42,480 --> 00:38:44,680 Speaker 1: Marta was trying to find ways to help keep the 580 00:38:44,760 --> 00:38:48,600 Speaker 1: family afloat. She applied for the weekly program, but she 581 00:38:48,680 --> 00:38:50,200 Speaker 1: also got creative at home. 582 00:38:50,760 --> 00:38:56,320 Speaker 3: Al Principean Kosalski Missi hasi wan the hand of Kenaiann 583 00:38:56,400 --> 00:38:57,360 Speaker 3: Proveecho Mahenka. 584 00:38:58,040 --> 00:39:00,720 Speaker 1: At first, she was giving away toll is her daughters 585 00:39:00,760 --> 00:39:05,480 Speaker 1: didn't use anymore, using platforms like Facebook. Then people started 586 00:39:05,560 --> 00:39:13,800 Speaker 1: offering her money for them and and that experience revived 587 00:39:13,840 --> 00:39:18,879 Speaker 1: her dream. So when she got selected for the Big 588 00:39:18,960 --> 00:39:22,160 Speaker 1: Ley program, she knew she had to invest the money wisely. 589 00:39:28,560 --> 00:39:33,640 Speaker 3: Jeans closes. 590 00:39:34,200 --> 00:39:36,640 Speaker 1: She could have spent the money on shoes or clothes 591 00:39:36,719 --> 00:39:40,960 Speaker 1: for herself and her daughters, but that would have been it. Instead, 592 00:39:41,120 --> 00:39:44,200 Speaker 1: Marta decided to buy merchandise and then sell it to 593 00:39:44,360 --> 00:39:56,640 Speaker 1: generate a profit. Martha is unfolding clothes and hanging them 594 00:39:56,719 --> 00:40:01,040 Speaker 1: on a circular hangar, being busy makes Marta feel good. 595 00:40:01,600 --> 00:40:06,120 Speaker 1: It's like therapy, she says. Well, she organizes sneakers and 596 00:40:06,280 --> 00:40:09,680 Speaker 1: Ellie caps on a long white plastic table. Martha gets 597 00:40:09,719 --> 00:40:19,680 Speaker 1: a video calls it's Martha's mother calling from Honduras. Her 598 00:40:19,760 --> 00:40:23,839 Speaker 1: name is Martha as well. Moving the phone around, MARTA's 599 00:40:23,880 --> 00:40:24,839 Speaker 1: her mother the new. 600 00:40:24,760 --> 00:40:27,279 Speaker 3: Space, Mama r. 601 00:40:36,200 --> 00:40:39,080 Speaker 1: Martha's mother recommends her not to drill any holes on 602 00:40:39,160 --> 00:40:42,120 Speaker 1: the walls because she might not get her deposit back today. 603 00:40:42,200 --> 00:40:45,640 Speaker 1: She has to leave the space. Martha actually borrowed money 604 00:40:45,680 --> 00:40:48,640 Speaker 1: from her mother and some other family members in Hondudas 605 00:40:48,680 --> 00:40:49,799 Speaker 1: to open the store. 606 00:40:51,760 --> 00:40:52,240 Speaker 3: Grandmos. 607 00:40:55,160 --> 00:40:57,839 Speaker 1: Martha's mother tells her she has a gift that God 608 00:40:57,960 --> 00:41:07,279 Speaker 1: gave her. And look at you're a business woman, her 609 00:41:07,360 --> 00:41:11,799 Speaker 1: mother tells her, as she is, Mamma the. 610 00:41:11,840 --> 00:41:12,239 Speaker 3: Way I am. 611 00:41:12,239 --> 00:41:17,600 Speaker 1: Martha tells her mother she's gonna call her later because 612 00:41:17,640 --> 00:41:19,640 Speaker 1: she needs to call a client who wants to buy 613 00:41:19,719 --> 00:41:23,239 Speaker 1: some gifts. They talk every day, often more than once. 614 00:41:26,160 --> 00:41:26,640 Speaker 3: By a mom. 615 00:41:27,560 --> 00:41:29,680 Speaker 1: I asked Marta if she already has a name in 616 00:41:29,800 --> 00:41:31,160 Speaker 1: mind for her store. 617 00:41:32,920 --> 00:41:47,000 Speaker 4: The one outlet, the one and honor as a your 618 00:41:47,160 --> 00:41:49,240 Speaker 4: daddy was Sonya Looras. 619 00:41:50,680 --> 00:41:53,960 Speaker 1: Martha says she would love to name the store dubone outlet. 620 00:41:54,960 --> 00:41:57,520 Speaker 1: The one is her mother's last name, and she wants 621 00:41:57,560 --> 00:42:00,840 Speaker 1: to honor her, a strong, bold woman who worked a 622 00:42:00,880 --> 00:42:04,040 Speaker 1: lot and was also a dreamer, just like Martha. 623 00:42:10,280 --> 00:42:13,360 Speaker 2: Coming up on Latino USA. We go to Martha's grand 624 00:42:13,480 --> 00:42:17,520 Speaker 2: opening and we asked, what's the future of guaranteed income 625 00:42:17,600 --> 00:42:19,080 Speaker 2: programs in the United States? 626 00:42:19,719 --> 00:42:21,480 Speaker 1: Stay with us, not the ys. 627 00:42:34,800 --> 00:42:38,040 Speaker 5: Hi, Latino USA. My name is Magali garciaflex. I grew 628 00:42:38,120 --> 00:42:40,640 Speaker 5: up along the US Mestical border in Laredo, Texas. The 629 00:42:40,719 --> 00:42:43,480 Speaker 5: first time I started listening to Latino USA was in 630 00:42:43,560 --> 00:42:45,800 Speaker 5: the fall of twenty fourteen. I had just started a 631 00:42:45,880 --> 00:42:48,280 Speaker 5: new job at Providence College, and I turned to Latino 632 00:42:48,400 --> 00:42:50,920 Speaker 5: USA as both material for class, but also as a 633 00:42:50,960 --> 00:42:54,040 Speaker 5: way to feel closer to home. The familiar voices, especially 634 00:42:54,120 --> 00:42:57,160 Speaker 5: the trans languaging between English and Spanish, and the topics 635 00:42:57,200 --> 00:42:59,600 Speaker 5: that really resonated with me are what made me feel 636 00:42:59,640 --> 00:43:01,360 Speaker 5: like I know, USA was so right. 637 00:43:01,280 --> 00:43:02,200 Speaker 3: And so special for me. 638 00:43:02,360 --> 00:43:03,879 Speaker 5: Seal complex, here's too many more. 639 00:43:07,200 --> 00:43:08,000 Speaker 1: Hey, we're back. 640 00:43:08,600 --> 00:43:11,759 Speaker 2: Before the break, we saw how Marta and Michaela, two 641 00:43:11,840 --> 00:43:16,920 Speaker 2: participants of Los Angeles's Guaranteed Income program, are spending the 642 00:43:17,000 --> 00:43:19,719 Speaker 2: one thousand dollars they're getting every month for one year. 643 00:43:20,640 --> 00:43:23,440 Speaker 2: You know, USA senior producer Marta Martinez is going to 644 00:43:23,480 --> 00:43:26,080 Speaker 2: pick up the story from here, Ola. 645 00:43:31,160 --> 00:43:37,879 Speaker 1: Today is the grand opening of Martha's store. I can't 646 00:43:37,920 --> 00:43:42,160 Speaker 1: even recognize the space. It's now so full of clothes, toys, 647 00:43:42,560 --> 00:43:46,000 Speaker 1: home supplies. By the window, there's a display for Saint 648 00:43:46,040 --> 00:43:49,800 Speaker 1: Valentine's Day, full of hearts and stuffed animals. I noticed 649 00:43:49,800 --> 00:43:52,720 Speaker 1: that Marta didn't follow her mother's advice, and she drilled 650 00:43:52,880 --> 00:43:56,239 Speaker 1: two giant racks on the left wall. They're packed with 651 00:43:56,360 --> 00:44:03,120 Speaker 1: T shirts, sweaters, jeans. She's going all in. Hello, ladies, 652 00:44:04,400 --> 00:44:10,520 Speaker 1: how are you today. MARTA's daughters, Lizzie and Sophia are 653 00:44:10,600 --> 00:44:14,120 Speaker 1: also here, and they're dressed for the occasion. They each 654 00:44:14,200 --> 00:44:17,160 Speaker 1: wear a big bowl on their hair. Lizzie is covered 655 00:44:17,239 --> 00:44:20,040 Speaker 1: in rainbows, a big rainbow on her chest and a 656 00:44:20,120 --> 00:44:23,480 Speaker 1: rainbow pattern skirt. Sophia has a T shirt with a 657 00:44:23,600 --> 00:44:25,919 Speaker 1: unicorn on the front and on the back. 658 00:44:27,200 --> 00:44:32,600 Speaker 7: Well, yes, Corney, fairly, Fia, oh, Sophia. 659 00:44:33,320 --> 00:44:36,279 Speaker 1: Marta greets everyone who enters the store and answers their 660 00:44:36,360 --> 00:44:45,960 Speaker 1: questions single promise. In the back of the store, there's 661 00:44:46,040 --> 00:44:51,960 Speaker 1: a small table where they're serving natches the fruit. The 662 00:44:52,040 --> 00:44:54,760 Speaker 1: same long plastic table from the first day I visited 663 00:44:54,800 --> 00:44:57,560 Speaker 1: the store is now covered in all kinds of chips 664 00:44:57,719 --> 00:45:02,000 Speaker 1: and sodas for everyone to pick up for free. Sophie 665 00:45:02,080 --> 00:45:04,040 Speaker 1: asks me if I want anything. 666 00:45:04,080 --> 00:45:07,480 Speaker 7: Oh, by the way, we have chips, drinks, whatever, And. 667 00:45:07,520 --> 00:45:10,800 Speaker 1: Then she tells me about what a particular soda is 668 00:45:10,920 --> 00:45:11,279 Speaker 1: made of. 669 00:45:12,120 --> 00:45:18,600 Speaker 7: And it's made of sugar coop And that's. 670 00:45:21,719 --> 00:45:24,520 Speaker 1: More than a store opening. It feels like a neighborhood 671 00:45:24,560 --> 00:45:29,440 Speaker 1: birthday party. And then Martha's next door neighbors sho Gloria 672 00:45:29,600 --> 00:45:33,080 Speaker 1: and Marcus neighbors. 673 00:45:35,800 --> 00:45:36,240 Speaker 7: Welcome. 674 00:45:36,960 --> 00:45:40,080 Speaker 1: They're both tall and thin and here waiting for you. 675 00:45:40,920 --> 00:45:43,400 Speaker 1: Marcus walks slowly and is always joking. 676 00:45:44,760 --> 00:45:46,320 Speaker 9: Nurse is nice. 677 00:45:46,760 --> 00:45:49,840 Speaker 1: Marcus sits and it's some natchos well. His wife Gloria 678 00:45:50,000 --> 00:45:53,320 Speaker 1: browses around. He sits next to two solvador and women 679 00:45:53,440 --> 00:45:56,840 Speaker 1: who don't speak English, but he seems to be enjoying himself. 680 00:45:58,440 --> 00:45:59,719 Speaker 7: Go back in her pressure room. 681 00:46:02,280 --> 00:46:04,760 Speaker 1: Gloria ends up buying a couple of long sleeve shirts 682 00:46:04,920 --> 00:46:07,200 Speaker 1: and a pair of pants. It took a while for 683 00:46:07,400 --> 00:46:11,160 Speaker 1: Martha to have a relationship with Marcus and Gloria. Language 684 00:46:11,480 --> 00:46:20,480 Speaker 1: was a barrier but over time they've become closer. The 685 00:46:20,560 --> 00:46:23,600 Speaker 1: couple sits down its cake and chats with the group 686 00:46:23,680 --> 00:46:32,080 Speaker 1: for a while. It's getting late. While Marcus and Gloria leave, 687 00:46:32,440 --> 00:46:37,520 Speaker 1: Martha gets a call from her mother. Martha moves the 688 00:46:37,600 --> 00:46:40,480 Speaker 1: phone around and shows her mother how full the story is. 689 00:46:41,560 --> 00:46:52,320 Speaker 1: Now the celebration is complete. The City of Los Angeles 690 00:46:52,440 --> 00:46:54,800 Speaker 1: doesn't have hard data yet on the impact of the 691 00:46:54,840 --> 00:46:58,200 Speaker 1: Big Leap program. It'll still take months to analyze what 692 00:46:58,360 --> 00:47:01,600 Speaker 1: happened during the year when partic sipens cutter cash transfers, 693 00:47:02,080 --> 00:47:07,120 Speaker 1: and what happened during the six months after that. But 694 00:47:07,280 --> 00:47:11,400 Speaker 1: Abigail Marquez from La City Government is quite impressed so far, 695 00:47:11,880 --> 00:47:14,719 Speaker 1: even after twenty years working in public administration. 696 00:47:15,360 --> 00:47:18,800 Speaker 6: It's all anecdotal at this point, but we have learned 697 00:47:19,200 --> 00:47:21,640 Speaker 6: that through this program, people are feeling less stress and 698 00:47:21,760 --> 00:47:25,200 Speaker 6: less anxiety. That's allowing households to plan for the future, 699 00:47:25,239 --> 00:47:27,840 Speaker 6: which oftentimes many people take for granted. 700 00:47:28,520 --> 00:47:32,000 Speaker 1: Reports from over twenty other pilot programs across the country 701 00:47:32,400 --> 00:47:37,560 Speaker 1: have shown similar positive results reduced stress levels, improved physical health, 702 00:47:38,040 --> 00:47:42,560 Speaker 1: higher full time employment rates, including the final results from 703 00:47:42,600 --> 00:47:47,160 Speaker 1: the Stockton program, which came out recently. Abigail says Stockton, 704 00:47:47,239 --> 00:47:48,520 Speaker 1: sparked the national movement. 705 00:47:49,239 --> 00:47:51,880 Speaker 6: We have cities for guaranteed income, we have counties for 706 00:47:52,000 --> 00:47:55,600 Speaker 6: guaranteed income, and we're talking about this at the federal level, 707 00:47:55,719 --> 00:47:58,520 Speaker 6: you know, with the President and many of our congressional 708 00:47:58,600 --> 00:47:59,560 Speaker 6: representatives as well. 709 00:48:00,760 --> 00:48:04,560 Speaker 1: The state of California is funding several guaranteed income programs 710 00:48:04,640 --> 00:48:07,759 Speaker 1: for mothers and children, and in the state of New York, 711 00:48:08,120 --> 00:48:11,920 Speaker 1: people are pushing for a similar initiative. In twenty twenty one, 712 00:48:12,239 --> 00:48:16,640 Speaker 1: the Biden administration expanded the Child Independent Tax Credit that 713 00:48:16,800 --> 00:48:19,839 Speaker 1: gave families up to three hundred dollars a month per child. 714 00:48:20,520 --> 00:48:23,600 Speaker 1: They didn't call it guaranteed income, but it was pretty 715 00:48:23,640 --> 00:48:27,680 Speaker 1: similar and it helped cut child poverty in half. For 716 00:48:27,840 --> 00:48:32,400 Speaker 1: many experts, it's clear that guaranteed income programs work. The 717 00:48:32,520 --> 00:48:36,360 Speaker 1: question is how they can strengthen the social welfare system, 718 00:48:36,840 --> 00:48:40,719 Speaker 1: not dismantle it. I shared it with Abigail one of 719 00:48:40,800 --> 00:48:43,719 Speaker 1: the questions that keeps resonating in my head since I 720 00:48:43,800 --> 00:48:46,840 Speaker 1: started reporting on the Big Lead program on what this 721 00:48:47,040 --> 00:48:50,640 Speaker 1: year has been like for Marta and Mikaela and another 722 00:48:50,760 --> 00:48:51,880 Speaker 1: thirty two hundred people. 723 00:48:54,040 --> 00:48:59,160 Speaker 14: They've definitely gotten this economic stability for a year, but 724 00:48:59,360 --> 00:49:02,799 Speaker 14: now are going to stop receiving that, Like, what's going 725 00:49:02,840 --> 00:49:04,600 Speaker 14: to happen to these people? 726 00:49:05,239 --> 00:49:09,560 Speaker 6: So that's you know, that is the unfortunate aspect of 727 00:49:09,680 --> 00:49:13,440 Speaker 6: this work is that we won't really know people are working, 728 00:49:13,600 --> 00:49:17,640 Speaker 6: but the economy is not working for our lowest wage earners. 729 00:49:18,760 --> 00:49:23,040 Speaker 1: I also asked Juliana Bida Lanure from Stanford's Basic Income Lab. 730 00:49:24,120 --> 00:49:27,319 Speaker 8: Yeah, that's such an important question. I worry about this too, 731 00:49:27,520 --> 00:49:27,719 Speaker 8: you know. 732 00:49:28,000 --> 00:49:31,920 Speaker 12: I think people have been incredible by enlarged using the 733 00:49:32,000 --> 00:49:34,520 Speaker 12: cash in ways that put them in a better. 734 00:49:34,400 --> 00:49:36,000 Speaker 8: Position after the program ends. 735 00:49:36,080 --> 00:49:38,680 Speaker 12: But it's still a very big concern because the idea 736 00:49:38,719 --> 00:49:40,680 Speaker 12: of the of the program is not like we give 737 00:49:40,719 --> 00:49:42,120 Speaker 12: you cash for a little while and then you're on 738 00:49:42,239 --> 00:49:42,600 Speaker 12: your own. 739 00:49:42,680 --> 00:49:43,920 Speaker 1: It's actually the opposite of that. 740 00:49:44,560 --> 00:49:49,080 Speaker 12: The idea is we create this robust flaw that will 741 00:49:49,360 --> 00:49:52,279 Speaker 12: ensure that this is guaranteed and you know that you 742 00:49:52,400 --> 00:49:54,800 Speaker 12: will always be able to rely on this. And the 743 00:49:54,920 --> 00:49:57,200 Speaker 12: question is also like what kinds of choices you make 744 00:49:57,560 --> 00:49:59,239 Speaker 12: when that's secured. 745 00:50:02,080 --> 00:50:05,400 Speaker 1: Juliana believes that beyond the hard data that these pilot 746 00:50:05,440 --> 00:50:09,080 Speaker 1: programs will gather on their positive impact, there are bigger 747 00:50:09,239 --> 00:50:12,480 Speaker 1: moral and political questions to consider when thinking about the 748 00:50:12,600 --> 00:50:13,600 Speaker 1: future of UBI. 749 00:50:14,080 --> 00:50:17,000 Speaker 12: It's really about what we owe each other. In wealthy Nasian, 750 00:50:17,120 --> 00:50:21,440 Speaker 12: we have accumulated unprecedented wealth off the backs of workers 751 00:50:21,520 --> 00:50:24,160 Speaker 12: past and present, and so I think it's really time 752 00:50:24,239 --> 00:50:26,040 Speaker 12: to redistribute this wealth more fairly. 753 00:50:26,640 --> 00:50:30,120 Speaker 1: And she wishes that the pandemic helps us think differently 754 00:50:30,480 --> 00:50:31,520 Speaker 1: about emergencies. 755 00:50:31,960 --> 00:50:35,160 Speaker 12: Now we think about cashas like effective, but we continue 756 00:50:35,200 --> 00:50:38,520 Speaker 12: to think about cash as only for emergency situations, but 757 00:50:38,800 --> 00:50:45,600 Speaker 12: not realizing that abject poverty, economic insecurity ah emergencies and 758 00:50:45,680 --> 00:50:47,399 Speaker 12: that we need to fix it now. 759 00:50:57,160 --> 00:50:59,680 Speaker 1: I meet Mikhaela at the red brick home in South 760 00:51:00,320 --> 00:51:03,719 Speaker 1: where she rents two rooms. We walked to the backyard 761 00:51:03,880 --> 00:51:07,160 Speaker 1: where there's a shed she has converted into her sewing workshop. 762 00:51:08,120 --> 00:51:08,640 Speaker 10: The man. 763 00:51:10,000 --> 00:51:13,280 Speaker 1: It's been hard to meet with Mikhaela because she's always working. 764 00:51:14,360 --> 00:51:17,960 Speaker 1: Last night she finished her latest assignment. She sold five 765 00:51:18,040 --> 00:51:20,080 Speaker 1: hundred blouses for two dollars. 766 00:51:19,840 --> 00:51:24,920 Speaker 10: Each Plando in Tregando. 767 00:51:29,400 --> 00:51:32,480 Speaker 1: She was folding clothes until eleven pm the night before. 768 00:51:33,160 --> 00:51:36,399 Speaker 1: She won't be receiving any more cash transfers from Big Leap, 769 00:51:36,760 --> 00:51:39,839 Speaker 1: so she feels she can't say no to any new assignments. 770 00:51:40,880 --> 00:51:43,960 Speaker 1: Mikaela shows me around the tiny well organized. 771 00:51:43,560 --> 00:51:48,480 Speaker 10: Shed connom presta Makina is the makina is tramakina. 772 00:51:49,080 --> 00:51:52,239 Speaker 1: After Mikhayela paid off her son's college debt, she bought 773 00:51:52,360 --> 00:51:56,239 Speaker 1: four second hands sewing machinets. They added up to about 774 00:51:56,320 --> 00:51:59,160 Speaker 1: five thousand dollars and she's still paying for them. 775 00:52:01,040 --> 00:52:05,920 Speaker 10: Reno borgestava, pagandoodiz sala rerenta and ton says yo no 776 00:52:06,000 --> 00:52:08,319 Speaker 10: al cansa and no salad in nero. 777 00:52:08,880 --> 00:52:10,920 Speaker 1: She used to pay one hundred and ten dollars a 778 00:52:11,040 --> 00:52:14,239 Speaker 1: month to rent the machines, but now all she makes 779 00:52:14,320 --> 00:52:17,279 Speaker 1: with her work she keeps, even if it isn't much. 780 00:52:19,840 --> 00:52:22,560 Speaker 1: Mikhaela says that without the help of Big Lip, she 781 00:52:22,640 --> 00:52:25,480 Speaker 1: would never have been able to purchase the sewing machines. 782 00:52:26,040 --> 00:52:28,160 Speaker 1: That's because you always left hand to mouth. 783 00:52:28,960 --> 00:52:35,080 Speaker 10: Doosolo parami san sali loyo yora was. 784 00:52:40,360 --> 00:52:41,040 Speaker 8: Mia yudai. 785 00:52:42,080 --> 00:52:44,800 Speaker 1: This whole year of receiving a stable income was a 786 00:52:44,880 --> 00:52:48,480 Speaker 1: big relief for Mikhaela. She felt she was getting out 787 00:52:48,480 --> 00:52:51,240 Speaker 1: of the hole, that she was finally able to breathe. 788 00:52:52,520 --> 00:52:55,120 Speaker 1: But now that the program is over, she still has 789 00:52:55,360 --> 00:52:57,000 Speaker 1: other problems to worry about. 790 00:52:57,680 --> 00:53:01,880 Speaker 10: Miss Manos komote Otterna. 791 00:53:02,080 --> 00:53:05,480 Speaker 1: Mikaela shows me her hands. She wears two black wrisbands 792 00:53:05,600 --> 00:53:09,239 Speaker 1: after developing carpal tunnel on both hands from so many 793 00:53:09,360 --> 00:53:13,480 Speaker 1: years of sewing and iron clothes. The doctor says she'll 794 00:53:13,480 --> 00:53:16,640 Speaker 1: probably need surgery, but she doesn't have the money to 795 00:53:16,719 --> 00:53:19,200 Speaker 1: pay for the procedure and she can't afford going on 796 00:53:19,320 --> 00:53:20,320 Speaker 1: signif either. 797 00:53:22,239 --> 00:53:24,880 Speaker 8: Independent was. 798 00:53:26,440 --> 00:53:33,520 Speaker 1: Medicina, Mikaela shows me a giant orange bottle full of pills. Chelsea, 799 00:53:33,600 --> 00:53:37,600 Speaker 1: and she's taking a hundred milligram ibuprofen pills to keep going. 800 00:53:40,080 --> 00:53:42,280 Speaker 1: A couple of nights ago, at one in the morning, 801 00:53:42,760 --> 00:53:45,360 Speaker 1: she was in bed and the taki cardia came. 802 00:53:45,280 --> 00:53:59,000 Speaker 8: Back my pega barossolo sinkos wundos verte meat. 803 00:53:59,440 --> 00:54:02,680 Speaker 1: Her heart started racing so hard she could even see 804 00:54:02,719 --> 00:54:06,040 Speaker 1: her nightgown going up and down. She thought her heart 805 00:54:06,200 --> 00:54:10,280 Speaker 1: was going to jump out of her chests. 806 00:54:10,719 --> 00:54:13,160 Speaker 8: Yes and dia perro ci fut. 807 00:54:15,280 --> 00:54:18,239 Speaker 1: It went on for twenty minutes. She thought she was 808 00:54:18,320 --> 00:54:21,560 Speaker 1: going to faint, and she ended up calling an ambulance. 809 00:54:24,760 --> 00:54:31,720 Speaker 10: Talvesi yo talves me pantstres prone. 810 00:54:34,880 --> 00:54:38,120 Speaker 1: Mikhaela wonders if all of this is because of the 811 00:54:38,160 --> 00:54:42,880 Speaker 1: Bigley program ending, but she tells herself that she has 812 00:54:42,960 --> 00:54:46,800 Speaker 1: to move forward and work harder. She does have a dream, 813 00:54:48,800 --> 00:54:51,960 Speaker 1: like Marta. Mikaela wants to open her own small business, 814 00:54:52,320 --> 00:54:55,760 Speaker 1: a sewing workshop. She wants to hire about five people 815 00:54:56,000 --> 00:54:56,600 Speaker 1: to help her. 816 00:54:58,280 --> 00:55:08,640 Speaker 10: Permitted questa adasatamente novi aldiya viorna in Berti and ali 817 00:55:08,920 --> 00:55:11,960 Speaker 10: mi propio peke presita. 818 00:55:13,480 --> 00:55:16,800 Speaker 1: With the Big Lip Program, Mikhaela got one step closer 819 00:55:17,080 --> 00:55:20,399 Speaker 1: to her goal of creating her own business, but she's 820 00:55:20,440 --> 00:55:30,480 Speaker 1: still pretty far away from achieving it. I catch up 821 00:55:30,520 --> 00:55:33,200 Speaker 1: with Marta at her store three days before her next 822 00:55:33,239 --> 00:55:36,680 Speaker 1: Big Lip cash transfer, her second to last. There are 823 00:55:36,760 --> 00:55:39,759 Speaker 1: even more goods now, a small fridge with sodas near 824 00:55:39,840 --> 00:55:43,120 Speaker 1: the entrance, columns of toilet paper piling up in the 825 00:55:43,160 --> 00:55:43,800 Speaker 1: back room. 826 00:55:46,160 --> 00:55:53,400 Speaker 4: The loya vendid contradovoice this fetch i dig grandia. 827 00:55:54,520 --> 00:55:57,080 Speaker 1: There hasn't been a single day when Marta left the 828 00:55:57,120 --> 00:56:01,520 Speaker 1: store without selling anything. Today it's three pm and she's 829 00:56:01,520 --> 00:56:04,960 Speaker 1: already made one hundred and fifty dollars. Marta worried a 830 00:56:05,040 --> 00:56:07,560 Speaker 1: lot about being able to cover rent for the space 831 00:56:07,719 --> 00:56:10,919 Speaker 1: with the store cells because it's twelve hundred dollars a month. 832 00:56:11,680 --> 00:56:12,560 Speaker 1: It's the best person. 833 00:56:14,840 --> 00:56:16,240 Speaker 8: See see. 834 00:56:18,400 --> 00:56:22,800 Speaker 4: See I thank you maday, so he puts, yeah, this 835 00:56:22,880 --> 00:56:27,040 Speaker 4: is excellenteo ya competra marcari yoo mas. 836 00:56:28,920 --> 00:56:31,759 Speaker 1: Martha says she's already made double the rent for this 837 00:56:31,960 --> 00:56:35,239 Speaker 1: month and all the extra money she has invested it 838 00:56:35,360 --> 00:56:39,240 Speaker 1: in new merchandise. Martha only has two more cash deposits 839 00:56:39,320 --> 00:56:42,279 Speaker 1: left from Big Deep, but she says she's not sad 840 00:56:42,360 --> 00:56:45,600 Speaker 1: that the program is ending. Having a steady cash support 841 00:56:45,880 --> 00:56:48,680 Speaker 1: allowed her to do things she always dreamed of, but 842 00:56:48,920 --> 00:56:51,640 Speaker 1: she would have never been able to achieve on her own. 843 00:56:52,600 --> 00:57:01,759 Speaker 3: So on those dollar nomelo u ningun son and now 844 00:57:01,840 --> 00:57:08,400 Speaker 3: that sun Cantida buena de avechalgo Provicio's. 845 00:57:08,320 --> 00:57:14,400 Speaker 1: See that's as at brend she would have never in 846 00:57:14,520 --> 00:57:18,520 Speaker 1: her life had access to twelve thousand dollars otherwise, and 847 00:57:18,640 --> 00:57:25,120 Speaker 1: Marta thinks she's used the money well. When she was 848 00:57:25,240 --> 00:57:28,000 Speaker 1: leaving day to day, she wasn't able to think beyond 849 00:57:28,280 --> 00:57:30,760 Speaker 1: how to get to the end of the month, and 850 00:57:31,120 --> 00:57:36,120 Speaker 1: like Mikaela, that made her physically sick. Once they were 851 00:57:36,200 --> 00:57:39,040 Speaker 1: able to get out of survival mode and keep their 852 00:57:39,120 --> 00:57:42,919 Speaker 1: head above water, that's when they started thinking long term 853 00:57:43,280 --> 00:57:47,280 Speaker 1: and making smart decisions about money. Both Marta and Mikhaela 854 00:57:47,480 --> 00:57:51,280 Speaker 1: had dreams to open their own businesses, businesses that would 855 00:57:51,320 --> 00:57:54,560 Speaker 1: employ other people and contribute to the economic prosperity of 856 00:57:54,600 --> 00:57:59,000 Speaker 1: their communities. But now that they'll stop receiving cash, it's 857 00:57:59,120 --> 00:58:01,640 Speaker 1: not clear what they'll be able to keep up with 858 00:58:01,800 --> 00:58:09,680 Speaker 1: the steady growth They've both decided to keep trying. Martha 859 00:58:09,760 --> 00:58:13,439 Speaker 1: gets to work for herself now, not for others, making 860 00:58:13,480 --> 00:58:16,200 Speaker 1: her own schedule and adapting to her daughters too, and. 861 00:58:16,280 --> 00:58:18,320 Speaker 7: We don't think connecting for snack time. 862 00:58:18,560 --> 00:58:20,959 Speaker 1: Her husband, Freddie, picked up the girls from school early 863 00:58:21,080 --> 00:58:28,920 Speaker 1: today because Sophia isn't feeling well. No, it looks like 864 00:58:29,080 --> 00:58:32,040 Speaker 1: the virus that first made Lizzie sick has been passing 865 00:58:32,160 --> 00:58:36,560 Speaker 1: from one family member to another. The girls and Freddie 866 00:58:36,960 --> 00:58:39,440 Speaker 1: still aren't fully on board with this new life of 867 00:58:39,520 --> 00:58:40,880 Speaker 1: Martha as an entrepreneur. 868 00:58:42,440 --> 00:58:44,040 Speaker 13: Why you don't like here? 869 00:58:47,120 --> 00:58:50,480 Speaker 7: And there's no TV so I can't do anything. 870 00:58:51,680 --> 00:58:54,440 Speaker 1: After school, the girls spend some time at the store 871 00:58:54,480 --> 00:58:57,320 Speaker 1: with Martha, and then they all go home for dinner. 872 00:58:58,080 --> 00:59:00,200 Speaker 1: Martha has no plans to go back to the life 873 00:59:00,240 --> 00:59:01,000 Speaker 1: she had before the. 874 00:59:01,080 --> 00:59:04,720 Speaker 7: Program, unless my belly will get my dad's. 875 00:59:04,960 --> 00:59:09,040 Speaker 1: Sophia looks very pale and her stomach aches. She's far 876 00:59:09,120 --> 00:59:12,720 Speaker 1: from her usual bubbly self, but she'll still make the 877 00:59:12,800 --> 00:59:16,200 Speaker 1: most unexpected comments, like when she's talking about her dad. 878 00:59:17,240 --> 00:59:22,280 Speaker 7: Him and Spanish. I call him Babby in the English, 879 00:59:23,160 --> 00:59:29,160 Speaker 7: as you know, but I've called him sometimes sometimes I 880 00:59:29,280 --> 00:59:29,880 Speaker 7: call him that. 881 00:59:30,960 --> 00:59:34,880 Speaker 1: It's almost five pm. Marta decides that today she's gonna 882 00:59:34,920 --> 00:59:38,240 Speaker 1: close the store early and she's gonna go home and 883 00:59:38,360 --> 00:59:46,480 Speaker 1: take care of her daughters. Yeah, because now she is 884 00:59:46,600 --> 00:59:47,000 Speaker 1: the boss. 885 00:59:48,560 --> 00:59:49,800 Speaker 7: However, s we go about? 886 00:59:55,160 --> 00:59:55,800 Speaker 3: Have you seen? 887 01:00:18,000 --> 01:00:21,200 Speaker 2: This episode was produced by Marta Martinez and edited by 888 01:00:21,320 --> 01:00:25,440 Speaker 2: Daisy Contreras. It was mixed by Stephanie Lebau and Julia Caruso. 889 01:00:26,080 --> 01:00:29,600 Speaker 2: Fact checking for this episode by Monica Morales Garcia. The 890 01:00:29,760 --> 01:00:36,480 Speaker 2: Latino USA team includes Andrea Lopez Ruzado, Mike Sargent, Miktrri Estrada, Rinaldo, 891 01:00:36,600 --> 01:00:41,880 Speaker 2: Leanos Junior, Patricia Subrand and Elizabeth Loental Torres. Our editorial 892 01:00:42,000 --> 01:00:45,960 Speaker 2: director is Fernande Santos. Our associate engineers are Gabriel La 893 01:00:46,000 --> 01:00:49,920 Speaker 2: Bayez and JJ Carubin. Our marketing manager is Luis Luna. 894 01:00:50,200 --> 01:00:53,120 Speaker 2: Our theme music was composed by Sane Rubinos. I'm your 895 01:00:53,160 --> 01:00:56,320 Speaker 2: host and executive producer Maria J. Josa join us again 896 01:00:56,400 --> 01:00:58,560 Speaker 2: on our next episode. In the meantime, look for us 897 01:00:58,600 --> 01:01:03,120 Speaker 2: on social media. Remember and we'll see you on the 898 01:01:03,200 --> 01:01:03,640 Speaker 2: next one. 899 01:01:04,040 --> 01:01:11,160 Speaker 6: Joe Latino U s A is made possible in part 900 01:01:11,280 --> 01:01:15,360 Speaker 6: by California Endowment building a strong state by improving the 901 01:01:15,440 --> 01:01:20,000 Speaker 6: health of all Californians. The Ford Foundation, working with visionaries 902 01:01:20,240 --> 01:01:24,200 Speaker 6: on the front lines of social change worldwide, and the 903 01:01:24,320 --> 01:01:27,760 Speaker 6: Anni E. Casey Foundation, creates a brighter future for the 904 01:01:27,880 --> 01:01:32,720 Speaker 6: nation's children by strengthening families, building greater economic opportunity, and 905 01:01:32,840 --> 01:01:34,080 Speaker 6: transforming communities.