Knock LA

California’s 29th Congressional District is on fire. Keep your pithy “climate change is real” tweets and save your comparisons to bad doomsday movies. The San Fernando Valley is perpetually engulfed in putrid air and constantly ablaze, all nakedly in service of the wealthy few at the expense of literally everyone else. And the current Congressman, Tony Cárdenas, does not have a plan.

It doesn’t have to be like this. Angelica Dueñas knows that, of course. She was born and raised in Sun Valley, and now she’s raising five children there. She previously ran for office as a member of the Green Party, and her years of neighborhood council advocacy led to a surrogate spot with the 2016 Bernie Sanders campaign. Angelica very much knows the stakes.

But, once more, it’s really worth repeating: the person representing one of the most progressive Congressional districts in America does not believe in Green New Deal legislation. Incumbent Tony Cárdenas, the Congressman that Angelica forced into a run-off, is a particularly banal strain of centrist BS.

He has taken at least $420,000 in contributions from the pharmaceutical industry since winning his seat in 2012. His top donors include dreaded Pacific Gas & Electric and the real estate corporation Honeywell International. He’s running for Assistant Speaker of the House despite being credibly accused of sexual abuse.

The stakes are just too damn high. The 29th cannot afford another term of status quo, especially in the wake of rising joblessness, an eviction crisis and the ongoing pandemic. Dueñas’ campaign offers radical light, progressive vitality, and a genuine connection to the soil. She’s a galvanizing public speaker and charismatic talent who would flourish with a Congressional platform.Progressive OWNS Lazy Incumbent DemocratProgressive candidate, Angelica Duenas, owns lazy incumbent democrat with policy and empathy. John Iadarola and…tyt.com

Angelica was raised by two loving parents who immigrated from Mexico. She went to LAUSD schools her whole life, earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from CSULA, and got her master’s degree in organizational leadership from Woodbury University. She married her husband, Henoc Sanchez, in 2006. Together, they are raising five kids.

Dueñas is committed to single-payer healthcare, free public education, housing as a human right and full-scale Green New Deal reforms. She’s fighting for a 30-hour work-week, an increased minimum wage and taxes on the super rich. She proudly took the “No Cop Money” pledge earlier this year, and has received other endorsements from Sunrise Movement, Our Revolution-LA, the California Progressive Alliance and Marianne Williamson.

Dueñas’ immigration platform calls for an abolition of ICE, banning and closing detention centers, and full legal status/healthcare for all immigrants. She wants to lessen the burden of proof for asylum seekers, ensure the immigration courts are sufficiently funded and end the “3-to-10 year ban.”

This is a no-brainer. Dueñas’ campaign should inspire non-career politicians, SFV lifers and climate activists all the same. People-first campaigns are rare, especially in vehicles as brazen as the U.S. House of Representatives. After AOC upset Joe Crowley, Jamaal Bowman knocked off Eliot Engel, and Cori Bush unseated Lacy Clay, Dueñas/Cárdenas just might be the next domino to fall. We’re proud to endorse her run and aid the fight for a better San Fernando Valley.

KNOCK.LA is a project paid for by Ground Game LA. This article was not authorized by a candidate or a committee controlled by a candidate. Angelica Duenas is one of several candidates endorsed by Ground Game LA.

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