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Twenty-five years ago, California weathered a civil war at the ballot box that eventually changed the state forever.
Proposition 187 sought to drive away immigrants without documentation by denying them public healthcare, social services and education, among other punitive measures. In 1994, the initiative easily won, 59% to 41%, but it created a generation of Latinos whose influence on California can be felt from Hollywood to Sacramento, from universities to high school classrooms. Proposition 187 also helped pave the way for Donald Trump to be elected president.
Over the next couple of weeks, Los Angeles Times reporter Gustavo Arellano will publish stories about 187’s legacy — political, cultural, historical and personal. Arellano will also host a new miniseries from the Los Angeles Times and Futuro Studios. Told in three parts, “The Battle of 187” traces the proposition from its birth in Orange County to its peak on election day and its ultimate failure. “The Battle of 187” is also available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher.
More on Prop. 187
