Thank You to Steve Harms for a lifetime of service to his fellow man

             It is with a heavy heart and immense sadness that I am writing this post. My close friend and mentor, Steve Harms of Visalia California, has been fighting cancer for the past several months. As anyone who has had a family member or friend suffer through cancer knows, it is a grueling fight and one that systematically wears the person down day by day. Throughout the past few months, Steve’s family, and thousands of others, have been hoping, praying and yearning for a miracle. We desperately want more time to enjoy, laugh and share with Steve Harms. However, just this past week, tragically we found out that we have less time to spend with Steve than we ever could have imagined. My grief and questions of why is this happening to such a wonderful person have slowly but surely led to a feeling of thankfulness, a deep sense of appreciation for every moment that I have been truly blessed to spend with Steve. 

Our story as friends goes back to the year 2000. My family and I moved to a cul-de-sac in Visalia right by Valley Oak Middle School, where I was shortly about to begin attending. I was terrified to begin school there. I didn’t know anyone and was still suffering through the pain of my parent’s difficult and recent divorce. Everything seemed so hopeless until a new family moved in on the block shortly thereafter, the Harms’. Steve was immediately friendly and loving to me. I opened up to him in a way that I never had to anyone in my life. I wept with him countless times and told him everything and he always was there to see me through it. I began attending church with him and even having our own Bible study whenever we could find the time. However, our friendship didn’t stop there, Steve supported me threw every phase of my life. We went golfing several times, worked out in his gym in his garage, and shot hops in his driveway where he taught me to do Larry Bird’s classic spin-move and hook-shot. In fact, before I tried out for the freshman Golden West High School basketball team, Steve and I practiced for hours. It was largely thanks to him that I made the team that year and went on to earn my varsity letter. When baseball season came around, Steve would squat down in a catcher’s position and let me practice my pitching with him. I’ll never forget the time one of my pitches slipped and took a bad hop and caught Steve right in the shin. I felt so bad but Steve shook it right off and told me not to worry about it. In addition, Steve made the time to come to a few of my games and cheered me on, even if I didn’t get to play much, Steve would give me a hug and tell me that he was proud of me. When graduation time came, I enlisted in the California Army National Guard. As the time came for me to go to Basic Training, I remember being nervous and heading down the street to go talk with Steve the night before. He encouraged me and sent me off and told me how proud he was. When I was in training, Steve sent me letters that I still have to this day and his wonderful wife, Laura, sent me cookies that made me the envy of the entire company. When I returned home and began college, Steve was there for me yet again. He has written countless recommendations for me for college applications and scholarships that led to me graduating from UCLA with honors and now currently pursuing a Master’s degree. Steve has also been there for my family as well, when my mother was struggling to make it in Visalia and nearly homeless, Steve reached out to friends in the church that found her a wonderful place to live in a moments notice. 

This is the kind of person that Steve is, he gives everything he can and asks nothing in return.  This is this way that I will remember Steve. Whatever your faith, political stance or ideology, I think we all can come together and agree that the world needs more people like Steve Harms out there; people that love first and never judge, people that devote their lives to helping others and not to wealth and greed. It is for this reason that I have written this post, to say thank you from the bottom of my heart for not only for all he’s done for me but all he’s done for everyone that he’s come across. I know that my story is only one of the countless Steve stories out there and I ask everyone who can, to show love and support for this incredible person in anyway they are able. Any wishing to help Steve and his family with financial support may click on this link to give. Thank you. 

-Written by Sebastian Ventling. Sebastian is a graduate of Golden West High School, class of 2005 and UCLA alumnus class of 2012. He is presently pursuing a Master’s in Divinity at San Francisco Theological Seminary and works at Enterprise Rent-A-Car in the management trainee program. Sebastian is also a six-year veteran of the California Army National Guard and is a political activist in the Los Angeles area. Twitter- @Sebaventling    Instagram- @progressive_politics

Update! Eric Casebolt Has Resigned Amid Protests

Amid immense national scorn and public backlash, Police Corporal Eric Casebolt, has resigned. The fiasco began after receiving a frantic 911 call from the residents of the pool community, the Mckinney Police Department responded by sending nine officers to the scene of a pool party full of teenagers, celebrating the end of the school year.

A large outcry of unrest has followed the incident and residents are standing tall demanding better from the Mckinney Police

None of the teens at the party were armed nor did they present any danger to the police officers. This is why many around the country are demanding to know the reasoning behind former officer Casebolt throwing a fifteen year old girl (Dajerria Becton) to the ground and placing his knee in the small of her back. As if this wasn’t enough, Casebolt also pulled his gun on several other unarmed teens. The uproar has been so intense that the Mckinney Police Department has been forced to take on extra staff to answer all the phone calls demanding the firing of the officer.
Casebolt’s lawyer reported the resignation to Fox4, “"Casebolt had served in the Navy for a decade from 1993-2003. He was an operations specialist for seven years and in the military police for another three years," Fox 4 reports. "From 2003-2005 he was a highway patrol trooper with the Texas Department of Public Safety.” 

So the question now becomes, where do we go from here? All the phone calls and political pressure have gotten the officer fired and most likely will lead to a lawsuit in favor of Dajarria Becton, but will anything actually change? I know I am not alone in noticing that instances of police officers using excessive force seem to be popping up all over the country. The time has come for real change on a national level that will change the culture of policing here in America. In addition, even though every candidate has except Hillary Clinton has been completely silent on this serious issue, I hope that all this political pressure will lead to something happening on Capitol Hill. Comment at the bottom of this page and join the discussion. 

Pool Party Chaos in Texas

The Texas police officer that has now become famous on the internet for throwing a young African-American teen on the ground and pulling a gun on several others, has been suspended, pending the outcome of further investigation into the situation by the Mckinney Police Department. Police were believed to have been called to the scene by neighbors claiming that the teens were “refusing to leave” and fighting.

The teens were celebrating an end of the school year party, as is customary for this time of year. It seems the trouble arose once some neighbors became upset with the fact that many of the kids didn't live in the neighborhood and were making use of the pool. Several of the teens reported racial slurs and hate speech coming from racist neighbors directed towards the African American teens. When the police showed up, the teens were confused as to why they were being ordered to leave. The main police officer being investigated is seen in a seven minute youtube video, screaming orders and demanding that some African-American kids, “put their face in the grass!” One young girl was even thrown to the ground viscously as she screamed for her mother. The scene became chaotic when the young girl, yelling for help, drew the attention of her young male friends who got in a fighting stance in the direction of the police officer. This caused patrol supervisor Cpl. Eric Casebolt to draw his weapon and head in the direction of the young men. It is a terrifying moment to see the fear in the kid’s eyes as they run for their lives and other officers begin to give chase. Cpl. Cansel then went back to what he was doing, handcuffing and placing his knee on the lower back of this young girl.

There has been a lot of controversy lately about the proper use of force and police violence, however, I think we all can agree after watching this video, that something went terribly wrong. 

             The Mckinney Police Department had this to say on their Facebook page, “On June, 5 2015 at approximately 7:15., officer from the Mckinney Police Department responded to a disturbance at the Craig Ranch North Community Pool. The initial call came in as a disturbance involving multiple juveniles at the location, who do not live in the area or have permission to be there, refusing to leave McKinney Police received several additional calls related to this incident advising that juveniles were now actively fighting.First responding officers encountered a large crowd that refused to comply with police commands. Nine additional units responded to the scene. Officers were eventually able to gain control of the situation.McKinney Police later learned of a video that was taken at the scene by an unknown party. This video has raised concerns that are being investigated by the McKinney Police Department. At this time, one of the responding officers has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of this investigation."

The gravest reason for concern is the blatant discrimination of the African-American juveniles. Why was it that the police immediately assumed that the African-American kids didn’t live there? Are there no African-American families living in that neighborhood? Brandon Brooks, who shot the 7 minute long youtube video, told the HuffPost that, "a bunch of white parents were angry that a bunch of black kids who don’t live in the neighborhood were in the pool.” This is unacceptable and the community may have more to look into than just an overly aggressive officer. 

Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar Interview

           When I heard that Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar were going to do an interview about Josh Duggar's repeated molestation of their four daughters over a two year span, I thought that they would take responsibility for their parenting failures and confront the terrible situation in a rational way, but I was wrong.

The interview was a complete disaster, but what more could be expected from Megyn Kelly and Fox News? You may remember Megyn Kelly as the "reporter" who back in 2013 told kids around the country, “And by the way for all you kids at home watching, Santa is white. We’re just debating this because some guy wrote an article but Santa is what he is.” My real issue with this interview is that rather than ask the Duggar’s tough questions about why they allowed Josh to repeatedly molest four of his sisters and a female baby sister, Megyn Kelly just let Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar make excuses for their son and for their own failures as parents. They even rolled out the tired old Sarah Palin line of claiming that they were being treated unfairly due to their Christian beliefs. Megyn Kelly also throughout the entire interview showed her bias by blasting the “liberal media” for their coverage of the scandal. It is clear to any that watched the interview that Megyn Kelly wants this whole issue to be swept back into the closet so we can go back to thinking that the Duggar's are America's perfect Christian family. 

If I had had the opportunity to ask the parents some questions, I would have asked them why it took so long for them to remove Josh from the home? He came to them and told them what he had done yet they still kept him in the house for a lengthy period until it became clear that he wasn’t going to stop; only then did they removed him from the home. Who knows how many times those girls were exposed to molestation due to that decision. Furthermore, I would ask when Michelle Duggar is going to apologize to the LGBT community for her abusive language and intolerance that she spewed out in Arkansas during the election cycle of 2014. Michelle recorded automated phone calls in staunch opposition to a city ordinance that would have allowed transgender individuals to use that restroom that they most comfortably identify with. She is quoted as saying, “I don’t believe the citizens of Fayetteville would want males with past child predator convictions that claim they are female to have a legal right to enter private areas that are reserved for women and girls.” Thus Michelle Duggar implied that transgender individuals have child predator convictions while covering for her son, Josh Duggar, who had actually molested his own sisters. This is the kind of hypocrisy that only Megyn Kelly and the rest of the Fox News staff can overlook. 

You are missed, The worst Gay Attack in U.S. History

42 years ago this month something terrible happened, but you won't hear about it on Fox News or any other news station. In fact, it was barely even covered when it happened on June 24th, 1973. As we come up on gay pride weekend here in Los Angeles (June 12-14), I think it’s important to remember a time when people weren’t able to freely celebrate whom they are and the way they were born. Young people in Los Angeles and around the country may not know that just a few decades ago, there were extremely few if any spots where people from the LGBT community could go and feel safe. 

Pictures taken after the murder.

Such was the case in New Orleans in 1973. In fact, gay slurs, hateful insults and violence were commonplace. However, the gay community celebrated their pride festival that year on Sunday the 24th in a second-floor bar on the corner of Iberville and Charles Street, named the UpStairs Lounge. I can personally attest that it is an incredible feeling to actually feel safe and not judged in an place even if you don't feel the same way in the entire surrounding area. In that one spot you are free; by all accounts this is what the attendees of the last day of the pride festival were experiencing. Laughter filled the room as all enjoyed their brief moment of happiness that was soon to be cut short. A ring came at the door that opened onto a long flight of stairs leading to the ground floor. Unsuspecting of the nightmare that would ensue, Luther Boggs answered the door; what followed would be unimaginable horror for the 60 or so individuals that were inside. The steps were on fire and soaked with Ronsonol lighter fluid. The fire spread uncontrollably and left a group of people scrambling to squeeze through the metal bars of the UpStairs Lounge windows. 

The bars were only 14 inches apart as they were originally designed to keep people from falling out. Some managed to squeeze through to jump to their deaths but other like, Rev. Bill Larson died, screaming, “Oh, God, no!” As shown below, Larson was left by New Orleans P.D. fused to the window until the following morning. 

All in all, thirty-two people lost their lives Sunday the 24th, 42 years ago. Among the dead were Inez Warren and her two gay sons, Eddie and Jim Warren. The bravery of that mother to attend gay pride with her two gays sons is truly moving and it makes the way she died in agony all the more heart wrenching. But the tragedy doesn’t end with the actual murder, it continues with the way the homophobic, ultra“Christian” community reacted to the atrocity. Bodies lay in mortuaries, Refused to be claimed due to the shame that would ensure from having a gay son or daughter, several remained permanently unclaimed. Pressure was also put on local reverends to NOT participate in any kind of funeral or memorial relating to the case, as acknowledging the pain of the victims would have been too dignified and undeserved by the gay community. 

However against the hate, Rev. William Richardson agreed to hold a small prayer service for the victims. For his compassion, he received hate mail and was formally rebuked by Episcopalian Church leadership. But it doesn’t stop there. News agencies made light of the fact that the majority of the victims were gay and instead painted the story as an accident, refusing to even call it arson. One talk-radio host commented, “What do we bury them in? Fruit jars?” The snubs came from all around.  The governor and every other civil authority leader declined to speak publicly about the tragedy and decided instead to pretend it never happened. The police made no real effort to find the murderer and no one was ever charged. I think it’s important to tell this story because we have to remember the struggle and the pain that those who came before us went through. We have to remember that change didn’t just happen, people fought and died to make the world the way we have it today and I want to take the opportunity to say, that “you are missed” to those who died 42 years ago. Their deaths won’t be forgotten. 

Ted Cruz flip flops again

       News media outlets are having a field day after Sen.Ted Cruz’s latest clown show. As a champion of the Tea Party, Ted Cruz has never been one known for his wise decision making, yet even I was surprised when in 2012, he voted AGAINST Hurricane Sandy Relief. We all remember Hurricane Sandy as the merciless hurricane that left an unrivaled wake of destruction in its path. However, for Ted Cruz, all this suffering and misery didn’t warrant federal disaster relief funds. He sent the message to the Northeast that they need to look out for themselves and not go looking for a free handout from the federal government. Well much to the disapproval of the Republican Senator, the bill passed and the North West got the help it needed and we the people never forgot Ted Cruz’s no vote.   

         And now this travesty has come full circle as a disaster has hit Texas. While the honorable thing to do after saying no to Hurricane Sandy victims would have been to apply the same rationale (or lack there of) to his own constituents, yet of course, Ted Cruz did nothing of the sort. 

“Sen. Ted Cruz, R- Texas, spent Wednesday afternoon touring the devastation in Hays County leftover from the record flooding that swept through the area Memorial Day weekend. […] “Democrats and Republicans in the congressional elevation will stand as one in support of the federal government meeting its statutory obligations to provide the relief to help the Texans who are hurting.” 

       Ted Cruz’ abysmal decision making skills and Tea Party fanaticism shone through in 2012, when he voted against Hurricane Sandy relief. Sen. Cruz even referred to relief money for Hurricane Sandy as “wasteful.” Yet, he doesn't find sending billions to Texas as wasteful even though Texas is the biggest recipient of federal disaster relief money in the country. What happened to the Tea Party champion that rallied against “big government: and “wasteful spending?” Don’t get me wrong, the disaster in Texas is indeed horrific and one that saddens me for loss of life, however, it is sick to see how Republican Senator Ted Cruz feels that he can be so openly hypocritical and no one will notice. Maybe we should consider his huge salary and benefits package as “wasteful spending.” 

Memorial Day in San Francisco!

I just got back from an amazing trip in San Francisco with my boyfriend, Jaeger and some of my favorite people in the world. It's incredible how a good trip can leave you feeling energized and ready to take on life! Thanks to Brian, Davaughn, Tyler, Logan, Jake and everyone else that made this weekend so much fun. Here are a few pics from the trip



Long time friend Brian Palacio and I getting ready to hit the town! We met in Milan around this time three years ago! Time flies. I'm excited to see his modelling career take off and I'll always be able to say that I knew him before he blew up :)





Up and coming fashion designer, Jake Thompson and I out enjoying the afternoon at Dolores Park. It's gonna be so cool to see the park once all the renovations are done. Can't wait!