July 9, 2026

Photo credit: Robert Nickelsberg / Contributor / Archive Photos via Getty Images

In 2022, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed a law that decriminalized loitering with intent to commit prostitution. It had previously been a crime to do so since at least 1995.

“Before S.B. 357, police officers could use a woman’s attire and behavior to determine that she was loitering to commit prostitution,” Christopher Rufo and Kenneth Schrupp write. “Once that behavior was decriminalized, prostitutes began wearing hardly any clothes—and law enforcement found itself helpless to control the sex trade.”

Rufo and Schrupp visited Figueroa Corridor in Los Angeles—one of California’s most notorious sex markets—to see the effects. The number of prostitutes there has increased, and horrifyingly, the law has enabled traffickers, many of whom are targeting minors. “In the past, a patrol officer could arrest a loitering prostitute to get her off the streets and encourage her to testify against a trafficker,” they write. “Today, law enforcement has to use resource-strapped undercover units to target traffickers one-by-one.”

Read more about the law and what Rufo and Schrupp saw during their visit. (And read Abigail Shrier’s stunning 2023 City Journal report from Figueroa, written not long after the law had gone into effect.)

For years, officials and legislators have claimed that gifted education worsens racial inequality. Schools listened, axing honors classes and dumping standardized tests for entrance into specialized programs. The experiment “proved damaging to both high-achieving kids and students struggling academically,” Neetu Arnold writes.

Thankfully, some school districts are reversing course. San Francisco, for instance, brought back eighth-grade algebra ten years after cutting it. And Boston restored merit-based admissions last year.

 “Supporting high-achieving students doesn’t mean neglecting those who struggle academically,” Arnold points out. “Schools should improve instruction rather than reducing opportunities for those who are ready for more.”

Born in 1928, Michael Harrington became a professional socialist after leaving his job at The Catholic Worker. His 1962 book, The Other America, proved highly influential and was read by President John F. Kennedy. Harrington went on to found the Democratic Socialists of America in 1982, leading the organization until 1985.

Harrington wanted massive government expansion. He believed that workers should control corporate strategy and capital allocations and that government should ensure jobs for everyone. He supported national health care because it made workers less reliant on their employers.

“Ironically, these dusty ideas resonate far more today than they did in the 1980s,” Stephen Eide writes. “After this November’s elections, the Democratic Socialists of America will be able to claim 15 New York State legislators; the mayoralties of New York, Seattle, and Washington, D.C., and possibly Los Angeles; and at least five members of Congress.”

What’s driving the shift? Trump Derangement Syndrome appears to be partly to blame.

Between 2010 and 2016, DSA membership rose to just 8,500. But it spiked with Trump’s rise, skyrocketing to 32,000 in 2017 and hitting 95,000 by 2021. Membership dropped during Joe Biden’s presidency, but then grew again during Trump’s second term. There are now 120,000 DSA members.

Read more about Harrington’s legacy and the DSA’s future here.