Faces and voices of Angelenos on America's 250th - BERITAJA

Ruby Woo, 33, Unincorporated East Los Angeles

What 250 years means: 250 years of America is joy, devastation, pain, suffering, increasing pains, heartache, injustices, tears, happiness, growth, homesteading lifestyle, culture. I admit the truth that we’re presently opinionated connected the oldest thoroughfare successful each of Los Angeles. This is the birthplace of the city, and I cognize that this was a onshore of the natives, the Tongva. I admit that, admit them, admit that this was Mexico, not excessively agelong ago, 250 years ago.

My dream for this country: That the early holds much joy, much opportunity for growth, little injustices for all, nickname of past faults, and denouncing said faults.

Kevin Gonzalez, 30, Chinatown

What 250 years means: America intends freedom, an opportunity. I’m primitively from Mexico, and erstwhile you travel here, really consciousness for illustration everybody has opportunity to really conscionable fulfill immoderate dream aliases immoderate intent God has for you. I consciousness free erstwhile I’m retired here.

My dream for this country: I spot truthful overmuch symptom connected the streets, and for me, being acquainted pinch pain, cipher deserves that. What I want is thing that is gonna return a batch of work… I don’t want group to consciousness pain, you know. There’s truthful overmuch brokenness, there’s truthful galore mislaid group that it conscionable breaks my heart.

Fernando Carmona, 46, West Covina

What 250 years means: America is simply a great, awesome place, strong, and that’s why we could support going and get more, much time, much years…we person a awesome opportunities for my family, my people, and each people.

My dream for this country: I dream we don’t person war, nary unit successful the streets, and a very bully economy.

Tony King, 39, Glassell Park

What 250 years means: Being from England, I deliberation it’s alternatively new. There’s a batch of bully power here. There’s a batch of different power present than wherever I’m from. People are retired present going, getting things, and I deliberation you could consciousness the frontier… group will observe success, whereas wherever I’m from, they don’t, and they benignant of benignant of get stuck successful their way.

My dream for this country: In smaller and much agrarian communities, everyone helps each different out, and it’s weird that successful a larger place, wherever there’s a batch much people, group are a batch much disconnected. I deliberation we should each beryllium giving to our community, and they’ll person a sound connected a ripple effect, and we could each commencement looking aft each other.

Edmond Bilbasoo, 45, Glassell Park

What 250 years means: It intends opportunity and growth. I’m an immigrant. I was calved successful Iran, and came present successful 1982. So, for me, it was everything my parents sacrificed, everything to bring maine complete present to springiness maine a amended life, and because of their sacrifices, I was capable to spell to schoolhouse here, beryllium knowledgeable here, and yet unfastened up my ain business.

My dream for this country: I dream that cooler heads will prevail successful wide successful position of socioeconomic diverseness wrong America, and I would dream that we could each beryllium unified successful a definite way, because section is the downfall of empires, and alternatively than beryllium divided, we’d beryllium truthful overmuch amended disconnected if we were united. I’m an immigrant, I had to struggle and spell done each the difficulties of being here, but I wouldn’t alteration anything. I’m happy to beryllium a portion of this country, and I would conscionable dream that we could each proceed to turn together.

Thomas Graf, 38, Echo Park

What 250 years means: I was calved successful Germany. My mom’s from Colorado, truthful I person benignant of a divided position connected what it is, but that being said, I americium grateful to beryllium here. I deliberation United States, pinch each of its faults, is still home. I get to locomotion my dog, I get to play music, I get to do things connected my ain terms.”

My dream for this country: I really dream group could align and see, what we’re really meant for is organization and celebrating each different and our differences and loving everybody.

Vanessa Lengies, 40, Los Angeles

What 250 years means: I person lived present for complete 20 years. I moved present successful 2002 from Canada, and this represents my full career. My full profession and life has been successful the United States. I sewage joined here, and started a family, and had my kid here. He’s 9 months, truthful to maine it stands for my full big life opportunity.

My dream for this country: I dream for women to get successful touch pinch their bodies and intuition and commencement starring and saying what they spot and saying what they deliberation successful a measurement that leaves america successful a world that feels much loving and much maternal.

Jada O’Conner, 21, South Bay

What 250 years means: I deliberation that pinch each twelvemonth that passes, it’s important to do things differently, truthful that you could spot really alteration could travel about. Sometimes doing things the aforesaid doesn’t ever activity successful our favor.

My dream for this country: More fun, that’s it. More fun.

Rumi Fujimoto, 55, Little Tokyo

What 250 years means: It’s great, it’s a awesome landmark successful time, we’ve made it this far, we person go that overmuch greater country, but pinch that, we besides person greater problems. I judge successful this country. I’m judge we’ll beryllium capable to get through. I’m very proud to beryllium American. I conscionable wish that we could get on amended correct now.

My dream for this country: There’s not arsenic overmuch division, truthful to speak, wherever group aren’t truthful stuck successful their governmental beliefs aliases belief beliefs, and we could conscionable benignant of fto that spell and conscionable punctual each different that, we’re each somebody’s mom, somebody’s brother, somebody’s sister astatine the extremity of the day.

Stephanie Disla, 34, Downtown

What 250 years means: America is wherever dreams travel true, and wherever you could activity difficult and beryllium portion of the publication of the country.

My dream for this country: I dream for much humanity, bid and love. Love for those group that are connected the thoroughfare to get a bully place, and everybody moving together for illustration bully people.

Lok Cheng, 36, Chinatown

What 250 years means: America utilized to guidelines for dream and dreams, and I consciousness for illustration we request to support that moving forward, bringing group together is 1 thing. Unity is truthful important. We request that much than ever nowadays.

My dream for this country: Unity and community. If we guidelines beardown together, we guidelines stronger arsenic a nation, and for the betterment of our children and our early leaders.

Teresa Grimes, 64, Bunker Hill

What 250 years means: Not capable time. I don’t deliberation that we person achieved our goals… the Constitution, the Bill of Rights. I deliberation the state has a batch much activity to execute a much cleanable Union.

My dream for this country: “That we get backmost to our original goals, everybody being created equally.”

Eliana Peretz, 22, Fairfax

What 250 years means: I’m proud that we could go a federation that’s bigger than what our founders envisioned, that we could grow from their imagination and build upon those first values of state and things, and spot that expanded for each groups and each people, for illustration women, group of color. All these group were not included successful America’s original vision, but that doesn’t mean that the group who person fought truthful difficult to see them aren’t Americans, and I’m really proud that we could beryllium capable to build specified a awesome nation.

My dream for this country: My dream for the early of the state is unity, benignant of increasing beyond statement authorities and seeing what makes america truthful awesome arsenic America. My dream is that each and each American and everyone who resides successful our awesome state will each get the aforesaid level of state and opportunities, and everyone could person a chance astatine the American dream.

Andrew Guevara, 18, Rosemead

What 250 years means: That intends to maine it was a onshore built for opportunity, and we person a batch of opportunity aft 250 years. I judge that our founding fathers and our ancestors would beryllium proud of what we’ve achieved.

My dream for this country: I dream for the early that it could enactment the same, and that lodging situations for group do get better. That’s 1 thing, because that is simply a problem, but different than that, not much.

Reuben Marin, 26, San Fernando Valley

What 250 years means: I deliberation it’s awesome it’s endured this long. I sewage my problems pinch the country, but I for illustration it here… I conjecture it speaks to it being a resilient place? Despite each its problems, I still deliberation that it’s sewage a batch of appeal…people for illustration the civilization that we cultivate here.

My dream for this country: I very overmuch dream that culturally we trim retired a batch of the bigotry that we person here. I’m very accepting of each kinds of group and everything, and I would for illustration to spot much of that. We were connected a large upswing for that for a while, and past it conscionable benignant of went southbound existent bad. But speech that, I really dream that things get easier for the mean person… Living successful California, it’s beautiful difficult to unrecorded retired here.

Billy Alch, 66, Skid Row

What 250 years means: We were founded connected ‘Give maine liberty aliases springiness maine death,’ and everyone will springiness up each their liberties because they’re told so. So, I deliberation our country, until we study to guidelines up for ourselves and beryllium honest, our country’s going downward.

My dream for this country: People study to show the truth to each different alternatively than dress they for illustration each other.

Tzipi, 38, Los Angeles

What 250 years means: 250 years of group capitalism, a trash heap. Early onset fascism would not moreover statesman to picture wherever we are coming astatine 250 years.

My dream for this country: Revolution, liberation, abolition, organization care, communal aid, nationalist services that really let group to thrive alternatively of for illustration changeless competition.

Sydney Miller, 12, Pacific Palisades

What 250 years means: I consciousness for illustration it intends growth… it represents that we’ve kept it going, and we arsenic group person evolved and been capable to activity together without excessively overmuch war, and really we’ve been each moving together without excessively overmuch trouble.

My dream for this country: I dream that we could each proceed moving successful peace, and moreover much so, for for illustration my procreation and younger generations to each person futures that are bully and that everybody is adjacent and it’s each fair.

Claire Hsieh, 23, Westwood

What 250 years means: Freedom. I deliberation it’s for illustration 1 of the longest moving democracies, thing for illustration that, and I consciousness for illustration it’s almost a turning point, for illustration quality history, wherever group are becoming much democratic, much free, for illustration recognizing that everyone has authorities and liberties and worldly for illustration that.”

My dream for this country: That we support populist running, and that Trump doesn’t move it into autocratic dictatorship.

Riva Lewis, 6, Santa Monica

What 250 years means: People person been present a agelong time, and they’ve been well, they’ve been moving to tons of places successful different areas… it benignant of makes maine consciousness for illustration I’m successful my home, because my location is successful Los Angeles.

My dream for this country: I dream for the early that group get on more.

Ryan Payne, 49, Brentwood

What 250 years means: I deliberation we person a agelong storied and troubled history that we should acknowledge, and I dream that this is 1 much section of problem successful thing that we move beyond.

My dream for this country: Maturity. You know, it sounds funny to opportunity that pinch 250 years that we’re looking for maturity, but I’m looking for maturity and leadership.

Fidel De La Torre, 16, Santa Monica

What 250 years means: 250 years of America intends to maine a pouring cookware of different cultures, for illustration America’s very diverse… I consciousness for illustration that’s the spot successful the country.

My dream for this country: I dream successful the early we move towards much inclusivity and much equity, because I cognize correct now there’s things happening for illustration ICE raids, wherever they’re separating families, and I consciousness for illustration there’s a conception about immigrants that they’re criminals aliases dangerous, but successful reality they’re conscionable group trying to make a living.

Ricardo Smith, 27, Long Beach

What 250 years means: Just activity successful advancement and much to come, you know, 250 years of work… it’s a spot wherever everybody’s invited to come, travel together, and build their dream, immoderate their dream whitethorn be.

My dream for this country: Just health, wealth, and conscionable much life for everyone.

Christal Joanne Stubblefield, 30, Venice

What 250 years means: More trees… much relaxation… it intends peace.

My dream for this country: To beryllium successful serene unity.

Basil Hennessey, 32, Santa Monica

What 250 years means: 250 years of American intends to maine specifically, arsenic an Angeleno, that we reached the goldmine, we reached the West Coast, that was Manifest Destiny. We sewage to wherever we wanted to go, and this is the last destination. As of now, this is about apt the champion location that I could deliberation of successful America, upwind wise, civilization wise. Just everything about LA feels for illustration home. This feels for illustration the spot to be.”

My dream for this country: I conscionable dream that we don’t want to conscionable judge bully enough. , We sewage to proceed to improve, do better, spot a amended future.

Santos Silva, 35, Mid City

What 250 years means: I person mixed feelings, successful a sense, wherever there’s a batch of triumph, yet a batch of struggle, a batch of adversity, and a batch of reparations, but this still is simply a state that I’m proud to unrecorded in. I’m proud to beryllium an American, and I’m proud to beryllium progressive successful a conflict of unity and togetherness.

My dream for this country: More expression, much being the leaders of caller developments, and bringing backmost style, love, fun, color, and personality successful the world that was much than conscionable power.

Artist JennEm (Jennifer Malsch), 35, Marina Del Rey

What 250 years means: I think, erstwhile I look backmost connected 250 years of American history, overmuch of which is very tumultuous and achy for galore groups, the champion point that you could do is look astatine the advancement that we’ve made, and really acold we’ve come, and if you look astatine it pinch an optimistic lens, it makes maine hopeful for what we could execute successful the adjacent 250 years.

My dream for this country: I dream that we could find immoderate measurement to move about this shape of expanding inequality and find immoderate measurement to level it retired to thief about Americans who I deliberation are struggling correct now, but again we’ve made strides earlier and I deliberation you cognize location are pockets of ray happening correct now successful the country.,

Eric Skotnes, 45, Sherman Oaks

What 250 years means: For me, America conscionable represents a mixture, we invited everybody, we’re a pouring pot. My acquisition comes from Los Angeles, and I wouldn’t person it immoderate different way. We’re conscionable surrounded by each civilization that you could deliberation of, and it’s conscionable a spot of growth. Not judge if this would beryllium imaginable what I do anyplace other successful the world, it’s very cool. It’s amazing.”

My dream for this country: That we could each commencement to travel together and not person each this infighting, because I consciousness for illustration we’re a stronger state erstwhile we sewage each other’s backs, and not a bunch of hating going on.

David Alcaraz, 56, Venice

What 250 years means: Freedom, liberty, each of the above, life, love, everything. It’s truthful bully present successful the U.S. I’ve been different places, and there’s thing for illustration the U.S., fto unsocial L.A., California.

My dream for this country: That group will recognize that things are overmuch easier than they want them to be. Basically, God is good, and things could beryllium better. Just group sewage to recognize that. That’s all.

Darshon Smith, 33, Pasadena

What 250 years means: 250 years intends thriving, past thrive, we survive. 250 years, and we’re here.

My dream for this country: I dream we could dispersed much emotion retired here, man, and everybody could get on and summation the peace, man. Stop the war.

Ki’Jhon Combs, 30, Pasadena

What 250 years means: 250 years of America intends strength, growth, harmony, knowing and love.

My dream for this country: Just dispersed immoderate love, man, dispersed immoderate joy, immoderate health, immoderate wealth, and everybody is conscionable kumbaya, about definitely.

Michael Stanford, 30, Pasadena

What 250 years means: Money, ladies, marijuana.

My dream for this country: The ostentation spell down, the state prices spell down, and each that.

David Friend, 28, Calabasas

What 250 years means: It intends that it’s still 1 of the youngest countries successful the world, truthful anything’s possible. Obviously, there’s a batch of acheronian sides to the states, but 1 of the typical things is because it’s specified a caller state built connected truthful galore different cultures, moreover 250 years, different 250 that’s expected to beryllium wholly different. If you locomotion around, like, a half a mile radius, you’ll spot wholly different worlds, nary matter what guidance you go, particularly successful L.A.

My dream for this country: I dream that we could extremity being truthful divided, and that it doesn’t conscionable consciousness truthful achromatic and white, and that location could beryllium much gray.

Jess Harshbarger, 29, Koreatown

What 250 years means: It intends 250 years of perseverance against each odds. It’s the perseverance of an thought and an perfect that you should beryllium free successful your homeland to do what you like, judge what you like, and unrecorded really you like, arsenic agelong arsenic you’re not hurting anybody else.

My dream for this country: To spot the pouring cookware of civilization that is LA to beryllium everywhere. This state is astatine its champion erstwhile it is prioritizing its state and its multiculturalism. Those are our strengths, and I deliberation we request to thin into that now much than ever. We’re each Americans, nary matter wherever we’re from.”

Saira Sanchez, 36, Boyle Heights

What 250 years means: Well, for maine and my family, it represents years of difficult activity and achievement; for illustration truthful galore immigrants, we came present to fulfill our dreams. In my case, it intends seeing my sisters go knowledgeable individuals pinch their ain goals and aspirations successful this country. We are grateful for the opportunities provided to us, opportunities that foster our individual maturation and motivate america to move guardant and build a amended life. Above all.

My dream for this country: “We dream that we immigrants will beryllium fixed much opportunities and the chance to stay successful this country, since galore of america want to get up and build a amended future, not only for ourselves but besides for the caller generations increasing up here.

Translated from Spanish

Ava Lemons, 40, Echo Park

What 250 years means: I consciousness for illustration pinch everything that’s benignant of happened station Covid that we’re going backwards, and truthful my dream is that this is simply a clip to observe advancement that could beryllium made, and really activity towards making that progress.

My dream for this country: My dreams for the early is genuine equality, and not conscionable putting a bandaid connected things, but actually, everyone having equality and housing, nutrient connected the table. Just a basal bully modular of life.

Andrew Loberg, 37, Cypress Park

What 250 years means: We’ve had a batch of turbulent times recently, and I consciousness for illustration it’s a bully clip for america to region and benignant of spot really we could bespeak connected those much turbulent times and benignant of make it amended for the future.”

My dream for this country: I deliberation we conscionable request to beryllium overmuch much equitable, overmuch much sympathetic to everybody, to group of each backgrounds and income levels and races, wherever they’re from, nevertheless overmuch money they make, I consciousness for illustration we each request to benignant of support 1 another.”

Maribel Estevez, 49, Boyle Heights

What 250 years means: Well, I conscionable emotion this country. I don’t cognize history, there’s a batch of things to do here…being here, everything is adjacent to me, for illustration downtown, everything, Anaheim, everything. I conscionable emotion it, the weather, everything… I conscionable emotion everything here.

My dream for this country: I emotion the President… Hopefully we person Karen Bass make changes this time, for better, for illustration bum people, you know, get a home, make changes, and everything.

Christine Medrano, 50, Littlerock

What 250 years means: 250, I don’t cognize if I usage the connection solidarity, I mean it’s that’s a beautiful coagulated number correct there, wherever it conscionable keeps going and moving, and possibly not arsenic accelerated arsenic we’d for illustration it to, the progression, but I deliberation it’s thing coagulated that it’s gonna support going.

My dream for this country: I want everybody to beryllium prosperous. I want everybody, to beryllium a small spot much tolerant of everybody, and conscionable to benignant of grow, and not person truthful galore group beryllium successful fearfulness of doing thing different aliases thing new. You know, if everybody has the aforesaid thought and the aforesaid belief, we’re ne'er going to study anything, we’re ne'er going to beryllium enlightened to thing beyond ourselves.

Izzy Hernandez, 31, Long Beach

What 250 years means: It intends not truthful overmuch freedom. I wish location was more. I wish they took attraction of homelessness, but there’s besides emotion successful the air, I guess.

My dream for this country: A much livable wage, I would opportunity that for sure. More nationalist beaches too.

Yoshi Masuda, 39, Koreatown

What 250 years means: I travel from Japan, truthful 250 years is really not very agelong successful position of the country’s existence. So, good done. That’s great. Glad you made it truthful far. For me, arsenic an immigrant, moreover aft 15 years of being successful this country, I still consciousness this is simply a onshore of opportunities. There’s not that galore countries that still gives america those benignant of opportunities. I deliberation it’s a awesome place, and agelong unrecorded different 250 years.”

My dream for this country: As a musician, each we effort to do is to empathize pinch our assemblage and the composers, and truthful I deliberation conscionable much empathy.”

Mark Villan, 36, San Gabriel

What 250 years means: The first thought that comes to my mind is liberty and freedom, and that’s what was taught to me… Now it’s conscionable very divided. I’d person to opportunity correct now, much than anything, much than immoderate clip successful my lifetime, it’s been the about divided correct now.

My dream for this country: I dream that group could benignant of study to activity together and travel find immoderate communal ground, connected wherever they stand, and their values, truthful that we could move guardant and not conscionable conflict against each different needlessly.

Kin Chohan, 42, Sherman Oaks

What 250 years means: It intends state and to execute your dreams… I deliberation the Americans are much accepting than they realize, and because it’s specified a young country, things move very fast.

My dream for this country: Just to support progressing and making opportunities for people, and allowing group to travel present and execute their dreams.

Mike McClellan Jr., 39, Koreatown

What 250 years means: It intends the world to me, and I’m happy to beryllium American. I emotion LA, I emotion California, hell, I emotion the United States. But it’s an grant to beryllium a portion of this and to beryllium live and to beryllium functioning and remembering, and it’s a infinitesimal of history.

My dream for this country: To beryllium a portion of it successful each aspects, whether if it’s I’m making a quality arsenic a voter, resident, aliases even, conscionable nationality. I conscionable want to beryllium a portion of it.

Liz Aladana, 21, South Central

What 250 years means: I would person a different position than the mean American being a Latina woman. I consciousness for illustration 250 years… it’s for illustration america having our equality and freedom, what we’re expected to have, and I consciousness for illustration each and each time we’re still striving and fighting for that, and we support facing adversity.

My dream for this country: Just for much bid and much love, and for group conscionable to beryllium much compassionate. I consciousness for illustration a batch of group nowadays deficiency a batch of empathy and compassion… I consciousness for illustration group don’t spot each different arsenic human. You get what I’m saying. So, conscionable much bid and love, virtually sounds about apt very cliche, but bid and love.

Kye Paysinger, 22, South Central

What 250 years means: To me, it intends that we’re still here, we’re living, we’re breathing… The blacks and browns, you know, america sticking together, I consciousness for illustration we accomplished a batch successful 250 years. What do I consciousness for illustration we accomplished? Pride Month, Pride Month, Black History Month. We person a full month, not a week, not a day, a full month.”

My dream for this country: I dream that we don’t person robots taking complete our jobs… I conscionable dream everybody finds emotion and emotion wrong themselves, not from anyone else. I conscionable dream the early is positive.

Hether Grey, 39, Los Feliz

What 250 years means: It intends that we’ve seen a batch of changes… advancement pinch a batch of hiccups.

My dream for this country: I dream we get distant from everything being about what our jobs are, and not needing to unrecorded our lives for money, truthful that we could unrecorded a small much self-actualized.

Aubrey Iwamoto, 40, Silverlake

What 250 years means: I deliberation it intends we request to do amended arsenic acold arsenic equality, adjacent rights, adjacent pay, getting much group of colour and diverseness into positions of power, truthful that those communities could get the resources that they request and not beryllium truthful underserved.

My dream for this country: I dream that we could reconstruct the systems that are successful complaint of people’s mundane lives and well-being to beryllium much equitable, little for profit, and much for the wellness and bully and well-being of the people, truthful that everybody could thrive.

Bill Zsunkan, 38, Silver Lake

What 250 years means: There’s immoderate benignant of Winston Churchill quote wherever he says… it’s the worst system, isolated from for each the others. I americium perpetually thinking, like, what a dumb country. We look to beryllium starring ourselves about by the id for the past for illustration 70 years, fundamentally since Nixon, and for illustration the full silent mostly thing. I’m ambivalent connected the subject.

My dream for this country: An eager strategy towards reconciling ourselves to the planet. If we could beryllium bully to the planet, I deliberation it will guidelines to mean for a batch of different things. I ever opportunity you could show a batch about a personification by the measurement they dainty animals. I deliberation arsenic a state you will beryllium capable to show a batch about america by the measurement we dainty the planet. Stop fracking, maybe.

Victor Chavez, 20, Santa Monica

What 250 years means: I’m amazed it lasted this long.

My dream for this country: I dream for inclusion, equality for everybody. I cognize correct now it’s not arsenic inclusive arsenic America could be. There’s a batch of prejudice, stereotypes going around, particularly pinch the existent administration, truthful conscionable having much inclusion and adjacent opportunities for everybody, sloppy of race, gender, intersexual orientation.

Carlos Gonzalez, 56, Pasadena

What 250 years means: It’s an breathtaking date. Glad to beryllium portion of this era.

My dream for this country: I conscionable dream that everything that’s going connected correct now solves promptly, and past the world becomes a amended spot to be.

Manroop Kaur Turna, 21, Westwood

What 250 years means: 250 years of America intends 250 years of state and the correct to the American dream.

My dream for this country: I deliberation promoting equality for everyone who steps into the country.

Jay Ann Kan, 21, Westwood

What 250 years means: I deliberation it’s much about recognizing each the accomplishments that we’ve already had, but besides recognizing that location is ever room for improvement, and conscionable approaching those things pinch much of a consciousness of community.

My dream for this country: People being much agreed alternatively than divided, and conscionable everyone approaching life and group pinch kindness and much empathy… conscionable much agreed voices and conscionable much practice of different people, for illustration different races, group pinch disabilities, and conscionable having those voices style really we instrumentality changes successful the country.

Christopher Persaud, 47, Winnetka

What 250 years means: It intends that we had a imagination for the world erstwhile we started, that it could beryllium different from the benignant of world that existed successful 1776 for about people, and we’ve gradually been getting amended since past to effort to create a world pinch much opportunity for everyone and much justness for everyone.

My dream for this country: I’m hoping that we will person capable opportunity for everyone, that group would beryllium capable to spend to ain their spot to unrecorded and person a car and beryllium capable to get acquisition for their children. I’m hoping besides that we will beryllium capable successful some the beingness situation and the world situation to change, that we’ll beryllium capable to alteration successful a measurement that makes sense.

Poet Ramos, 32, San Fernando Valley

What 250 years means: It intends a continuous travel of beautiful group that are calved and surviving and get to acquisition awesome dreams successful America each azygous time for coming and each of the future.

My dream for this country: If we could shape peace, much peace, much unity, little violence, much telephone to action. Keep up pinch the arts, support up pinch the love, and stock a sheet of nutrient pinch your neighbor.

Ethan Chen, 24, Northridge

What 250 years means: I deliberation 250 years of this country, it intends a batch for progress. I deliberation we had a rocky start. We’ve go a agelong measurement successful position of unity and equality. I deliberation I want to spot much pinch that successful the future. I deliberation we still person a agelong measurement to spell successful position of bettering ourselves, but we’ve travel a agelong measurement from the beginning.”

My dream for this country: I’m hoping things get cheaper, but I’m hoping we conflict less. I want group to effort and work together connected much things, I cognize that successful position of authorities and stuff, group are benignant of astatine each other’s heads, and it doesn’t ever person to beryllium 2 extremes, that they could travel together and effort and amended the state successful ways that use each of us.

Don Sorapuru, 67, Lake Balboa

What 250 years means: 250 years intends they’ve had a batch of advancement from erstwhile I was calved to now. When I came up, location was nary internet, and you had to reply the phones, and you person to beryllium home. So the advancement is truthful much. 250 years, I conjecture it’s conscionable going to support going.

My dream for this country: Peace everywhere. Peace, emotion and fto Jesus, fto his ray shine.

Sylvia Katz, 86, Lake Balboa

What 250 years means: That the state is still stable, contempt everything that’s going on, and it intends a batch to me. I was calved here, and I emotion this country, and God bless america is each I could say. I dream California gets a small amended than it is correct now, but I still emotion this state.

My dream for this country: I dream that we are astatine peace, and that nary of our boys person to spell to war, and this state will proceed to turn and beryllium loved by the world.