Cover Story
Black History Under Siege
Henry Louis Gates Jr. says truth will out if people of all colors resist the censorship of America’s Black history.
Read MoreProf. Jose Garcia Moreno created a luminous multimedia presentation celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Loyola-Marymount merger. The stunning visual display was projected onto the façade of Sacred Heart Chapel. Watch it here.
The Pride: Marcela Escobar-Alava ’92
The career of Marcela Escobar-Alava ’92 has led her from her family’s restaurant business in El Monte when she was 9 to the White House. Follow her path here.
Joan Didion’s California Odyssey
In essays, articles, novels, and plays, the iconic writer mapped her beautiful, battered state with landmarks by which we find our way.
In fall 2023, LMU and the Los Angeles Rams professional football team entered into a new educational partnership. Watch the campus celebration of the unique collaboration.
Your Move
The transfer portal has brought dizzying roster changes, new opportunities, and, possibly, a shorter path to success in college athletics.
A Conversation With Donegal Fergus
Donegal Fergus, new head coach of LMU baseball, discusses his approach to the game of baseball, recruiting, and the challenge of hitting the curve ball.
KXLU’s Salsa Fest is the annual outdoor Latin music party that brings salsa music lovers and entire families to campus to celebrate the LMU station’s “Alma del Barrio” Spanish-language programming.
President Timothy Law Snyder, Ph.D., talks with representatives of each of LMU’s sponsoring religious communities—Robert Caro, S.J., Mary Genino, R.S.H.M., and Mary Beth Ingham, C.S.J.—about the long-lasting significance of the university’s groundbreaking merger 50 years ago.
Canto de la Ciudad
KXLU’s “Alma del Barrio” has been singing its songs to L.A. and binding together LMU and the city’s Spanish-speaking communities for five decades.
The Loud-Mouthed Neighbors
Noisy, smart, social, resourceful — crows, as readily as humans, have adapted to L.A.’s urban-wild and thrive among us.
A Conversation With Cheryl Grills
Prof. Cheryl Grills talks about her work with the California Reparations Task Force and its landmark 2023 report.
Hunting Demons
James Keane ’96 remembers the fear he felt at 14 when he saw “The Exorcist.” He still wonders if exorcism can rid him of the demons in the world.
Highlights of the dedication ceremony marking the $8 million commitment by the Dordick family to LMU Loyola Law School’s trial advocacy programs.
Martin Sheen’s Five Minutes of Fame
Actor Martin Sheen describes how his Catholic faith has shaped some of his best-known roles and his commitment to social justice.
AI’s Impact on Artists
AI technology now allows any user to generate an image of almost anything they like that copies the work of almost any artist, putting the livelihoods of painters, illustrators and photographers at risk.
Hollywood Standstill
The Writers Guild of America strike is about wages, residuals and more, but some say it’s even more about the future existence of a profession.
Tracking Fish With eDNA
Demian Willette, LMU biology professor, has patented a device to collect environmental DNA that helps detect fish fraud — the mislabeling of fish — as well as protect endangered species.
Florida’s Battle With Black History
Florida’s rejection of the College Board’s new AP African American Studies course puts a spotlight on the U.S. struggle to deal with racism and Black America’s past and present.
The Outsider President
“Jimmy Who?” people asked in 1976 as the virtually unknown James Earl “Jimmy” Carter came out of nowhere to capture the Democratic nomination for president, eventually winning the presidential election. Carter was able to accomplish this unlikely victory for one key reason: He was the anti-Nixon in the midst of the Watergate era. His “I’ll […]
Ben Bolch on NIL’s Impact on College Athletics
Name, image and likeness (NIL) payments represent a new, large cash flow into college athletics. Much will stream toward athletes through sponsorships and endorsements. But some scenarios are deeply troubling. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times staff writer, describes a new era that is changing college athletics.
Shelves of Selves
To Lynell George ’84, every book on her shelves is a window into who she was, is and will become. How to live when a treasured one goes missing?
Big City Oil
Oil used to be big in Los Angeles. In fact, it still is, and the industry’s impact on the region’s populations is far from equitable.
A Conversation With Misty Copeland
Misty Copeland was the first Black female principal dancer with the American Ballet Theatre. She talks about her experience and struggles while breaking new ground.
A Conversation With Abby Wambach
Abby Wambach, who delivered the Commencement address at the 2022 Commencement Exercises, talks about Title IX, equal pay for women and misogyny.
A Well-Aimed Rock
Blake Pickens MBA ’19, a Chickasaw film producer and stand-up comedian, uses film and jokes to change people’s minds about Native Americans and people in poverty.
Alvarado and 3rd
The United States meets Central America at L.A.’s Westlake intersection. Rubén Martínez finds that survival is one of the many stories found at this hemispheric meeting place.
Climate Chaos
Extreme California weather may bring chaos, but do we resist, mitigate or adapt to preserve the climate, our common good? David L. Ulin explores the path head and our responsibilities.
LMU Magazine Podcast Wins Top Media Award
“Off Press” took first place for Sports—Any News or Feature in the Los Angeles Press Club’s 63rd annual Southern California Journalism Awards.
A Conversation With Holly Mitchell
Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell, who was elected chair of the Board of Supervisors in December 2021, talks about her goals as supervisor
Louis Foster, an 18-year-old first-year LMU student, has quickly made a name for himself in professional racing just three years since his initial full season. It’s not so surprising: He comes from a well-known British racing family. We interviewed Foster in the new issue of LMU Magazine. Take at our behind-the-scenes video of the magazine photo shoot.
A Conversation With Vin Scully
Former Dodger broadcaster Vin Scully P ’95, P ’99, talks about what he misses about his job and the influence of his Jesuit education on his life.
The Dogs That Save Us
The human-dog lovefest may be 15,000 years old, and the pandemic has given it a shot in the arm. Are they our most faithful friends, or are we theirs?
Eric Strauss on Climate Change
The impact of climate change on Southern California — in heat, ocean temperatures and coastal damage — is now evident, with more on the way, says Eric Strauss of the LMU Center for Urban Resilience. The worst effects will likely be distributed unequally. Our goal, he says, is not climate change reversal but adaptation.
Stage Rights
In 1963, James Baldwin masterminded a tense nighttime meeting with Robert F. Kennedy to break down the Kennedy administration’s reluctance to act on civil rights. Baldwin’s summit changed RFK forever after.
Cougar Town
Native mountain lions risk their lives to cross the U.S. 101 freeway. A wildlife crossing, in the form of a bridge, could save them.
Amped Up
An executive producer with the Obamas’ Higher Ground Audio amplifies voices and stories that are too rarely heard. An interview with Mukta Mohan ’14.
The Bones of St. Peter
James T. Keane ’96, an editor at America magazine, recalls a trip he led with a group of students to the catacombs of the Church of San Silvestro in Capite in Rome.
The Magazine of the Year
LMU Magazine wins the 2020 Robert Sibley Magazine of the Year Award, the top honor in university magazine publishing, in the annual CASE Circle of Excellence Awards competition.
Ivan Ehlers ’04 on Drawing in The New Yorker
Ivan Ehlers has produced work for The New Yorker, MAD Magazine and The Wall Street Journal. But rejection is part of the job, he says, and studying psychology at LMU has come in handy.
Chaya Crowder on Black Voters and U.S. Elections
“The Republican Party has made little to no attempt to historically appeal to Black voters since the passage of the 1965 Voting Rights Act,” says Prof. Chaya Crowder in describing why Black voters, especially Black women, are the backbone of the Democratic Party.
This prayer, that has become synonymous with Pedro Arrupe, S.J., who was Father General of the Society of Jesus, describes the intimate connection of love to one’s truest identity.
Dramatis Personae
In his bestselling volume “Tyrant: Shakespeare on Politics,” Stephen Greenblatt, in a none-too-subtle jab at President Donald Trump, examines the characters of Richard III, Macbeth, King Lear and Coriolanus to illuminate how Shakespeare’s work probes the danger of narcissistic demagogues — and the self-destructive willingness of collaborators who indulge them — to tear at the fabric […]
Off Press Podcasts
Cheryl Grills on Reparations
Cheryl Grills, professor in the LMU Bellarmine College of Liberal Arts, was appointed to the California state task force tasked with proposing reparations to the state’s Black descendants of enslaved people. She talks about the long-term harms of slavery and possible steps to repair the wrongs.
Donegal Fergus on LMU and MLB Baseball
Donegal Fergus, LMU baseball head coach, talks about the impact on NCAA baseball of the transfer portal, the technical and mental aspects of hitting, and how he develops players for a major league future.
Mary Agnes Erlandson ’82 on Homelessness and What Works
Homelessness has many causes, and Mary Agnes Erlandson ’82 directs a social services center in Lennox that offers programs addressing many of them. She says focusing on people’s needs, especially housing, can change people’s lives for the better. She has seen it happen.
