Karen Bass, the Mayor of Los Angeles advised wildfire victims to seek help on a website…

Bass cut $17.6 million from the fire department's budget despite California’s wildfire risks, citing "tough budgetary times."

Instead, she allocated funding to progressive initiatives, such as:

$100,000 for the “Midnight Stroll Transgender Cafe” for unsheltered transgender individuals

$100,000 for the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Awards

$8,670 for the “One Institute the International Gay and Lesbian Archives”

$13,000 for “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Heritage Month Programs”

$14,010 to the “Gay Men’s Chorus of Los Angeles”

$170,000 for “Social Justice Art-Worker Investments”

Meanwhile, the LAFD’s 2023–2026 strategic plan emphasized diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) as a key goal, with fire chief Kristin F. Crowley prioritizing a DEI-centered culture.