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The Great Recession sparked a massive transfer of wealth in California and the rest of the nation. It happened on courthouse steps around the country when an estimated 5 million U.S. families lost their homes due to foreclosure. Many of those foreclosed homes were sold in bulk at auctions, and for the first time, large numbers of single-family homes were snatched up by Wall Street firms.

This week, a yearslong battle over how gig companies should treat the hundreds of thousands of Californians who find work through their apps finally came to a head. It also proved that even after high-profile protests and showdowns in Sacramento, the state is still far from figuring out what work will look like in a more tech-dependent world — and it’s testing the patience of Uber and Lyft, which are now threatening to temporarily close down in the state.

A few months ago, I was watching a local news station when I saw a reporter outside of the Korean grocery store, H Mart in the Convoy District.  As I always am, I was enthusiastic to see dozens of Asian people — customers of the market — in the backdrop as it’s a rarity to see Asian people on television even in a region as diverse as San Diego County.