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Manuela Tobias

Housing Reporter

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Manuela is our former Housing Reporter whose stories focused on the political dynamics and economic and racial inequities that contribute to the housing crisis in California and its potential solutions. Manuela previously covered income inequality and survival at The Fresno Bee for the California Divide. She is a former staff writer for PolitiFact and has interned at Politico Magazine, New York Magazine and The New Yorker. Originally from Buenos Aires, she has lived in Latin America, Europe and across the United States. She has a B.A. in comparative literature from Georgetown University.

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California Divide
How Fresno is confronting its history of racism
Cracked roads and blocks of wilted grass and dirt envelop the Edison High School campus in the heart of west Fresno. Police cars, churches and liquor stores abound. But trees, grocery stores, hospitals, parks, restaurants, and banks remain out of sight. Meanwhile, across Highways 180 and 99 heading north toward Bullard Avenue, there is another […]
By • June 17, 2020
Nurses in PPE wait for patients in the testing bays—called ‘the hot zone’— at a drive-thru COVID-19 testing facility at Cal Expo in Sacramento. The by-appointment-only facility has been testing upwards of 300 patients per day. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters
Coronavirus
‘What is the state hiding?’ ACLU pushes for more details on coronavirus cases, testing
California has more than 35,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 but understanding precisely who has been tested and treated remains shrouded in mystery — and is key to ensuring equal access, according to advocacy groups seeking more transparency from the Newsom administration. The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California wrote Gov. Gavin Newsom earlier this month […]
By • April 22, 2020
Money Mart payday loans and check cashing store in Sacramento, California. Photo via Creative Commons
California Divide
Need money during coronavirus pandemic? How to avoid loan sharks and debt traps
As millions of Americans lose jobs, shifts and other sources of income during the coronavirus health crisis, financial experts worry that people will be preyed upon by loan sharks who stand to profit. “We saw this during the foreclosure crisis, where people were in distress and scammers took advantage to promise to help people connect […]
By • March 31, 2020
Fresno County is facing a doctor shortage, forcing it to give up some beds that were supposed to be reserved for coronavirus patients
California Divide
Fresno’s doctor shortage just cost the county 100 coronavirus emergency hospital beds
Fresno County has to give away 100 emergency field hospital beds intended to treat coronavirus patients because the Valley’s long-standing shortage of doctors means there aren’t enough medical professionals to monitor the patients. About 250 beds will be delivered to the county after state officials on Wednesday green light its proposed field hospital location for […]
By • March 31, 2020
Fresno Community Medical Plaza. Photo by Nima Kasraie via Creative Commons
California Divide
Fresno area is sicker and has a doctor shortage. So the coronavirus poses a huge threat, experts warn
The central San Joaquin Valley for years has struggled to attract medical doctors, with physician-to-resident ratios well below what medical experts say is needed for adequate healthcare. That was before the coronavirus pandemic. Now the rapid spread of COVID-19 may well expose the Fresno area to even greater risk if the relatively few doctors in […]
By • March 25, 2020

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Manuela is our former Housing Reporter whose stories focused on the political dynamics and economic and racial inequities that contribute to the housing crisis in California and its potential solutions. Manuela previously covered income inequality and survival at The Fresno Bee for the California Divide. She is a former staff writer for PolitiFact and has interned at Politico Magazine, New York Magazine and The New Yorker. Originally from Buenos Aires, she has lived in Latin America, Europe and across the United States. She has a B.A. in comparative literature from Georgetown University.
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Manuela Tobias