City of Angels 2018-19

As the gang capital of the world, Los Angeles is home to more than four hundred and fifty active gangs that are host to in excess of forty-five thousand members. For over fifty years, this public safety issue has been ravaging the lives of poor minority and immigrant neighborhoods, tearing families and communities apart. Because the culture of violence that surrounds these gangs remains relatively confined to those underprivileged and underserved areas, those of us Angelenos who reside beyond its reach seem unwilling to address it as the epidemic it has proven to be. Does their race or social class influence our level of concern? Do we value these citizens equally? How have media images affected your opinion of these individuals/communities?

Our City of Angels class has ventured out on many excursions over the past few weeks around LA. I have enjoyed every single urban lab and I appreciate the uniqueness of our class’ structure, openness, and flexibility. We interact with local people, enjoy yummy meals, and explore areas in Los Angeles that may be foreign to some of us. Now that we have been divided and organized into our podcast groups, I have been looking forward to our future urban labs which will focus specifically on our respective podcast topics. There is, however, something I have feared with these urban labs that I hope to discuss especially before starting our podcast geared trips. While I believe the urban lab experience is enriching, I wonder if they contain problematic elements that we may not be aware of. We have many discussions about gentrification and its issues while also visiting the neighborhoods and communities that are directly affected by gentrification. The issue I fear is the concept of “not...

In Los Angeles, some of the poorest parts of the city are often tied to the formation of freeways and creation of the suburbs. However, I will need to provide some historical context to illustrate why these two entities are connected. After World War II ended, there was a housing shortage in Los Angeles due to the influx of returning soldiers and African Americans migrating from the South. In a means to rectify this issue, the government provided low-cost financing to white citizens buying houses in the suburbs. Inevitably, the urban white population of Los Angeles decreased resulting in many businesses moving and fewer job opportunities. In urban Los Angeles, unemployment, crime, and poverty all skyrocketed, which in turn led to many restrictive policies that forced minority groups to stay in these areas. These marginalized groups were unable to get access to these government loans so they couldn't afford to leave the city regardless of these punitive policies. As this...