An article in the LA Times last week has been sitting uncomfortably in my inbox, and while it isn’t specifically related to Northeast Los Angeles, I’m troubled at the precedent it sets for our neighborhood. LA Gang Tours, a nonprofit, will lead bus tours beginning in January from the Los Angeles River through South Los Angeles for tourists or locals interested in the exact opposite of the Hollywood-based stars’ homes tours. Led by a reformed Florencia 13 member, the tour has brokered an understanding with local gangs and plans to showcase the areas criminal history. (Crips, Bloods, and 18th Street oh my!) While the tour’s backers seem to have the best of intentions, I’m personally very uncomfortable with turning the inner-city into a zoo where the bourgeois and foreigners can project their romanticized images of Colors, Boyz n the Hood, and Training Day. In Rio de Janeiro, tourists can pay to take a bus ride through the favelas, exoticized in 2002’s City of God. While no neighborhood in Los Angeles approaches that level of crime and poverty, the spirit of gawking at the poor goes back at least to tours of London’s Eastenders at the beginning of the 19th century, and I worry that the motivation for those who would pay for these tours is not born of philanthropy or education. Instead, I imagine customers signing up for a sense of adventure and urban exploration that ends regaling his or her friends with stories of surviving the ‘hood over PBRs that night. (Don’t believe me? Just read any post about going to East Los Angeles on Yelp.) LA Gang Tours is reportedly already looking to expand their trips to include Westlake, which leads to my concern that Highland Park, Glassell Park, and Cypress Park won’t be far behind. If the residents of South L.A. think that these tours will bring an influx of jobs, money, and knowledge into their community, then it’s not my business to tell them what is in their best interest. However, I will be justifiably furious if open-topped vans start cruising down my street oohing and aahing over murder scenes and gang tags. (”HxP means Highland Park!”)
Fortunately, I have a suggestion for those who want to help those in need without exploiting or stigmatizing the poor as something “other”. This Wednesday, a bevy of charity groups are hosting a Glassell Park Neighborhood Posada from 4-6 PM at Juntos Park, 3145 Drew Street. Traditionally, a Posada involves viewing nativity scenes but since the flyer wishes us “Happy Holidays”, and various city departments are sponsoring the event, I’m not sure how much religious imagery to expect in a public park. Still, kids can get free piñatas, adults can drink free champurrado, and if you’re so inclined, you can find a way to get involved in gang-prevention and social work without stigmatizing the poor. You’re even allowed to get a little thrill from being in the barrio.
The Gold Line Eastside Extension opens today and is free from the Sierra Madre station to the new terminus at Atlantic. Based on my brief trip today, Mariachi Plaza and East LA Civic Center look to be the hubs of today’s entertainment schedule. Metro has published a dining guide, as has the LA Times, so in honor of being able to hire mariachis for our next party without having to get into our cars, we’ve linked below to some older reviews of locations near the new extension. Some of the spots further south may require a long walk or a bicycle. Enjoy.
What the hell did just happen? This website has a contentious bit of history with the world’s most famous taco truck. A couple of guys whose turn-ons include eating and customer service had some choice words for some food entrepreneurs after a missed connection in Eagle Rock. Scathing postings were exchanged, acrimonious comments were made to the articles, and many an L was capitalized. In short, much ado was made about nothing, and as it tends to do, life went on.
At least for some of us.
Despite culinary awards, countless positive reviews from traditional media and bloggers alike, and wait times measured in hours, this family-owned business has the institutional memory of an elephant when it comes to slights. Over the weekend, this truck’s few detractors were devastatingly “served” via the hyperlink-laden lyrics to Cypress Hill’s “Rock Superstar”.
Search Kogibbq.com and look for their article titled Exorcism: The Purge. We haven’t linked to their post mainly because we’d like to encourage you to get an idea of the tenor of their entire site.
People who display this much hubris on the internet open themselves up to so many different criticisms, it can be hard to focus on just one. In my estimation, the article’s most supercilious claim, almost lost in the jumble of hip-hopisms and disturbing juxtapositions of bodily fluids and cooking, is that the truck “takes risks going into neighborhoods that no other taco truck would touch”. I’m not quite sure how to address such an incorrect (and latently classist) statement but here it goes: I don’t follow this truck closely enough to know for sure everywhere it has plied its trade, but based on their schedule for this week, the “riskiest” neighborhood I see on the map is on the corner of our own York Blvd. and Eagle Rock Blvd. While the ARCO on that corner might be an adventure into the seamier side of Southern California for the Noveau Food Trucks, it’s not exactly a wasteland of mobile food. Scary as it may be, they would do well to chat with Leo, who has been working out of a taco truck (this far from the Alibi Room? Really?) for the better part of two decades. Pulling your head out of your…Twitter account…can do wonders for your perspective.
Professional myopia aside, the article asks a good question: “What more can anybody want from us?”. Our answer: Be nice and move on.
Believe me, we know how cool you all are. Heck, your linking to us probably moved us up in Google searches by a few notches. Still, even Jesus was nice to the little people lucky enough to catch a glimpse of him. In fact, he was so cool he didn’t even sweat the critics who wanted him dead. All we’re asking for is a baseline of maturity and professionalism.
Ultimately, although the Street Code requires us to battle for our honor, we’re just a couple of bewildered “wankstas” content with cheap tacos and a “risky” neighborhood. That, and we’re out of commission since we may need physical therapy after such a severe serving. Peace out.
