The Safer Cities Initiative of Los Angeles was brought upon the city in late 2006 by Mayor, Antonio Villaraigosa. The Initiative was primarily designed to remove the homeless and mentally ill citizens from the isolated, 50 by 5 block, Los Angeles streets, known Nationally as Skid Row. In the end the S.C.I. violated these citizens civil rights and failed to meet any set obligations and responsibilities. Since the city of Los Angeles put this initiative into motion, the city then became responsible for these people, as if they were the “parent” of these homeless “children”. You can’t kick a homeless person off the streets, they’re homeless. So where do they go if they aren’t allowed on the street? Where do the mentally ill go if there are no mental institutions or clinics, or even medication? Food service providers in the area can only endow so much food for so many people. Where do the people left hungry go if there are only a miniscule amount of these service providers? The Safer Cities Initiative and the City of Los Angeles did not take care of their responsibilities.
Skid Row is a 50 block neighborhood east of the Downtown Historic Core and the high-rise district of Bunker Hill. It’s surround by 3rd street on the north, 7th street on the south, Main street on the west, and Alameda street on the east.
Skid Row dates back to the mid 1880’s-1890’s when the railroads were built and where they ended. The large agricultural fields east of downtown soon gave way to more industrial uses, which then attracted a predominantly large male population that came on trains for employment from the railroads, or predominantly transient agricultural sectors. This atmosphere sprouted small hotels, transitional living spaces back then, that now ...
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... and benefits advocacy, and by 1987 day didn't see had began serving both men and women and shortened its name to LAMP. within the first few years of the operation the stuff soon came to the realization that in addition to being in need of assistance a basic needs, the mentally ill needed a safe nurturing environment to live in, which then set them on a mission to acquire more property and expand their services for the mentally ill. in 1988 lamp obtained the property that would eventually become lamp village ,which is a 25,000 square foot former warehouse that was transformed into a center for life skills workshops, case movement, and advocacy services. With furnished residences including 48 beds, with private bathrooms and kitchen it was the Los Angeles County’s first permanent supportive housing. Becoming a primary factor in supportive housing became Lamp’s main
The Lafayette Club on beautiful Lake Minnetonka was first built in 1882. It was known as the nicest place in town and it had 300 guest rooms. Everyone wanted to go there but only the rich could afford to stay there. In 1897 it was burned down in a fire and Mr. Hill, the owner, then decided to build a new one. This beautiful hotel on the lake was made out of wood and sadly, 20 years later, it burned down again! Again, a new one was built because the property it was on was too beautiful to stay empty. By 1925 the brand new club was built to last and made with concrete. It is still there today.
Social issues are difficult to write about because they are simplistic and problematic. Johnson doesn’t say the homeless issue in Los Angeles is good or bad. The story describes the characters leaning more towards bad, but never directly states this. Johnson explores the characters reactions to the issue. From this story, we learn it is easier for this particular family and society to ignore an issue rather than address it.
Before African Americans moved to this area, Harlem was “designed specifically for white workers who wanted to commute into the city” (BIO Classroom). Due to the rapid growth of white people moving there and the developers not having enough transportation to support those people to go back and forth between downtown to work and home most of the residents left. Th...
Homelessness in the United States has been an important subject that the government needs to turn its attention to. There has been announced in the news that the number of the homeless people in many major cities in the United States has been increasing enormously. According to United States Interagency Council on Homelessness reported that there was an estimation of 83,170 individuals have experienced chronic homelessness on the streets of the United States’ streets and shelters on only a single night of January 2015, which is a small decrease of only 1% from the previous year (People Experiencing Chronic Homelessness, n.d.). The United States must consider this subject that most of the people underestimate it and not pay attention
Los Angeles, people think of movie stars and great attraction spots, not Skid Row. Skid Row sits in downtown Los Angeles. It is the nation’s biggest population of homeless people living and sleeping on public sidewalks. Over 2,000 men and women camp under tarps that span 50 city blocks. It’s not surprising that these streets sanitary conditions are appalling. On any given street you will witness see people shooting up, urinating, and fighting. This location also has a high number of mentally ill individuals. It is a predator’s paradise. Police officers are not popular on skid row and many would rather do anything else. An officer with the Los Angeles Police Department has found his calling on one of the hardest beats, Skid Row.
Until They Bring The Streetcars Back is a novel written by Stanley Gordon west. The book centers around a high schooler named Calvin Grant, who faces all sorts of obstacles, during his senior year at Central High School. Despite the fact that Cal is a jock, and a popular kid, he does everything in his power to help Gretchen Lutterman, the weird girl at their school, escape her abusive father, and remain her sanity. The author enhances the story by using different elements of literature. He uses characters to describe their physical features, personality, inner thoughts, and explains the reasoning behind their actions. He describes the multiple themes, that are the center/ many focus throughout the book. He also created many conflicts in the
A new phenomenon happening in our city is the rebirth of many of our older and rundown areas. One of the best examples of this is the "Soulard" area of town, which now has an established nightlife as well as exquisite historical antique homes. Lafayette Square has also enjoyed the same type of success as Soulard. It is still in the middle of a high crime area, but is populated by upper-class people with beautiful homes with elaborate wrought iron fences and intricate security systems. This trend of fixing up old flats is spreading out from the areas of Soulard and Lafayette Square to neighboring communities at a rapid pace. The Compton Heights area is coming back with rebuilt old Victorian styled houses and private gated streets that contrast the French styled flats of Soulard. The Shaw and Tower Grove area are also following the lead of revitalization similar to these charming old neighborhoods.
The book asks two questions; first, why the changes that have taken place on the sidewalk over the past 40 years have occurred? Focusing on the concentration of poverty in some areas, people movement from one place to the other and how the people working/or living on Sixth Avenue come from such neighborhoods. Second, How the sidewalk life works today? By looking at the mainly poor black men, who work as book and magazine vendors, and/or live on the sidewalk of an upper-middle-class neighborhood. The book follows the lives of several men who work as book and magazine vendors in Greenwich Village during the 1990s, where mos...
Bittner (1967) describes skid row as “the natural habitat of people who lack the capacities and commitments to live ‘normal’ lives on a sustained basis (Bittner, 1967, pg 705).” Skid row is the area where those who have nothing less to lose come together. Police officers assigned to skid row are usually assigned for long periods of time so they get to know the population they serve. The police officer assigned to skid row allows particular crimes to continue to protect those on skid row from each other and more severe crimes. It is because the police officer assigned to skid row allows disorder to continue, but continue contained, that reduces the chances of serious crime against the general public and the inhabitants of skid row (Bittner,
Until They Bring The Streetcars Back is a novel written by Stanley Gordon West. The story takes place in 1949 here in Minnesota St. Paul. The main character’s name is Calvin and the story revolves around him and the people he encounters. It is a sad and complexed story. It allows the readers to relate what is happening in the book and connect it to real life situation. So far there quite few conflicts that rose up in the in the book and although they are not solved yet, they bring some excitement and eagerness to the readers. One of the main conflict in the book is that a person Calvin knows named Gretchen is going through physical and sexual abuse by her father and Calvin has to figure out a way to help her. After realizing helping someone
The stories that comprise the voices of Skid Row are unique, despite their common thread of homelessness. From the severely mentally ill to the merely down on their luck, the population of Skid Row widely varies, as are their chances of getting of the streets. Let’s examine a sampling of the personal stories of Skid Row residents. From these stories, I have seen a small glimpse of everyday life and the struggles of the Skid Row community.
Imagine your life with no food and no home at all; looking for something to eat in the trash cans and living under the 91-Freeway, scary isn’t? Well, if the government doesn’t do anything this will become reality. Poverty and homelessness has been a major issue in the USA. According to Emily Alpert Reyes, a writer in the Los Angeles Times newspaper, about 8.9 million people in California live under the federal poverty limit ($23,021 annually for a family of four); in Los Angeles, about 25.9% of the residents live with income below the poverty level. The poverty rate in Los Angeles has been increasing in the past years because city revenues are in long-term stagnation and expenses are climbing (Kantor, Brian, and Contreras-Sweet). Poverty and homelessness in Los Angeles can be prevented by providing services to the homeless, increasing taxes and creating more jobs.
During the 1920’s, Atlantic City was famous for gambling and drinking. People all over would visit for entertainment and to get rich. After world war two crime and corruption took over the streets causing the city to enter an economic decline. Also following the war, cars became more available which led to the decrease of time spent at the city, people no longer had to wait for a train, they can now visit for a little and leave whenever. Less people staying at the hotels for longer, took away more of the cities money. In 1972, “ The New Yorker” published an article called the The Search for Marvin Garden’s by John McPhee who was smart and talented monopoly player. In the article, McPhee persuades Americans to be weary of what trying to become rich in order to be happy can produce and instead search for happiness in
?Over the past year, over two million men, women, and children were homeless? in America. (NLCHP) Homeless people face an intense struggle just to stay alive despite the fact that society turns its head from the problem. The government makes laws that discriminate against homeless people, which make it, illegal for them to survive. The mistreatment of homeless people is an issue that is often ignored in our community. When you see a homeless person on the streets how do you react? Do you turn your head and ignore them? Do you become angry that they are living on the streets? Do you feel frightened and avoid the situation all together? Or do you see these people as human beings and treat them in that way? Homeless people are ?subjected to alienation and discrimination by mainstream society?. (NLCHP) Most alienation and discrimination comes from the lack of education about homeless people. There are numerous untrue myths about homeless people. Many people believe that homeless people ?commit more violent crimes than housed people.? (NLCHP) The reality is that homeless people actually commit less violent crimes than people with homes do. Dr. Pamela Fischer, of John Hopkins University, studied arrest records in Baltimore and discovered that even though homeless people were more likely to commit non-violent and non-destructive crimes, they were less likely to commit violent crimes against people. (NLCHP) The crimes that these people are committing are necessary to keep them alive. These crimes include sleeping, eating, and panhandling. Making it illegal to perform necessary daily activities in public when homeless people have no where else to go makes it impossible for homeless people to avoid violating the law. (NLCHP) Another myth about homeless people is that they do not work and that they get their money from public assistance programs. A study done in Chicago discovered that ?39% of homeless people interviewed had worked for some time during the previous month?. (NLCHP) Many of the people who do not work are actively trying to find jobs, but are discriminated against by the work force. In an interview done at the River Street Homeless Shelter I found many people who have experienced this discrimination. ?People can?t get a job without an address. When they use the shelter?s address they get turned down.? (Mike) Speaking...
Many homeless people do not have access to healthcare and they go many years without seeing a doctor. According to Fitzpatrick, “there is a clear and defined need for healthcare for homeless people and their families.” She is right, it todays society homelessness is just ignored by many people and has became a serious problem. Most of society does not know about the organizations that help the homeless. For example, Fitapatrick believes in a organization called The Opening Doors Project it is a group of nurses and other health professionals that look at substance abuse within the homeless community. Due to not seeing a doctor and the common knowledge of homeless people abusing drugs and alcohol, “homeless people can have complex and multiple health problems” (Who quoted it). Not everyone agrees with Fitzpatrick, “I am convinced that handouts are basically wrongheaded,” says Sherman. She believes giving anything to the homeless will not help change the homeless persons situation (Sherman). Sherman's advice does not make sence, ignoring the problem will not help either and without proper medical care there is no way to improve homeless health which will cause many people to die a unessary death. According to Hopper, “generative forces behind widespread homelessness runs deep and their correction will req...