Blogging Social Difference in LA: Week 4

      In this weeks blog I have chosen to analyze the area in Los Angeles that I am most familiar with, my home.

I have lived in the town of Hacienda Heights my entire life and never really thought critically about its make up and location until a few years ago. It is a small, middle class suburb that lies about 21 miles east of Downtown Los Angeles, nestled up against the Puente Hills in the San Gabriel Valley. It is a part of unincorporated Los Angeles County and has actively fought against becoming a city to avoid the creation of local taxes for services. In my opinion, the location feels pretty central to most of what is available around the greater metropolitan area. The 60 freeway runs through the city and is easily accessed for any travel in the area. You can get to the beaches of Orange County and West LA within an hour, reach downtown in 15 minutes (no traffic), and get to the mountains in an hour and 20 minutes. Hacienda Heights has just about everything any suburb needs, access to good public schools and a myriad of markets, restaurants, big box retailers, shopping malls, places of worship, libraries and nature trails and parks.

Hacienda Heights is not very well recognized and for that reason has been the site of such movies as Mr. and Mrs Smith and Back to the Future, it just looks like any suburb you'll find in the states. Its roots lie in a history of citrus agriculture that died out in the area during the 1940s and transitioned rather quickly into a bedroom community.

      When my family first moved to this town over 26 years ago, our neighborhood was dominantly white and we were the first Hispanic household on the street. My parents have said that it took a while for the neighbors to come around and that some never even spoke to them or acknowledged them. The housing market in the area has been pretty stable and through the 1990s many neighbors moved away to other communities and were replaced by more Hispanic or Asian households. The only neighbors that stayed were the ones that were already retired with a paid mortgage and had settled. I don't know if this slow trickling out of the white population in Hacienda Heights had any racial/ethnic motivations, but the transformation of the towns demographic has definitely made an impact on the businesses that now exist. Many areas have signage that are either in Chinese, Korean and English, but some shopping centers have signs in just Korean and Chinese.

 As a local that speaks neither of these languages you just need to know what is being sold through experience or friends telling you. This expansion of Asian businesses tells a story of the transition this community has undergone in the last 20 years. It began with the founding of the Hsi Lai Temple, it is the largest Buddhist temple in the Western Hemisphere and it is right in the middle of a residential area in Hacienda Heights overlooking the San Gabriel Valley. 

This cultural center has attracted new members of the community and entirely new commerce and demand. A large affluent Asian community has developed in the town given that most of the housing near the temple is further up into the hills and at a higher property value. This change in demographic can be seen in the local schools, including my local high school. I was on the yearbook staff and was in charge of organizing the archives for a school that has been established for over 50 years and a clear change can be seen in the yearbooks that chronicle the transformation in the local demographic over the years.
      The two defining streets in Hacienda Heights are Gale Avenue and Hacienda Boulevard. Gale Avenue runs along its northern border dividing it from City of Industry and La Puente. Both of these adjacent cities are literally on the other side of the tracks and it really is an abrupt change. The demographic changes to be dominantly Hispanic and generally lower income and higher crime. 

Along Gale are a series of shopping centers, fast food and sprinkled with strip clubs... Zoning laws in Hacienda Heights do not permit such establishments, but the demand clearly exists so there exist a number of them right on the border. Hacienda Blvd is lined with both residential neighborhoods and shopping centers that contain many local and large markets as well as centers for worship. These two streets experience the heaviest traffic and are what most people see as they drive through town trying to get to Azusa or La Habra Heights and probably miss the myriad of parks and nature trails that exist. It definitely isn't a unique community, but I can't imagine having the same experiences here anywhere else... this has been and will always be my hometown.

Blogging Social Difference in LA: Week 3

This is a comment I left for "King Wing" on her week 2 post. She went to visit Santa Monica for her observations. Her blog can be found here: http://nkwgeog.blogspot.com/

        Everybody loves a day at the beach! I plan to make one of my excursions in Los Angeles a local beach. It is a great area for observing several different social and ethnic groups because most beaches in California are state funded and completely open to the public, it has been made a public good with access to mostly everyone as long as they can find their way onto public transit or own a car. Santa Monica is particularly good about public access through several bus lines that run to PCH and the pier. Humans just seem to be drawn to the coast, something about standing on the edge of a continent is very alluring... that or the weather is great... either way the beach is one of the prime destinations for any Angeleno. Living in this city all my life and having been to Santa Monica countless times (can't remember how many) I understand exactly what you were observing. Santa Monica itself is a relatively well-off area, as most beach communities are in the LA area. This has to do with the high property values produced by the high demand for property near the coast and the limited supply... in turn this creates an even more pronounced effect on the manufactured landscape. The affluence in beach communities collects more tax revenue from property taxes and businesses, giving way to better public transit and public services such as sanitation and maintenance for the area. The local’s particular taste and spending power also creates a demand for higher end businesses such as retailers and restaurants that cater to a more "refined" clientele. This plays a big part in why people love a day at the beach, even if you don't quite fit in to the local crowd you still like to be exposed to some of the finer things and spoil yourself from time to time... that or just enjoy the natural beauty of the Pacific coast.

It doesn't surprise me that you observed a number of transient individuals, or as some refer to as the residentially challenged. Beaches are usually a popular spot for these individuals mostly because it exposes them to higher numbers of people and even more importantly, people who can spare some change or a few bucks. Beach communities also tend to be safe havens for the homeless since there are so many eyes around they feel a sense of security and it is simple to move from one beach community to the other just by following PCH.

        You brought up another interesting point about how the homeless, the janitorial staff, retail workers and lifeguards all seemed disconnected from the whole happy and care free scene. I find this to be true of most places we occupy temporarily. As an active observer and as a member of the labor force it is easy to see a dichotomy that exists in most urban environments. There are those who are visiting an area or are the local inhabitants and there are those who work or serve that area in some way. Its the division between work and play to put it simply. All of the sad people you mentioned are there to serve those who are there to access the local goods and services. It is not necessarily that these service workers or staff members can't enjoy these same goods, it's just that they are at work and are probably bored of their mundane routine... to most of them it's just a living. I work in a museum myself and I see people going about their day happy as clams as I blend into the background serving my duties discreetly. This split between workers and consumers is not permanent and varies and transforms as we move from place to place moving through the urban fabric intersecting our places of business with our places of amusement. It is all a part of the Organic Solidarity that Durkheim refers to and that you mentioned. Every person plays a role in the exchange of goods and services at different times, it is all dependent on where and when and between whom that this exchange is taking place. The only individuals that are left out of this exchange is the homeless that you observed, they are seen as non-participants and therefore reap none of the benefits of the capitalist society that we live in. Just because they are non-participants doesn't mean that they willingly choose to be left out. Some face extenuating circumstances such as mental health issues or addiction that prevent them from functioning with the duties and responsibilities that most adults are expected to adhere to. In that case these individuals should be cared for through social programs that find them a place in society, but they rarely receive the attention they need and are therefore structurally excluded from participating by no fault of their own. However, there are certain homeless that choose to lead this lifestyle feeling that it offers them a level of freedom and independence and willfully exclude themselves because they see it to be more beneficial. I found you're observations to be very interesting, however you might just be scratching the surface... the ideas are there, just delve deeper.

Blogging Social Difference in LA: Week 2

        Los Angeles is definitely a city of extremes, of economic destitution and of fabulous excess. This is demonstrated in several locations throughout the city, but very rarely do the impoverished intermingle with the elitist class unless motivated by gaining some sort of economic advantage by aligning themselves to serve the needs and tastes of the well off. For my first observational excursion I chose to visit an area that caters to the wealthy locals of Beverly Hills. I just so happened to be eating at a sushi place on Robertson Boulevard between Wilshire Boulevard and Olympic Boulevard and took a quick glance down the street. I was immediately intrigued by how clean the sidewalks were and the well maintained trees lining the street, but suddenly I was distracted by the roar of a Ferrari tearing down Robertson as a Maserati passed by on the opposite end leading my line of site to a very well groomed woman in six inch heels walking her tiny dog… I almost couldn’t believe the stereotypical scene of Beverly Hills that was unfolding before me, but it happened and it was pretty ridiculous at the moment. 

        I decided I had to take walk down Robertson to help me understand what this strip of West Los Angeles was all about. It was between 6 and 7 PM on a Thursday evening, so there weren’t many people out on the street and several of the businesses were already closed, but their signs were still well lit. I only observed 3 blocks, but that’s all I needed to see because each block was a slightly rearranged replica of the previous block as if I was on an urban treadmill. Within this very specific location I found a repair shop for classic luxury cars, fir and leather boutiques, a cosmetic surgery clinic next to an organic café all within a matrix of antiquing boutiques, salons and spas. There was an unbelievable concentration of salons, spas and nail boutiques all within these 3 blocks of unabashed excess and self-improvement. I counted 12 hair salons, 5 beauty spas specializing in facials and massage, and 6 nail salons… I almost couldn’t believe how many of the same business were in such close proximity from one another almost as if they multiplied through mitosis. In many cases the only thing separating the salons and spas was private gym or import boutique specializing in caviar. I would be lying if I didn’t say I wasn’t a little bit disgusted with what I was observing, yet strangely enough I couldn’t help but admire certain aspects. All the establishments were well kept and fabulously decorated and all the employees were incredibly friendly. I spoke to a few different women working at the salons and nail boutiques and none of them said they lived in the area; they all lived at least 20-30 minutes outside of Beverly Hills. The three women I spoke to were from various backgrounds, but none of them were born in the US, one was Vietnamese, one was Iranian and the other was Pakistani and every patron I saw in my short observation was Caucasian. I wasn’t surprised that most of the patrons were Caucasian given the demographic make-up of the surrounding area.

        The most intriguing aspect of my observation has to be the insatiable demand for self-improvement and luxury items in this area. Not only that, but the incredible supply serving that demand. Not a single storefront was empty or unleased, which is shocking given the state of the economy in recent years and the absence of any franchise on Robertson. Each boutique was “unique” and offered custom products. I guess when money is no object for the patrons, they demand goods and services that cannot be purchased by just anybody. The businesses obviously cater to women living in the area with nothing but time and money to make sure their hair and complexion is flawless. This entire 3 block strip is dedicated to shameless self-improvement and unbridled excess given that most of the products are specialty items or custom clothing and cakes. Not a single drugstore or mart was to be found in this location because casual purchases here do not include a Mountain Dew. An idealized lifestyle exists in this part of Los Angeles that is obsessed with display and demonstrates an attitude of never being satisfied… if 12 salons within 3 blocks doesn’t demonstrate that then I don’t know what does.

        I am reminded of a specific line from Durkheim’s work that states “the variety of environments in which individuals are placed gives rise among them to different aptitudes that determine their specialization…” Durkheim was very general in his explanation, but he used a previous example about how different soil types determine the type of rural activity or agriculture undertaken by the local population. This same specialization based on the resources available to the working class can be paralleled to the observations I made in Beverly Hills. The reason so many businesses specializing in luxury items and beauty services are located in this area are because the abundant resource in this part of Los Angeles isn’t a specific soil type, but a wealthy local population with very particular tastes and needs. Cities can be seen as agglomerations of consumers, but areas differentiated by class can be observed and measured by what is being consumed. Different populations within the city have different needs and much can be learned by the businesses that serve those needs.     

Where am I in all of this?

        I was born in Los Angeles General Hospital a little over 22 years ago and I've lived here and grown here my entire life. Even with all that time in a relatively small area, I still have yet to see every part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. For over 25 years my parents had their business on Vermont Avenue in the heart of the city (that's debatable), well according to my experience that was the heart of Los Angeles, I guess it all depends on where you identify with and what memories you associate within a certain place. For me, this is the Los Angeles I knew, it's where I spent the best years of my childhood and it will always have a place in the heart of this Angeleno. However, I had a unique experience, I spent my hours after school at my family's place of business, but I went to school and lived in Hacienda Heights in the San Gabriel Valley. I grew up concurrently in the city and in the suburbs of the Valley... well MY valley. I didn't even know the San Fernando Valley existed until I was 8. I interacted with children from many different backgrounds in both locations and I came out on the other side as neither of them. I was a product of suburbia, but with the disposition of the kids that grew up knowing nothing but the city. It gave me a unique view, I learned things from kids of every class... but what do kids know? Most children can't grasp where they rest within the social classification, unless their parents are constantly telling them that they are better than most or not to let any spoiled brat walk all over them. We learn our place pretty early by the advice we receive from our elders.
        To me, understanding social difference comes from a mindset and an objective reality.The problem is, people are rarely ever completely objective. The viewpoints on how social difference molds our urban fabric depend on which side the implications are being viewed from. It's much easier to live a privileged life and say social difference has little affect on the quality of life of those making up the urban fabric of Los Angeles, but it's important to remember that opinions are biased on both sides and must be taken with a grain of salt. In my investigation and exploration of these theories and concepts of social difference within the context of Los Angeles, I hope to further my understanding of who is being affected, how it functions and why it happens. As an Angeleno, it is clear to see the disparities that exist as you drive between municipalities, but for most of my life these have just been scenes passing through my car window as if I was watching a film and not actual peoples lives. I hope to walk away with a better understanding of inequality and through that understanding, hopefully a better ability to help mitigate the processes that perpetuate unequal opportunities in my city. I understand that inequality is a constant within the a social fabric built around a capitalist economy, but that doesn't mean that perverse levels of social injustice should be widely accepted. Progress can always be made.