Research
Boyle Heights is a predominantly working-class,
Mexican-American neighborhood. According to the Los Angeles Times, the Latinx
population in Boyle Heights is 94% while in East L.A. is 96.4%. It is a
community known for it’s rich Latin pride, history, culture, and art.
“Hipsters”
and “artist sell outs” are threatening the community’s decades of rich history,
culture, and art. According theguardian.com “Hipsters and artists are the
gentrifying foot soldiers of capitalism” (Stephen Pritchard). “The hipster may
be a capitalist but they are also crafty, ethical, and mobile and can breathe
new life into post-welfare state wastelands. That’s why they are so useful to
the government.” An activist group, Boyle Heights Alliance Against Art Washing
and Displacement believes that art galleries are displacing the Boyle Heights
natives and trying to take over and redefine art in Boyle Heights. They have
taken action and challenged the art galleries through protests, demonstrations
and it is still unclear if they or their advocates have resorted to violence in
attempt to keep these new art galleries out. They claim, “…The people of Boyle
Heights … have fought for decades to preserve affordable housing for low-income
families.”
Hipsters
and artists are not the only ones displacing natives from Boyle Heights. large corporations like Panda Express have already displaced a treasured
landmark for Boyle Heights natives as they bought out 24 Hours Taco’s
lease and took over a cherished local business that had been in the community
for decades and served natives and community visitors tacos 24
hours a day.
As the natives
of Boyle Heights suffer through gentrification they hope to be able to
challenge it as much as they can and be able to preserve the essence, history,
culture, and art that makes Boyle Heights. unique and historical.
Personal
This issue
affects me directly because I was raised in Boyle Heights. These
past few years I have seen how gentrification has affected my community,
childhood friends and neighbors. 24 Hour Tacos was a restaurant located on the
corner of Soto and Whittier Blvd. I used to frequent it since childhood with my
family and friends, only to find out that a big corporation bought out the
small business owner’s lease and kicked them out just last year. That unique,
humble, local business is now just another Panda Express. This is just one example there are many others
that prove that Boyle Heights is being taken over by large
businesses, the hipsters found at most taco stands, and developers buying homes
and redeveloping them for more privileged customers. It was in Boyle Heights. where I went to school, graduated high school and even attend
college. This is not only where I came of age and was educated but also where I
learned about my identity and how my identity was connected to the history of
my hometown. Boyle Heights not only represents our Mexican history and struggle but
the recent subcultures of street art and popular Mexican (among other Latin)
gastronomy. Every time a big name chain replaces another local business, or
another hipster appears to critique our local taco stands, or homes are sold to
privileged outsiders rather than a hard working natives or a historical mural or
art piece is replaced by another blank wall or new business, a piece of our
history is being erased from out hometown.
Those affected in my
community
Jonathan Iniguez- Student
Heidi Garcia- Student
Kerryann Cobos- Grad Student
Yenni Iniguez- Student
Vida Rivera - Teacher
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