(ThyBlackMan.com) I was born in Los Angeles, and as I gazed upon the representation of the shiny new edifices that’s envisioned as the NEW Leimert Park, I was saddened and felt a profound sense of loss. All those impressive and shiny buildings didn’t fool me for a minute, because I’ve seen it before. What I saw was, yet again, the comfort and cultural moorings of the Black community being shoved to the side for the convenience of those who are already far too rich, far too influential, and far too powerful. Thus, the planned destruction of Leimert Park – and let there be no doubt about it, that’s exactly what it is – is metaphorically symbolic of a society that’s become hellbent on giving the whims of the wealthy priority over needs of the people.
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A community is far more than just a place where people sleep; it’s a place of
comfort, and its familiarity serves to sustain the sense of well-being of the people who live there. But in addition to that, Leimert Park represents much more to the Black community. In the past it represented a symbol of Black upward mobility. It stood as a people-friendly and aesthetically pleasing Black middle-class community that reached out to aspiring young Black people to say, “Yes you can!”, and as a result, many of us did.
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Leimert Park also represents a longstanding source of Black cultural development, and “The World Stage” – which they plan to casually relegate to the dustbin of history – has long been the centerpiece of that cultural development. So the fact is, it would be nothing short of a cultural atrocity to look upon the World Stage as just another building to be demolished to make room for progress.
The World Stage is not just a building, it’s a Black cultural Oasis for musicians,
writers, poets, visual artists, and other creative spirits in a Black community, where such gathering places are already far too rare. In addition, The World Stage was founded as a gift of love to the community by the late drummer, Billy Higgins, a name that resonates throughout the world as one of the premier icons in the annals of jazz. That fact alone, should merit the World Stage being recognized as a cultural – and even national – landmark worth preserving. That would have certainly been the case had it been founded, loved, and nurtured by Elvis Presley.
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But I’m not an unrealistic man, so I fully understand that the community’s chances of holding back the power of greed, influence, and greased palms is not just slim, but none. However, in light of the discussion above, I don’t think that it’s too much to ask the powers that be to compromise with the community by designating that the block of Degnan, between 43rd Place on the South, 43rd Street on the North, and S. Leimert Blvd. On the East, be preserved as a cultural village. After all, it is one of the last – if not THE last – significant Black cultural centers in Los Angeles.
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Thus, the community, and it’s political leaders, should push for the preservation of that parcel of land, and there is a precedent for it – Olvera Street, in downtown Los Angeles. It was recognized as such an important cultural landmark that the city was simply built around it. So it seems to me that the block of Degnan in Leimert Park, and the Black community, deserves nothing less.
THE SOUND OF BLACK CULTURE IT’S WORTH PRESERVING
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