California–known to the world as the home of Hollywood stars, relaxed beach vibes, and…the location of 25% of the homeless population in the US.
After an emotional introduction about the conflict between Israel and Palestine, and an update on how the billionaires in the world are faring, the Filmmaker and the Advocate sit down with Pete White, founder & Executive Director of Los Angeles Community Action Network (LA CAN) to talk about Skid Row, a 50-square block area in downtown LA that was created by the state to hide its poverty. Now that housing and land are the hottest commodities the world over, development and financialization are threatening to push the city’s poorest residents out of a space that was once designed to contain them. For Skid Row’s nearly 15,000 residents, riding out the pandemic was always going to be a feat of community action. With only seven public bathrooms available in those 50-square blocks, and charitable food donations grinding to a halt, how did this community protect itself from Covid-19 when the government wouldn’t? Pete walks Leilani & Fredrik through the historical and systemic causes of poverty and homelessness amongst people of color in Los Angeles and how those causes are still at work today. The trio also discusses the May 2021 legal case that attempts to address the houselessness in Skid Row, and Judge Carter’s controversial remedy.
For more information on the work of LA CAN, visit: www.cangress.org
For more information on Israel and Palestine, see Human Rights Watch report, “Threshold Crossed”: https://www.hrw.org/report/2021/04/27/threshold-crossed/israeli-authorities-and-crimes-apartheid-and-persecution
Produced by WG Film
Recorded & Edited by Mikey Jones
Music by Florencia Di Concilio
Social Media & Support Team - Maja Moberg, Valerie Estrina, Hanna Leander