My Hope for Us, the People of Los Angeles
Editorial from a resident of Glassell Park

by Federico Brito de Esparza

May 27, 2003

As we enter midyear 2003, the dramatic decline in State revenues and the weak national economy portend serious challenges in the coming months. Tens of millions of dollars will have to be cut from next year’s budget and painful layoffs are more than likely. That makes collaboration and our working together all the more important. We must all pledge to work closely with each other, each community, neighbor by neighbor. We must strike new alliances and understanding with community groups, members of government, homeowners as well as renters. Each citizen strives for equal representation and equal voice. As a citizen just like you, I can only pledge to do what I can to reach out to find ways, solutions and options for those problems that unite us, while continuing to focus on those problems, which still deeply divide us. We can only strive to do everything we can to help achieve our common goals together.

First, of course, is to reduce the senseless violence that tears up families and deepens the heartache that already makes life so difficult for the poorest among us. The president talks of Homeland Security and prepares us for distant wars. Here in Los Angeles, we need to face threats more immediate--with resolve and with wisdom.

I have met with state, county and city officials and my hope will be for the city to announce in the coming weeks a series of initiatives to combat violence on our streets and redress the persistent failures of the State’s criminal justice system. We need to get smarter about crime and work together with all those who can make a difference in the dismal and repetitive cycle of criminal activity, incarceration without hope or training and release back into the community.

The prison system in California temporarily incapacitates but it fails to prepare the 70,000 inmates it releases every year back into our communities. In Los Angeles alone we receive over forty percent right here in our own neighborhoods. Parolees will be faced with dismal opportunities, and most return to unproductive and desperate lives of crime. That must change and we as a people must lead efforts in the State Capitol to make sure that happens.

In the meantime, we in Los Angeles have the talent and the capacity to establish programs in our communities that will do what the State has failed to do: to get those who are inevitably coming back to our city prepared for the world of work and family responsibility.

Second, we must continue to attract the flow of private investment that builds our city and restores our neighborhoods. The inequalities generated by technology and the global economy cannot be overcome by local restrictions, however well intentioned. Such burdens only discourage job creation. We are in competition with many other cities and cannot let them seize economic opportunities, which rightfully belong in Los Angeles.

In downtown Los Angeles, Highland Park, Lincoln Heights, Boyle Heights and in South Los Angeles the city’s public investments are being complemented by tens of millions of dollars in private investments. There are now significant housing projects going up in places that have not seen positive change in decades. We need to keep this momentum going and expand it.

By voting to approve $200 million dollars to improve the area between Highland Park, Glassell Park, Cypress Park and Lincoln Heights and a host of other important projects, the people of our city have demonstrated again that they are prepared to do whatever it takes to realize this City’s fabulous potential.

In Washington, the focus is on foreign threats and domestic tax breaks. Protecting our environment and achieving energy independence and some semblance of sustainability are almost totally forgotten. That means that here in Los Angeles we must take the initiative to encourage efficiency and alternative energy, water quality, and cleaner air. We must act locally and when necessary join with others to contest shortsighted federal policies.

It’s time to rededicate us to realizing the incredible possibilities of this unusual city. Integrated, international, artistic, both rich and poor at the same time, a place of creativity and hope ... Here is Los Angeles: a microcosm of the unfinished American agenda.

At this moment in our history it is well to reflect on the transitory quality of things human. What rises, falls; what begins, ends and what ends, begins again in some new form. This is true of cities as well as nations.

Nothing is standing still -- not the march of technology, not the assault on the environment and not the intrusion of the global economy into our lives. To our citizens I urge that we as a people that the accelerating pace of events is testing us. It's time to act decisively.

In truth, you have already started. Last year, in numbers far greater than usual, you participated in the election for mayor and then a few months later overwhelmingly approved significant changes in the governing charter of the City. You vested the Mayor and the City Council with executive authority and ultimate responsibility for the conduct of city business. In a very important way, you asserted hope and expressed a collective belief that real change is possible.

I share that belief and I hope the Mayor and the City Council and the many men and women they appoint to transact city business in our behalf will pledge to us that city government will operate skillfully, with honesty and impartiality. They must endeavor to make our city administration a government of the people. We as a people must hold our elected officials to excellence and fairness as our guiding standard. Past mistakes make it imperative that we spend public money and obligate the public purse with the greatest of care. The measure must always be: what is best for the city as a whole, not who has the best lobbyist or who brings the most people to City Council.

Let today mark the beginning of our new journey together -- one that must be undertaken with courage and the willingness to speak the truth to each other. It is no secret that we are frustrated -- even angry -- at the gap between Los Angeles's inherent capacity and the stark reality of a high crime rate, below-average schools and surrounding communities as well as a downtown struggling still to recapture its glory. It doesn't disparage the achievements that have been made to speak with candor about what's to be done.

This is no time to live in denial. Let us rather summon the power of truth so that we can with fortitude sweep away the heavy obstacles that block our path. For this task, soothing words are the enemy of change.

At the outset, we should acknowledge that Los Angeles is no island. The ills that counteract our amazing location are the same ones that plague other cities in Urban America: closed factories which destroy blue-collar jobs, depressed wages for the unskilled and federal subsidies which lure people to safer and cheaper suburban land. All over America, once proud and lively cities witnessed the hollowing out of their urban centers as millions joined the great exodus outward.

Los Angeles did not escape these national trends. In fact, our city mirrors the trajectory of the country itself -- both its successes and its failures and -yes- its unspent potential.

Since these outside forces so deeply affect Los Angeles and shape its destiny, we will seek from Washington for what is our due and claim at the state capitol all that is ours. In the circles of national and state power, the voices of the citizens of Los Angeles will be heard. Yet, a city such as ours must avoid the temptation to adopt a supplicant's role. As a community of extraordinary talent, we need not wait upon the machinations of state and federal politics, nor look elsewhere for what we can do ourselves. We have the strength and character to affect those aspects of city life that are within our grasp: what our children learn, the peace and security of neighborhoods, the vibrancy of our communities and the creativity and craft which we can share with each other. Given the riches of this city, there should be no excuses. During the last few weeks, I have had the privilege of meeting so many of my fellow citizens and neighbors in their homes and listening to the concerns of every neighborhood. More precise and more direct than any public opinion poll, I encountered people speaking their truth about what they like and don't like about their city.

It was out of this experience that I made a list of four-fold pledges: (1) to work diligently to work with the city, police agencies and neighborhood councils to seek their ideas and possible solutions in reducing the high crime rate. This must be one of our highest priorities. (2) To work with neighborhoods and housing authorities to bring back 50,000 people to downtown to live. To work towards revitalization of dilapidated housing so people can return to their communities that they once called home. (3) To assist parents and teachers to establish public Charter Schools of their choice and (4) to encourage celebration, festival and artistic performance. These are just a few of the concerns voices by the people, but I know in my heart what is really on their minds is the return to normalcy, where people walked the streets in peace. Doors left unlocked, and keys to cars left in the ignition. These are our hopes, yet they seem to be escaping us with every day.

Our goal must be to build on the inherent strengths of our city and do everything possible to foster a climate of neighborliness, friendship and civility.

The underside of economic growth and technological change has been to make American cities more anonymous and more fearful. Window bars and metal gates in front of doors - a practice no more than a few decades old -- do not betray a convivial spirit. On thousands of homes right here in Los Angeles, such a practice gives clear evidence of fear -- fear of break-ins and dangerous intruders. Razor-wire fences used to guard hundreds of businesses send the same message.

For many, these fears are understandable, yet they are no less unacceptable. It can never be right to tolerate an atmosphere where crime and the fear of crime undermine the rights of citizens. All citizens in our community should be able to feel secure in their homes or on the public streets and at any hour of the day.

Throughout America and in Los Angeles as well, reported crime rates have declined. But before resting on any laurels, be aware that crime is still a very serious problem in Los Angeles. For example, last year Los Angeles logged over 935 homicides, the first time in a quarter century that fewer than 2000 killings were reported. Yet, San Francisco, reported 263 and San Jose, with even more residents, reported only 30 homicides. In terms of other crimes of violence, Los Angeles has double the rate of New York City. Much more has to be done.

In addition to filling the vacancies on the police force and recruiting for it as many citizens of Los Angeles as possible who will live as well as work in our city, four steps need to be taken:

1. Each of the 257 neighborhood crime prevention councils must be fully supported by the city. In addition to dedicated police personnel, it is absolutely crucial that neighbors come together and collaborate -- and not just about crime statistics. I see these councils as a form of democratic power -- the power from below -- and as an occasion for neighbors to share ideas and thereby give real meaning to the word ""neighborhood.'' I also see in these councils an opportunity to build closer ties between the community and the police based on mutual respect.

2. Information technology must be used so that the resources of the police and the community can be deployed intelligently and without delay. Instead of learning weeks after the fact that new patterns of crime are developing, Los Angeles must be in the position to respond in real time.

3. Big problems often have small beginnings. That is why it is so important to demand respect for all the laws. Whether you call it the ""Broken Window'' theory or a fight against "crime and grime,'' Los Angeles must demand the highest standards.

4. We must support every lawful action and utilize the criminal justice system to the maximum to rid our neighborhoods of recidivist criminals. Criminals must hear this message: crime and disrespect for the rights of others will not be tolerated. Period. Tied closely to the incidence of crime are depressed economies and persistent unemployment. Lack of investment easily fosters desperation and despair that lead to crime and anti-social behavior. In turn, crime deters investment and thereby sets in motion a vicious cycle of more crime and fewer investments.

I see as an immediate opportunity for Los Angeles, the restoration of our communities as a place to live as well as work. Significant private residential investment would not only create jobs but also foster the vitality and human density that once was the hallmark of Los Angeles’s historic center. Throughout the nation, in many older cities, empty warehouses and commercial buildings have been converted to living spaces. What was once abandoned became thereby re-inhabited.

Sustainability is concept that I should mention here. Whatever it’s ultimate meaning in the fossil fuel dependent age, it is clear that continuing sprawl. Paved over agricultural land and time-consuming commutes are less sustainable than living close to work. That factor alone will ultimately drive downtown Los Angeles toward elegant density and mixed-use vibrancy. And as it does, let the schools and the city and the multitude of job training centers do their utmost to ensure that the citizens of Los Angeles are ready for the thousands of jobs that are thereby created.

If there is one complaint I have heard more than any other, it is the state of our schools. Despite the separate jurisdiction of the Los Angeles Unified School District and its independent governing board, countless parents have shared with me over the last few weeks their despair and dissatisfaction. For many, their answer is private school or flight. For the majority their only choice is to stick with the system in place, a system that condemns thousands of students to failure.

There are many factors, circumstances and conditions, not the least of which is inadequate money. Nevertheless, parents cannot be expected to wait forever. Improvements in the early grades may or may not lead to long awaited gains in the later grades. We as neighbors and whole communities must be eager to stand ready to work with the leadership of Los Angeles's schools.

One thing we must not do is engage in denial -- denial by pretending that things are better than they are or denial by creating an impression that "just around the corner" everything will be fine. By the school districts own figures, three of Los Angeles's regular high schools reported last year that less than 20 percent of their tenth graders could achieve grade level in reading. That is not acceptable.

No one should fail to appreciate good teachers in Los Angeles or the fine programs that exist. Yet, taken as whole, the game plan in Los Angeles's public schools harkens back to the "gradualism" which Martin Luther King Jr. condemned at the height of the civil rights movement.

Gradualism accepts glacial change and fears rocking the boat. Gradualism is prepared to wait for many generations until sometime in the far off future things are finally made right. If such "deliberate speed" caused injustice in the Sixties, don't doubt that it has the same impact in Los Angeles today. Justice delayed is justice denied -- whether in schools, in the voting booth or on the job site. There must be a clear plan of action that will enable the students in Los Angeles's public schools to succeed and a way to demonstrate that success ... now, not in the by-and-by of some distant future.

For my part, I intend to assist parents and teachers to create charter schools of their own choosing. Together, you and I must pioneer alternative forms of learning and schooling-as various and as creative as the courage of the parents and teachers who accept the challenge. There are no preconditions other than the commitment to strive for excellence and inclusiveness.

The fourth element is that we must pledge to support the arts and encourage festival and celebration in our communities. We have a vast history. Boyle Heights has some of the most talented muralist in the world. We must allow them the opportunity to bring their talent to our neighborhoods. The community of Highland Park is noted for creating some of our best musicians. Five currently sit in our nations most prestigious Symphonies. I envision ... people expressing their talent and sharing it with others. The life of a great city transcends the mundane and expresses itself in a liturgy of public performance and art. Mere efficiency can never substitute for the soaring spirit of the creative imagination. I invite artists and craft persons from Eagle Rock to Boyle Heights and all of our communities to step forward, and share your talents with others in building a brighter future through the arts.

Today, we all need to make a solemn promise to be a catalyst for change. But we cannot work for change alone. We need each of us to commit ourselves to work for change for the common good. You and I must make our voices heard. You and I, each in our own way, must stand up to forces that would overwhelm us. We must change and move beyond inwardly turning self interest to interest in the greater good. We must see one another as brothers and sisters.

We must not pretend to know all the right questions, must less have all the right answers. And even if I did, it wouldn't make much difference unless the government we propose becomes an ongoing dynamic process in which all of us are not only heard, but also truly engaged. Only then can a consensus of action emerge which speaks the will of the community.

Institutions, bureaucracies and systems lack the human capacity to care; only individual persons like us can do that. Let each of us step forward and join the cause of our city. Join with your neighbors. And then, by the tens, then by the hundreds, then by the thousands, we will reclaim our streets, our schools and our city.

This has already been a difficult year, but one in which we can all achieve our dreams if we work together. That’s my hope for us all.

May God bless our under takings.

Federico Brito de Esparza

These are my thoughts and views of Los Angeles. I would appreciate hearing from you. You may email your thoughts and critiques to me at:

americanway2004@yahoo.com

Thank you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mr. Esparza, 47, is a lifelong resident of Glassell Park, in Northeast LA, currently tending to the needs of his two elderly parents. They all live in the same house in which he was born, and he can trace relatives who have lived in Glassell Park back to 1888. Federico says he was "raised from poverty but wealthy in family love."

Mr. Esparze is an advocate for Public Policy change ... to bring voice to the unheard. He's a skilled and active community organizer, and has testified before the US Congress and many State Congresses. Among his many Civil Service Recognitions and Awards was a recent Commendation by the LA City Council.

An energetic, enthusiastic motivator, Federico has spoken to groups of up to 80,000 and is considered a forward positive thinker. This editorial was originally, in fact, given as a speech.

We welcome his participation at Los Angeles Community Policing, and look forward to his contributions in the future.