Forward LA, Panel 5: Which Way, South LA: Making the Fugture in South Los Angeles, 2017-04-27/2017-04-28

Forward LA: Race, Arts, and Inclusive Placemaking after the 1992 Civil Unrest conference, Panel 5: Which Way, South LA: Making the Fugture in South Los Angeles. Presented by the Turpanjian Chair in Civil Society and Social Change. In 1992, South LA (and many parts of the rest of Los Angeles) exploded in a wave of civil unrest. The proximate trigger was a startling verdict in a case of police brutality but the fundamental causes were rooted in a toxic mix of neighborhood disinvestment, economic despair, over- policing, unhealthy land uses, as well as a series of other factors. South LA finds itself today still grappling with that legacy of economic neglect and mass incarceration but also facing a new set of challenges as well, including threats of gentrification and displacement and the need to successfully incorporate a large immigrant presence. At the same time, the area has shown tremendous resilience: It has gone through one of the most dramatic demographic transitions in urban America, sometimes with tension but often with grace, and it has cultivated a generation of leaders who are developing a shared vision for socially just and economically prosperous region. This panel will be a moderated discussion about the root causes of on-going struggles that pre-date the uprising and community-led efforts to improve conditions over the past 25 years with a focus on the grassroots organizing, power-building approaches, and strategic campaigns, 2017 April 27-28.