by Valeria Pascual
I will study a social space, McArthur Park, in Los Angeles. This will be described and analyzed though the eyes of a twenty something college student who lives four blocks from the Park but is not an avid user. I’ve had fifteen year of preconceived notions. They are mostly made up of hearsay and the media. This project made me go into a place that has been instilled in me as a bad unsafe environment where only the worst of the neighborhood go. In fact when I told my mother I was going to study MacArthur Park her eyes widen and she asked “Why? There’s nothing there?” The reason I chose this place is because through the years numerous people who used to live around the area or used the park have mentioned how much it has changed for the worst. I wanted to know what socio-economic factors have influenced the change in McArthur Park's population; how they use this public space and ultimately how current efforts to revitalize the park will affect the current residents of the area in a negative way.
I collected data by doing brief interviews with people. I visited the field site four times but took behavioral maps only once and mostly base my paper on observation the current population. Photos were also taken. The ethnographic descriptions are based on fieldwork from February 23, 2012 to May 14, 2012 which included six visits to my field site. The scope of my project was very general I tried to cover as much space as I could to get the vibe from each part of the park. I went weekdays and weekends and at different times. The weekend there was more people as would be expected. I used three methods participant observation, behavioral inventories and behavioral map. Semi structured interviews were also a vital part of my project. Field notes provide context for the behavior that was recorded with behavioral inventories. The latter captures how many people use the space and in what ways but it does have its limitations. For example, a man was riding a bicycle while carrying a dog and he then stopped to take pictures of his dog in the park. As one can see a person can start doing one activity and seamlessly change to another. Also, public space isn't always used the same way every single day. The activities change depending on the time of the day, too. Two maps were drawn and two behavioral inventories. I was able to observe people in was fairly warm. I also provided a map of the park and another of California State University, Northridge which have the crimes that were committed/reported form January 21, 2012 to May 2, 2012.
MacArthur Park is very well known in the city of Los Angeles it even has a song and a nail polish named after it. There are many preconceptions about it sometimes true and at other times false. MacArthur Park is a chameleon in many ways. It can transform itself from an entertainment center to a food bank then to a political center and lastly the backdrop of a press conference.
The space where the park now resides was first a water reservoir that connected to the city's system of zanjas, small conveyance channels/ trenches. It was converted to a park when the city abandoned the non-pressurized zanja system for a pressurized pipe system in the 1880s. In the mid-19th century the area was a swampland who no one wanted to buy. By the 1890s Westlake Park, the original name, was a vacation destination surrounded by luxury hotels. In the early 1900s the surrounding area became known as the "Champs-Élysées." It was designated city of Los Angeles historic cultural monument #100 in May 1, 1972. It was renamed MacArthur Park after General Douglas MacArthur on May 7, 1972. The park is operated by the city of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks. LAPD Rampart division serves MacArthur Park.
The park is divided in two by Wilshire Boulevard but joined two small tunnels connecting it. The southern part of the park consists of the lake. The northern half has the a children's playground, Levitt Pavilion, soccer field, exercise area and recreation center. Before 1993 the lake was fed by natural springs but with the construction of the Metro Red Line an artificial bottom was laid. There used to be a fountain with a reflecting pool on the northern end that was also fed by the springs.
Currently, most have heard about MacArthur Park because of the “May Day Mêlée” which is the term used by the media to describe the rally on May 1, 2007 where many gathered to in order to ask for U.S. citizenship for illegal immigrants. What the many don’t know is there is the recently renovated Levitt Pavilion for the Performing Arts MacArthur Park Los Angeles reopened on August 8, 2007 and now hosts jazz, big band, salsa music, beat music and world concerts. It hosts fifty free concerts during summer months, June to September. There are also a small fair on Wilshire between Alvarado Street and Park View a few times a year. They have rides and food. The Metro Red Line is directly across the southern half of the park. There are eight bus lines that pass by the park (lines 18, 20, 26, 51, 200, 318, 603 and 720).
The park is used in many different ways by different people. The homeless use it as a meeting place and a safe place where they can sleep in the day and will not be harmed by others in the daytime. Mothers pass with their children on their way to drop off the kids at the school directly across the park on the corner of 7th street and Park View Street. There even is an annual MacArthur Park Fishing Derby this year it will celebrate a decade. They have free food and prizes (MacDonald).
The following observations were made on February 24, 2012 a Friday at 2:00pm in 70 degree weather. As I walk the mini tunnels I remember around the year 2000 these were locked because too many violent acts were happening. They were dirty and had graffiti all over. Now they are clean with a few leaves on the floor but the walls are taupe color and graffiti free. This helps the park feel more inviting. There are mostly males of mixed ages. Some people are reading newspapers. There was one man changing his clothes. A small group of seven men are gathered playing cards and some are just spending time with the group. This part seems more social with more women with strollers or male friends. Saw only one man smoking. There was a vendor selling fruit. A soccer field is filled with young men playing. There were around 12 people watching them play. Some men are walking with their young daughters. Some women are selling "sodas, agua de coco y Gatorade" carried in small carts. A small area has a five exercise machines. Some young girls are on it who look like they belong in high school. They look different from the other females in the park since they are dressed more modern. I've used these machines once in 2010 and it just wasn't the same as going to an actual gym. There are two kids’ areas which have swings and lots of sand. There are bathrooms being constructed and they are going to be able to be seen by parents from where the benches are located. Another woman walks with a cart selling “tamales, soda, and tacos de gallina." the playground seems clean. A drunken man approaches and tries to speak to me, but I mention I was doing my homework, and walked away. In the first park there's a Caucasian woman playing with their young son and daughter, she has a camera with her. She takes pictures of her and daughter. The young boy is around 10 years of age, and speaks another language different from English and Spanish. There’s an African American woman, screaming to her child, "Jaylin get over here!" She had sunglasses on and was listening to music. The raspado lady walks by, and there is another woman there sitting next to her child in a stroller. Then the paletero man walks ringing his bell. A large group of people catches my eye in the corner of park view and Wilshire. I walked towards them, looking back at the soccer field, with a surprise on my face noticing only three people on the field. A young girl passes by with an iPad using it as a boom box. Another man selling Gatorade and sodas passes by. Going towards the corner of Wilshire and Park View these was a mother with a small child and reading an Avon catalog while the toddler ate an ice cream sandwich. A woman walks by walking her dog.
On the southern side by Park View Street a large group has formed a line. They were giving out food. People are ready with large bags; it looks like it’s predominantly Hispanics, and a few Asian. Then I see a woman praying for another in English. The organizers are blessing those people. I approach one of the organizers, her name is Tiffany, she said she is from the Dream Center (dreamcenter.org) and says that every Friday and the people stand in line at 9a.m. and distribute the goods at 9:15 a.m. They average around two hundred fifty people every week. This organization goes to twenty-five differ sites a week having done this for 15 years. Providing produces and poultry, milk, and can goods.
The following was observed on Sunday, February 26, 2012 at 4:02 pm. The weather was 64 degrees. There was a group mostly Hispanics with some having small carts or large bags with them. There are boxes full of food on the ground: grapes, cabbage, oranges eggplant and broccoli. The people are in line and they have numbers. I could hear them being called "...63, 64, 65…." There were a few Asians. Some people were cutting in line. I spoke to Jose, who volunteers for RAC which stands for Revolutionary Autonomous Communities, about the organization. It was started on November 2007 in response to the May Day Mêlée. Every Sunday up to two hundred people come to collect food. They serve the most economically disadvantaged people from the community. Some of those helped by this service later on become volunteers. Nearby there was a table with about 33 people around a table full of food. Plates are on the table and so were pots. There was only one lady preaching to the group but I couldn’t make out what was being said.
Across the street, Wilshire, there is a van with the words "International Missionary Outreach gods helping hand Inc. pastor Luz Sejera." There was a pile of clothes on the floor and some people were there with their bible. I saw an Asian lady giving out a yellow note pad to a man in his early 50s so he could sign his name. There were less than 20 people gathered. They were not lined up. I can see the boxes of juice, bread and vegetables. I got asked if I was a reporter since they saw me with my notebook. I tell them it's for a school project. I met a man named Jaime who tells me how earlier in the day there’s a service at 1:30pm and after it’s done the food is distributed. Another man offers me a doughnut but since I gave up bread for lent I nicely decline.
There are two small play grounds there. Many kids were there with their parents. There was a game going on. Instead of it being grown men it was little kids, both girls and boys, playing soccer. One team had yellow uniform with logos Bimbo, Mexican Bread Company, and Corona, Mexican Beer Company. There was a small America logo on it. America is a revered Mexican soccer team. The other was royal blue and had a Samsung logo on it. I couldn’t figure out what team they were supposed to represent. It seemed very organized; they even had a referee wearing a red long sleeve shirt with black shorts. I could hear the whistle after certain plays. There were many vendors around the northern side of the park. There were more hot dog stands but ran by women in their late 30s and some raspado (snow cone) cart was there, too. There are a few tables full of men talking with each other.
On April 15, 2012 at 10:28 pm on walking on the sidewalk of 7th street towards Alvarado I noticed a small crowd of about fifty people and two kids. There were three cop cars parked on the grass of the park. I approached a police officer and asked if it was closed to the public and he very politely said it was not and that I should go the press conference. There with the back drop of the lake Los Angeles mayor Antonio Villaraigosa along with Council members Huizar, Reyes, and LaBongeheld held a press conference promoting CicLAvia and the L.A. County Bicycle Coalition's new campaign for safe bike riding (and driving around cyclists) in the Latino community. Hollywood loves to film in and around the park. There have been numerous movies filmed here. They were in fact filming when I was at the cite. It was not directly on the park. They had it as a back drop.
Sennett would greatly appreciate the neighborhood around my site, MacArthur Park. This area has reinvented itself while keeping the structures it already has built. For example, the Westlake Theatre, which opened on September 22, 1926, has been transformed into a swap meet. The seats that once inhabited the inside have been removed and there is now a concrete floor where the orchestra area once was. One can still see the small box office, painted in a bright blood red, in the middle of the entrance. The balcony has not had changes to it but it is not in use. The original decorative fixtures remain. One can find almost anything there. It’s the community’s version of Wal-Mart. They have products for personal hygiene, clothes, and seamstress. There’s a tattoo parlor, DVDs, and electronics. There is a lot of merchandise that is counterfeited. The box office is actually a mini store that makes keys. There are other theatres that have also been transformed such as the Park Theatre which is now a store and the Vagabond Theatre which functions as a travel agency. In 2008, the Community Redevelopment Agency of Los Angeles purchases the space for $5.7 million (Roe). Their plan for this space is to have it be a movie and performing arts space. The swap meet moved out in 2011.
The park has invisible barriers for the visitors. If one goes to the northern side of the park by Alvarado Street and between Wilshire and 6th street the area has many men gathered who sit on the benches and picnic tables. Most are middle aged. They tend to play cards or just talk with others. This area is very socially active. If we move west towards the soccer field there are games that are played by young men and kids on the weekend. During games vendors are seen walking thru the space. The "paleteros" I noticed were all male I had never realized that before. There are women vendors but they have makeshift carts unlike the paleteros. During one of my weekend visit to the site I also saw high school aged children working temporary hot dog stands which are mobile. There are also two playground areas for children to play. There is an invisible barrier between parents and their children and the middle aged men at the east side of the park. On the benches one does not see the homeless sit by that area. As one goes thru the tunnel to the southern section one see the murals. They have a very positive feel to them and are very colorful. They have images of religion (cross), music and education. Key words on the murals are "graduate" and “success" in capital letters; phrases in English "yes i can" and Spanish "si puedo.". The next are is the corner of Wilshire and Park View. This was a very quiet area where most people didn't use the designated areas rather they would sit under the shade and use their cellphones and some even would take a nap. These people didn't look homeless. I even wanted to join in and sleep. The area felt safe even though I had previously interviewed a woman with her three kids and she had told me she had seen a man on a bike steal a gold chain from a woman in daylight.
The activities were typical of a park. There were dog walkers, fishermen and bicycle rider which were mostly men. Many families would walk by. On the other side the area had a different vibe. The corner of Alvarado and 7th street is the area most seen. This is full of again middle aged men but also of homeless people who most of the times have all their belonging on a shopping cart next to themselves while they sleep. This is the busiest part of the park since it's directly across the Metro Red Line and McDonald's with shops and restaurants nearby.
During Thursday nights on the corner of 7th street and Park View there are soccer games played by young men. Although there's a designated area for that they routinely choose this area to have rather games. They use trash cans to designate the goal poles. They wear their soccer shirts and shorts. On nights that I didn't see them I would catch glimpses of a group of men around that area a little more" inside.” There are around fifteen males who congregate there. I was never able to find out what they did there.
In "Fortress LA", Davis writes about the city being divided between the wealthy and the poor. He points out the wealthy are insulated from the city with their reasoning being they want to remain "safe." He writes how "the defense of luxury lifestyles is translated into proliferation of new repressions in space and movement"(159). The destruction of public space is attributed to the city's pattern of stratification. Davis states that Richard Nixon's statement made in 1969 has come to fruition and we now reside in "fortress cities" where people are divided between "fortified cells" and "places of terror" where “the police battle the criminalized poor" (pg. 160). He is right that while trying to "secure" the city, public space is destroyed. When there is urban redevelopment this causes the displacement of people. At times this can transform "public parks into temporary receptacles for the homeless and wretched.” He contends America doesn't have a mixture of classes and it similar to Victorian England. The city continues to be segregated from the beached, parks and libraries. Ultimately, there is less space for the city's youth caused by middle class' demand for "increased spatial and social insulation"(161). Davis goes on to conclude this is just another facet of the race war from the 1960s.
On The Plaza: The Politics of Public Space and Culture by Setha M. Low, she goes into detail about the meaning of public space. She points out how privatization between public/private entities and "municipalities" has transformed Bryant Park and Union Square located in the center of New York City has changed them into what middle class would consider a safe environment by having police surveillance those locations. She compares these areas to Latin American plazas which have a very long tradition of being cultural center of the city. As an example of how areas are being affected by the capitalist system is Battery Park. This is a place used exclusively by upper middle class because of their wealth and the design which limits public access. "Commercialization and privatization, however, limit participation to those who can afford it and who conform to middle class rules of conduct and appearance" (35).
In the Westlake area where MacArthur Park stands the park represents the only truly public space. Anyone can go there and there is also free Wi-Fi. There has been a lot of redevelopment of the surrounding areas specifically the downtown area which is about a mile from MacArthur Park. There are many apartments being constructed. Although this might see like a positive change for the existing community it is not. This will only make the rent prices rise and many will have to relocate since there are those who are trying to reappropriate the area.
Vignette: Fake ID
On the busy street corner of Alvarado and 7th right in front of the famous Langers’ restaurant a young man yells
"IDs, seguros, micas"
"how much?"
"for which one?"
"ID"
"$50"
"Is that the lowest?”
"Yes"
Walks away and another man is selling some, too
"how much?"
"$30"
"I only have $25"
"Okay, come with me"
We walk a block towards Westlake Street to a small swap meet where they sell clothing and food. There's also a botanica which is a store that sells folk medicine, religious candles and statuary, amulets, and alternative medicine. We go up the stairs and there is a camera and a plain wooden desk with a full figured woman with short highlighted hair sitting behind it. She’s dressed in bright turquoise shirt and tight acid wash jeans with some Reebok sneakers. There's a small television set on the corner. He asks, "What date do you want?" "June 3rd” "okay sit down so I can take the picture." He takes the picture and tells me "it will be ready in two hours" and in exactly two hours I was "of legal age ".
Bibliography
Blake Glumprecht, "The Los Angeles River: Its Life, Death, and Possible Rebirth", Johns Hopkins University Press, 1999.
Davis, Mike, 1990, “Fortress LA” in the City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles. London: Verso) (CSUN Closed Reserve)
Low, Setha, 2000, On the Plaza: The Politics of Public Space and Culture. Austin, TX: Texas University Press.
MacDonald, Chris. "Fishing in Los Angeles MacArthur Park." See California . N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2012. <http://www.seecalifornia.com/sports/fishing/los-angeles-fishing-macarthur-park.html>.
Roe, Ken. "Cinema Treasures.”. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Apr 2012. <http://cinematreasures.org/theaters/497>.
Sennett, Richard, 2010 “The Public Realm” (excerpts from The Fall of Public man, 2008 and Flesh and Stone: The Body and the City in Western Civilization, 1994) in The Blackwell City Reader, eds. Gary Bridge and Sophie Watson. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell. 261-272
. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 May 2012. <http://levittla.org/en/home.html>.
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