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Given that the city of Los Angeles is a very weird entity going from San Pedro i.e. adjacent to PV and Long Beach all the way up to essentially the San Gabriel Mountains, a good 45 miles away, I think L.A. would be a very strange place to be 'gatekeeping' some kind of 'city proper' idea. Like how would someone from Sylmar or San Pedro be more "L.A." than folks from the countless towns that are actually much closer to downtown L.A. than those.
I also feel like that someone born and raised in say Gardena or Carson is more of an "Angeleno" than some douchebro from the East Coast who moved to L.A. like three years ago. Current residence doesn't mean much IMO. I live in Virginia but I would never refer to myself as a Virginian.
Note that I’m NOT the one mentioned “gatekeeping” so I’m not following you. (and a few others upthread.)
And who’s talking about what area is “better” than the other? I was referring the “vibe”. Of course every suburb/neighborhood has its own vibe, what I meant Pasadena didn’t feel like all that “LA proper” doesn’t mean I think Pasadena is better than LA proper (i.e Echo Park or Hollywood) and vice versa.
My family has been living in LA since 1989, from most people “LA proper” doesn’t refer to any cultural superiority nor “gatekeeping”. It’s more geographically speaking. Of course many people, when speaking to someone outside LA, probably feel it easier to say “I’m from LA.” as foreigners or out of state people may not know where San Marino/Carson/the Woodland Hills is.
I lived in South Pasadena for 10 yrs. There was a corner on Huntington literally met three cities: Los Angeles, Alhambra and South Pasadena. Different school districts, different color on the street sign. It’s a fact and we often jokingly referred “are you going to LA proper now?!” (crossing the street.)
What does that have anything to do with “gatekeeping”? Or people in South Pasadena think they are better than LA?! With the current real estate prices now, even the formerly rundown Highland Park neighborhood is getting very expensive. NOONE is saying who’s better or who’s not.
And NYC IS different in culture/architecture/topography/environs/ambiance from Long Island, NJ and CT. I never said it’s better (or vice versa.)
What’s up with these natives vs. transplants b*tch and moan inferior complex (that’s manifested in the form of arrogance and rude rejection.) bitter insecurity that I read so often on this board? I don’t even come here often but every time I read randomly the threads I could almost smell the bitterness reeking from the computer screen.
La doesn’t really count because it’s basically amorphous. With little municipalities all in it and a super weird shape. Can’t really gatekeep it well. Typical of most sunbelt cities. It’s really ATL and BOS…it’s more impactful in Boston because Boston is so high density and the suburbs are so low density and kind of sparse commercially in some areas it’s a massive reach to say you’re form baoton when you’re from river. Metro ATL density/amenities is a little more even
We have a friend who grew up in Claremont CA, even that seems like a bit stretch. Definitely no doubt it’s within the “Metropolitan Los Angeles” area like most people would even associate with, say, Ventura County. However as an Angeleno I don’t think they are “LA proper” LA.
Technically WeHo, Beverly Hills are their own city with their own school districts, but most people lump them in “LA proper”, Inland Empire isn’t. Six Flags isn’t, Yorba Linda isn’t.
Pasadena is, imo, sort of, kind of, “LA proper”, but its vibe and ambiance actually are quite on its own and doesn’t feel all that LA, yet it’s “only” 11 miles from Downtown LA.
Yet Eagle Rock, only 4.6 miles from Pasadena, and Burbank, 7 miles from Eagle Rock, both feel TO ME completely “LA proper”.
Just my tiny 2 cents.
See that’s interesting to me as someone who hasn’t explored LA yet. I always got the feeling that LA residents might be more lax about these labels given the shape of LA’s unique city limits. I don’t think that’s gatekeeping, I just sensed that some of those areas might get a sort of casual, unofficial pass for LA
Note that I’m NOT the one mentioned “gatekeeping” so I’m not following you. (and a few others upthread.)
And who’s talking about what area is “better” than the other? I was referring the “vibe”. Of course every suburb/neighborhood has its own vibe, what I meant Pasadena didn’t feel like all that “LA proper” doesn’t mean I think Pasadena is better than LA proper (i.e Echo Park or Hollywood) and vice versa.
My family has been living in LA since 1989, from most people “LA proper” doesn’t refer to any cultural superiority nor “gatekeeping”. It’s more geographically speaking. Of course many people, when speaking to someone outside LA, probably feel it easier to say “I’m from LA.” as foreigners or out of state people may not know where San Marino/Carson/the Woodland Hills is.
I lived in South Pasadena for 10 yrs. There was a corner on Huntington literally met three cities: Los Angeles, Alhambra and South Pasadena. Different school districts, different color on the street sign. It’s a fact and we often jokingly referred “are you going to LA proper now?!” (crossing the street.)
What does that have anything to do with “gatekeeping”? Or people in South Pasadena think they are better than LA?! With the current real estate prices now, even the formerly rundown Highland Park neighborhood is getting very expensive. NOONE is saying who’s better or who’s not.
And NYC IS different in culture/architecture/topography/environs/ambiance from Long Island, NJ and CT. I never said it’s better (or vice versa.)
What’s up with these natives vs. transplants b*tch and moan inferior complex (that’s manifested in the form of arrogance and rude rejection.) bitter insecurity that I read so often on this board? I don’t even come here often but every time I read randomly the threads I could almost smell the bitterness reeking from the computer screen.
Very defensive response. I never said anything about things being 'better' or 'worse' either. It cuts both ways surely as for every hipster who thinks they're better for living in L.A. proper there's someone in a wealthy suburb who will look down on the 'dregs' in L.A.
My point is simply that L.A. proper doesn't mean much because it's a really haphazardly drawn municipality. Jurisdiction borders just aren't that significant in day to day life. The mall you go to may be in a different city, the beach in another one, your go-to restaurant in yet another one, your urgent care clinic in a different one etc. People cross these borders every day, often multiple times, without even thinking twice or without thinking they're 'leaving town'. Of course there are identities borne out of attending high schools etc. but honestly they're more like neighborhood affiliations than anything else.
You mention NYC, but I don't think the gap between these different towns and cities in L.A. county is much bigger than that between different boroughs in NYC (who are actually all separate counties interestingly enough). Brooklyn is way different from Staten Island, and they're both very different from Manhattan. Heck, Brooklyn used to be a city of its own.
This isn't unique, of course, but the case in many cities where various factors (political & economic) have affected city boundaries over the years in ways that had little to do with how people actually live their lives. In some places cities have been very pro-active and successful in consolidation, in others the core city represents just a small fraction of the urban area and has done so for a very long time. In Lexington, KY you can stand in the middle of an empty field surrounded by nothing but farmland for miles and technically be in the city proper. In Detroit you can be in a different city after a 5 minute drive from downtown. Which is why Lexington feels much smaller than its statistical figures would imply while Detroit feels much bigger.
Theres like dozens and dozens of tweets like this from various socioeconomic backgrounds explaining how Cambridge is a world away. How people from white-washed suburbs claim Boston, its very very common sentiment. Just not reflected by posters on this site.
People even get into how its not that hard to say you're form a suburb. People get into how it irritates true Bostonians. Its attacked from every angle.
This conversation has been had many times on reddit and the most popular answer always is if you're not from Boston- simply dont say you are.
Theres like dozens and dozens of tweets like this from various socioeconomic backgrounds explaining how Cambridge is a world away. How people from white-washed suburbs claim Boston, its very very common sentiment. Just not reflected by posters on this site.
People even get into how its not that hard to say you're form a suburb. People get into how it irritates true Bostonians. Its attacked from every angle.
This conversation has been had many times on reddit and the most popular answer always is if you're not from Boston- simply dont say you are.
Someone should tell Steve Wynn Everett is not Boston
I may have missed it being mentioned, but it's significant that Los Angeles is the name of a very large and populous county and not just a city which gives some justification to any of 10 million people claiming LA.
And my experience with OC residents is different than some previous posters. In my experience OC residents go out of their way to avoid claiming LA. I've been with them on the other side of the country when they try to explain where they are from without ever mentioning "LA" even when it's causing confusion.
I may have missed it being mentioned, but it's significant that Los Angeles is the name of a very large and populous county and not just a city which gives some justification to any of 10 million people claiming LA.
And my experience with OC residents is different than some previous posters. In my experience OC residents go out of their way to avoid claiming LA. I've been with them on the other side of the country when they try to explain where they are from without ever mentioning "LA" even when it's causing confusion.
yea...
in my experience people from Southern California has always told me or other EXACTLY where they're from or at least the county "Tarzana" "Gardena" "Artesia" "Palmdale" "Ventura" "San Fernando Valley" "Echo Park" "East LA" "Watts" "Pasadena" "Anaheim" "Ladera Heights" "Pomona" "Reseda" "Riverside" "San Bernadino"
Dare I say it's RARE for me to hear someone just say LA?...
I think it is common to refer to the metro area. One might live in a suburb but work or shop or be born in the neighboring town or the metro city.
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