Should Leimart Park be renamed Africa Town or Wakanda? (Long Beach: home, neighborhood)

[jm1982]

Originally Posted by 2Easy

Well there you go. You have some problem with the term “African American” because we’re all Americans yet are comfortable using “Asian American”.

Would you consider a white person with roots in South Africa an African American as well?

[2Easy]

Originally Posted by jm1982

Would you consider a white person with roots in South Africa an African American as well?

Not as a race, but as a place although usually people identify with their country. Nigerians in the US don’t call themselves African American so I don’t know why a white person from South Africa would.

[CALGUY]

Originally Posted by 2Easy

Well there you go. You have some problem with the term “African American” because we’re all Americans yet are comfortable using “Asian American”.

Once again. there are no African Americans, Or Asian Americans, or Europe Americans.
You are confusing nationality with race.

With your logic, if the entire population of the continent of Africa settled in America, the only ones that would be considered African American would be the black people?

Bob.

[silverkris]

Originally Posted by jm1982

Would you consider a white person with roots in South Africa an African American as well?

This is a bit of a false dichotomy in terms of context.

I have never heard a South African (of any race) in the USA refer to themselves as anything other than South African, full stop. Whether the person is Trevor Noah, Charlize Theron, or Ernie Els.

Even though I've heard the late comic George Carlin opine hypothetically - what happens if there's a racist white South African who immigrates to the USA, and calls himself an African American just to **** with Black Americans.

[pwright1]

This is why it should remain Leimert Park.

[jm1982]

Big 573 unit development project planned in Leimart Park near the Expo Crenshaw station .

Maybe the developer will have the honor of renaming or “rebranding” the area . As they often do .

https://la.curbed.com/2018/6/5/17430...s-leimert-park

There have been various plans for this site over the years and in an interesting twist one of the top executives was recently arrested on federal bribery charges a few weeks ago .

https://therealdeal.com/la/2018/06/0...quare-project/

[CRMendez]

Originally Posted by jm1982

Apparently there are some that want to rename Leimart Park Africa Town or Wakanda .

I would think most natives or people that have lived here a long time would already recognize that the area is significant for African America arts and culture .

Most tourists probably don’t know but if it got renamed would tourists start going there anyways ?

Does the average person living there even want a bunch of tourists in their neighborhood?

—-
"This is Africa Town," Hall said.
Or Little Africa. Or the Pan African Arts District. Or, in a nod to the hit Marvel movie "Black Panther," Wakanda.
It all depends on who you talk to. Various groups have different visions, but each agrees that unlike with Koreatown or Little Tokyo, there's nothing in Leimert Park's name that tells residents or tourists that the triangular commercial district along Crenshaw Boulevard in South L.A. is the region's epicenter of African American arts and culture.

But neighborhood identity has been more fraught in L.A.'s African American communities, which have long felt disenfranchised by City Hall and ignored by developers and businesses. In 2003, the City Council voted to ban the name "South Central L.A." from city maps, saying it had become too associated with crime and blight.

There's Koreatown. There's Little Tokyo. So why can't Leimert Park be Africa Town? Or Wakanda?

Why? there is already a Little Ethiopia, which has a high % of Ethiopians.. If you didn't notice Africa is a continent with all races.. Furthermore American blacks are not "African American" which is a term that didn't come about until the later 1900's. Prior to that they were Negro, colored, then black.. Lets face it, most of us who know real American history know that blacks are not from Africa. Leimert Park along with some areas of South L.A are the only places blacks are allowed to live, which is why it has the percentage of blacks that it does.. It's funny you mention whites moving in, That's another privilege that we get over blacks, They cant move to our neighborhoods..

[Exitus Acta Probat]

Originally Posted by CRMendez

Why? there is already a Little Ethiopia, which has a high % of Ethiopians.. If you didn't notice Africa is a continent with all races..

So you're saying all Black people are Ethiopian in culture?

[pwright1]

Originally Posted by Exitus Acta Probat

So you're saying all Black people are Ethiopian in culture?

The entire African Continent is probably more represented in the Valley than in Leimert Park. Leimert Park's name should never be changed.

[RudyOD]

There are communities that are so instrinsically and historically linked with their neighborhood or region, they dont need a tourist appealing stamp of approval from any city council. For example, there is no Little Mexico (there used to be a Sonora Town in the Chavez Ravine a long time ago though, before Dodger Stadium), because just hearing East L.A. you know that area is a hotbed for Mexican American and Chicano Culture.

Also, San Gabriel Valley does need to be renamed Little Beijing or Chinese Valley. We all know it.

These designations for the most part appear to serve two purposes:

1) historical preservation of neighborhoods whose original immigrant community is aging or all together mostly dissipated into other areas (Little Tokyo, Chinatown or Filipinotown).

2) As an economic draw, business consolidation for newer emerging communities to attract tourist dollars and create a sense of place . For example, Koreatown has seen the most success out of this - most likely due to the fact that many Korean businesses open late, easy access by metro and current international popularity of Korean culture. Newly formed Central American communities near and around Westlake have received some recognition as well ("El Salvador Corridor" stretches south on Vermont.)

I'm not sure where Leimart Park fits into these categories, but Im assuming it is #1 since it has a long history in LA as a center for black culture. There doesnt seem to be a resurging community of black people moving into the area as there has been in Harlem or Atlanta. So, it appears to me to be historical preservation. Which if it is the case (and I might be wrong ), renaming it Africa Town or Wakanda would do more of a disservice than anything. Just as it would do to Harlem (just saying Harlem, you know you are talking about black American culture and history) calling it anything else.

I think the most important thing is to look at what happened in areas like Harlem and Little Tokyo where people wanted to both revive and preserve the area at the same time. People who cared enough moved back in and came together to reinvest in their communities. So my question is: how much do black Angelenos care enough about Leimert Park to come together to preserve and enrich it? Or are there other neighborhoods where they are focusing their energy on?

Look at Boyle Heights for example. The community there is fighting tooth and nail to preserve the culture and essencd of the neighborhood. Plus you have the college educated children choosing to move back and create businesses and jobs in the area.

Plus, a tourist stamp doesn't necessarily do anything sometimes . In Orange County, we have a Koreatown in Garden Grove and its mostly a ghost town now. Meanwhile the Korean community in OC has coalasced around North Buena Park and Fullerton. Despite having no "Little Seoul" designation, that area is popping.