After a few days of scouring the streets and the Internet, our team has come to one concrete conclusion: Leimert Park’s history is sorely lacking. No, it is not lacking in the history, itself. Quite the contrary: this “black Greenwich Village” is rife with legend and thrilling tales. Somehow, however, a narrative of its past — one that is told, organized, and ready-to-share — has eluded the neighborhood for all these years.
How can an area with such riches be without such resources? Today its history exists mostly in oral tradition. It is confined to the boundaries of the neighborhood; it is communicated mostly by its residents (and also by some less-than-descriptive plaques and banners). After a few hard-won conversations with locals, we resoundingly concluded that stories this astonishing simply must be saved. Hopefully, they can also be shared with the world outside.
Photo By Bombayhiphop
Since the 1960s, Leimert Park has been a major hub of artistic activity. Integration brought African-Americans into the community, and the 1965 Watts riots had its white inhabitants fleeing for the ocean. These past five decades have seen the neighborhood flourish in music, art, and written word. It has been home to many of history’s most famous African-American artists. So, where is the source compiling of this illustrious past?
Today Leimert Park continues to evolve. It is facing re-integration as white inhabitants move back into the area. Burgeoning trends have brought in new faces and new concerns. It has not weathered the economic downturn smoothly.
Photo By NoHo Damon
One hopes that Leimert Park is able to continue in its tradition of pride and artistry. One hopes that its Sunday drum circles will carry on for generations and that its vendors will always sell the most vibrant of African garb. But things have changed in the past, and they might well change in the future.
We have tried to preserve some first-hand experiences in the neighborhood through the years. We ask you now to share your stories with us. What is Leimert Park to you? Who are you in Leimert Park? What happened there? What will happen there? What do you believe? What do you know?
I grew up in Leimert – 10th Avenue and 43rd Street. I went to 42nd Street School, went to Audubon, walked the streets of Leimert daily. We went to a store in the 60’s named Dobson Market . . . right on the corner of Stocker and Degnan. I moved to California in the 60’s (five years old). Our first apartment moving here from Denver Colorado was on Leimert Blvd. Then my Dad found a house on 43rd and 10th Avenue. I have seen every change Leimert has gone through since the 60’s. As an adult I left the Leimert area and came back to live on Degnan and Stocker for two more years. I am saddened because I hear they are trying to buy out Leimert, replacing it with Multi-Million dollar condos, a bus station, etc. Leimert is history and to have that taken away is another insult to our very being. Leimert is our black forum in so many ways. Leimert will always be my home. They can try and take away the history, the beauty and the essence of our souls, but never the memories that come along with it.