Nonprofit Spotlight: Esperanza Community Housing Corporation



Intersection’s Nonprofit Spotlight series profiles South L.A. organizations that are propelling positive change in South L.A. Here we look at Esperanza Community Housing Corporation — a 25-year-old group helping people to create communities for themselves where they can thrive.

Mercado la Paloma | www.mercadolapaloma.com

Mercado la Paloma | www.mercadolapaloma.com

What is Esperanza Community Housing’s purpose?

Esperanza seeks to create opportunities for community residents’ growth, security, participation, recognition, and ownership through developing and preserving affordable housing, promoting accessible health care, stimulating involvement in arts and culture, ensuring quality education, pursuing economic development, and advocating for progressive public policy.

When was Esperanza Community Housing founded? 1990

Which areas does Esperanza Community Housing serve? Figueroa Corridor

What services does Esperanza Community Housing provide? The organization provides a variety of programs around the core program areas of affordable, housing, health, economic development, environmental justice, and arts and culture. [Read more…]

Vermont Square Library celebrates 100 years



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Located in a residential area on 48th St between Vermont and Normandie, the Vermont Square Public Library has served South L.A. for 100 years. Through the century, the building has watched the neighborhood change both physically — from dirt to paved roads — and demographically as new residents moved into the community.

[Read more…]

Chef Jeff Henderson returns to native South LA



Chef Jeff signs a copy of his newest book at Eso Won Books.

Chef Jeff signs a copy of his newest book at Eso Won Books. | Anna-Catherine Brigida

When Eddie Joebishop heard his old friend-turned-celebrity chef Jeff Henderson on the radio promoting a book signing, he scribbled down the address of Eso Won Books in Leimert Park and traveled the 40 miles from his home to hear him speak Monday night.

Read a Q&A with Henderson about his new book, “12 Street-Smart Recipes for Success,” here on Intersections.

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Q&A: Jeff Henderson’s ‘Street-Smart Recipes’



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Chef Jeff’s new book is available online and in stores. He will be autographing books at Eso Won.

Author and chef Jeff Henderson will appear at Eso Won Books on Monday at 7 p.m. to sign copies of his newest book, “If You Can See It, You Can Be It: 12 Street-Smart Recipes for Success.”

Henderson’s path to success has been unconventional — before becoming “Chef Jeff,” he went to prison for dealing drugs. Now, the chef says he hopes his story will motivate others. We spoke with Henderson about his South Central L.A. upbringing, the new book, and his drive to inspire the young people who struggle like he once did.

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Community Rights Campaign confronts over-policing in schools



Ratio of citations per black student to citations per white student for the most recent three school years

Ratio of citations per black student to citations per white student for the most recent three school years

Students, parents and teachers rallied at Martin Luther King Blvd. and Vermont Ave. near Manual Arts High School last week to discuss over-policing in the Los Angeles Unified School District. Today, the newly-formed LAUSD Progressive Discipline and Safety Committee will hold a public meeting from 4 to 6 p.m. to continue the conversation.

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Not your typical office building



articleimageOn the corner of Adams Boulevard and Gramercy Place sits a three-story, red brick Colonial Revival style building. Its six, strong, white columns and perfectly manicured lawn separate it from many of the other apartment buildings surrounding the area.

To an unknowing passer-by, the building may not seem to belong in the neighborhood. However, most residents know it as a historical and cultural monument and the current workplace of the LA84 Foundation, a nonprofit organization that funds youth sports programs in Southern California as the legacy of the 1984 Olympic Games. [Read more…]

Photoetry: A testament to the community



Photo credit: Sam Bendall

Photo credit: Sam Bendall

The concept of “photoetry,” the artistic combination of photography and poetry, was born eight years ago when two college students attended an art gallery downtown.

Professor and poet Hiram Sims, a USC undergraduate at the time, was inspired to have his own work hung for others to admire after seeing what another local artist could accomplish.

Nearly a decade later, Sims has revived the concept in his recent book, Photoetry: Poetry and Photography in South Central LA.

[Read more…]

South LA residents roll out to sign up for Obamacare



South LA residents near urban oil field say odor making them sick



What do you think of West Adams?



Edroy Flowers is a junior at Cal State Northridge studying political science. He talks about the effect of the Benny H. Potter West Adams Avenues Memorial Park on the community. Click here to listen to the story.

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