The Times Poll : L.A. Splits Down Ethnic Line on Issues

Fourteen years after electing Tom Bradley as its first black mayor, Los Angeles remains divided along ethnic lines into two large classes who worry about different problems and disagree on such major issues as crime and traffic, a new Los Angeles Times Poll has found.

This split, which hints that Los Angeles politics could become polarized along racial lines, is also reflected in the unincorporated areas and smaller cities of the giant county that surrounds Los Angeles.

Throughout the city and the county, whites said they worry as much about traffic congestion and the environment as they do about crime. Whites, both Republicans and Democrats, said by a 2-1 margin that they want development slowed down even if it means fewer jobs.

But in less well-off minority neighborhoods, where the other half of Los Angeles society lives, complaints about crime dominated when residents were asked to list their biggest problems. Traffic was seldom mentioned.

Slow growth was rejected 2 to 1 by both blacks and Latinos, the sharpest split of any issue between whites and ethnic minorities.

Of all the issues touched on by the poll, the growth controversy carries the most potential for disrupting the era of racial harmony symbolized by Bradley’s election in 1973 and his three, relatively easy, reelection victories.

Bradley was first elected in a new joining of black voters with liberal whites in the Westside and the San Fernando Valley. But the poll found that the recent clamoring for curbs on development, which many believe was the key to this month’s election upset of City Council President Pat Russell, is largely a white phenomenon unpopular among blacks and Latinos. Results from that election support this, because Russell, who was labeled a strong pro-growth advocate, did best in black areas of her district.

For a county that spills over several mountain ranges from the ocean to the desert, such divergent attitudes on major issues are not unexpected. But more than geography, the poll reflects the different views of people with enough money to live comfortably and those for whom life is more of a struggle. And in the Los Angeles of 1987, as in earlier years, ethnic background is still the best indicator of social class.

Erosion of Quality

People from both classes agreed, however, that the quality of life in Los Angeles has, if anything, gotten worse in the last 15 years.

The poll, which asked 2,055 residents of Los Angeles County for their views, was conducted by telephone between June 13 and June 17. Of those, 923 responses came from residents of the City of Los Angeles. I. A. Lewis, director of the Times poll, said the sample has a margin of error of 3 percentage points in either direction for the county and 5 points for the city.

The poll found that, on nearly all issues, people who live in unincorporated parts of the county or in the county’s other cities have a rosier view of life than residents of Los Angeles.

These county residents believe their crime problem to be less severe, hold the Sheriff’s Department in higher regard than city residents do the Los Angeles Police Department, and have more confidence in routine public services such as street cleaning and firefighting.

Views on Safety

For instance, 61% of the county respondents said they feel safe walking in their neighborhoods at night while 36% feel unsafe. But in the City of Los Angeles, residents said they feel unsafe by a margin of 54% to 42%.

Whether they live in the city or outside, it was color and ethnic background that most shaped how residents feel about life in Los Angeles. Middle-income blacks felt better about life than low-income blacks, but still took a different view from whites on growth and the impact of crime. Even middle-class blacks said that traffic paled by comparison to crime as a problem in their lives.

While only 32% of whites said crime was their biggest problem, 61% of blacks and 43% of Latinos listed crime at the top.

Whites also said they feel safer walking the streets and using the parks, and were more satisfied with the job being done by law enforcement and the county’s top police officials, Sheriff Sherman Block and Los Angeles Police Chief Daryl F. Gates. Whites also expressed somewhat more confidence than minorities that routine public services, such as street cleaning and trash collecting, will be provided by government.

Basic Question

This dissatisfaction among minorities extends even to the question of whether residents should separate household garbage to help city recycling plans, which in turn would reduce the need to find more landfills.

Although the idea is embraced citywide by a 2-1 margin, it enjoys less support among minorities. When asked if it was reasonable for the city to ask residents to separate their garbage, 67% of whites said yes. Latinos answered 61% yes and blacks 53%.

Among the two largest minority groups, blacks expressed more frustration with their state of affairs. Blacks were less certain that the Fire Department would answer their calls and that the streets would be cleaned. Among blacks, 62% said the quality of life in Los Angeles has slipped in recent years, contrasted with 52% for whites and 46% for Latinos.

People from all walks of life said they believe that there are too many immigrants in Los Angeles. Even people who call themselves liberals said--by a 55% to 31% margin--that the area has absorbed too many immigrants. Across the entire county, 62% of people polled said there has been too much immigration.

Racial Frustration

Like most other issues, however, this one also showed evidence of the racial frustration that divides Los Angeles.

Half of Latinos, who account for most new arrivals and have the most contact with immigrants, told the poll that they, too, believe that there are too many immigrants. But at the same time, Latinos said by a 3-2 margin that Latino influence has made Los Angeles a better place.

But 66% of whites said there are too many immigrants and said by a nearly 4-1 margin that Latino immigrants have detracted, rather than added, to the quality of life in Los Angeles.

Among blacks, 55% said there are too many immigrants and, by a margin of about 2 to 1, said Latinos have changed Los Angeles for the worse.

Residents were about evenly split on the bus service provided by the Southern California Rapid Transit District. But among those of lower income, who presumably ride the buses most, the service was widely praised.

New Agency Backed

The RTD’s reputation suffered most among people of higher income who do not rely on buses for daily transportation. But the poll found wide support at all income levels for the new transit super-agency that state legislators are pondering as a replacement for the RTD, which has been criticized frequently for its management.

The RTD’s biggest project--the Metro Rail transit line--was favored by more than 2 to 1. The level of support, 55% in the entire county, has dropped only slightly since the Reagan Administration cut funding and forced the project to be started as a 4.4-mile segment near downtown instead of an 18-mile line to the San Fernando Valley.

VIEWS OF LOS ANGELES These results are from Los Angeles Times Poll questions asked of 923 Los Angeles city residents and of 1,132 living in areas of Los Angeles County outside the city between June 13-17. Answers will not total 100% in all cases.

QUALITY OF LIFE

Residents were asked whether over the last 15 years, they believed the qualityof life had gotten better or worse:

City of Rest of Whites Blacks Latinos L.A. County Better 21% 18% 27% 21% 24% Unchanged 20% 17% 20% 20% 21% Worse 52% 62% 46% 53% 48%

BIGGEST PROBLEMS FACING LOS ANGELES AREA

These were differences among racial groups to perceived problems in the area:

City of Rest of Whites Blacks Latinos L.A. County Crime 32% 61% 43% 43% 36% Growth/Traffic 30% 8% 18% 22% 26% Environment Homeless 11% 8% 9% 7% 12%

Residents were asked whether they feel safe walking at night:

City of Rest of Valley Central South West L.A. County Safe 51% 39% 25% 53% 42% 61% Unsafe 46% 57% 69% 46% 54% 36%

Residents were asked whether it would be better to have more commercial development or slower growth and more limits:

City of Rest of Whites Blacks Latinos L.A. County Faster Growth 29% 64% 58% 42% 41% Slower Growth 61% 28% 29% 46% 49%

EFFECTS OF IMMIGRATION

Residents were asked whether there are “too many immigrants” in the area:

City of Rest of Whites Blacks Latinos L.A. County Yes 66% 55% 50% 55% 62%

Residents were asked whether the Latino life style and sense of values have changed the area for better or worse:

Whites Blacks Latinos Better 11% 16% 30% Worse 39% 33% 22% No Effect 27% 25% 28%

RATING LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Residents were asked to rate the job done by members of their government:

CITY COUNCIL

Approve 35% Disapprove 19% Not Aware 36%

COUNTY SUPERVISORS

Approve 31% Disapprove 16% Not Aware 42%