Youth / OPINION : L.A. From Afar: ‘A Land of Excitement and Confusion’ : QUANDA ALLEN / Senior, 18, North Atlanta High School, Atlanta

Gangs. Burning buildings. Crime. Strife. Hurt. Anger. Healing. Los Angeles is far away from my hometown of Atlanta, Ga. It is so weird because it does not seem like it is even in America to me. My perception of Los Angeles is almost as if it is a different world on a foreign continent. When I picture the faces on the people, I see grief. On the “Oprah Winfrey Show” last spring, I saw the tears of destroyed business owners and displaced residents. It looked as if L.A. were bleeding from an unhealable wound. The flesh was raw and the anger was fresh. Frustration covered an old lady’s face as she lamented the burning of the local grocery store. “Now I’ll have to go cross town,” she said. Across town . . . Across town . . .

Another picture that I have of L.A. is of youthful glitz. I see fast cars and fast money. I see hot women and rebellious men. My other Los Angeles is the L.A. of “Melrose Place” and “L.A. Law.” These images are not as dreary, but equally as troubling. The people are all carefree and nonchalant. Their only concern is paying the rent and partying hard. It appears to be a land of massive excitement and bustling confusion.

I often wonder how these two worlds can coexist. The strife coupled with fun evolve into a paradox of life. My burning vision of Los Angeles is transformed into a glowing vision of Melrose Avenue. Even though L.A. seems distant, I can see evidence of hurt and anger in Atlanta. We too felt the outrage of the Rodney King verdict. We too have high violence and crime rates. We too suffer from poverty.