Today’s Topic

Ask most L.A. residents to describe South-Central Los Angeles and their response likely will include war-zone images of burned-out buildings, syringe-littered streets and drive-by shootings. The reality, say those who live and work in South-Central, is far different.

In today’s Platform, some of the people who travel to South-Central for their jobs describe a place just like any other, neighborhoods of decent, caring people who are working to change the image of the place they call “home.”

“Most of the people who make those (negative) assertions have never been to South-Central,” says John Bryant, chairman of Operation Hope, which hosts an annual bus trip through the area for business owners in an effort to encourage inner-city investment.

“If you drive through South-Central you won’t see drive-by shootings or AK-47s. You will see beautiful well-maintained tree-lined streets,” Bryant says. “Horrible properties are the exception, not the rule. There is real pride of ownership here.”

In fact, statistics compiled by the Stockton-based American Savings Bank show that inner-city residents are less likely to default on their home mortgage than owners of higher priced properties.

“We find that the default rates are about half,” says John Nunn, senior vice president and director of community outreach for the bank. Although Nunn could not provide statistics specifically for South-Central, he says, “The default rate in the area follows the normal pattern for inner cities.”

While many people maintain that its reputation as a crime-ridden wasteland is undeserved, South-Central--an area without any real boundaries that includes a wide range of neighborhoods--has some real problems.

Crime statistics in the LAPD’s South Division, which is located in South-Central, are higher than anywhere else in the city, says Deputy Chief Mark Kroeker who has worked on and off in South Central since 1973.

“Instead of being apathetic about the problem, the residents of South-Central are enthusiastic about doing something about it,” Kroeker says. “The numbers are higher but there has been a 13% decrease in major crimes compared to last year and homicides are down substantially.”

While the reality of those crime statistics add to the perception of South-Central as a dangerous place to live, many believe that the image is unfairly perpetuated by the media. “I think the media has a responsibility to have a higher sense of consciousness than they have displayed,” Bryant says.

Since the population of South-Central, estimated at anywhere from 500,000 to 1 million people, is primarily African-American and Latino, the area’s image also has much to do with racism, experts say.

“I think in most people’s minds, South-Central is associated as a black area,” says Shanto Iyengar, a communications and political science professor at UCLA. “There’s a tendency to associate African American areas with such attributes as high rates of crime.”

Nothing could be further from the truth, say those who know. “Frankly, you have some of the finest people you could ever meet living there,” Kroeker says.