Hey guys,
I wanted to talk about this beautiful scene here in Long Beach. When I first moved to Los Angeles 6 years ago, I thought one or two things about Long Beach, Snoop Dogg and Sublime. I got a good picture of what life in the LBC was through their music, so I decided to check it out.One thing that I did not know about Long Beach until this week was that it is a huge man made port. Ships come in and out of there all of the time, and while it ruins scenic walks on the beach, it provides support and plays a major role in the growth and stability of Los Angeles as a whole. Another thing I realized while down by the harbor is that this is a central part of Los Angeles even without being the actual center.
We talked about in class on Wednesday about how in the post-metropolis cities like Los Angeles, there is no centralized place. L.A. is completely decentralized because of the rise of such technologies like the automobile. Long Beach harbor wouldn't have a job if we couldn't transport materials that are shipped in to the outer reaches of the city. Los Angeles was greatly effected economically by the automobile but it is also definitely the city that live and dies by the single passenger auto commute. What mesmerized me was the fact that here, on the southern tip of the Los Angeles county line, was this city in its own right. There is a downtown Long Beach, which is in L.A., and that blows my mind.
One more thing I noticed while driving down to the harbor is that though Los Angeles as a whole does not abide by the rules of the Chicago University definition of a city, Long Beach does, in a way. The Chicago model of a city was centralized by the CBD (central business district). In L.A. this is not the case, but in Long Beach, there is a downtown where business is centralized with the port being right there, and the residential housing follows the model. Near downtown Long Beach is lower income housing, and if you go East before the 405 there is very middle class/upper class neighborhoods. Also, if you go South, there is a few really wealthy neighborhoods. So, even if ALL of Long beach's business isn't downtown (which a lot of it is), the residential neighborhoods follow the Chicago model where the lower income housing is closer to the CBD and as it spreads out the wealthier people begin to settle.
Thank you and I leave you with links to the music that told me to come visit Long Beach:
Again; WARNING; some of the lyrics are vulgar...if you don't like curse words, DON'T LISTEN!
Snoop Dogg- Who Am I? (Whats My Name)
Sublime- Doin' Time
Hi Mitchell- I enjoyed reading your blog posts especially this one and your other post on your visit to Compton. This one was particularly interesting to me since I haven’t really explored the Long Beach area, and Snoop and Sublime are what come to my mind when I hear the name too.
ReplyDeleteI also find it extremely interesting that Long Beach is a gigantic man made maritime center that not only provides stability and growth for Los Angeles as a whole, but must bring in a substantial amount of income for the city and to the economy. I have also heard that Long Beach has a large oil industry, which also brings a constant flow of money, but is juxtaposed to the lower income residential areas that surround the central business district. However, I can see why it makes sense that Long Beach follows the Chicago city style with the low income housing between the CBD and the high income residential areas that are spread out and further away. I am perpetuated by the point that you have made regarding Los Angeles as a whole not following the Chicago model, but that the area of Long Beach does. One would think that since the area has become so technologically advanced because of the Port of Long Beach that the model would be outdated there; I wonder how much longer that model will last.
I would also like to go back to the two songs that you posted by Sublime and Snoop Dogg that I know many others think about when they hear the name Long Beach. There are obviously several extremely variating neighborhoods that surround downtown Long Beach that are not necessarily documented on a map, but are recognized by the residents. The two songs you’ve posted (and this goes for the songs about Compton as well from your other blog) are perfect examples of the roles of social media and the effect that celebrities and song writers can have on stereotypes that involve different cities or neighborhoods. Whether or not what Sublime and Snoop Dogg have to say about Long Beach is politically correct or not, it’s interesting to think about the role these artists play when it comes to people’s perceptive on social difference on a city or town when they have never been there before.