-thumb-110x110-461780.jpg)
Simply Wrong Food: IHOP's Holiday Pancakes
Eat My Blog: Blogger Bake Sale Will Benefit LA Foodbank
-thumb-110x110-461916.jpg)
Alice Cooper, Ace Frehley @ Nokia Theater 10/28/09
DVD Review: Kobe Doin' Work
Review: Living In Emergency
by Evan Storey
Maybe it's already time to store away your memories of this year's Sunset Junction Street Festival, or maybe, as in my case, they're a bit too hazy to even give it a try. Nevertheless, as yet another non-native I feel it worthwhile to comment on the admirable atmosphere that my other non-native friends and I experienced.
Growing up in the suburbs of Phoenix socialized me into assuming you can force a grin between neighbors, but obey each others' fences because this land was not made for both you and me. Although individualism and protection of private property have been mostly useful in our nation, they have also helped to drive an SUV between an otherwise intimate sense of community.
I have spent a lot of time in both Spain and Mexico where Carnival and Semana Santa, running a good business and a running of the bulls, or birthdays and a Day of the Dead are all good enough reasons to celebrate together. I always presumed this was due to a stronger sense of national identity -- ethnically, culturally, historically -- which still holds some credence.
But attending last weekend's Sunset Junction Street Festival opened my eyes to something new -- and I don't think it was just the second-hand smoke from my fellow jammers in an impromptu drumming session. Without getting too cheesily preachy, I admit that I genuinely felt a sense of unity, despite being an outsider. Granted, you had every walk of life walking these fenced-off streets, but there was undoubtedly a feeling of acceptance and, if not an American national identity, then an LAist fringe identity.
I have only felt this way abroad so it was quite refreshing to feel this way in the most diverse, most segregated city in the world.
photo by emdot via flickr
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Make this the last Sunset Junction post of the season, please refrain from any more SunJun posts until 2007. ;)
Our apolgies for covering a controversial fair the way it ought to be covered, Mike: with photos, vids, and stories from different perspectives.
I had a similar experience, only it was around 10 years ago. Now that the event has been redesigned for one community only and my neighbors no longer seem to show up, I'm secretly waiting for the day they call it quits, well, maybe not so secretly!
May we never hear of a Sunset Junction again!
I also loved the festival and felt the same way about the surprising friendly vibe I shared there when I went for my first time!
The music was fantastic.Loved Milly Jackson and will go next year and bring a couple friends.I live on the westside and I honestly felt envious and wishful of the more diverse and warmer feeling of Silverlake.
Exactly which community did Sunset Junction allegedly redesign itself for, Anonymous Coward? The gay community? The highschool emo community? The Hispanic community? The Los Feliz hipster community?
On Sunday I saw lots of members of all of those communities there to see legendary R&B headliners on one stage include Millie Jackson and Ashford and Simpson, or alt-country bands like Drive By Truckers, Hank Williams III, and Dave Alvin on the other stage.
So, do tell, what community were those headliners designed for?
Not mine. 15 bucks for a street fair and lousy music? You all can keep it.
15 bucks? it was free with the LAist coupon.
"Most segregated city in the world?" Whoa, surely you're writing for Chicagoist. Any native Angeleno, or Villaraigosa for that matter, will tell you that one of the most beautiful things about our fair city is its diversity. Phoenix on the other hand...
I didn't expect much response. Thanks to all.
Walker: I would definitely argue that it is (one of) the most segregated cities in the world, but that's not to say it is not diverse (as my posting states). Compared to New York, for example, the ethnic/subculture groups here in Los Angeles have much more conspicuously defined lines; by that, I mean segregated. And, frankly, I think it's a beautiful thing as the level of respect seems to be growing.
Michael: I had to focus on LA and that was on my mind. I'm going to try to relate a global event to LA somehow in my next post.
Big ups to Milly Jackson - but don't bring your kids to see her!
Tony & Evan,
I'm sorry that my comment was taken so harshly. I did not mean to be mean. Honestly, I was trying to be funny.
From the vantage point of someone that did not get to attend the Junction, it is difficult to understand and appreciate the amount of SunJun coverage.
I actually liked Evan's post as I had the same feeling at many Grateful Dead parking lots and concerts with a high level of unity among strangers. Wearing my work hardhat with it's dancing bear sticker got me an awful lot of free beers back in the day.
Perhaps I'm looking for a little more of a stretch on LAist to really get the varied tastes of LA. I'd love to see LAist take on the County Fair, the Schi-Fi World Con, or other non-Hollywood/Music scenes. The LAist writers are good and seeing them stretch beyond their usual haunts and topics into other thriving LA communities.
Again, I'm sorry if I offended you guys, that was not my goal.
This whole debate seems a little over the top for an article about a street fair. If you don't like what LAist is doing, there are tons of other LA blogs/sites which LAist links to regularly, or in the sidebar.
points well taken, Ted.
i too have spent some nights in those Dead parking lots (including the Forum '89 i think, and new years eve in oakland in 90). however its pretty tough to recreate something as magical as that anywhere, let alone in LA.
as for writing about things outside of Hollywood, i'll have to take the blame for that. as editor and the one who has ended up writing 5-6 times a day, and as someone who worked close to five years at E! and is a single man living in Hollywood, i can see how my influence could overshadow the site.
but have patience, we will be hiring new writers very soon, and hopefully they will be from other parts of this fine town. however, that doesnt mean less coverage of SunJun next year, but it hopefully will mean more coverage of other street fairs in this city. i understand they have some lively ones in West Hollywood, for example.
either way, i just started this summer and im doing what they taught me in school: writing about what you know about.
Looking for other street festivals in the City to write about? Look no further than here.