Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.
This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.
Silver Lake Admits That It's Not The Eastside
Silver Lake Reservoir from the Hathaway Estate (Photo by Michael Locke via the LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr)
()
Our long civic nightmare is over: Silver Lake has ceded any right to call itself a part of the Eastside.
I could have sworn this debate was played out (if not outright settled), but last night the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council decided to hold an official vote on whether Silver Lake can be called the Eastside (or at least as official as any neighborhood council vote can be). Council members Dorit Dowler-Guerrero and Anne-Marie Johnson told LA Weekly that they created the motion, because people who often have no clue about the city's history or geography are still calling Silver Lake the Eastside.
The motion that passed calls attention to the true Eastside and its history:
Silver Lake and the East side of Los Angeles are distinct and unique neighborhoods in Los Angeles. Both communities have their own history and identities. Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles and Lincoln Heights have historically been designated as communities located east of the Los Angeles River, yet over the past few years, the term “the east side” has been incorrectly applied to describe Silver Lake and surrounding communities. The incorrect labeling of Silver Lake as the “east side” disregards generations of people who shaped both of these rich, distinct and vibrant communities.
Support for LAist comes from
During the meeting, council members asked the questions that have been asked and answered (in a dizzying array of forms) for at least a decade. Councilwoman Janet Cunningham wondered, "So where is the actual boundary between east and west?"
That's a more complicated question than it sounds given the funky shape of our city and the fact that our historic city center isn't quite in the center of the city (this is the alleged center). LA Weekly has made compelling arguments that the historic Westside (meaning it is not the Eastside) starts much further east of the 405 than you'd imagine: it includes everything west of Main Street in downtown.
There's still a problem: even after all the Eastside vs. Westside debates of the early aughts and this latest motion, we don't really have a great name to call the cluster of hipster hoods just west of downtown. Until we come up with a decent name for that region, we're going to guess that people will still be calling it the Eastside. Jeff Wattenhofer, who liveblogged the debate for Curbed last night writes:
"Eastside" is just easier. If a coworker asks the innocent question of where I live, I can't assume they have a working knowledge of LA's 397 individual neighborhoods and their geographic location within. Plus, I work in Bel Air and anything east of Fairfax might as well be Rhode Island to those people.
FWIW, I've always thought Edendale has a nice ring to it.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake. -
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
-
With less to prove than LA, the city is becoming a center of impressive culinary creativity.
-
Nearly 470 sections of guardrailing were stolen in the last fiscal year in L.A. and Ventura counties.
-
Monarch butterflies are on a path to extinction, but there is a way to support them — and maybe see them in your own yard — by planting milkweed.
Best of LAist