Group of Civic Activists to Give Bus Tours of Grittiest Areas in South Los Angeles, Including Gang Strongholds

L.A. Gang Tours is being launched by a group of civic activists, who hold the belief that the poor economy in the interior of Los Angeles is a social injustice. They are preparing to offer tours to some of the grittiest pockets in South Los Angeles, including decayed public housing, locations of deadly shootouts and streets ravaged by racial unrest. The tours is expected to be open to the general public in January and the goal is to give tourists a look at the birthplace of many of the city's gangs, including the Crips, Bloods, Florencia 13 and 18th Street -- the cradle of the nation's gang culture. 

This new venture, the brainchild of former gang member Alfred Lomas,  has raised some eyebrows and some have said it's exploitative and voyeuristic. A throwback, if you will, to the "slum tours" of such sites as India's Dharavi township and Rio de Janiero's favelas, which is a Brazilian Portuguese word for slum. Some see the tours in India and Brazil as innovative economic tools and a way to humanize poverty. Lomas said the whole idea behind his non-profit group is to create jobs and open the lines of communication between rival gangs.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the nonprofit group plans to offer two-hour tours at an initial cost of $65 per adult, with profits put back into the community through jobs, "franchised" tours in new areas and micro-loans to inner-city entrepreneurs. Early routes will focus largely on South L.A., with some trekking through Watts and Florence-Firestone. The group said the tour is being offered in a spirit of education and public service. They plan to talk about the important chapters in the development of the city's core and how racist housing restrictions helped to shape ethnic enclaves and led to the formation of gangs.

The group has to take care that they do not exploit the residents of these areas or invade their privacy. I can't fault this group of activists for trying to shed light on what is going on in these areas, but no-one wants to be a guinea pig and put on display, therefore, the tours must be undertaken with a great deal of tact and diplomacy. These communities have been literally abandoned and hopelessness of most of the residents is evident by taking one look at their faces. The community needs revitalization, but who will do business in a gang-infested community where gun violence, drugs and theft are constant companions? You can't sweep these communities under a rug, but at the same time, you don't want to exploit them either. It will take more than a bus tour to revitalize these communities and create permanent and upwardly mobile jobs.

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