Once upon a time in the city of Los
Angeles, there was a town called Chavez Ravine. Chavez Ravine was a barrio tucked away in
the hills north of Los Angeles. It was a small village where Mexican Americans lived in peace. It wasn't much for the big city folks,
but for the gente in the neighborhood it was everything. People raising children, families growing
gardens, there was pachangas, quinceaneras, everyone knew everybody else, but all
around the ravine, the city was at work creating new housing and neighborhoods. Some thought that Chavez Ravine was lucky to be left alone. Chavez Ravine became the centerpiece of
the plan from funding, under the American Housing Act of 1949, to bring ten thousand new public housing
units to Los Angeles, also known as housing projects. In the summer of 1950, the city's housing authorities sent letters to the
current residence at Chavez Ravine informing them that a public housing
development was being built on this location for families of low income. That the community would have the first
chance to move back into the new Elysian Park Heights Development. The city used the power of eminent domain. Some resisted, fighting the city's actions
in court. By the summer of 1952 most of Chavez Ravine was abandoned. Some families bought into the city
plan and sold their houses for peanuts. Then the city completely canceled the housing development. Residents weren't sure their future and some slowly started to leave. So for many years the land and the last strongholds of residents continued to sit
in limbo. Bulldozers claimed many of the abandoned houses. Others were given over to the
fire department for use in training exercises. Seven years after those dreadful
eviction letters were sent out only twenty families had remained in Chavez Ravine by 1957. As a city was searching for a new use of the land, the community's
final holdouts resisted eviction orders challenging their property's seizure in
court. The city and the mayor, Norris Poulson struck a deal with the Dodgers and
Walter O'Malley and promised them the land of Chavez Ravine But it wasn't easy. They had to fight a long legal battle. Even the Supreme Court was involved. Then, one of the darkest days at Los Angeles came. on My 9th, 1959 A day that came to be known as Black
Friday to the community's former residents. Sheriff's deputies and bulldozers arrived to enforce the eviction orders against the few remaining families. The city forced out the last residents
of Chaves Ravine and with these few families forced out the barrio was forever gone. Never to return. Only three years after this dreadful day, a day an entire community was erased from the map Dodger Stadium was built and opened on April 10th, 1962 That's why they call Dodger Stadium
Chavez Ravine, in memory of the lost barrio. On one hand, we got a baseball team and brought a city together for the love of the game. with a beloved home team and the creation of many new jobs. But this came at the cost of a moving a neighborhood and ripping them apart piece by piece. Some people will never forgive and will never forget, and others
don't even know about the small town that was eaten up by the big city.
In the 50's the US government also used the development of the interstate highway system to specifically destroy strong black neighborhoods.
I wonder how many of those pochos that go see "Los Doyers" know about this. As a Latino who grew up in Los Angeles, I never understood the whole Dodgers thing. I understand Fernandomania had a lot to do with the large Latino fanbase, but I just never really bought into the hype. I get a lot of crap from friends and family who are diehard fans for not supporting them, but to each their own I guess.