An Ode to South Central
When asked where I live, I say: near USC.
When I respond “South Central,” condescending words or looks of pity follow. To outsiders, my community is known for gangs and, according to a quick Google seach, an epicenter for violence. I’ve grown up in fear of losing friends to addiction and gangs. I’ve felt helpless trying to convince them that we can do something productive with our lives; helpless because we have been conditioned to believe there is no way out.
The streets are the soul of the city. They carry layers of history within them. Nike Cortez’s hanging on telephone wires, marking our childhoods. Friends full of potential and endless possibilities who should be graduating with me, but are gone. From Rodney to Nipsey, we are a community aching to be heard. Families trapped in vicious cycles of poverty. Students who wish they could have access to advanced classes. Adults who work and live without the benefit of health insurance.
At the core, I’m a realist. To love South Central, is to see it through a different lens. I focus on its richness in culture, kindness, and resilience. For all it has given me.
My commute to school is accompanied by tired faces in a hurry to start another day, to provide for their kids. These familiar faces always remind me of my father who works 13 hour shifts, and highlights the value of education as it is something no one can take away. Applying his morals into my life has allowed me to partake in activities that keep me determined like playing the viola, tap dancing, running, and participating in the Pomona College Academy for Youth Success program.
“Oportunidades hay pocas, a darle todo lo que tenemos;” there are few opportunities it’s what you do with one that counts.
My mother always instilled in my brothers and I the importance of taking advantage of opportunities. The support from a community like PAYS helps me to pursue a higher education, the language of music reveals the relevance of commitment and giving back, and running keeps me disciplined.
South Central has been long overlooked. It is my purpose and passion to show the world its hidden beauty. I bring with me its resilience and the promise to return, ready to make it a better place.