Riding in the Big Bus

The bus pulled up at eleven, a tour bus. The staff team chartered it to take us around Central Los Angeles to the various ministry sites. I felt awkward, as did many people on the team, as we rolled into East L.A. in such a magnificent vehicle, as if by our overall whiteness we did not stand out enough. Lunch was served at the first street market: enchiladas, rice, beans, chips and salsa…the usual fare. We were welcomed and entertained by a two man musical group and a host…who spoke mostly in Spanish but engaged us nonetheless. I was able to decipher a good deal of what he was saying; however, I did not have the confidence to respond.
Our next stop was across downtown at the First Evangelical Free Church in the Pico/Union neighborhood. Scott, who works at the church, gave us a tour of the neighborhood. I again felt very conspicuous as twenty-eight students and a half dozen or so staff plugged down the narrow sidewalks of the mostly Latino immigrant neighborhood. Scott told stories that were fascinating. He mentioned that the zip code that we were standing in (which happens to be the same one we live in) has the densest population of any American zip code outside of New York City. It is hard to guess that from its appearance. The reason is many immigrants crowd into what in most places are considered single family homes. Large families share a single room so that they can afford L.A.’s high rent. Many are just trying to get on their feet in a new land and a majority of them came to the States from Central America, not Mexico as most would assume. Scott mentioned many of the things I learned in my Geography classes…people in the neighborhood pay more for basic goods than their suburban contemporaries…despite having far less disposable income. Many illegal immigrants work at or below minimum wage (an injustice that employers can get away with because if they report it to the Government then their illegal status will be found out). Scott took us around the back of a building to see one of the most famous murals in Los Angeles. The city is covered in amazing murals. This one featured depictions, mostly from a catholic point of view, of the life, death and resurrection of Christ. It was painted about fifteen years ago as a symbol of hope to a neighborhood dying amid the stench of escalating gang warfare. Written across the top of the mural are the names of victims of gang violence from that time.
The first name along the top of the mural was “Nite-Owl”. This, Scott said, was
the brother of a man he befriended named Hector. When Hector was a teenager he heard gunshots and ran out of the house to see his brother dead from those shots.

The bus then took us back downtown. We toured the Los Angeles Mission, a fantastic facility serving the homeless in the heart of Skid Row, a concentration of homeless that is the largest such population in the United States. We walked down the street to the S.A.Y. Yes center, which serves the forgotten homeless children in the area. The bus later took us away from downtown to the Here’s Life Inner City office, ending with a surreal meal and blessing from the leadership at Hope Community Temple in South Central.

After returning to the house I felt like going to sleep but thought better of it and decided to escort five of the awesome girls on the project to a nearby coffee shop. I was able to call and talk to Roommate Mike about at least a small fraction of what I’ve experienced in the past week. I talked to Crystal for a long time after we got back. We had a great conversation and I burned the first MewithoutYou album and gave it to her (she likes them as well but only has the new one) I also loaned her Blue Like Jazz. Now, I am ready to crash because Michael, Crystal, Jacklyn and I are going to make the most of a very important free day tomorrow.