Chavez Ravine

By Carlos Lopez:

When you find yourself sitting at Dodger Stadium, enthusiastically cheering on your favorite player, it is important to reflect upon the homes and livelihoods that once thrived in this very location. The seat you currently occupy might have once been someone's cherished backyard or bustling kitchen, which were tragically bulldozed to accommodate sports. Dodger Stadium, previously known as Chavez Ravine, has a dark history that significantly impacted numerous lives.

Chavez Ravine consisted of three vibrant Mexican-American neighborhoods: Palo Verde, La Loma, and Bishop. This area was home to 1,100 families and represented a crucial site of homeownership due to redlining. In Los Angeles, many property deeds were burdened with covenants that prohibited the sale of land to non-white individuals.

For Mexican-Americans, owning a home was an important step towards achieving the American Dream. However, in the 1940s, following the Great Depression, a housing shortage arose due to population growth. The public demanded the government's intervention in providing public housing. As part of the "urban renewal" movement, specific neighborhoods with private property were labeled as "slums" and slated for clearance to make way for public housing. Chavez Ravine fell victim to this process, as the city utilized its eminent domain power to force residents to sell their homes in July 1950. The plan was to transform Chavez Ravine into "Elysian Park Heights," featuring multistory buildings, townhouses, and shops.

Nevertheless, a group in Los Angeles opposed the construction of public housing. Private real estate organizations, such as the Citizens Against Socialist Housing, equated public housing with un-American ideals and communism. Their efforts successfully swayed public opinion, and Norris Poulson, a congressman running for mayor, capitalized on anti-public housing sentiments during his campaign. Poulson emerged victorious in the mayoral race and promptly canceled the plans for Elysian Park Heights.

The Dodgers, originally a Brooklyn-based team, sought a new location in the 1950s due to the limited expansion opportunities in their dense surroundings. Los Angeles offered Chavez Ravine as their new stadium site since it had already been cleared and deemed vacant. On May 8th, 1959, all remaining residents of Chavez Ravine were forced to leave. Some were unwillingly carried out of their homes, while others exhibited more violent resistance. Three years later, in 1962, the newly constructed Dodger Stadium opened its doors to guests and baseball games.

The history of loss that unfolded within Chavez Ravine should not be dismissed or forgotten. Even today, with the construction of the $5 billion SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, attention must be given to the seizing of predominantly black neighborhoods that are transformed into public spaces. It is imperative that we acknowledge and address these issues, working towards preventing further displacement and protecting marginalized communities.