This episode is different from any episode of Smartest Person in the Room that I’ve ever recorded. Months ago, when Yasmin and I were planning this series, I mentioned that though I’ve lived in Los Angeles for 17 years now, I’ve hardly ever been to the historically black neighborhoods of South LA. And so, Yasmin decided to take me on a little field trip in our own city.
What you’ll hear in this episode is our recorded conversation as Yasmin drove me along Crenshaw Boulevard, a major vein that runs through South LA. As we pass by churches and schools and neighborhoods where Yasmin grew up, we found ourselves revisiting some of the major points in our ongoing conversation about race in our country, things like lack of access to healthy food in urban neighborhoods and whether or not the way South LA is represented in culture is an accurate view of this part of our city.
We mention:
In Los Angeles, it's South Central No More
Why is it now called South LA instead of South Central?
The LA Riots (often referred to as the Rodney King riots) and the attack on Reginald Denny
Thanks for listening to Smartest Person in the Room! You can follow us on Instagram and Facebook, and sign up below to receive an email with each new episode.