Sahra Sulaiman
Sahra is Communities Editor for Streetsblog L.A., covering the intersection of mobility with race, class, history, representation, policing, housing, health, culture, community, and access to the public space in Boyle Heights and South Central Los Angeles.
Recent Posts
Southeast L.A. Cities Walks Away from Active Transpo Commitment; Advocates Say, “Not So Fast…”
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The report is much more than just a discussion of the region's active transportation needs. It's a call to arms - a plea to the Southeast cities to take a leadership role in investing local return dollars from Measure M in infrastructure that serves the area's most vulnerable road users.
When a Progressive Community Fails to See Its Own Biases, Bullying and Bigotry Get a Pass
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So I resorted to the sincere query that I’ve made to him on several occasions, namely: Help me understand why consideration of the needs of the most vulnerable among us - particularly lower-income black and brown communities - is so offensive to you?
USC Poised to Displace Black-Owned Bike Repair Business…Again
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The relationships Flournoy has with the people he has long served are the kinds of relationships that make communities feel like communities. And those relationships are some of the first casualties as folks begin to lose their footholds in the neighborhoods they have built their lives around.
Mark! Lopez Named Winner of the “Green” Nobel – the Goldman Environmental Prize
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In the immortal words of our former Vice President Joe Biden, “This is a big f*cking deal.”
New Traffic Signal Going Up Where Jorge Alvarez Was Killed in Hit-and-Run
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Central Avenue has long been known as one of the more pedestrian- and bike-unfriendly streets in the city. It is a fast-moving thoroughfare (especially at night) whose traffic patterns are made more complicated by the number of heavy trucks that trundle down it around the time that school lets out.
LACBC’s Tamika Butler Talks Bikes, Equity, Intersectionality, and Tokenization on Bike Nerds Podcast
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"Does it feel like you're the...you're the token black woman who's making the circuit in the bicycle and transportation realm to fit...an ideal of inclusiveness and diversity?"
Amigas Who Run Reclaim Streets for Women/Women-Identified Folks of Color in Boyle Heights and Beyond
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Reasserting their presence in the streets via a massively well-attended event like Amigas Who Run is a way to reclaim - as people of color and as women - some control over how they and their community are defined and a voice in determining the future trajectory for both.
Plans for Former South Central Farm Lot Go Before PLUM Committee
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After hearing an appeal from Mr. Tezozomoc on behalf of the South Central Farmers, the Planning and Land Use Committee will likely vote to certify the final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) and approve the subdivision of the lot as proposed for the former home of the South Central Farm.
Ruminations on Profiling, Policing, and Planning
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Stories highlighting the unique vulnerability of people of color - particularly men of color - in the public space remind planners and advocates that it is really hard for people to "reclaim" their streets and public spaces if trying to do so puts them in peril.
L.A. Metro Board Approves Development Guidelines for Vacant Lots
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The guidelines call for attention to the community's history and current conditions, for community-serving retail and amenities, inclusion of publicly accessible green space, public art opportunities, and 40 to 60 units of affordable family housing for low-income households.
Reminder to Metro: Criminalization of Poverty at a Discounted Price is No Bargain
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As the board prepares for this decision, it seems like a good time to remind both Metro and our law enforcement agencies that the passengers that have the greatest dependence on Metro are the ones who need safe passage the most. And right now, they're the ones who are least likely to feel like that is what they are getting.
Measure S and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Status Quo
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So here we are. Trapped in other people's debates. Unable to address the really urgent questions we should be addressing about how we are growing as a city. And forced to take a developer-friendly position just to maintain a deeply imperfect status quo.