JANUARY 2024
Haga clic aquí para ver El Despacho de enero en español.
Click here to view The January Dispatch in Spanish.
The LISTINGS section of the Dispatch–a roundup of ways to contribute to LA's mutual aid and community care-based efforts in the form of time, money and/or items as well as what resources each group offers–can be found by ⬇️ scrolling down ⬇️
A FEW WORDS ON: STICKING WITH MUTUAL AID COMMITMENTS
This month marks my one year of organizing with Mutual Aid LA Network– one year of building hygiene kits, distributing produce, writing listings for the Dispatch, and countless other tasks that are now fixtures in my day-to-day life.
I watched MALAN from afar for most of 2022, often finding ways to participate digitally. I reposted calls for funds and goods, donated when I could, and talked my friends’ ears off about MALAN’s work. I was enamored with this commitment to feeding, sheltering, and looking out for neighbors the MALAN folks cultivated and knew I wanted to practice that same commitment to building a better world for myself and those around me. I just didn’t know where I fit in.
In an effort to take a step away from watching and toward doing, I signed up for a Hygiene Hello! kit build last January. I walked in nervous about a million things, not knowing what to do, not knowing anyone, showing up empty handed, doing things wrong– but the genuine warm welcome I received melted any anxieties instantly. It took me getting out of my own way and showing up to realize how effortless the work can feel when you’re in community with others working towards the same ends.
Eager for more but having a limiting schedule, working on the Dispatch just made sense. It was a small weekly commitment I could make, and an opportunity to stay involved in a capacity that excited me. The Dispatch, and the work of the dozens of groups we feature, reminds me that plugging in can happen at any level– we all have a role in mutual aid.
Historically, I haven’t been great at choosing something and sticking with it, so this feels really fulfilling. I share my experience to demonstrate that getting involved and staying involved is possible. Often making time and showing up can be the hardest part. But I think you’ll find quickly that the community gained is endlessly rewarding. Day after day, my love for this work and the team I get to do it with grows, and I hope those reading this find efforts and roles that bring them similar joys.
Written by Alli Kirste who organizes with MALAN
FEATURED EFFORT: LOS ANGELES TENANTS UNION (LATU)
1512 Mohawk Street is an eight-unit apartment building in Echo Park. Six units are occupied by tenants with deep roots in the neighborhood, some of whom have called the building home for over 30 years. The tenants’ children grew up together. They check in on each other. They celebrate and relax together in the building’s common areas. The tenants have made the building what it is today—a rich and vibrant community.
In 2022, Ariel Isaacson - a wealthy 28-year-old Beverly Hills resident - snatched up multiple properties in LA County, including 1512 Mohawk. He brought on Beach Front Property Management to handle the day-to-day. In 2023, the tenants were notified that Isaacson and his management company would pursue no-fault evictions so that they could remodel and flip each unit. Isaacson had already flipped one unit, installing cosmetic updates like gray flooring and quartz countertops, and then re-listed the apartment with a 200%+ rent increase. Isaacson also gave new leases to the existing tenants. The updated leases included strict rules about the common areas that would have severely limited the tenants’ ability to gather and enjoy life together as they had always done. Although the existing tenants didn’t sign the new leases, Isaacson’s property manager began to enforce the rules.
There is some protection in LA for no-fault evictions, but Isaacson used a “renoviction”- or substantial remodel - loophole. The State’s Tenant Protection Act (AB1482) allows landlords to evict tenants for renovations that take longer than 30 days and require a permit, if tenants cannot safely remain in place during construction, and if the building is not a RSO (rent-stabilized) property. This loophole leaves hundreds of thousands of LA tenants vulnerable to displacement. At 1512 Mohawk, where the tenants had been able to afford their units for decades, paying market-rate rent meant they would likely have to leave Echo Park - and maybe even Los Angeles - for good.
But the tenants had another option: leveraging collective action to push Isaacson to drop the evictions. They connected with their local chapter of the Los Angeles Tenants Union (LATU) - Vermont y Beverly, or VyBe. VyBe made a plan with the tenants to fight the evictions in court, and they didn’t stop there. They also rallied other members to confront Isaacson and Beach Front Property Management.
“Just because a landlord wants to remodel the kitchen to have new appliances and quartz countertops doesn’t mean a tenant should be permanently displaced from Los Angeles,” VyBe organizer Lupita Límon Corrales said.
Through a series of actions (including hanging banners, phone zaps, flier distribution and both online and in-person confrontations) the tenants - with the support of their LATU local - successfully pressured the landlord to drop the evictions without ever having to fight him in court. 1512 Mohawk remains one of the last ungentrified buildings in Echo Park because of the power of a tenants union.
LATU is a 100% member-run collective of tenants all over LA County. Autonomous locals, like VyBe, do the work of organizing their communities. At fully bilingual meetings, where childcare and food are provided, members can find support for any issues they face with their landlords. Those with stable housing can learn about the housing issues their neighbors face and find ways to support them. Tenants in a local can choose to form a building-specific tenants’ association (TA) with access to tools, strategies, and experience collected by thousands of members.
Beyond actions that challenge unjust treatment from greedy landlords, LATU members strengthen their communities through parties, celebrations, and food distributions. They find ways to learn together and provide material care for each other. For more than three years, the Union De Vecinos local has hosted biweekly food distributions at locations in and around Boyle Heights—each at a TA-organized building. Tenants run the distributions with help from neighbors from surrounding blocks, and the distributions are open to anyone. By distributing food in front of their buildings, they show landlords that the tenants - the people who call these spaces home - control their common areas and their lives.
LATU’s goal is to cultivate a world in which communities control housing, neighborhoods and land by inspiring a mass movement of tenants across LA and beyond. It is a movement that fights gentrification and displacement one building at a time. Anne Orchier, a tenant and organizer with Union De Vecinos, says that LATU is first and foremost an organization for people. “The challenges of peoples’ lives are multifaceted,” she notes, “and housing is one part of that.” Even if your housing is stable, YOU can join in this work of building community power by connecting with your local.
How YOU can contribute…
- JOIN LATU by becoming a dues-paying member. LATU is entirely member-run, and funds are spent on event and action expenses, and supplies like interpretation equipment.
- GIVE FUNDS to support current eviction defense efforts for tenants in the Northeast LA Local.
- CONNECT with your LATU local, like Ktown, East Hollywood, or South Central. Find contact info for all of the locals on the LATU website. SHOW UP at local meetings, where you can find support for issues in your own neighborhood or building.
- PARTICIPATE in actions (like marches, court support and canvassing) and events (even parties!) in solidarity with your neighbors. Find out about actions by following your local on IG, following LATU on IG, and attending regular meetings. A great place to start is the 1512 Mohawk TA, who still have unmet demands and who are fighting to close the legal loophole that allows landlords to pursue renovictions.
Written by Katie who organizes with MALAN. Thanks to Lupita, Anne, and Celeste for sharing about your work with LATU!
DO YOU HAVE TIME, ITEMS*, OR MONEY TO CONTRIBUTE?
DO YOU NEED ITEMS, SERVICES, OR FOOD?
*PLEASE clean, sort & fold all items you are donating. Items should be new or gently used. Socks, underwear and hygiene items should always be unused.
WHO: 909 Mutual Aid
YOU HAVE: ITEMS MONEY
YOU NEED: ITEMS SERVICES FOOD
We serve unhoused folks and sex workers of Pomona. Our mission is to reduce harm and spread love. We provide sack lunches, hydration, clothes, blankets, hygiene supplies, harm reduction supplies (narcan, condoms, fentanyl test strips) + pet food, primarily to folks along Holt Ave., but we also drop off crucial items w/ folks all over Pomona. We partner w/ other mutual aid groups across SoCal to ensure our community is cared for.
COLLECTING: Hygiene supplies, pet food (IG DM @909mutualaid if you have supplies to donate)
WHEN: We serve folks 1-2 times/month + have to-go packs (containing supplies) ready for our community
WHERE: Meet @ Hamilton Park in Pomona
$: Venmo @FlorDeLuna8 (please specify ‘for 909 Mutual Aid’); funds help us provide meals
WHO: CHPLA/Clean Needles Now!
YOU HAVE: ITEMS
YOU NEED: ITEMS SERVICES
We primarily serve people who use drugs + folks living in unhoused communities—treating everyone with the dignity they innately deserve. We offer safer-use supplies, naloxone, + overdose response trainings to our participants, our community partners + mutual aid groups. We are on outreach 6 days/week + offer all safer-use supplies at our storefront Mon-Fri, 9-5. We also offer intensive case management in a few of our programs. Visit chpla.org @communityhealthprojectla
COLLECTING: Tents, 10x12 tarps, ponchos, & socks
WHEN: 9AM-5PM, Mon-Fri (Closed Wed 12:30-2PM)
WHERE: 1151 N Western Ave. 90029 (CHPLA/CNN HQ)
$: Donate funds at tinyurl.com/donateCHPLA or shop our Amazon wishlist
WHO: Every Day Action
YOU HAVE: TIME ITEMS
YOU NEED: ITEMS FOOD
Every Day Action (@every_day_action) reallocates gourmet meals from film sets, grocery stores + corporate functions directly to those in need, supplying shelters and community fridges. We need drivers–w/ their own car, a valid driver’s license + car insurance–for shifts ranging between 2 hours to ½ the day depending on your desired involvement level. Fill out this short form if you’re interested in helping out. You can even choose the neighborhoods you commute to! Every Day Action also builds hygiene kits for unhoused neighbors year-round. If you’ve got a shoot or event coming up and know there will be leftover food, visit our site for info on how to link up and reach out to mail@youreverydayaction.org
COLLECTING: Hygiene products for the kits (shampoo, soap, etc.), blankets, water bottles, water, coats, socks, shoes, snacks (like protein bars)
WHEN: TBD based on your avail
WHERE: Greater Los Angeles - we pick up and deliver food from San Pedro to Santa Clarita.
$: Support Every Day Action by visiting youreverydayaction.org
WHO: P.A.C. Solidarity
YOU HAVE: TIME ITEMS MONEY
YOU NEED: SERVICES FOOD
P.A.C. Solidarity is a group of interdependent organizers located in the Northeast SF Valley collaborating to reunify and empower Black and Brown community members and allies. We gather at a local park to distribute fresh groceries to 200 families twice/month. The spaces we create for folks sharing common struggles are also spaces of solidarity, systems of care and hubs where information and resources are shared in an effort to keep one another safe. IG DM @pacsolidarity to get involved or w/ q’s.
COLLECTING: Canopies 13’ x 13’, Tables, Toys
WHEN: 1st and 3rd Thursday of every month 12-6PM. Zoom meetings every Monday 5:30-6:30PM
WHERE: Humphrey Park in Pacoima 91331 on Filmore St.
$: Donate via GoFundMe to help us purchase groceries.
WHO: Echo Park Mutual Aid
YOU HAVE: TIME MONEY
YOU NEED: ITEMS FOOD
A growing collective of neighbors in Echo Park breaking cycles of oppression by learning to care better for ourselves, our neighbors, and the land. We distribute basic survival + healthcare supplies, build solidarity between housed + unhoused neighbors to alleviate the precarity of living outside + deepen our understanding of the contradictions at hand. We are looking for more neighbors in Echo Park who want to connect w/ us. Reach out on IG @e_p_m_a_.
WHEN: No formal meeting time
WHERE: Echo Park Neighborhood
$: Join our Patreon to fill our pantry + purchase supplies for our neighbors.
WHO: Water Drop LA
YOU HAVE: TIME ITEMS MONEY
We’ve been short on volunteers so please sign up to help out w/ Water Drop’s weekly water + supply distro to unsheltered residents of Skid Row/DTLA.
COLLECTING: 4-6 person tents and large tarps. DM @WaterDropLA to schedule a donation drop-off.
WHEN: Sundays from 11am-2pm
WHERE: Skid Row
$: Purchase much-needed supplies from our updated wishlist. Monetary donations help purchase pallets of water in bulk + truck rentals to transport.
WHO: Long Beach Community Compost
YOU HAVE: TIME ITEMS
YOU NEED: ITEMS
We are a community compost group in Long Beach that turns food scraps into vitamins for the soil. Volunteers are welcomed, esp Friday + Sunday mornings (times and locations below) to help collect + chop scraps, turn piles, and sift finished compost. IG DM @lbcommunitycompost or email crew@lbcommunitycompost.org w/ Q’s.
COLLECTING: Organic food scraps (fruit peels, vegetable peels, coffee grounds, etc.)
WHEN: Fridays 8-9:30AM + Sundays 10-11:30AM (Willow Springs Park), Fridays 11AM-1PM (DTLB Farmer's Market)
WHERE: Willow Springs Park (2714 California Ave) + Downtown LB Farmer's Market
$: Venmo @lbcommunitycompost to help w/ supplies and grow community composting efforts in LB
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