Los Angeles, the Automobile, and Mexican American Life | Hacker News Reader

Los Angeles, the Automobile, and Mexican American Life

boomcalifornia.com

34 pointsbenbreen19 comments

To past generations of Americans, cars represented freedom. Cars transcended race, bringing together car-lovers of all kinds in various ways. (Go to a car show and see.) This can even be seen in the movie 'Cars', one of my favorite movies.

But I think those days are passing. Today's teens don't have the same interest, at least not in huge numbers. I hope something similar takes the place cars have had in American culture.

> I hope something similar takes the place cars have had in American culture.

I have a feeling this has already happened: as you have mentioned, the car originally promised the freedom to "see the world", get in contact with others and was/is also a status symbol. One thing that - arguably - promises all of that and is in my experience one of the most important status symbol for people below 25 is the smartphone. It also transcends race, religion and social status and also seems to address the desire to be "someone else", just like the car. The difference is that with a car, you get a new identity made out of metal, while with a smartphone, you can create all sorts of fake online identities.

In 25 years or so a new generation will come along. I wonder what they will replace the smartphone with.

Which is to say this has been a constant in history. The details are different of course, as is the time between generations.

> To past generations of Americans, cars represented freedom. Cars transcended race

No they didn't.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Negro_Motorist_Green_Book

That article literally points the OPs point out

"Many Black Americans took to driving, in part to avoid segregation on public transportation. As the writer George Schuyler put it in 1930, "all Negroes who can do so purchase an automobile as soon as possible in order to be free of discomfort, discrimination, segregation and insult."[1]"

Sure, it beat having to ride in the back of the bus. But to say that cars transcended race and brought car owners together across those boundaries is unequivocally bullshit. I'm glad Mr. Schuyler found the positives in car ownership, but I guess he hadn't driven through any sunset towns when he wrote that.

>To past generations of Americans, cars represented freedom. Cars transcended race, bringing together car-lovers of all kinds in various ways.

Freedom, transcending race right through a black neighbourhood:

https://i.redd.it/uaigmvc812521.png

Was Boston’s north end bulldozed for cars due to race too?

I’m not contesting that poor areas and minority majority areas were affected and targeted for the building of highways, but I will say that even if it would have been a near homogeneous society (like Iran or China) neighborhoods will get bulldozed and freeways built despite race or absence of racial issues.

I think you mean the West End of Boston. The North End is mostly intact. The West End was "renewed" because it was seen by some (generally not the residents) as a slum. The residents were largely poor, and/or minorities of one type or another, and they were not in a position to lobby for preservation of their neighbourhood. If you are interested in the history, I recommend visiting the West End Museum.

The North End had the 93 run right through it (above ground). They've since demolished it like the Central Freeway in SF was demolished and turned into an urban park (and now routed it underground). But it remains the neighborhood was cleaved in two as in many other places where freeways were built in already existing dense areas.

A real meeting of the minds in this here comment section

Cars are racist? Drivel. Los Angeles and the automobile certainly have an interesting and complex history, but not as an instrument of oppression. Just the opposite. Cars have given everyone more freedom than ever.

Freedom to have a crushing credit to pay for your car, to pay for gas & insurance, to make cities unwalkable leading you to have to have a car, and last but not least freedom to destroy the planet at the same time !

You can buy a car without crushing credit. Gas and insurance aren't that expensive in America. Cities can remain walkable and drivable at the same time (see: Chicago). And electric vehicles are improving on environmental concerns at a fantastic rate.

Please don't justify this garbage blog post.

I’m writing from a bus and found giving my car up to be great for my pocketbook. Gas was more expensive for affordable vehicles and efficient vehicles were still pricy.

It’s a pain to park, doesn’t necessarily move faster than public transit, and is one of the largest safety concerns to city dwellers.

The blog post can’t be written-off by stating “Chicago”.

No, freedom to get away from a stinking, dangerous tenement and have access to work.

Places like LA leave people in a situation where they literally need a license from the government just to step outside their home and fetch milk.

You call this freedom?

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