DTLA Walk with John — Bunker Hill Edition

On Saturday 20 January 2024, I’m going to co-lead a walk of Bunker Hill with State Assembly candidate, John Yi. We will meet at Metro‘s Civic Center/Grand Park Station in Gloria Molina Grand Park. To avoid confusion, make certain (if you come by train) that you exit in the Grand Park entrance/exit. There’s also an entrance/exit at 1st and Hill streets — which is about a block south. Don’t use that exit. We’ll start the walk at 4:00 pm. I like to organize my own evening strolls around the sunset and the sun will set that day at 5:11. It should be lovely. Check the weather beforehand, though, because — as Angelenos who walk know — it actually does rain in Southern California. Especially in February and January.

MEET JOHN YI

John Yi is currently the Executive Director of Los Angeles Walks, which is a great organization and which is how I first became aware of him. He also makes brilliant videos on Instagram — which is how I became aware that he’s running for office. He is running for California Assembly — the lower house of the California State Legislature. If you, without searching it up, can name your California Assemblyperson, then congratulations — you’re more civically minded than I am. But you don’t have to be that engaged to know that it’s important to vote — especially in local and state elections, where your vote counts much more than it does (in my opinion) in national elections. You should vote in those, too, though. Career politicians benefit from low voter engagement and participation. Anyway — if you’re like me — endorsements could for a lot. So consider John’s.

I personally live in State Assembly District 52. John is running to represent Assembly District 54. Why, then, am I interested in District 54? I’ll tell you why — because it is the urban core of this region that we all call home. It includes the two most populous and most densely populated neighborhoods: Koreatown and Westlake. It represents the diversity of Los Angeles and is home to Boyle Heights, Chintatown, Filipinotown, Little Bangladesh, Pico-Union, and Little Tokyo. It includes the city’s seats of power and finance: the Civic Center and Bunker Hill. It also covers Montebello, Commerce, and Vernon. Not to dismiss them — but my concerns are definitely the other communities where issues of affordability, density, diversity, and transit are much more keenly felt by all Angelenos.

Assembly District 54 is diverse — and John speaks English, Korean, Spanish, and Russian. He was born and raised in Koreatown. I don’t think I’ve ever met a politician with his level of insight and ability to effortlessly and sensitively navigate issues related to affordability, diversity, housing, and transportation. And so, when he asked if I’d like to lead a neighborhood walk of somewhere Downtown in his district — and after Little Tokyo and Chinatown were spoken for — I said yes. The question, for me, was whether to do Bunker Hill or the Arts District. Either would’ve been fun — but Bunker Hill, probably more than any other neighborhood in Los Angeles — offers explorers a chance to contemplate solutions — both good and bad — to architecture, art, transit, culture, gentrification, housing, re-development, and more. And it’s also a neighborhood I find uniquely pleasant to walk around.

EVENT INFORMATION

If you want to go, please register on the event page. It’s free but you can also donate to John. I’ve accepted tips in the past but in this case, please instead donate to John’s campaign. I would be good to have someone like him in Sacramento.

If you want an idea of some of what the walk will entail, you can get an a couple of past essays — California Fool’s Gold — Exploring Bunker Hill and Nobody Drives in LA — Exploring Downtown’s Calvin S. Hamilton Pedway. But don’t let reading those preclude joining on the walk (2.37 miles/3.81 kilometers). There will be new discoveries, new conversations, and revelations. Changes have occurred since those pieces were written. Besides — walking with a group at sunset will be more fun than reading… and if your new years resolution is to go outside more, get more walking in, meet new people, get more politically engaged — well, it will tick all of those boxes and more. And if you’re interested in hanging out afterward — I can give you some history of La Cita or the Redwood — two nearby watering holes.

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