Recent Streetsblog LA posts about profiling

Ceebo Tha Rapper shoots a video near 65th and Broadway, where 25-year-old Ezell Ford was shot and killed by the police, answering critics that thought his first video called for violence against the police. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

Friday Ruminations on Profiling, Policing, and Planning

By Sahra Sulaiman | Mar 3, 2017 | 8 Comments

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.

The Rosa Parks station in Watts/Willowbrook, looking southward along the Blue Line. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

As Metro Prepares to Approve New Policing Contract, A Reminder that Criminalization of Poverty at a Discounted Price is No Bargain

By Sahra Sulaiman | Feb 22, 2017 | 14 Comments

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.

South Central's America is black, brown, family, faith, community, resistance, and resilience. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

The Women’s March, the “It’s Not Your Time” Doctrine, Urban Planning, and You

By Sahra Sulaiman | Jan 26, 2017 | 50 Comments

The divide between the communities I write about and the people who seek to plan or advocate on their behalf has never felt deeper.

Equity 101: Bikes v. Bodies on Bikes

By Sahra Sulaiman | Sep 28, 2016 | 6 Comments

“Maybe you didn’t catch that you jumped into a convo specifically about transportation/police issues?” snarked the self-described “police/community relations specialist” and bike advocate. I had jumped into the #moveequity twitter conversation to engage the prompt, “How can community groups and residents partner with law enforcement to build trust and create safer, fairer communities?” I did […]

Equity Advocates Discuss Needs of “Invisible” Cyclists on HuffPost Live

By Sahra Sulaiman | Nov 4, 2015 | 18 Comments

Last week, the Kinder Institute for Urban Research at Rice University published a story declaring that “Most Cyclists Are Working-Class Immigrants, Not Hipsters.” If you spend any time in the streets and/or pay attention to cycling issues, this is something you probably already knew. At least, intuitively. It’s been a little harder to substantiate that […]

Mayor Eric Garcetti tried to pacify activists by discussing his efforts to humanize policing just before the South L.A. Town Hall was finally shut down. Sahra Sulaiman/Streetsblog L.A.

South L.A. Town Hall Ends in Protests but Residents Hope Dialogue with Mayor Is Just Beginning

By Sahra Sulaiman | Oct 21, 2015 | 35 Comments

Really? A helicopter?? The aircraft swooped in low and fast outside Holman United Methodist Church Monday night as Mayor Eric Garcetti’s first ever South L.A. Town Hall came to an otherwise unceremonious close. It was a little after 8 p.m., and pleas from an exasperated Reverend Kelvin Sauls that those “interested in having a civil […]

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