THE TREASURER OF VENICE
By Jim
Smith
In those “endless
summer” days back on the beach around 1970, not even in my wildest
fantasies did I think I would someday be elected the Treasurer of Venice!
Alright, it’s actually treasurer of the Venice Neighborhood Council, but
let’s not quibble over semantics.
As I sat there on the sand with my friends,
inhaling the sweet aroma of, er ah, the fresh seabreeze, I gave little thought
to how to preserve this wonderful slum by the sea, as Larry Lipton called it.
Venice was a breath of freedom in an oppressive, Vietnam-era land. What
obligation did my friends and I have except to enjoy
it?
Oh sure, I went to all the protests and
riots. But I left the serious work of defending Venice to John Haag, Carol
Berman, Rick Davidson, Mary Lou Johnson, Marvena Kennedy and all the
others.
But all too soon the endless
summer ended. I became a union organizer. A worthy endeavor, except that I spent
many weeks, months and years seeing, and being in Venice, only at night and
early in the morning, since my organizing work took me elsewhere. It was always
a joy to return to Venice after short trips away. I treasured the infrequent
strolls along the Ocean Front, or a chance to watch the sun sink behind the
mountains.
In the late nineties, I
began feeling that something was wrong. It was like an itch on the back of my
neck. Perhaps it was seeing all those big, ugly boxes rising throughout Venice.
When one popped up next door, I knew it was time for action. Something had to be
done, or else wealth and greed would make the community many of us love,
disappear into the homogenization of Los
Angeles.
I found that quite a few other
Venetians had also felt that itch on the back of their necks. Now there are more
than 600 of us who cared enough to vote in the past election that propelled 10
of us into the neighborhood council, where we might be able to do some good, or
even save Venice.
Let me end this with
a Call to Action to everyone who, like me, has ever experienced those nirvana
moments that often come to residents of our community. Venice has given us much
over the years, now she needs us. All of us have an obligation not just to enjoy
Venice but to help preserve her. In a sense, we all need to be treasurers of
Venice. If everyone who cares, will join a Venice organization, come to a
meeting, and support those who are doing their best to retain our ethnic and
economic diversity, then we’ll win. That is, we’ll be able to pass
on this special place to the next generation, and the one after
that.
Check the Beachhead for ways to
get involved.
Posted: Wed - October 1, 2003 at 07:07 PM