Three Black Men
A Journey into the Magical Otherwise
Los Angeles:
A place of sacred hospitality
In the first of the three gathering sites on our journey, we will tap into the rich cultural and spiritual energies that are alive and resonating in Los Angeles.
We acknowledge the waters of the Los Angeles Basin. Our convening will be grounded in ceremonial awareness of water, in appreciation for this remarkable region held between mountains and ocean, and in recognition of what flows in this sacred ecology. Orland notes that “there is a deep story to recover about the River entering into Los Angeles.”
We recognize the Indigenous heart of this place. In the past, the ShadeTree community engaged in weekly studies of etheric geographies, bringing forward stories of places in Los Angeles, and exploring the way community takes form, seeing how a Pueblo emerged from the stories that were awakened around old campfires.
A city is fundamentally a crossroads, where people coming from very different realities meet. Tensions are felt and expressed around these differences. How can a collective vision and transformative consciousness be cultivated as we respond to the tensions of the crossroads? How do we open new pathways that humanity can step forward onto?
This is a good place to gather and explore what is emerging. In Orland’s words, “Everything could happen here if you know what here is.”
Our convening will be a space of sacred hospitality, one that includes reflection on economies, currencies and energy that exist in the city. There is so much to honor in Los Angeles, as we draw forth inspirations and understandings that can travel with us on our journeys.
A FUGITIVE’S GUIDE TO LOS ANGELES
Japanese Community & Cultural Center (JACCC)
The JACCC will be our location for the Three Black Men gathering. The Japanese American Cultural & Community Center weaves Japanese and Japanese American arts and culture into the fabric of our communities. JACCC remains firmly rooted in Little Tokyo, providing a vital place to build connections between people and cultures, locally and internationally. Through inclusive programs and authentic experiences, we continue our living traditions and nurture the next generation of innovative artists, culture-bearers, and thinkers.
Leimert Park
Leimert Park Village is the mecca for Black art and culture in Los Angeles.
It can only be experienced!
Mother of Humanity Statue
Mother’s Day 1996 saw the unveiling of artist Nijel Binns’ 16-foot-tall bronze Mother of Humanity® monument. It was built as a symbol of hope following the civil unrest, conflagration and riots in reaction to the televised beating of Rodney King by Los Angeles law enforcement officers in 1992. Since May 11th 1996, the MOH monument has been on permanent exhibit at the Watts Labor Community Action Committee – a civic center located at 10950 Central Avenue in Watts, California.
Little Ethiopia
Los Angeles, California is home to one of the largest Ethiopian and Eritrean communities in the United States. The epicenter of that community is a short corridor in the heart of LA called Little Ethiopia.
Ethiopian immigrants began opening shops and restaurants in the early 1990s. For them, the strip of commercial properties running along Fairfax Blvd was a community and gathering place for fellowship. Locals originally referred to the area as Little Addis after Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa. But in 2002, the city of Los Angeles officially designated the corridor “Little Ethiopia”.
California African American Museum (CAAM)
All the galleries at CAAM are closed for facility upgrades until August 5, 2023, except for special programming. Presently, they are featuring exhibitions in partnership with Art+Practice.
You can view the program schedule and receive the most current information at their website.
The California African American Museum’s mission is to research, collect, preserve, and interpret for public enrichment the history, art, and culture of African Americans with an emphasis on California and the western United States.
Founded in 1977, CAAM has a long and rich history. The first African American museum of art, history, and culture fully supported by a state, CAAM was the direct result of a sustained, multiyear campaign of activism undertaken by visionary founders and community members. Its creation was an early and tangible recognition by the State of California of the critically important role African Americans have played in the American West’s cultural, economic, and political development.
Mapping Indigenous LA
A map of Los Angeles does not tell the story of its people. In a megalopolis like Los Angeles, this is a story that is often invisible to policy makers and even the city’s notion of itself as a global crossroads. This story includes layered, sedimented cultural geographies of Indigenous Los Angeles that includes the Gabrielino/Tongva and Tataviam who struggle for recognition of their sacred spaces and recognition as a nations, American Indians who were removed from their lands and displaced through governmental policies of settler colonialism, and indigenous diasporas from Latin America and Oceania where people have been displaced by militarism, neoliberal economic policies, and overlapping colonial histories. When we consider Pacific Islander and Latin American Indigenous Diasporas, Los Angeles has the largest indigenous population of any city in the US. While many would argue that there is not one Los Angeles but multiple LAs, what is less known is that there are multiple indigenous LAs whose histories are layered into the fabric of the city.except for special programming.