As the grand city of Los Angeles continues to grow, changes and effects can be seen rippling through the outer edges of the city. Smaller communities such as Boyle Heights, Compton, and El Sereno have been the targets of developers and "gentrifiers" alike. We recently heard the terrible news that the Eastside Cafe's space was being threatened, as the space may be sold to third parties with no connection to the community. As we've come to know and appreciate the Eastside Cafe and all that it has to offer we knew we had to step in and share this story. Eastside Cafe has provided a safe space to all walks of life and has proven to be a vital space that is much needed in the community. A Go Fund Me page has been set up to share more about this story. Photographer and artist Michael Beserra has been documenting testimonies from some of the artists and teachers involved with the space. If you can take a minute to view the videos and pass this along to anyone else that may be interested in helping save The Eastside Cafe.
Full text below from the Eastside Cafe:
For the last 15 years, The Eastside Café has been an autonomous collective that’s been working towards building self-determination and providing free self-empowerment services. For the last 3 years, we’ve been working towards creating a feasible deal to purchase our building due to gentrification.