Opulence Duels With Poverty on LA's Skid Row

But amid crackdown on crime, still a daily struggle for survival

By Zach Samalin, Newser Staff

Posted Nov 18, 2007 12:54 PM CST

(Newser) – While upscale lofts and hotels sprout up near crack houses and homeless shelters, Los Angeles' Skid Row has outstripped most other cities in all the races you don't want to win. LA County has a homeless population of 88,345—roughly twice as much as New York—and the 50 square blocks of Skid Row are the socioeconomic earthquake's epicenter, Good Magazine reports.

LAPD Commander Andrew Smith called it "a 24/7 Mardi Gras on crack…the country’s largest drug supermarket.” Since 2006, Smith has overseen an interdepartmental crackdown, resulting in significant drops in crime and homelessness. But the neighborhood has a long way to go: “It’s scary...There’s drugs and killing...I don’t go out alone," says one 12-year old.

A woman waits with others outside a Skid Row mission. (Getty Images)

Vehicles sit outside Kaiser's Bellflower hospital, in this Nov. 2006 file photo, in Los Angeles, Calif. More than a year after an elderly Kaiser hospital patient was found wandering crime-ridden Skid... (Associated Press)

Los Angeles' homeless fight to survive in the area known as Skid Row. (Getty Images)

A group of homeless people wait in line for food and shelter in the Skid Row area. (Getty Images)

A homeless man waits to get in line for food and shelter at a Skid Row mission. (Getty Images)

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Opulence Duels With Poverty on LA's Skid Row

But amid crackdown on crime, still a daily struggle for survival

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Opulence Duels With Poverty on LA's Skid Row

But amid crackdown on crime, still a daily struggle for survival

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OTHER STORIES ON OUR RADAR

War on Drugs • Los Angeles • homeless • LAPD • urban poverty • Skid Row

MOST POPULAR STORIES

[ By Views ]

[ By Comments ]

More Newser Stories

81 Busted in LA Gang Sweep

Rancho San Pedro gang dealt 'crippling blow'

LA Vows to Make Dodger Stadium Safe

LAPD: You're going to see a sea of blue; it's not going to be Dodger blue'

Shot LA Cop Lied About Shooting

Officer's story sparked manhunt, neighborhood lockdown

LA Riot Erupts After Police Shooting

Man hurt as crowd protesting Guatemalan's death attacks police station

LAPD Cancels Training Trip... to Arizona

Union slams decision not to seek boycott exemption

About Us

Site

Newser By Users

Community

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More News

What is Newser?