Central American Cultural District could be established in Los Angeles within 5 years

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Officials have moved to create a Central American Cultural District in the city of Los Angeles, which they say will acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of the Central American community here.

Jaime Caldera sells flags and other goods at the intersection of 3rd and Vermont.

Among his best-sellers are Central American flags -- due to the large population of Central Americans in the area, Caldera said.

L.A. County is home to nearly one million Central American residents, according to the 2020 U.S. Census -- more than half are in the city of Los Angeles.

Many community leaders celebrated on Tuesday as L.A. Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez introduced a motion to begin the formal process of designating a Central American Cultural District in the city.

"The idea for this district began over a decade ago with the Central American Cultural District master plan in 2012," said Hernandez.

Many Central Americans fled civil wars in the 1970s and 80s and immigrated to the U.S., though others made a home in California as early as the mid-19th century.

"This moment is about more than just an establishment of a new district, it is about creating a space where stories, our struggles and contributions of the Central American community are permanently honored and uplifted," said Jocelyn Duarte, executive director of SALEF.

The district would include cultural monuments, markers, and gateways.

"It gives a designated location for this area that we can make intentional investments, not only in the small businesses but in the cultural aspects of that neighborhood, whether it's the streetlights, whether it's the light poles, all of these things can have a cultural lens to them," said Hernandez.

It would be located largely in Council District 1, which includes the communities of Westlake and MacArthur Park, and overlap with Council Districts 10 and 13.

"Right now, we're living in an environment where immigrants are villainized, where immigrants are used as scapegoats for the problems of this country, where we deny the contributions that immigrants give to this country. In Los Angeles, we are a model for the nation, for a city that welcomes and recognizes the contributions of immigrants, and today is an example of that effort," said Martha Arévalo, executive director of CARECEN.

The motion calls for a report back in six months and a timeline for completion within four to five years.