LA—the “global metropolis.” Home to people of many different racial and ethnic backgrounds. However, although Calif. had entered the Union (US) as a free state, many still attempted to create an “Anglo paradise” due to the Gold Rush, an agricultural boom, and a location close to the sea. Many pushed “efforts to subordinate Mexicans, exclude Chinese, and prohibit blacks,” which resulted in various genocides, uprisings, and policies in SoCal. Despite the segregationist housing, discriminatory job market, and targeted violence, LA still proved itself to be a place filled with the promise of higher wages and homeownership. Many parts of LA had become enclaves and hubs of businesses, landownership, art, and activism.

It was an executive order. The war that the US had once claimed neutrality in had touched the homeland and exacerbated tensions both subtly held and overt. Following the tragedy at Pearl Harbor, President Franklin Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066 on February 19, 1942, which authorized the forced removal of all people deemed a “threat to national security” from the West Coast to internment camps further inland. While the order affected Italian and German Americans as well, the target of such an order was those of Japanese descent—regardless of American citizenship status or years of residence. Japantowns up and down the West Coast became ghost towns. One of these towns was Little Tokyo.

During this war period, many people continued to flock to Los Angeles to fulfill their dreams. The migration patterns brought many ethnic minorities to the city and, due to housing restrictions, lived and worked closely together. After Japanese residents were evicted from their homes by the military, the influx of new residents still had no place to reside except in places where building owners had many vacant properties to fill. Many African Americans from the Deep South created a home in Little Tokyo and by October 1943 African American businessmen created the Bronzeville Chamber of Commerce. Since housing was still scarce for non-whites who were restricted from the suburbs, Bronzeville, unfortunately, became subject to overcrowding and other slum-like conditions. Even so, Bronzeville and nearby Central Ave became a bustling hub of artistic creations. “Breakfast clubs,” or nightclubs that stayed open until the night turned into breakfast time, were filled with jazz and blues. War workers now had more disposable income and they spent it how they desired.

During the 1945 transition, as Japanese Americans returned to Bronzeville/Little Tokyo, African Americans left the central area due to buy out, leases not renewed, and in some cases, lawsuits. Not all African Americans left the area, and even with some racial tension, there was much collaboration that had continued throughout the interwar period and beyond. Organizations like the Nisei Progressives helped African Americans find housing and African American attorney and chair of the California Race Relations Commission Hugh MacBeth argued the case of People vs. Oyama after being the chief voice exposing the injustice against West Coast Japanese Americans. Although Bronzeville is no longer physically present in Little Tokyo, historian Martha Nakagawa continues to highlight this piece of longforgotten LA history.

A world-renowned writer and anthropologist, Hurston studied and highlighted black folklore and the arts. Born in Notasulga, Alabama on January 7, 1891 to former slaves, Hurston and her parents soon sought a better life in Eatonville, Florida where they flourished. Her father became one of the town’s first mayors. She attended Morgan College in 1917, where she completed her high school studies; Howard University, where she earned an associates degree, participated in student government and cofounded the school’s newspaper The Hilltop; and Barnard College from 1925-1928, where she earned her BA in anthropology. During her time in New York City, she

befriended other writers like Langston Huges and Countee Cullen and became a familiar name during the Harlem Renaissance. She often incorporated her research on black culture from the diaspora in her works, such as Mules and Men. Her most popular work, Their Eyes Were Watching God, broke literary norms by focusing on the experience of a black woman. As we commemorate the internment of 120,000 Japanese Americans on February 19, 1942, it as Hurston, who found solidarity in their disdain for the US’ “predatory wanderlus directed against people of color at home and around the world.” In 1946, Hurston wrote a letter to her friend Claude Barnett, the president of the Associated Negro Press and the country’s first Black news service, venting her anger at President Harry Truman, whom she described as the “butcher of Asia.” Throughout her letter, it was clear that she felt, and wanted others to know, that US foreign policy in Asia is genocidal and racist and implicitly an attack on Black Americans. She wanted to wake everyone up to what she felt was the reality. Although her writing and advocacy did not become known until after her death, she continues to inspire and influence writers and advocates around the world.