Kevin Francisco Pena Exide Final Research blog

Introduction

            In the 1930’s the Federal Housing Administration under Roosevelt’s New Deal program granted permission to the Home Owners Loan Corporation to a create a map of the county of Los Angeles. In this map they were instructed to split Los Angeles County into 239 districts which were then color coated to instruct banks on the specific areas that would be deemed as the best investment which was given the Green and blue being second best. In the other districts were predominantly communities of color and were labeled as the worst zones for investments and were given the colors yellow which was bad and red zones were the worst possible investment. Due to this many communities of color remained stagnant due to unfair loan practices in their neighborhoods which prevented economic interest from coming into the community and left potential homeowners unable to buy homes which caused a generation of renters in these areas that continues till this day. The purpose of my project is to introduce these historical events and how they have affected communities of color and led to such events to occur like in the city of Vernon which was affected by the lead contamination of the Exide battery plant and in which affected nearby communities such as Boyle Heights where I grew up in.

Research Process

            The sources I am drawing from for my research project have been organized in a chronological order. Through this method I plan to create a historical narrative where I can explain the history of redlining and how it led to the events of the Exide battery plant lead contamination. I began to investigate the event that occurred in Vernon first by looking into the local news reports that had been following Exide’s lead contamination legal battle. From these reports I was able to retrieve information on the damage this spill caused to the City of Vernon and how it affected the nearby communities around it. From it I was able to conclude that my community had also been affected severely prompting me to look deeper as to why this event was allowed to go on for so long. As I found more information I began to find the racist historical practices that the FHA and HOCLA put into practice. Due to this events like the Exide lead contamination was allowed to continue in these communities of color where they have suffered harsh environmental racism.

Historical Analysis

            The New deal program that allowed the Federal Housing Administration to grant permission to the Home Owners Loan Corporation to create a map where Los Angeles County would be split into 239 districts. As these districts became redlined and color coated to label the best areas for investment and worst areas and were also given a grading scale A being the best, B second best and C bad investment and D being the worst. Due to these practices unfair loans were given to the communities labeled as the worst and which was concluded that these areas were graded on how many people of color lived in that community[1]. This continued practice also established a caste system due to the redlining methods used by the FHA and HOLC. The way it was divided in these fairly skinned communities that were more on the white spectrum than their darker counterparts was in a way where people of color were able to rise to the ranks of “whiteness” by having a community that was predominately white looking. Such was the case for the communities of Claremont where more white looking Mexicans presided and were given a C rating rather than D to due this demographic. On the other hand the darker looking Mexican communities that were located in the San Gabriel Valley were given a D rating due to their complexion and being labeled as peon Mexicans who were still raising goats and cattle[2].

           

            As a result of these racist practices communities of color lacked investments making affordable housing almost impossible in these areas and created a high surge of renters due to it. Other findings have shown the long lasting effects that redlining has done to Los Angeles county and how this process of dividing neighborhoods based on race continues till this day. In one project done on the red lining effects in Los Angeles county Grace Schumaker was able to compile data into a map to show the lasting effects of this history. In one map he includes the PM 2.5 exposure that tends to be higher in communities where freeways divide them and pass through these homes on a daily basis. This exposure is a pollutant that is known to cause respiratory problems overtime therefore he was able to display the communities largely affected by this are those same communities in the C and D ratings that have remained divided since the redlining practices took effect. He also includes data on the high renters that exist in this area concluding that most of the renters that remain in the worst areas of investment were unable to purchase homes due to the unfair practices that existed in the past. This legacy of renters in this area remains at an all time high especially with house prices sky rocketing and many homeowners in these particular areas were able to buy homes regardless of the unfair home loan practices and have since then past down these homes from one generation to the next[3].

 

            These historical practices therefore have led to such events as the Exide battery plant lead contamination which has caused millions of dollars in damages to the nearby communities that surround the city of Vernon. The disregard for the people in these redlined areas allowed companies such as Exide to presume contaminating the soil up until 2015 when it was officially shut down. Since the 1970’s Exide manufactured Batteries in this industrial city of Vernon which then came under investigation in 1987 by the DTSC[4]. By 2002 after gathering more information on the violations committed by the Exide Battery plant the Department of Toxic Substances control put into effect a Corrective Action Consent Order so that Exide can begin to pay reparations for the clean up[5]. The United States Attorneys office of the Central district of California stated that a Non Prosecution would go into effect against Exide which means no criminal charges would be filed against them so long as they remain a company where funds can be retrieved from their company rather it go bankrupt[6]. Furthermore steps have been taking since its shutting down in 2015 and the County of Los Angeles for Public Health have taken steps since 2019 by Lead blood testing the residents that are nearby this area so far about 6,074 affected residents have been tested for lead in their system[7]. As early as 2017 two years after Exide’s permanent shutdown community organizations such as the Communities for a better environment began the Exide clean up plan where they denounced the company and asked for them to pay damages against the community in full through their efforts Exide contamination began to raise awareness in the communities[8]. Other sources from the South Coast Air quality management district reported high levels of Arsenic in the air that were a result from Exide’s air pollution which have affected over 100,000 residents[9]. Assembly Member Miguel Santiago from district 53 in Los Angeles has urged residents to reach out to him on his site to apply for lead blood tests in order to move efforts towards solving the damages to health of the nearby residents of Vernon[10]. In 2019 studies by USC in a project they called the “Truth Fairy” found lead in baby teeth after surveying 43 children that lived in the five nearby communities around Vernon which has concluded that lead at such a young age can cause irreversible damage that can affect the development of their brains[11]. As of October 2020 however it was reported by the L.A. times that Exide technologies would officially file for bankruptcy and therefore any legal efforts to hold them accountable would be lost leaving tax payers to pay over 270 million in state tax to clean up the mess left behind by Exide[12].

Image Analysis

    The maps above that are displayed show the historical mapping that created redlining in Los Angeles and what led to communities of color to live in zones designated as a bad investment. This resulted in no economic prosperity in these neighborhoods leading to more disparities such as high rent in these areas with no possible way to become homeowners therefore leading renters in these areas to be generational. The other image displays the areas that have been affected by the Exide battery plant and the amount of Lead in the soil that is found in these redlined areas. The purpose for that map as well was to show my community of Boyle Heights which tends to be the nearest to Vernon and therefore the lead contamination in this area is higher than other nearby communities to Vernon.

Conclusion

    

    Lastly this project was made to present to viewers the effects and outcomes of systemic racism and how communities of color like Boyle Heights have been affected for many years due to the policies that redlining implemented during Roosevelts new deal programs. It also should demonstrate how companies such as Exide were allowed to contaminate the city and its nearby communities where people and children have been affected by its negligence and crimes against the environment. In this particular event many people’s health have been affected and further studies have concluded that the effects can be permanent especially in children where there brains are just starting to develop. After concluding the research it was found that Exide declared Bankruptcy and any legal efforts to hold them accountable are gone. The California tax payers are left with the burden of cleaning up the mess Exide has left behind and many argue that California’s laws were also responsible in Exide technologies walking away from their responsibility. This project can serve as a cautionary tale of big corporations in redlined neighborhoods and how they are affected and how community involvement in these issues can help prevent another tragedy such as this one from ever occurring again.

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Bibliography

[1] Gibbons, Gonda, United States, García, Williams, Hudson, Brown, Anthony, and Moore. Los Angeles Land Covenants, Redlining; Creation and Effects. Accessed March 18, 2021. https://lapl.org/collections-resources/blogs/lapl/los-angeles-land-covenants-redlining-creation-and-effects.

 

[2] Reft, Ryan. “Segregation in the City of Angels: A 1939 Map of Housing Inequality in L.A.” KCET, February 2, 2021. https://www.kcet.org/shows/lost-la/segregation-in-the-city-of-angels-a-1939-map-of-housing-inequality-in-l-a.

 

[3] Lasting Effects: Redlining in Los Angeles County. Grace Schumaker, Dec. 2019, media.defense.gov/2019/Mar/01/2002095015/-1/-1/1/SPACE-POLICY-DIRECTIVE-4-FINAL.PDF.

[4] Johnston, Jill E, and Andrea Hricko. “Industrial Lead Poisoning in Los Angeles: Anatomy of a Public Health Failure.” Environmental justice (Print). Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., October 1, 2017. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5783279/.

 

[5] dtsc.ca.gov. Accessed March 18, 2021. https://dtsc.ca.gov/2019/07/19/dtsc-intervenes-after-exide/.

 

[6] “Exide Technologies Admits Role In Major Hazardous Waste Case And Agrees To Permanently Close Battery Recycling Facility In Vernon.” The United States Department of Justice, June 23, 2015. https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/exide-technologies-admits-role-major-hazardous-waste-case-and-agrees-permanently-close.

 

[7] Los Angeles County Department of Public Health. “Community Health Outreach: Let's Talk About Exide.” Exide Contamination | Los Angeles County Department of Public Health - Environmental Health. Accessed March 18, 2021. http://publichealth.lacounty.gov/eh/exide/.

 

[8] Communities for a Better Environment. Accessed March 18, 2021. https://www.cbecal.org/organizing/southern-california/exide/.

 

[9] “Facing off against Pollution in South LA Neighborhoods.” Intersections South LA, May 16, 2014. http://intersectionssouthla.org/story/facing-off-against-pollution-in-south-la-neighborhoods/.

 

[10] “Exide Cleanup.” Official Website – Assembly member Miguel Santiago Representing the 53rd California Assembly District, February 25, 2020. https://a53.asmdc.org/exide-cleanup-0.

 

[11] Hopper, Leigh. “USC Study Finds Lead in Baby Teeth of Children near Battery Recycling Plant.” USC News, May 7, 2019. https://news.usc.edu/156523/lead-in-baby-teeth-exide-battery-plant/.

 

[12] “Court Allows Exide to Abandon a Toxic Site in Vernon. Taxpayers Will Fund the Cleanup.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, October 16, 2020. https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-10-16/exide-bankrtuptcy-decision-vernon-cleanup.