Imagine you are one of the people attending a dinner, yet there are only seven seats at the table. Someone is going home without eating. For the one in eight people in the U.S. and one in five Angelenos who struggle with food insecurity, every day can feel like that.

Fast food chains, liquor stores, and smoke shops line the streets of South Central Los Angeles and evidently, there is a lack of grocery markets that one would typically see in suburban areas of the city. There also seem to be more bail bonds than fresh food.

South Central is a food desert that grocery stores have abandoned. The only Trader Joe’s to open up in the community is located by the University of Southern California.

For South Central residents, a common problem they experience is the distance they would need to travel in order to have access to foods that were substantial. Access to this market can pose difficulties for an area where 12.5%(7.5k households) of residents rely on public transportation.

The lack of access to healthy food options have only contributed to the food insecurity in this area of Los Angeles and has only become worse over the years.

After the COVID-19 outbreak, an estimated one in four now face hunger, According to the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, an organization fighting hunger in their community, raising awareness in hunger education and public policies in hunger assistance.

There is a stigma that only homeless people access food resources according to Roger Castle, the Chief Development Officer of LARFB. Seniors, people with disabilities and low-income families are the most visible examples of those who struggle with food insecurity. The fight doesn’t end there; food insecurity affects all groups of people regardless of employment status or ethnicity.

The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development reported almost 30% of income goes to housing, leaving little to no room for necessities, such as food and healthcare. The rocketing costs of housing and transportation in Los Angeles are leaving large numbers of households, even those with two incomes, facing food insecurity.

One of the leading health concerns in Los Angeles is obesity, which can be traced back to inaccessibility to healthy food. With a variety of fast food chains and convenience stores to choose from, the processed and unnatural foods found there have become the first choice in families’ diets. As a result, the rates of obesity, diabetes, and heart disease are spiking in these areas.

Although there is no clear evidence or explanation as to why supermarkets aren’t available in areas like South Central, they often avoid low-income areas for several reasons. Supermarkets anticipate where to open new locations based on income, crime rates and ease of transportation.

Income determines whether or not the residents of the area can afford to buy their products, the crime rates raise alarms in insurance and if residents have no vehicle, which is common in low-income areas, making it more difficult for them to make it to a grocery store. In the broader spectrum, communities with predominantly people of color or that are low-income are considered underserved by food retailers.

There are community members who are making a difference for their community in different shapes and forms. From gardening to food donations and distribution, and even health awareness through community advocacy and providing educational information. They are no longer waiting for help from the local government to help improve the epidemic of food insecurity, but rather, they have taken the initiative to help fellow community members.

“Drive-thrus are killing more people than drive-bys,” said South Central resident and Gangsta Gardener Ron Finley.

Finley, a native to South Central, began to care for the sidewalk soil in the front of his home. He started a revolution of his own by planting in the grass patch, known as the parkway, in front of his house.

Before gaining notoriety as the Gangsta Gardener, Finley received multiple citations from the government for planting in the parkway, even leading up to a warrant for his arrest. However, he did not let that stop him from continuing to plant flowers and greenery from his house. Through his encounters with local government, he was able to gain the attention of the media to notice how drastically different it is to be in the South Central neighborhood. 

South Central, as Finley described, is barren in comparison to other neighborhoods that are deemed more desirable to live in. There are little to no trees seen, walkways are cracked, and houses are constructed close to transportation stations. Other neighborhoods have markets that are more accessible and tree canopies that line the streets to promote a healthier environment. He says that after all he experienced and witnessed, all that he sees in his neighborhood is by design, so he turned to gardening to create access to healthy foods, rather than driving out of his neighborhood to obtain them. “I got tired of driving 45 minutes round trip to get an apple that wasn’t impregnated with pesticides,” Finley said in his 2013 TED Talk.

According to the Ron Finley Project, he has been growing fresh fruits and vegetables in his garden since 2010, and to combat food insecurity, he started teaching others the art of gardening and just how infinitely beneficial it is to grow your own food, especially with one’s mental and physical health. Not only that, he saw the joy from people in their eyes when gardening because they get to put in work to grow their own food. He wants people to take back their health and stay in the world of gardening to make their community a better place. He especially wants to see this from the children so that they understand the joy that is growing their own food and share it among their peers.

Finley is no longer looking for local government and politicians to help their community fight food insecurity and said, “We gotta empower ourselves...this is more than about food, it’s about freeing ourselves from an oppressive system that does not care about us.” He looks forward more to helping the community fight food insecurity through gardening and with small steps, he believes that actions like gardening and growing your own food can start a revolution within the community.

Amidst the crowded streets, stands South LA Cafe cafe whose walls read, “Coffee Community Connection” and bright yellow outdoor seating brings a welcoming feeling to regulars and new customers alike. The cafe is owned by Joe and Celia Ward-Wallace, and from this business, they have contributed to the fight against food insecurity in South Central.

“It was never about us, it was always about the community,” Joe said. “Everyone knows that this is a place for them.”

Joe, a South Central native, had a dream one night that sparked the idea of South LA’s grocery box after telling his partner Celia about the dream she brought it to life.

“People who don’t live in communities like ours are unaware of these issues because it’s just nothing that they deal with. Why would they know?,” Celia said.

In 2013, Ralph’s on Martin Luther King and Western closed their doors and CVS took over the building where it once stood. Fighting for his community, Joe was assured by CVS there would be a produce section. When CVS opened they had a produce section that was three tables long, according to Joe.

On Wednesday afternoons, they make 200 grocery bags that are provided by donations of $35 dollars, which feed the families who come in the community.

Volunteers help prepare the groceries one to two days prior so the efficiency of the line flows smoothly. Each week they hit the five group mark providing households with fresh vegetables, grains, protein, fruit and available dairy products that week.

Joe Ward-Wallace interacts with volunteers and community members with warm greetings and small check-ins down the line to create a loving environment for those who come. There is also a curbside pick up for those who want to drive through where volunteers pack cars up with groceries.

When the production line is efficient with packing the bags, by the time they’ve handed out a wristband per family, they are able to move families out in roughly 30 minutes.

If there are any grocery bags left, South LA Cafe leaves no food for waste, instead distributing them to neighboring storefronts. Through these food drives in the heart of South Central, the South LA Cafe team and their efforts are decreasing the need for far transportation.

“Opening this place meant freedom, it meant why do I have to go to the other side of town to have something nice? It shouldn’t be like that,” said Joe.

The Ward-Wallaces emphasize the importance of having community and bringing a positive environment in South Central through their business and through the people that they train to work there for them.

Celia, who loves Trader Joe’s, said the company is openly committed to not opening locations in lower income communities because that isn’t their target demographic.

“Do you really think the people there don’t want to buy organic food or don’t want real food?,” said Celia, “The one opened by USC didn’t come because they wanted to serve the community. I am very aware it’s there because they have a built-in, highly paid community of wealthy students that are shopping there.”