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Los Angeles Resident Concerned About Homeless Population And Food Consumption In City

Shaleeka Powell |
October 8, 2013 | 7:22 p.m. PDT

Staff Reporter

Name: Rachel Etheredge

Rachel Etheredge, a freelance in the music industry, shopping for plants. (Shaleeka Powell)
Rachel Etheredge, a freelance in the music industry, shopping for plants. (Shaleeka Powell)

Neighborhood: Echo Park

Job: Freelance in Music Industry

Age: 27

What are the top issues facing Los Angeles, and why?

"I am going to state two that I seen to be a little apparent, one is homelessness. I have seen a lot of homeless people around. I feel like there is more in Los Angeles then where I came from, New York."

"Also where people get their food and how they get it. There are so many farms in California and I don't know if people take advantage of that enough and are conscious of that enough." 

How do both of these issues make you feel as a Los Angeles resident?

"Not great, but you kind of start to think about why those things are happening. I kind of identified reasons why I think that there is a bigger homeless population here than anywhere else not knowing if that is really the case or not, just based on my observations. I think it has a lot to do with the weather. It is kind of easier to live a life outside here. I am not sure of what the state of California is doing to help that, but I have not seen a lot of shelters. It is very interesting for me to kind of find out why."

"The food thing is something I kind of have not been apart of. I have been interviewing at this company called Good Eggs and they let residents of L.A. get their food online all from local farmers or farmers they curate. This brought forth for me that issue of the local food economy and how it exists in California maybe a lot more than other places, but with the amount of farms that exists here I don't think people are taking advantage of it enough."

 

What could Mayor Garcetti do to address your top priorities?

"Not knowing about the first one, I think he should maybe have more missions or open up more shelters."

"I already know the mayor has done something about the food movement and they are doing what they call I think a good food purchasing pledge for restaurants. They get stamps for a grade like A, B, or C. They get a grade based on how they buy their food, where they buy their food from and if it is healthy.  I think maybe  making that more strict will make the population realize that it is just as important as the cleanliness grade."   

 

Did you vote in the May election? Who did you support?

"In California,  no I did not vote. I moved here from New York 4 months ago."

 

Reach staff reporter Shaleeka Powell here



 

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