Petition: Yes to Watts! 2014 ADS Convention
Hi everyone,
I'm sure you're as excited as ever for next year's ADS Convention, and are tired of all this back and forth over the location.
That is why I've decided to chime in.
As deputy chair of the one-person Alternative Convention Site Exploratory Committee, I would like to share with you the merits of the following site:
The Hills Villa Motel in Watts, CA.
Let us put this confusion to rest and think about the benefits of convening together in a truly underprivileged neighborhood, for once.
Convenience: Nearby Santa Ana Blvd. and Wilmington Ave. offer MTA bus service to adjacent cities including Compton, Lakewood, and other parts of South LA (formerly "South-Central").
Amenities: The motel offers a free hospitality suite consisting of a wide array of condiments (including both Splenda and Equal), and a voucher for free day-old donuts from Uncle Joe's on Santa Ana and 110th St. Get there before 6:15 a.m., though, unless you want your double glazed to go to a homeless vet.
Savings: The best part. Premium Suites at the Hills Villa motel start at $26 per night. With quadruple occupancy, that amounts to $6.50/per person. Chump change!
Cultural value: The motel is a mere 1 block away from Watts Towers, one of LA's greatest landmarks. The towers were built over a period of 33 years, from 1921 to 1954, by Italian immigrant worker Sabato Rodia. The work, completed during Rodia's spare time between construction jobs, continues to serve as one of the finest examples of American Naive art west of the Mississippi. Consisting of steel pipes and rods for structural support and bed frames, bottles, ceramic tiles, scrap metal and sea shells (often "donated" from neighborhood children)--as decoration, the towers rise over 100 ft over the beautiful Compton skyline. If there's any place to showcase to our youth the wonders one can do with the smallest things, this is it!
Historic value: The nearby intersection of Compton Ave. and 109th was the site of some of the most intense activity during the 1992 LA Riots. Rioting and gang crime in LA has quieted down somewhat since, but it is of great educational value, to our youth especially, to understand that sh** can hit the fan anytime.
In summary, the selection of this site should serve to humble our community, bring us together under the banner of our modest traditions (but mostly the desire not to fall victim to a drive-by), and create a lasting sense of empathy to the most downtrodden among us.
Walk with me!
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