Courtesy of Creative Commons

January 31, 2025

Ashes to Action: Fighting for Altadena’s Future After the Fires

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When I left snowy Ithaca for my Southern California beach town in December, I was eager to trade the Arctic wind chill for blue skies and an ocean breeze. What I did not expect was to be met with ash falling from the orange-ish sky and smoke plumes over the ocean. Although my town was spared, everyone I knew was either directly impacted by the disaster or waking up to evacuation warnings and preparing donations. 

It felt nearly impossible to grasp the on-going devastation. Even after integral Los Angeles communities had been entirely wiped out, the raging wildfires persisted. With the scale of destruction, all any of us could really do was pray for our safety and for those that we loved, desperate for some form of comfort in the chaos.

Contrarily, to open our phones during the LA wildfires was to encounter a barrage of hatred aimed at our city. Many were convinced the fires were some form of karmic retribution for celebrities, the Hollywood industry and the rich elite. While the Pacific Palisades is a notably wealthy community, the assumption that the natural disaster was a kind of revenge for the privileged is tone-deaf and apathetic at best. Altadena, an ethnic and artistic enclave, is one of the many overlooked communities struggling to rebuild after this fire season.

Located just north of Pasadena by the San Gabriel Mountains, Altadena blossomed as a refuge for individuals escaping the redlining policies of the 20th century. Black Americans and artists flocked to the secluded town where they developed an eclectic society defined by its diverse architecture and neighborly customs. Homes were affordable and the population worked hard to prevent gentrification from impacting established citizens. 

When the Eaton Fire destroyed thousands of acres in and around the community, it became clear the quirky town might never be fully restored. The major concern is that Altadena’s leading demographics, artists and African-Americans, will be unable to afford to return or unwilling to risk losing their homes again, which begs the question: can Altadena preserve its soul simply by rebuilding? Without artists and people of color, all that’s left is the population that was graciously allowed to modernize the old town — those with little cultural ties to the area beyond appreciating its potential, in other words, the gentrifiers. 

It is no secret that LA and the surrounding area are gentrified; it’s etched into the city’s history and evident on the average downtown adventure. But Altadena is one of the few communities left that has supported, financially and otherwise, their native populations while simultaneously allowing room for innovative growth. The generations of artists who made their mark and established their lives in Altadena represent everything that the common LA citizen strives to become. Losing this cultural relic would signify the complete loss of a history already so often overshadowed by the glamorous commercialism of Hollywood — a history of the hard-working, middle-class Angelinos who truly founded this city.  

I believe there must be an additional push to re-attract the individuals who made Altadena what it is, both by the city itself and LA County. When the city is eventually rebuilt, it will not be the same unless the displaced Altadenians have a say in the reconstruction of their community. Whether that means establishing a new platform for Altadena artists or simply raising awareness for the displaced population, this reform is imperative for preserving the integrity of the town. Altadena represents everything Los Angeles is at its core: a city defined by its art, undeniable sense of community and unique history.

Mia Roman-Wilson is a freshman in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at [email protected].