Compton is often labeled as an "inner-city" community and is considered unattractive by many outsiders. In spite of such perceptions, Compton is home to many African-American and Latino working professionals. It boasts an equestrian club, one of the best astronomy programs for teens in the country, and is home to the Major League Baseball Academy.
Compton Geography
- ''For information about Compton's tranportation and freeways, see the "Transportation" section.''
Compton is located at 33°53'48" North, 118°13'30" West (33.896715, -118.225078).
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 26.4 km² (10.2 mi²). 26.2 km² (10.1 mi²) of it is land and 0.2 km² (0.1 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 0.69% water.
Compton Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there are 93,493 people, 22,327 households, and 18,620 families residing in the city. The population density is 3,563.5/km² (9,225.6/mi²). There are 23,795 housing units at an average density of 906.9/km² (2,348.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 40.31% Black or African American, 16.71% White, 0.70% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 1.05% Pacific Islander, 37.34% from other races, and 3.62% from two or more races. 56.84% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.There are 22,327 households out of which 50.7% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.3% are married couples living together, 27.7% have a female householder with no husband present, and 16.6% are non-families. 13.2% of all households are made up of individuals and 5.5% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 4.16 and the average family size is 4.45.
In the city the population is spread out with 38.5% under the age of 18, 11.5% from 18 to 24, 28.7% from 25 to 44, 14.4% from 45 to 64, and 6.9% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 25 years. For every 100 females there are 96.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 91.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $31,819, and the median income for a family is $33,021. Males have a median income of $22,698 versus $24,692 for females. The per capita income for the city is $10,389. 28.0% of the population and 25.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 35.6% of those under the age of 18 and 14.7% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.
Transportation
The city of Compton is known as the "Hub City" because of its unique position in the center of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. Five freeways outline the general boundaries of the city and provide superior access to destinations throughout the region. These include Interstate Highways 105, 110, 710, and 405, along with State Highway 91.The Metro Blue Line light rail runs north-south through the city; Compton Station is in the heart of the city, adjacent to the Renaissance Shopping Center. The Blue Line connects Downtown Los Angeles to South Los Angeles, Compton, Carson, and Long Beach. Riders can transfer to the Metro Green Line to cross South LA east-west, or to the Metro Red Line subway in Downtown LA to travel to Mid-City, Hollywood, the Valley, or Union Station, transfer point for Pasadena-bound Metro Gold Line trains and Metrolink commuter trains.
The Long Beach and Los Angeles Ports are less than a 20 minutes' drive from downtown Compton, providing easy access to international destinations for customers, suppliers and leisure travelers. The Alameda Corridor, a passageway for 25% of all U.S. waterborne international trade, runs directly through the Compton from north to south.
Compton/Woodley Airport is a small general aviation airport located in the city. It lies within busy airspace, as it is situated within a few miles of both Los Angeles International Airport and Long Beach Municipal Airport.
Collectively, these multi–faceted transportation links lend justification to the City’s familiar name "the Hub City."
Crime
Compton is notorious for being the city with the highest violent crime rate in all of California. The Morgan Quitno Corporation designated Compton as the seventh most dangerous city with a population of 75,000 or above in 2004. Compton also has a homicide rate about eight times higher than the national average, most of which are gang killings. The Crips and the Bloods are the most well-known gangs, it is disputes between these gangs that were recreated in various films and allegedly were central to the death of Tupac Shakur. Many other gangs also exist, which now have both African Americans and Latinos as members. Compton's policing needs are currently served by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department. In the past, the Compton Police Department (CPD) was shut down amidst controversy. Some claim this was because some members of the police force itself were heavily involved in gang activity, while the police themselves charge that this was due to friction between the department and then-Mayor Omar Bradley, who has since faced serious corruption charges. Regardless of the situation, it is clear that government corruption of some form was so severe that it became necessary to have law enforcement overseen from outside the city itself.Civic corruption has also been a widespread problem in Compton. In 1995, the Mayor and a councilwoman were convicted of extortion. In 2002, his replacement, Bradley was convicted of using city credit cards to purchase golf balls and lavish hotel stays for himself and his friends. Various mayoral administrations have been investigated by federal, state, and county government for bribery, nepotism, and misappropriating public funds. This contributes to Compton's poor reputation and discourages business investment.
Compton's crime is due mainly to its economic condition and its location as the center of the South Los Angeles "ghettos" and drug trade. The crime has not been as severe as it was in the 1980s and early 1990s, during the crack (cocaine) epidemic.
Education
The city is served by Compton Unified School District.City sites
- The Heritage House serves as an important landmark of Compton's rich history. Located at the corner of Alondra and Willowbrook near the Civic Center Plaza, the Heritage House is a rustic-looking home that will eventually house a museum detailing early life in Compton. For now it demarks the stark difference between the simple life of the 1800s and the fast-paced urban environment of the 21st century.
Compton History
In 1784, the Spanish Crown deeded a tract of over 75,000 acres (304 km²) to Juan Jose Dominguez in this area. The tract was named Rancho San Pedro. Dominguez's name was later applied to the Dominguez Hills community south of Compton.In 1867, Griffith D. Compton (1820–1905) led a group of settlers to the area in search of the mild Californian climate. The city was incorporated on May 11, 1888 and was named for Griffith D. Compton in commemoration.
Compton grew quickly in the mid-1900s. In the late 1940s with the dismantling of segregation, middle class blacks began moving into the area, mostly on the west side. One reason for this was Compton's close proximity to Watts, California, where a significant number of blacks lived at the time. However, the eastern side of the city remained predominantly Anglo into the 1960s.
In the beginning, the emerging black population was largely ignored by the city's elected officials. At one time, the City Council even discussed dismantling the Compton Police Department in favor of the Los Angeles County Sherrif's Department, in an attempt to exclude blacks from law enforcement jobs. This slowly began to change when in 1958, the first black ran for a City Council seat. However, it would be another three years before an African-American would be elected to the Council.
That man was Douglas Dollarhide, who in 1969, made history in Compton when he became California's first African-American mayor of a metropolitan city. Four years later, Doris A. Davis defeated Dollarhide's bid for re-election to become the first African-American female mayor of a metropolitan city in the United States. By the early 1970s, the city had one of the largest concentrations of blacks in the country with over ninety percent.
For many years, Compton was a much sought after neighborhood for the black middle class of Los Angeles. This past affluence is reflected in the area's appearance -- Compton's streets are lined with relatively spacious and attractive single family homes.
However, several factors have contributed to Compton's decline. One of the most significant factors was a steady erosion of its tax base. First by whites who fled to the newly incorporated cities of Artesia, Bellflower, Paramount and Santa Fe Springs in the late 1950s. These nearby communities offered relatively low crime, lower municipal taxes and significantly, effectively excluded blacks, despite integration. This move was even further percipitated after the Watts Riots in 1965.
Soon thereafter, middle class blacks also found other areas more attractive to them. Some were unincorporated areas of Los Angeles County such as Ladera Heights, View Park and Windsor Hills, but also cities such as Inglewood and particularly, Carson. The latter was significant because it had successfully thwarted attempts at annexation by neighboring Compton. It opted instead for incorporation in 1968 and is notable because its African-American population is actually more affluent than its white population. As a newer city, it also offered more favorable tax rates and lower crime.
As Compton's tax base deteriorated, it raised municipal taxes, which only worsened the problem. This resulted in creating a situation more favorable to lower income residents than higher income ones. Many of these new residents also benefited from the Section 8 rent-subsidy program. As a result, the need for public services increased dramatically, putting a further strain on the city's budget.
After Lionel Cade, an accountant, assumed the mayor's office in 1977, one of the first orders of business was to conduct an audit of the city's finances. It was discovered that the city was $2 million in debt. The administration was able to eliminate the huge deficit in one year by making cuts in every department. It also aggressively sought federal funding to help pay for essential services, which was at least partially effective. However, with the passage of the property tax cutting initiative Proposition 13 by California voters, Compton was one of the city's hardest hit, since it had already eliminated most of the fat from its budget.
Crime, though present in lesser degrees beforehand, worsened significantly with the introduction of Crack (cocaine) in the latter part of the 20th Century. The neighborhood lost richer residents with the worsening safety problems, and, after the 1992 riots in the Los Angeles metropolitan area, many blacks left the region. Meanwhile, many Latino families moved into Compton.
Today, Latinos are the largest ethnic group in the city, although many people still think of Compton as a primarily "black" community. One reason for this is that despite the shift in population, as of 2005 blacks continue to dominate local politics, holding all elected positions in the city. Much in the same way that whites attempted to thwart black participation in Compton politics in the 1950s, blacks today have made no serious effort to include the growing Latino population into the political process.
Famous People from Compton, California
- Serena Williams - professional women's tennis player
- Venus Williams - professional women's tennis player
- The Game - Rapper
- DJ Quik - Rapper
- Dr. Dre - Rapper
- Eazy-E - Rapper
- Ice Cube - Rapper
- Lil Eazy - Rapper
- MC Eiht- Actor, Rapper
- MC Ren - Rapper
- Yella - D.J. for the World Class Wreckin' Cru and N.W.A
- Suge Knight - CEO of Death Row Records
- Tayshaun Prince - NBA player
- Tyson Chandler - NBA player
- Anthony Anderson - Comedian and actor
References
- Adams, Emily, "Bush's Compton Roots Raise Thorny Issue," Los Angeles Times, August 3, 1992, page B-1
- Miller, Gary J., Cities by Contract: The Politics of Municipal Incorporation, The MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England, 1981
Notes
- Gould, Lewis L. (editor), American First Ladies: Their Lives and Their Legacy, Garland Publishing, New York and London, 1996. See pages 612-613 regarding the Bush family's "nomadic" existence in the cities of Huntington Park, Bakersfield, Whittier, Ventura and Compton, California.
- The George Bush Presidential Library web site includes a photograph of George W. Bush and Robin Bush in Compton, dated December 1949.
External links
Maps
Government
Crime
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Compton,_California".