When It Rains, It Pours — On the Poor Most of All

The Fourth Installment from a Series of Activist Journalism from “All Rise,” a New Community-Based Newspaper

graphic credit: Stacey Uy

By Michael Whyte, Jr. 

Late January started off like any other. A storm was approaching, but not just any storm, an atmospheric river storm. One that would bring down three inches of rain in only a few hours. Doesn’t sound like much, right? We just had a hurricane come up from Mexico that dumped rain on us for three days. Our only concern then was how people would drive.

In a matter of hours, however, the storm canal on Imperial Avenue looked like a raging river in Colorado. The flooded streets spewed into people’s homes, bringing waste from the sewage system with it. The areas affected the most were the areas of poverty. The people living there didn’t have much to start with before the rain. Now everything they owned was contaminated and destroyed.

Who’s to blame for this? If the storm drains and canals were free of debris, and foliage, things would have definitely been different. Footage of the canals taken before the storm and posted online shows that it was heavily congested with things that shouldn’t have been there. Unsheltered encampments, trees, and such caused the water to build up and blanket most of southeast San Diego under some pretty nasty water. The city and county are to blame for this!

Community members knew that waiting on Mayor Todd Gloria to save us would be like waiting on Santa to come down the chimney. Instead, several non-profit organizations and different community members jumped into action. They quickly formed a disaster response team to do the government’s job. Using the Jackie Robinson YMCA as a hub for resources and a command center, because it was in the heart of the damage, community members would meet up there to discuss strategy, take donations, send out volunteers, feed people and give out resources that were most needed. Hot meals had to be delivered because folks had no home to cook in. Day and night the disaster relief team did whatever they could with whatever they had.

A second storm hit SD about a week later. People were scared because they had just been through the same drill. Only this time the mayor made sure to have city workers clear out the storm drains and canals. There was no flooding the second time around, and we are so grateful for that. But it proves the point. 

As a member of the disaster relief team I just want to say how proud I am of how everyone came together to get things done in one of the scariest times of folks’s lives. I remember thinking if something like this ever happened, my people would not be ready. I was wrong. I am so proud of my community for pulling together for our own sake. It was like disaster and beauty all wrapped up together, because even in the face of mother nature and complete failure by our government leaders, our community leaders pulled us through. Shout out to everyone who had a hand in helping out in any way.

And to Gloria, the city and county of San Diego, and whoever else that played a part in the neglect of our infrastructure, you gotta do better! 

Michael Whyte, Jr., works on police accountability for Pillars of the Community. This article originally appeared in All Rise.