Decades ago, the city of Los Angeles buried its natural river in concrete and turned it into infrastructure. And understanding why it actively disappeared is key to understanding Los Angeles, California, and our relationship to water. Reported by actor and director, Gillian Jacobs.
When you hear the word "river," you probably picture a majestic body of water flowing through a natural habitat. Well, the LA River looks nothing like that. Most people who see it probably mistake it for a giant storm drain. It's a deep trapezoidal channel with steep concrete walls, and a flat concrete bottom. Los Angeles was founded around this river. But decades ago it was confined in concrete so that, for better or worse, the city could become the sprawling metropolis that it is today. All these years later the county is still grappling with the consequences of those actions.
Reported by Gillian Jacobs, guest hosted by 99PI producer, Vivian Le.