Funding “Is Not Fair”: Advocates Want More Green Spaces in Black Neighborhoods

By McKenzie Jackson | California Black Media Danny Bakewell, Sr. (File Photo) (CBM) – On a sunny December morning in Inglewood, Center Park was bustling. Among the people enjoying one of the city’s smaller green spaces, were two women on a Zoom call sitting at a picnic table. “It’s really upkept, quite secluded,” one of the women said, appreciating the park. “I’ve seen people mingle. I’ve seen soccer practices,” she added. Just as the parkgoers in Inglewood cherish their outdoor public recreational facilities, these spaces are valued assets within communities and their proximity can influence real estate prices. However, some advocates say the state is not developing and maintaining community recreational facilities equally. They point out that green spaces in neighborhoods where Black Californians live remain underfunded even though the state has invested billions of dollars over the last decade-and-a-half to improve them. “They need to have a system to get money to the Black communities,” said Danny J. Bakewell, Sr., a Los Angeles-based businessman, civil rights activist, and philanthropist. “They will tell you they have a system to make sure it’s not unfair, but the way they do the funding is not fair,” continued Bakewell, the only Black member...