Lowriders Legally Cruise into the New Year

On New Year’s Day Lowriders cruised the streets of Los Angeles – from Montebello and Whittier to Van Nuys, enthusiasts and admirers rejoiced as cruising officially became legal across all of California. 

On Jan. 1 Assembly Bill (AB) 436 – jointly authored by Assemblymembers Luz Rivas and David Alvarez and signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newson on Oct. 13. – officially took effect in California. 

The bill removes the authorization of local authorities to enforce ordinances that ban cruising, rectifying a law on the books since the 1980s that many believe was outdated and discriminatory. 

Early morning under the Whittier Blvd. arch in East LA, several car clubs gathered to take down a “No Cruising” sign. They had wanted a larger formal event with city representatives but weren’t successful in getting them to participate.

“It was just great to be back on Whittier Boulevard and bring that love back to the East L.A. area,” said Lorraine Quiñones, who is part of the California Lowrider Alliance, the Los Angeles Lowrider Alliance and the creator of the nonprofit organization Cruising is Not A Crime.

Celebrations continued throughout the day and into the evening – hundreds of decked-out cars rode up and down the street while spectators on the sidewalks rejoiced in the rebirth of cruising the boulevard.   

“It was a great day to be a Chicana,” said Quiñones. “Not just to feel the love and pride of the people together where we were gathered, but to have everyone participate throughout the state of California… all of us cruising, knowing that we lifted that ban as a lowrider community … We helped to make a change and show that when we organize, we can do great things together.”

San Fernando Valley Car Clubs Celebrate in Van Nuys

“It’s good to let us cruise out free and give us our space without being harassed and always being stereotyped,” said Jr. Cookie Juarez of the Canoga Park West Valley Car and Bike Club.

Cookie celebrated at their annual New Year’s picnic at Woodley Park in Van Nuys, which he described as “a good day in the park.” 

He said police officers checked in throughout the day to make sure there was always an accessible fire lane, and since the law was respected, so was the event. 

“I think it’s just up to us to try to keep those laws in effect. To just make sure we keep on cruising and you know, do everything the right way,” said Juarez.

He believes if the community stays respectful, they can help preserve the win everyone already fought so hard to obtain. 

When asked about the relationship clubs have with police in the San Fernando Valley, Juarez said it changes from community to community.

“Mission Division, they really don’t give us too much of a hassle, just like Topanga doesn’t. But Van Nuys, I don’t think Van Nuys will ever change,” said Juarez.

Rooted in Culture

“We are just here to enjoy ourselves and show off our cars,” said lowrider Joe Noriega while participating in the gathering on Whittier Blvd. “We are people that reflect our culture with our cars.” 

Lowrider cars have been described as “art,” intricately designed moving murals that parade Chicano culture across the city. 

As Denise Sandoval Ph.D., professor of Chicana/o Studies at California State University, Northridge, describes in the book “The Politics of Low and Slow/Bajito y Suavecito,” lowriders and cruising are deeply rooted in Southern California Latino/Chicano culture. 

During the post-World War II car culture boom, working-class people modified their cars to create their own luxury item. Fast and flashy hotrods appeared on the scene, while lowriders at that same time went “low and slow.”

In the 1980s the state assembly passed a bill that allowed local governments to create anti-cruising ordinances. Sandoval said criminalizing the lowrider community picked up in the aftermath of the 1992 LA riots. As policing increased across the city, so did the discrimination against the community and gang-affiliated stereotyping. 

As of Jan. 1, those local ordinances targeting cruising can no longer be enforced. 

Sandoval said AB 436 is important because the legal mandate is coming down from the state level but, echoing Juarez, notes that how each community is policed, “might look different based on law enforcement and their relationship to those communities.” 

San Gabriel Valley Party in the Park

In the San Gabriel Valley, more than 15 car clubs from across LA celebrated the new law at Montebello Park. 

Music was bumping, the smell of carne asada filled the afternoon air and lowriders lined every available space in and around the park. The energy was high as spectators admired the meticulously decorated cars that multiplied by the hour. The community rejoiced in their car culture being legally recognized.

“[At] Montebello Park, you felt all the love, despite the challenge that they faced,” said Quiñones.

Jesse Gurule, co-founder of the Chicanos Car Club, was also celebrating in Montebello. The event was originally planned to take place in Azusa, but when the car clubs arrived around 6:30 a.m. they found what Gurule describes as, “fake construction” – caution tape and orange traffic cones blocked off all areas for them to park their cars. 

Quiñones thinks this was a tactic to prevent the unpermitted celebration from taking place at that location. 

When people sell agua frescas, t-shirts or other goods – when there are vendors – Quiñones says that qualifies it to the city as an event that requires a permit, which can cost thousands of dollars.

Gurule claims city workers often tell car clubs they can legally hold cruising events if they get the proper permits, but block them when they try to obtain the permits. 

“They [the city] always try and find something to bring us down,” added Gilbert Cortez of Good Fellas Car Club. 

However, the lowrider community seems to always persist despite the barriers. 

“It’s just family spending time together,” Gurule said gesturing to the people around the park grilling up food, showing off their cars and enjoying the company.

Can New Laws Change Old Relationships?

LA County Department of Public Works said they have “removed 47 ‘No Cruising’ signs in unincorporated areas of LA, with the final sign set for removal by week’s end.”

The Los Angeles Lowrider Alliance held monthly meetings with LA city officials to discuss cruising, create an agreed-upon definition and safely usher in the new year. Since the passing of AB 436 in October, the alliance has been lobbying for an official sign-removal ceremony.

Alliance members asked Supervisor Hilda Solis’ office to work with the car clubs in preparation for the New Year’s celebrations, to shut down the street and make it a safe event for everyone in the community. Quiñones claims they were met with pushback and were told by Solis’ staff that there weren’t enough resources or time to make those accommodations. 

Solis told the San Fernando Valley Sun/el Sol in a statement that she and other County departments received a letter on Dec. 4, “on behalf of Unity Cruise LA, The Los Angeles Lowrider Alliance, and the California Lowrider Alliance to co-host a large-scale outdoor event involving car cruising, a car show, musical performances, and vendors along Whittier Boulevard.”

“Large-scale events take several months to plan and organize to ensure adequate traffic control, community notification, expert reviews, and public agency staff are secured,” responded Solis. Adding that, “the County responded to this letter by providing a list of permit approvals and other requirements needed for the proposed event.”

“They [the city] knew the exact timeline of the bill and when it passed. They knew when it takes effect and they knew that we were going to be out there on January 1st, yet they didn’t have the resources in place?” questioned Quiñones.

She points out the irony of that claim when on New Year’s Day at their cruising celebration on Whittier Blvd. there was a “massive force of law enforcement.”

One sheriff told the San Fernando Valley Sun/el Sol that there were 18 officers with additional California Highway Patrol units present.

On the other hand of the political spectrum, Assembly Concurrent Resolution (ACR) 176, spearheaded by Rivas who has publicly spoken out in support of the lowriding community, calls Whittier Blvd. “the fountainhead of lowrider culture,” yet it has been one of the areas where lowriding has been most heavily policed. 

During the celebrations, one lowrider was pulled over just before he reached the Whittier arch and was cited for “reckless driving.” 

Quiñones said this is the ticket issued when someone is using their hydraulics to bounce the car – hopping – and was one of two citations she heard was given that day.

“What it [AB 436] doesn’t change is the way we are policed,” said Quiñones. 

AB 436 helped bring cruising back to Whittier Blvd., but Quiñones hopes that police training could help rectify some problems moving forward. 

“One of the goals of the California Lowrider Alliance is to bring more training and professional development to law enforcement. Because we feel a lot of their tactics are not sensitive to the lowrider culture,” said Quiñones.

“The heart of East Los is lowriding. We can’t deny it.”

From East Los to the San Fernando Valley, cruising is undeniably a part of the fabric of LA. Lowriders can now cruise with a sense of relief but through murky water.