| Food Justice Collaborative groups, NELA Mercadito and Padres Voluntarios de Juntos Family Park, collaborate to distribute food to neighbors in need. |
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| PARTNERSHIP IN ACTIONAcross Northeast LA, the work of keeping neighbors rooted grows through partnership. From vendors building local economies to cultural institutions uplifting neighborhood traditions, collaboration is what makes it possible for working-class communities to thrive. When neighbors, artists, and organizers build shared infrastructure together, opportunity stays local — and communities stay rooted. This month, we’re highlighting the partners and collaborations that help strengthen community economies, celebrate culture, and expand pathways toward community ownership. IN THIS ISSUE🤝 Partner Spotlights 🌱 Community Ownership Community of Practice 📢 We’re Hiring 📅 Upcoming Events |
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| | INCLUSIVE ACTION FOR THE CITY |
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| Inclusive Action for the City shares critical information on how to protect our community members at Somos NELA Fiesta. Photo Credit: Lola Salgado |
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| We’re proud to be in community with Inclusive Action for the City, an organization that has long been at the forefront of supporting street vendors and small entrepreneurs across Los Angeles. Their work alongside vendors has helped expand access to capital, policy change, and resources so vendors can operate safely and sustainably. Later this month, Inclusive Action will join us at our next Community Economies meeting to share their expertise on what it takes for vendors to obtain permits and operate sustainably — a topic that vendors expressed interest in learning more about. We will have space for neighbors to ask questions, share knowledge, and better navigate systems that often make it difficult for working-class entrepreneurs to thrive. Together, this work helps make it easier for neighbors to earn income, grow their businesses, and strengthen the local economies that sustain our communities. Our vendors asked for technical support on permits and
Learn with us at our meeting on Tues, March 24th from 6-8PM. |
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| Clockshop, LA Más and Arvia resident, Andres, celebrate the completion of Arvia’s ADU and the premier of Clockshop’s short film, ‘Saving Arvia’. Photo Credit: Gina Clyne |
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| Our partners at Clockshop bring cultural programming into the Somos NELA ecosystem on the third Friday of each month, creating a sense of belonging and opportunities for deeper connection amongst all our neighbors.
Programming has included hands-on workshops like journal binding, bead and bracelet making, and so much more! These gatherings bring artists, neighbors, and vendors together in the same space where our local economy is growing — creating moments of creativity, connection, and care in the neighborhood.
Clockshop is also partnering with us in deeper conversations about how culture, land, and housing shape the future of Northeast LA. In last month’s newsletter, Arvia resident Andrés Cortes reflected on the trust that makes this work possible — trust in neighbors, in community, and in the future of Cypress Park. |
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| DANZA DIVINA + PLAZA DE LA RAZA |
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| Danza Divina poses after a performance at Somos NELA Fiesta. Photo Credit: Lola Salgado |
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| We’re grateful to be in community with Danza Divina, an inter-generational multimedia Aztec dance troop that previously performed at Somos NELA, and Plaza de la Raza, a long-standing cultural institution uplifting arts and culture in Los Angeles.
Recently, they partnered to produce an evening of danza celebrating Mexica New Year an Indigenous cultural tradition and invited LA Más to bring Somos NELA vendors into the celebration. Vendors popped up alongside the event, sharing food, crafts, and art with a wider community.
Moments like this show what’s possible when cultural institutions, local groups, and neighborhood economies grow together — keeping traditions vibrant while expanding opportunity for local entrepreneurs. |
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| Somos NELA Vendor & leader of Unidos Por NELA, Erika, poses with her daughter as they vend at Plaza de la Raza. |
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| SOMOS NELA: HIRE THE NEIGHBORS, HOST THE PARTY, BUILD THE BLOCK |
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| Somos NELA vendors are increasingly being invited to participate in cultural and community events across Los Angeles.
Some inspiring examples include our neighbor Eva hiring vendors for a birthday celebration, our friends at the Audubon Center at Debs Park hiring vendors for a community event, and our former board member Helen hiring a vendor to make food for a family gathering. Do you have a story to share? Let us know!
If you’re planning an event and want to feature local, culturally diverse vendors, we’d love to connect you. |
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| Attendees of Somos NELA Fiesta enjoy themselves at Somos NELA Fiesta. Photo Credit: Lola Salgado |
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| You are invited to show up at Somos NELA and help our vendors sell out! Celebrating your birthday? High school reunion? Friend hang?
We want you to pick a Friday night and invite 20 of your friends to show up. We will make it easy for you to host - give you a spot, share a flyer, etc. Interested? Email Miguel at miguel@mas.la! |
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| | SOMOS NELA BLOCK PARTYWe’re preparing for our largest market of the season on April 17th from 5-9pm with a Spring Market Block Party! 40+ local working-class vendors Street closure Live entertainment Community resource tables Family-friendly activities
In partnership with Councilmember Hugo-Soto Martinez and Clockshop, this market reflects what happens when vendors lead and neighbors show up.
Want to volunteer? Email miguel@mas.la. |
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| LA Más supporters and partners enjoy the night at the 2025 Rooted annual fundraiser. Photo Credit: Javier de Leon |
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| COMMUNITY OWNERSHIP: LEARNING TOGETHER
We’re excited to participate in growing the Community Ownership movement, where organizations across Los Angeles and the nation share strategies for advancing community-rooted ownership of land, housing, and neighborhood spaces.
This year, we’re participating in a national learning cohort on community ownership innovation hosted by the University of Miami’s Community Ownership Learning & Action Lab. Through peer exchange with four organizations across the country, we are surfacing lessons, strengthening relationships, and contributing to a field-wide report on emerging models in community-owned real estate. Our cohort includes Wukchumni Tribe (CA), Tierra Colectiva (Denver), Justice for the People (CO), and New Economy Project (NY).
Locally, we’re part of Inclusive Action’s inaugural Community Ownership Community of Practice, where we will be learning alongside our friends at Fedeicomiso Comunitaria Tierra Libre, Chinatown CLT, and United Cambodian Community.
These gatherings allow practitioners and community leaders to exchange lessons, build relationships, and strengthen a broader ecosystem working toward long-term neighborhood stability.
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| LA Más staff pose at their NELA Comparte event, which evolved into their biweekly Somos NELA night market. Photo Credit: Lola Salgado |
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| WE’RE HIRING
We’re hiring a Community Housing Manager to help steward our growing housing portfolio and the technical work behind it — from asset management and capital improvements to compliance, reporting, and property management oversight.
If you’re passionate about housing justice and community-led development, we’d love to hear from you. |
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| | | | Your support helps keep families rooted in Northeast LA. 🏘️
Make a tax-deductible donation to LA Más and be part of building a future where our neighbors can stay and thrive in the communities they call home. |
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| | LA Más is a community organization building collective power in Northeast Los Angeles to promote neighborhood stability and economic resilience for working class communities of color. |
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