Outraged parents gathered Tuesday outside Main Street Elementary in South Los Angeles to demand action against speeding cars and lack of crossing guards in surrounding intersections.
Parents and community members from the South LA area gathered this afternoon in front of the school, calling on the City to take action about speeding in the area. They say there are four campuses in the community that need help, with hundreds of students, parents, and elderly residents using the crosswalks each day.
Protesters are calling for anything that will help to provide more safety, from speed bumps to flashing lights to more crosswalks.
Martha Sanchez, organizer of the protest, said despite multiple requests to the Los Angeles Police Department to provide crossing guards, no one has ever showed up.
Currently, there is only one crossing guard serving in the area of the elementary school.
"They never show up. They just say, 'If there is no blood, we can wait,'" she said.
The LAPD did, however, show up at the protest Tuesday. Officer Cesar Guitron with LAPD Central Traffic said he has witnessed cars going "way over" 30 mph. He said the area is on his radar now and he will be back.
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In addition, the city's Department of Transportation sent an engineer to hear from the community. Though the engineer said he would come back to meet with the community, the protesters said they've heard promises before.
After grandmother and community activist Luz Damian witnessed a hit-and-run not far from the elementary school campus, she decided to join the fight against speeding traffic. She said this behavior is putting the children's safety at risk, and is convinced that it is only a matter of time before someone is killed.
"We need safety measures for pedestrians, and drivers using our streets as freeways," she said. "I'm condemned to stay in home in rush hour because they [drivers] don't respect my right to cross the streets."
For now, protesters say their demands for action will only get louder until something changes.
"We're not willing to wait until a child is hurt. The city needs to take action now to protect our children," elementary school parent Maria Tapia said.
