As far as I was concerned, passing through towns like Rialto, Colton and Jurupa Valley along Interstate 10 and State Route 60 was a necessary inconvenience on the way to the desert β not a chance to learn something about life in America. But I was intrigued by the most recent U. The population has swelled to 4. Now, more than any time in recent history, the nation seems divided over this enduring contradiction as we confront the distance between aspiration and reality. Join me as I explore the things that bind us, make sense of the things that tear us apart and search for signs of healing.
Again and again, residents expressed a burning need for a metaphorical timeout from the relentless pressure and pace of life in Southern California β even if that meant putting down roots in cities and towns between the ocean and the desert that many would be hard-pressed to pinpoint on a map. Violent crime and racist attacks have been on the rise across the U. In an unsettled nation riven by political divisions and culture wars, many Americans have seemingly lost their ability to let down their guard and connect with one another.
The conflict over ethnic studies reveals painful truths in Paso Robles. To escape the daily grind that comes with living in the big city, people of color are finding peace in the Inland Empire in the search for their American dream.
Another newcomer, Manuel Gutierrez, looks carefree as he grills spicy whole chickens at his roadside Mexican street food stand surrounded by horse ranches in Moreno Valley, near Riverside. Gutierrez, 33, offers up a single word to explain why, besides cheap land, it made sense to leave the community where he grew up in South-Central L.
What little I understood about the area came from news clippings about white supremacist rallies, and stories about the heyday of Route 66, when badlands were covered in chaparral and Black people risked being attacked in sundown towns simply for getting caught within city limits after dark. I drive north along two-lane roads that wind between the city of Moreno Valley and the San Bernardino Valley and am transported to a bygone Golden State.
