Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard (also known as MLK Blvd or simply King Blvd; originally Santa Barbara Avenue) is an east-west thoroughfare in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
.
[Map showing MLK Blvd downtown](_blank)
/ref> It stretches from Obama Boulevard
President Barack Obama Boulevard, or commonly Obama Boulevard, is a major thoroughfare in the Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw area of the city of Los Angeles. It stretches from Baldwin Hills (past Baldwin Village and Crenshaw) to Leimert Park.
History ...
in Baldwin Hills/Crenshaw to South Alameda Street in Central-Alameda. Prior to 1983, the boulevard was known as Santa Barbara Avenue.
Background
Originally 40th Street, it was renamed Santa Barbara Avenue. The street was officially renamed to MLK Blvd on January 15, 1983. The name change to honor the civil rights leader reflected the large black community in that part of Los Angeles. The name change effort was headed by Tuskegee Airman
The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332d Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of the ...
, and local businessman Celes King III.
The original location of the Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel
Sephardic Temple Tifereth Israel, also called The Sephardic Temple, is a large, urban Sephardi Jewish synagogue located in Westwood, Los Angeles, California at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and Warner Avenue. Established on February 1, 1920 as ...
was at the corner of Santa Barbara Avenue and LaSalle Avenue in the West Adams neighborhood.
In a stand-up routine on the television special ''Bring the Pain
"Bring the Pain" is a song recorded by the rap artist Method Man. It is the first Single (music), single released from his debut album ''Tical (album), Tical''.
Comedian Chris Rock named his 1996 tour and television special "Chris Rock: Bring t ...
,'' comedian Chris Rock
Christopher Julius Rock (born February 7, 1965) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and filmmaker. Known for his work in comic film, television and stage, he has received multiple accolades, including three Grammy Awards for best come ...
once said, "Martin Luther King stood for nonviolence ... Now what's Martin Luther King? A street ... if you on Martin Luther King Boulevard, there’s some violence going down."
MLK Boulevard in Los Angeles is different than the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Lynwood, California
Lynwood is a city in Los Angeles County, California. At the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 69,772, down from 69,845 at the 2000 census. Lynwood is located near South Gate and Compton in the central portion of the Los Angeles ...
, which is an extension of Century Boulevard
Century Boulevard is a major east–west thoroughfare in the southern portion of Los Angeles, California. Century Boulevard acts as a continuation of Tweedy Boulevard at Alameda Street in South Gate in its east end (Tweedy Boulevard in its eas ...
. The City of Los Angeles also honored King by establishing the "Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Tree Grove" in the Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area
Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area, or Kenneth Hahn Park, is a state park unit of California in the Baldwin Hills Mountains of Los Angeles. The park is managed by the Los Angeles County Department of Parks and Recreation. As one of the largest u ...
.
Public transit
MLK Blvd is served by Metro Local
Los Angeles Metro Bus is the transit bus service in Los Angeles County, California operated by the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro). In , the system had a ridership of , or about per weekday as of .
, there are ...
line 40. The K Line
is a Japanese transportation company. It owns a fleet that includes dry cargo ships (bulk carriers), container ships, liquefied natural gas carriers, Ro-Ro ships, tankers, and container terminals. It used to be the fourteenth largest contai ...
has a station under at Crenshaw Boulevard
Crenshaw Boulevard is a north-south thoroughfare in Los Angeles, California, that runs through Crenshaw and other neighborhoods along a 23-mile (37.76 km) route in the west-central part of the city.
The street extends between Wilshire Boulevar ...
.
See also
* Exposition Park
References
{{Streets in Los Angeles
Streets in Los Angeles
Baldwin Hills, Los Angeles
Crenshaw, Los Angeles