Part 53: Social Media and Violence in Los Angeles and Beyond – Do the Ends Justify the Means?
Published December 18, 2023
Photo of Downtown Los Angeles at night by author (GoPro Hero 11 Black).
By Zachary Ellison
You have to love Social Media! Even more than the Worlds behind Closed Doors, our Accounts provide a window into our daily reality that often escapes the intimacies of real life. So it seems my last column went over some heads slightly in a good way, sometimes I’m serious and direct but other times I’m using irony and sarcasm. You should still listen to the Rolling Stones “Street Fighting Man” but the debate around its message back in August of 1968. The simple point was sometimes people make business decisions for the smart reason of managing certain perceived risks.
For liability as I recently heard one person say, I always try to be careful about what I write. People get litigious toward journalists real fast, and especially one’s without newsrooms, so for liability reasons I don’t always share all my leads, or even my full story. In addition, I value people’s expectations for privacy who haven’t engaged in any newsworthy wrongdoing or were in any ways known witnesses to an event. That would be unfair, but when there’s audio, video, or documentary evidence involved that’s clear and compelling, I don’t hesitate to make a judgment on the facts.
So tonight here we are! Last time I posted public remarks on the Internet about the case of Edin Alex Enamorado, the street vendor activist turned digital influencer who broadcasts videos of himself confronting people who have victimized vendors or otherwise engaged in racism, I got some replies questioning my ability to determine facts of the case. Similarly, when I condemned the presence of Nazis on Substack as part of the problem in the greater now Donald Trump led march toward fascism, well some people didn’t like the cut of my jab. Well I didn’t come here to just play nice!
Today December 18, Enamorado and his 7 charged companions all facing multiple felony charges related to at least three incidents of violence in San Bernardino County were denied bail by a Superior Court judge at the request of the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department citing public safety concern. Out of the three incidents, I’ve been able to obtain and review video evidence from a September 24 incident in Victorville that clearly shows Enamorado both directing and engaging in violence against a passenger in a car who exits to confront protestors blocking his way.
This continues after any threat from the passenger who is immediately shoved is forced to the ground and beaten. The Los Angeles Times describes two other incidents and a review of Enamorados social media accounts show that even he believed things were coming to a head. Recognizing the criticism over his tactics which were nationally publicized in relation to an incident in Santa Barbara, he wrote on Facebook on October 4: “People say I'm too wild on the way I protect vulnerable people. Some choose to criticize the way we do things instead of criticizing the people causing the 300% spike in attacks against Street Vendors in the past 10 years.”
Now I do think that San Bernardino County Sheriff Shannon Dicus did make an overstatement absent further incriminating evidence showing clear planning that all of Enamorado’s activism is phony. A former employee of the University of Southern California, aged 36, and a resident of Upland, Enamorado clearly does have genuine concern for the street vendor community. The way though he has escalated his tactics is legally wrong through, and something to reflect on, surely we are not condoning violence? Did someone tell Enamorado to go commit violent crimes on behalf of Street Vendors?
While there is a long and ugly history of racism in Southern California, this doesn’t seem to be a repeat of the Sleepy Lagoon Trial or the Zoot Suit Riots. Which takes us back to the opposite end of the spectrum, the Substack Nazis, and even more broadly those on the Internet who would wish to see a repeat of January 6, 2021 when organized groups and others in masses fought in the streets of Washington D.C to restore Donald Trump to President. Enamorado has a criminal record and justice has been swift, which makes you wonder even more what exactly is going on with Donald Trump who clearly poses a bigger danger.
Trump isn’t under arrest, isn’t in jail, and isn’t on bond despite facing a multiplicity of charges related to January 6, 2021, election interference in Georgia, and his business the Trump Organization in New York. In fact, Trump continues to be granted interview time as the leading contender of the Republican Party, and as noted he’s lost even the likes of Republican conservative turned Moderate Democrat Rick Caruso. Perhaps Substack is just waiting for the return of the Trump presidency to open the floodgates?
The flow of refugees out of X, formerly known as Twitter, seems to continue thanks to combative, offensive remarks of its billionaire owner Elon Musk. He seems to be in a sharp mental decline into fascism since his commencement speech at the USC Marshall School of Business in 2014 when he told graduating students: “The other thing I’d say is that if you’re creating a company, or if you’re joining a company, the most important thing is to attract great people. So either be with, join a group that’s amazing, that you really respect.”
After a 5-year ban, Musk allowed conspiracy theorist and bigot Alex Jones to re-activate his account which had been suspended since September 6, 2018. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, “It took Jones eight years to reach 900,000 – and in span of days, he nearly doubled it to 1.7 million.” It seems improbable that this would be a smart business strategy, but here we are in December 2023. People say Trump can’t win, but personally I’m not so sure. Trump has won before, and he can do it again.
Having worked with the U.S. Military during my time at USC to an extent, I think I can fairly say from my experience that the Trump Presidency was the most bizarre thing. I’d usually schedule generals and admirals, and others too, and once Trump took over there was like this pall over the modern military order. What do you do when you don’t really trust the Commander-in-Chief? Were Trump who seems assured to win the GOP nomination escape the accountability that seems so certain for Enamorado it would be not only miraculous, but well expected.
Trump has cultivated a reputation as someone who is a fighter, who never goes down. His rallies are the most terrifying thing, filled with venom and hatred from the right. Trump said in New Hampshire that immigrants are “poisoning the blood of our country.” That’s some craziness. Even as I agree with Enamorado that there is a problem in protecting Street Vendors, they are not poisoning the blood of our country. Nor have the police acted without planning and intent in making an arrest. Perhaps Trump just needs to actually beat someone up finally instead of directing others to do his dirty work as he did on January 6, 2021.
Cowards need others to beat people up for them. They don’t fight for themselves, and they certainly don’t stand out alone against the wind speaking hard truths. Honestly, I doubt Donald Trump has ever been in any kind of fight in his life. He’s no boxer, he’s no wrestler and he’s no tough guy even as he enjoys the illusions of violent grandeur. Enamorado doesn’t have Trump’s following for sure, but has Donald Trump seen his fight videos on Instagram? Edin Alex Enamorado’s accounts have largely been removed, likely by himself, but Substack can’t update its Terms of Service to have Richard Spencer, the notorious leader of white supremacists in Virginia removed?
The Substack management team of Chris Best, Hamish McKenzie and Jairaj Sethi instead of accepting responsibility for removing people like Spencer who’s shared page I’ve seen myself, have continued to deflect responsibility claiming that the right to free speech supersedes any possible concerns about liability. Perhaps they like Elon Musk are simply unconcerned about the repercussions of their minimal content moderation, which while restricting violent threats and pornography, allows bigotry and hatred to spread. Are they really just in it for the money?
Social media is like an accelerant to an arsonists fire when it is weaponized as a tool of profit and intimidation. While I support the fight against fascism, and am joining it on Substack for the benefit of my readers and fellow writers community, I’m not condoning violence or hatred in any form, not in Los Angeles, not in San Bernardino, and not in Washington D.C. Perhaps when he gets bond, Enamorado and his compatriots who have their next court hearing on December 28 in Victorville, can reconsider their tactics and go after an even bigger target, Donald Trump, our disgraced ex-President.
Now there goes Zach again, but if there’s one thing we might need to stop a repeat of the Trump insanity, it’s “The Dirty Dozen” as the 1967 American war film starring Lee Marvin and an ensemble cast was titled. The movie is based on a 1965 best-selling book by E.M. Nathanson, which was in turn inspired by a real-life WWII unit of behind-the-lines demolition specialists named the “Filthy Thirteen.” So while I hear the cries for the Justice 8 across the activist community in Los Angeles, all I can say is be careful about your tactics, because you sure can’t defend Street Vendors or fight Donald Trump from a prison cell. And we are going to need some some help!
The wave of hate crimes that an accelerating Trump Campaign much less a victorious one is a nightmare we should all hope that does not repeat. Some people tell me he can only win 40% of the vote, but what if Democrats, divided by an admittedly slightly underwhelming Biden presidency don’t show up. What if young people stay home? What if the Latino vote fractures? Univision was still happy to give Trump air time.
The many tens of millions of unregistered voters surely aren’t about to show up for this snooze fest devoid of an inspiring candidate like Barack Obama in 2008 or with Bill Clinton in 1992. We must avoid a repeat of the Trump Presidency at all costs. Vote, march, use your voice, but never fists in anger, that just gives the other side more ammunition. I hear the voices of despair, and I know that defending the weak in this country, the people who need help, won’t happen with Donald Trump back in office.
Zachary Ellison is an Independent Journalist and Whistleblower in the Los Angeles area. Zach was most recently employed by the University of Southern California, Office of the Provost from October 2015 to August 2022 as an Executive Secretary and Administrative Assistant supporting the Vice Provost for Academic Operations and the Vice Provost and Senior Advisor to the Provost among others. Zach holds a Master’s in Public Administration and a Graduate Certificate in Sustainable Policy and Planning from the USC Sol Price School of Public Policy. While a student at USC, he worked for the USC Good Neighbors Campaign including on their newsletter distributed university-wide. Zach completed his B.A. in History at Reed College, in Portland, Oregon and was a writer, editor, and photographer for the Pasadena High School Chronicle. He was Barack Obama’s one-millionth online campaign contributor in 2008. Zach is a former AmeriCorps intern for Hawaii State Parks and worked for the City of Manhattan Beach Parks and Recreation. He is a trained civil process server, and enjoys weekends in the great outdoors.
