Lowriders are low to the ground, colorful, customized cars that originated in the 1940s. For many decades, people have been taking classic cars and making them their own. Normally seen in the Latin communities, lowriders are a huge part of the culture and allow people to express themselves through cars.
“Lowriders are expressions of love, creativity, and art that individuals have within themselves,” Luis Moncada ’89.
The Lowriding community has grown over the years all over California and helps to embody Chicano culture. However, in many cities it is illegal to own certain lowrider cars or to cruise, a practice of car owners publicly showcasing their vehicles.
Assembly Bill No. 436, signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newson on Oct. 13, “would remove the authorization for a local authority to adopt rules and regulations by ordinance or regulation regarding cruising,” according to the California Legislative Information website.
For many years cruising was banned in many cities due to allegations of traffic and gang violence. Moncada, owner of a 1963 Impala, emphasized, “It was a blatant attempt to stereotype Black and Brown people as gang bangers, and criminals being out in the streets causing trouble.”
When Assembly member David Alvarez (D-80th District; San Diego) introduced the bill in February, he said in a statement, “It is an honor to introduce this bill to acknowledge classic cars and cruising which is an expression of art and a cultural identity for many of us.”
Car showcasing is, in reality, a cultural practice built in building community and celebration of one’s heritage.
“Car clubs are a way of getting together, basically demonstrating part of your culture in a society that wasn’t always welcoming,” said Armando Castillo, moderator of Latinos Unidos.
Crackdowns on Latin car culture, which some see as thinly veiled discrimination from the time of their creation, have become even more disparate from reality in recent times.
“We love what we do, and deserve the freedom to ride wherever, whenever we want without having to worry about being harassed by law enforcement,” Moncada said.
He continued by saying that car councils organize their cruises and work with the police so that they can know what events are going on and can help make sure nothing gets out of hand so that the public and car owners can enjoy the events.
In a statement on Assemblyman Alvarez’s website, the California Lowrider Alliance said, “We stand in solidarity to repeal the no cruising ordinance throughout the state of California to diminish the injustice and intolerance towards the Lowriding community and bring justice for the future of the culture and subsequent generations.”
Moncada concluded, “The fact that we can drive cars that are 60,70, 80 years old, and look better than these modern vehicles keeps American automotive history alive.”
