No BIPOC Families Left Behind: Here’s What This Nonprofit Wants You To Know About Rebuilding After The Wildfires

While the California wildfires are now contained, impacted residents are starting their journey on the long road to recovery. However, not all efforts are equal or equitable—and in the wake of this enormous devastation and subsequent rebuilding efforts, many Black families are especially vulnerable and in danger of being left behind.  

Current data shows that for almost half of the Black families living in the Black mecca of Altadena, Calif., their homes were either completely destroyed or in need of major repairs. 

From a historical perspective, Altadena was a place for Black Americans where the American dream was actually achievable. They were able to avoid discriminatory practices, such as the denial of credit, enabling many to become homeowners during the Civil Rights era. “They kept homes within the family and helped others to flourish. Today, the Black home ownership rate there is at 81.5%, almost double the national rate,” AP reports. The community boasts a population of around 42,000, and census data indicates that almost 60 percent of residents identify as non-white. Of that number, 25 percent are Hispanic and 20 percent are Black.  

Unfortunately, marginalized BIPOC communities are disproportionately impacted by disasters according to the Consortium for Equitable Disaster Resilience. Moreover, they face “the most barriers to recovery…not only because systemic oppression has forced these communities to live in hazard-prone areas, but also because they have many pre-existing vulnerabilities. Disasters therefore tend to push marginalized communities into a downward spiral of accelerated resource losses and further marginalization.”

As demonstrated by past tragedies like Hurricane Katrina, after the news cameras leave, disaster and emergency recovery programs meant to help BIPOC communities rebuild, instead end up exacerbating the existing inequalities making it even harder for these families to recover. But one California-based nonprofit is working to ensure that BIPOC families in California impacted by the wildfire have the support and get the resources they need to not just rebuild, but thrive. 

The mission of Our Own involves tackling problems with a multi-pronged solution approach by dismantling the systemic barriers that plague underserved communities. And this 501(c)(3) is committed to ensuring that the Altadena community and families impacted by the fires get the help they need. Our Own’s founders Dustin Young and Lee Johnson sat down with AFROPUNK to discuss the road to recovery with an eye on both short- and long-term mitigation and remediation.

Johnson discussed how Our Own’s approach to assistance is unique, explaining “you can’t solve a problem with a single solution, and the work that we do looks ahead in what are those phase two and phase three beyond the initial phase [of assistance].” Johnson stated, “We’re looking at how to support these families and help them in a direct way with no cost to them.”

This is where the work of Our Own in rebuilding is especially unique. The nonprofit has already deployed teams to ensure that resources are not being wasted. “We are a design and build company, in addition to being a nonprofit, so we have established relationships to be able to support and also pull in some of our partners to who are already licensed to do abatement and like remediation, which means lower costs,” Johnson said. Our Own is also seizing this “opportunity to bring people of color to do this work, who often get pushed aside. We’re taking a block-by-block approach, which saves the entire community. By us taking care of that, that means there’s one less thing they have to worry about.” 

One constant thread throughout the conversation involved the founders’ aim to provide continued, sustained support to the Altadena community, not just now right now in the immediate aftermath. “Let’s not forget this, like we’ve forgotten others,” Johnson adamantly stated. “I think of Tulsa, I think of Katrina, all of the social injustices. Five years ago, we were all here for George Floyd and now it’s like we don’t even mention his name.” 

Ultimately, “we don’t need to have tragedy to have a reminder of what community and consistency can do. We have these moments and everybody comes out, but there were families in Altadena that probably needed clothes and support before the fires, but nobody was there to help,” shared Johnson. “There wasn’t a system in place. Let’s not forget about the situation, but if we take anything from this, let’s make sure we are either building systems or pouring into a system that helps these families and community for the long-term, not just the short-term.”