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Ted Watkins is a civil rights activist and founder of the Watts Labor Community Action Committee (WLCAC), a non-profit organization formed in 1965 to provide economic and social assistance to impoverished black community in the Watts community of Los Angeles.

Watkins served as a member of the United Automobile Workers’ Union to organize workers in Watts and was integral in bringing housing, healthcare and opportunity to the region.

Early Life
Ted Watkins described himself as a "po' boy from Mississippi." He was born in 1923 in Meridian, Mississippi. When he was 13 years old, he got into a fight with a white Western Union mail carrier and broke the man’s ribs. His parents feared that white union members would lynch him, so Watkins fled immediately, taking a train to New Orleans and then on to Los Angeles.

“(I) arrived in Los Angeles with a few bucks in my pocket and began immediately trying to be a man,” Watkins said in a documentary about his life.

Union work
Since he was young, Watkins had a knack for organizing his peers. When he was living in the projects he organized other tenants and after training to be a mechanic, he organized his fellow workers.

Watkins got a job with Ford as a mechanic and was elected to the United Auto Workers (UAW) union’s negotiating committee. Walter Reuther, the head of the United Automobile Workers’ Union, hired Watkins as a full time representative of the union and stationed him in Watts.

Founding the center
The Watts Labor Community Action Committee grew out of Watkins' desire to organize his community. His efforts received recognitions from the mayor and numerous government agencies.

Watts covers slightly more than 2 square miles in south-east Los Angeles. When Watkins settled in the region in the 1960s, the region was predominantly African American.

The Watts riots erupted in 1965 in reaction to police brutality against minorities. A young black man named Marquette Frye was pulled over for reckless driving and the confrontation escalated. Police officer pulled out a gun and rumors spread quickly through the neighborhood. Years of tension between minority communities and police exploded in violent destruction. Watts became a war zone for six days. Thirty four people died.

Thus far, the Civil Rights movement focus primarily on the Jim Crowe laws of the deep South. The riots expanded the focus of America’s racial divide to the harsh economic inequalities in urban centers.

In 1964, the year before the riots, President Lyndon Johnson declared a “War on Poverty”. But local politicians still controlled how federal money was to be spent. Los Angeles Mayor Sam Yorty was hesitant to fund community needs in Watts because he did not want to reward the destructive Watts Riots.

Black and Mexican communities that needed the federal funding the most had to fight for their fair share.

Watkins formed the WLCAC as a channel for anti-poverty resources in Watts, an area that desperately needed the support. Watkins and the original founders drew from black power ideals of economic self sufficiency and self determination. The committee was built to help poor black citizens better their circumstances without relying on white politicians who had often failed them in the past.

The WLCAC successfully built the King Medical Center as one of its first endeavors. Before, the closest medical treatment was many miles away and took several busses to reach.

Watkins secured a $2 million loan from his union and bought empty lots in the area to build housing and other amenities, such as a senior center, parks and a credit union. Before the committee, Watts citizens had to travel several miles away to the nearest bank and were often denied loans.

And in 1967, the Office of Economic Opportunity awarded the committee a $250,000 grant.

The center rented and farmed the land under telephone poles and worked to clean up the destruction from the riots. Young people in the program also planted trees and build houses.

In 1970, the committee established itself as a Community Development Corporation (CDC) The organization remained focused on keeping community in power of their own business and helped establish a locally owned poultry farm, grocery, service station, laundromat, furniture and appliance store, and food stamp operations.

The committee also has a program called the Community Conservation Corps that offers temporary jobs to young people and education on black history and culture. The program are a part of the committee’s ongoing efforts to channel the youth out of gangs and into more constructive activities.

On the first anniversary of Watts riots, the WLCAC helped launch The Watts Summer Festival to commemorate African-American heritage and culture.

The WLCAC helped fund and construct 70 additional housing units in Watts in the late 1980s.

Franklin Square
Franklin Square is a 2 block cul de sac located near Success Avenue and East Century Boulevard.

The WLCAC was able to buy several unused houses from the city for $1 each in 1975. The labor committee then organized and trained about 300 locals to relocated the houses from Weschester to empty lots in Franklin Square in Watts. About 1,500 people applied for the 39 houses. Families could own the homes if they stayed and paid rent for 20 years.

According to a 2003 Los Angeles article, the square fell into shambles and all houses were below government safety standards. Of the 25 families stayed in the houses for two decades, none were given the deeds as promised as of 2003.

The Times reported that the housing complex lacked any oversight and requests for repairs were ignored or put off by the committee. Many houses could not be properly heated, lacked windows or were infested with rodents. Some houses had molded carpet or just dirt floors. One house had to be torn down completely. It cost an estimated $2 million to make the houses legally safe again.

“They treated us like dogs over here,” one resident told the Times.

Watkins and his son Tim claimed that repairs were done as often as finances allowed. They said that the buildings feel into true disarray after they no longer belonged to the committee. The controversy sparked tensions between Tim Watkins, who is involved in local politics, and councilwoman Janice Hahn, who ordered the inspections. Repairs are underway and at least 25 people have received deeds so far.

Personal Life
He and his wife, Bernice, had six children – Ted Jr. (Teddy), Tamlin, Timothy, Teryl, Lyssa and Tom – and at least 21 grandchildren. His sone Tim and daughter According to his obituary in the Los Angeles Times, he continued to work at the committee up until months before his death. His son and successor, Timothy, said that later in life he was particularly passionate about rights and amenities for the homeless.

Death and Legacy
Watkins died in 1993 at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center of a heart attack during surgery. He was 71 years old.

The Ted Watkins Memorial Park was established in 1995 in the heart of Los Angeles. The 28 acre park includes a Promenade of Prominence Walk of Fame to honor notable community leaders. . The Los Angeles Board of Supervisors allocated $6.8 million to upgrade the park's playground, baseball field and picnic area.