Riot Material

Art. Word. Thought.

That Evening Sun

Suitcase Joe, Skid Row Photographer. Check out his column, "That Evening Sun," at Riot Material Magazine.

8.14

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

Jonathan Michael Fitzgerald is an ex marine who prefers to sleep out in the open as opposed to a tent. He feels much safer being able to see what’s going on around him. He lost his left eye while being robbed when a man stabbed him with a screwdriver. He said he tried to pick up what was left of it off the ground before heading to the hospital, but no luck. He did open up his eye and let me peer into the empty socket. I tried to get a few photos, but they didn’t do it justice. [Read more…]

6.5

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

It’s always good to catch up with Jerry. He heard there’s a picture of him hanging in a museum and he has been recognized on the street because of it. He seemed very excited about that. Despite his physical appearance, Jerry is very approachable and likes to talk. If you ever come across him, don’t be shy to say hello. Like many people living on the street they become easily overlooked and starved for genuine human interaction. A little can go along way. [Read more…]

3.31

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

Frankie here has been living in Skid Row for three years. She’s originally from Tennessee and still has a thick Tennessee accent. She wouldn’t shake my hand because she said hers was too dirty. I make a point to shake everyone’s hands I meet, regardless of how dirty they appear. It’s a small gesture that quickly puts you on someone’s level and often their demeanor quickly opens up. Sometimes I see people down in Skid Row, often volunteers doing wonderful things to help people, but they wear gloves when dealing with the street people. I think that puts a certain kind of barrier between you and them. [Read more…]

3.19

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

I’ve been seeing Michelle around downtown quite a bit lately. Sometimes she remembers me and other times I have to introduce myself all over again, even after running into her the day before. Regardless if she remembers me or not, she is always soft spoken and sweet. I didn’t ask her how she got the black eye or cut on her face, but she was still kind enough to let me take some photos. [Read more…]

3.18

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

Doreen was using the reflection of a van window to brush her hair and ready herself for me to take a couple photos when I took this shot. Turns out it was the best one. I hadn’t seen Doreen in over a year when I came across her on Glady’s street, close to where she used to live and work out of her tent. She tells me she wasn’t getting along with her neighbors so it was time to move away from that street. Now she lives under a bridge beneath the 110 highway where it’s a little more peaceful. There are all kinds of characters and personalities among the street residents I’ve met in Skid Row, but Doreen is one of the more vibrant ones I’ve come across, yet. I’m happy to see she is still around. [Read more…]

3.17

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

Alfred, known on the streets as Evil, has been a long time affiliate of the Diamond Street Gang, but is no longer an active member. He once made large amounts of money, running drugs and guns for his gang, but eventually that all caught up to him. Things continued to get worse and he lost his wife in a divorce and the custody of his son. He tells me: “I hit a rough patch and lost my kids. I feel like a burden to everyone. I’m ashamed to be seen by my mother.” The wound on his stomach is from when he shot himself with a .45 last November. That was his first attempt at taking his own life. He tells me he’s made a lot of mistakes and with that has come a heavy price. Alfredo has exhausted the generosity of his friends and family and he has no one left to turn to. For the last two weeks he’s been living out of his car in Skid Row where he prefers to be out of sight from everyone. This past Saturday he tried to take his own life again. He got hold of a new gun, sat in his car, turned up the music and put the gun to his head. Luckily a man nearby happened to see this and quickly pounced upon him, wrestling Alfred’s gun out of his hands. The gun went off in the incident, but fortunately no one was shot. Whoever the man was talked to Alfred and calmed him down. He bought him food and alcohol and gave him a few dollars for his drugs (crack). The man told Alfred, he knows he can’t control him doing any of that, but please don’t do this, (referring to his gun), which he said he was going to give him back, but asked him please not to take his life. Alfred didn’t want the gun back. He told the man to keep it. But he told me this of his attempted suicides: “I lived, but I’m not happy to be alive.” [Read more…]

3.14

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

I usually see Jerry a couple times a week hanging around the corner of 6th and Los Angeles. Last time I spoke with him he was having some trouble with his lungs. Recently he told me he now visits a hospital twice a week where they hook him up to a respiratory machine to help with his breathing. They’re also giving him steroids in the form of an inhaler. Like always, Jerry was in high spirits. For those unfamiliar with Jerry, his deformity comes from being shot in the face with a shotgun at point blank range. Jerry is lucky to have lived through the incident. [Read more…]

3.11

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

The woman on the left brought news that a man around the corner known as New York had just passed away in his tent. That’s how word travels in Skid Row. Fortunately it wasn’t anyone that Tiffany knew. Tiffany (photo right) is a heroin addict. While I was speaking with her, I noticed blood on her shirt and a bloody cloth wrapped around her arm that served as a crude bandage. She tells me, two years ago a couple of abscess’ formed on her arm caused by shooting up and they quickly became infected. The infection continued to grow and spread throughout her entire arm. From my observation her arm cannot be far off from needing to be amputated. However, the state of her arm does not keep her from continuing to use. Addiction is more powerful than some people understand. It’s not as easy as just getting clean and starting over. It’s something you will always have to deal with once it rears its ugly head into your life. [Read more…]

3.8

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That Evening Sun is a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row
by Suitcase Joe

Suitcase Joe. "That Evening Sun," a photo-journal of life, love and interminable lasting on LA’s Skid Row, is at Riot Material Magazine.

Her name is Julie Pacheco. She doesn’t speak much English and regardless of the language barrier, I’m told she doesn’t speak much at all. She’s skittish and hides her eyes beneath her black beanie, but she seems very aware of her surroundings. Her body is covered in little scabs and scratches where she picks at herself and she moves with a nervous energy. Julie lives with a man who looks out for her and he is very fond of Julie. He tells me she was a sex slave in Mexico for 10 years, where she was kept in a cage, abused and mistreated. The man has also lived through his own personal trauma and it was evident to me that they have a connection founded in what they’ve been through. He tells me, he’d like to marry her someday, but she doesn’t have any papers. Regardless he is protective over her and takes care of her just the same. I’ll be following up with Julie in the near future after I bring an interpreter with me to help me translate our conversation. I’d like to learn more about her backstory and share it with you all. [Read more…]