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A worn flag blows on a hill on the outskirts of Slab City, a place some call the last free place in America. (ALEJANDRO DAVILA PHOTO) |
Drive east of Niland, past an upcoming solar project, an Imperial Irrigation District substation and a man-made mountain, and you’ll enter Slab City, a settlement in the middle of the desert dubbed by some as the “last free place in America.”
In 1,500 A.D., between 10,000 and 30,000 American Indians lived here, according to a University of California, Riverside, thesis written by Dorothy Ann Phelps. Now, there are about 200 permanent residents, born mainly elsewhere, and between 1,000 and 2,000 mostly retired snowbirds during the winter.
Just like in the rest of the world, a small percentage of the residents are very wealthy while most are not.
Nobody here owns the land they live on. Electricity comes from solar panels, and there is no sewer or water. Residents don’t pay rent, property taxes and don’t get much attention from the government aside from ambulances, deputies and firefighters.
The state owns this property. But as Brian Bush, chief of the Land Management Division of the California State Lands Commission, put it: “We’ve tried to work with the county (to) have them take (over) management and that hasn’t quite worked.”
“When you go pretty much down to it, we are pretty much squatters,” Slab City resident Mike Bright said. “If you play your cards right you can live for free.”
Some live in the Slabs for ideological reasons, he said, and some — himself included — “want to create a utopia and have limited success at it.”
But Bright acknowledges Slab City can be a magnet for thieves and methamphetamine addicts.
Most, though, “try to behave in an ethical, moral fashion,” he said.
A non-conventional government
There is certainly “a lot less pressure” here, said resident Cookie Richardson when asked if the Slabs is the last free place there is.
The problem with the saying is that people think things are free here, or that any way of behaving is permitted, she said. That is not the case.
So even though Slab City doesn’t have a government in the conventional meaning of the word, there are associations that provide services to those who are willing to contribute to a group.
Residents have clubs, an Internet café, a Christian center, a library — in bad condition — and even the Slab City Community Group. The community group meets every Saturday and the turnout varies.
“These meetings came about to create a sense of community here at Slab City,” reads the agenda of Dec. 10. “Everyone is welcome at these meetings. All we ask is to listen to each other.”
Freedom here isn’t free as in “free lunch,” said Lynne Bright, a permanent resident, member of the community group and the Oasis club, a 60-member association.
“It’s just that you have the freedom to come here and be who you want to be,” she said.
During their community meetings, important issues are discussed, Lynne said.
“Keiran’s laptop is still missing,” reads a line under the “hot items” portion of the same agenda. “January 28 is the Slab City Talent Show” and “Lizzzi’s heart was stolen, suspect is David” are just some of the other topics found.
In 1,500 A.D., between 10,000 and 30,000 American Indians lived here, according to a University of California, Riverside, thesis written by Dorothy Ann Phelps. Now, there are about 200 permanent residents, born mainly elsewhere, and between 1,000 and 2,000 mostly retired snowbirds during the winter.
Just like in the rest of the world, a small percentage of the residents are very wealthy while most are not.
Nobody here owns the land they live on. Electricity comes from solar panels, and there is no sewer or water. Residents don’t pay rent, property taxes and don’t get much attention from the government aside from ambulances, deputies and firefighters.
The state owns this property. But as Brian Bush, chief of the Land Management Division of the California State Lands Commission, put it: “We’ve tried to work with the county (to) have them take (over) management and that hasn’t quite worked.”
“When you go pretty much down to it, we are pretty much squatters,” Slab City resident Mike Bright said. “If you play your cards right you can live for free.”
Some live in the Slabs for ideological reasons, he said, and some — himself included — “want to create a utopia and have limited success at it.”
But Bright acknowledges Slab City can be a magnet for thieves and methamphetamine addicts.
Most, though, “try to behave in an ethical, moral fashion,” he said.
A non-conventional government
There is certainly “a lot less pressure” here, said resident Cookie Richardson when asked if the Slabs is the last free place there is.
The problem with the saying is that people think things are free here, or that any way of behaving is permitted, she said. That is not the case.
So even though Slab City doesn’t have a government in the conventional meaning of the word, there are associations that provide services to those who are willing to contribute to a group.
Residents have clubs, an Internet café, a Christian center, a library — in bad condition — and even the Slab City Community Group. The community group meets every Saturday and the turnout varies.
“These meetings came about to create a sense of community here at Slab City,” reads the agenda of Dec. 10. “Everyone is welcome at these meetings. All we ask is to listen to each other.”
Freedom here isn’t free as in “free lunch,” said Lynne Bright, a permanent resident, member of the community group and the Oasis club, a 60-member association.
“It’s just that you have the freedom to come here and be who you want to be,” she said.
During their community meetings, important issues are discussed, Lynne said.
“Keiran’s laptop is still missing,” reads a line under the “hot items” portion of the same agenda. “January 28 is the Slab City Talent Show” and “Lizzzi’s heart was stolen, suspect is David” are just some of the other topics found.
