S1: This episode of Voices the Way contains strong language and candid conversations about life and celebrity , including references to substance use and mature situations. Listener discretion is advised , especially for younger audiences.
S2: Writers , filmmakers , and travelers have long been drawn to Slab City. The Last Free Place , the off grid frontier , and the all out outlaw community in the desert.
S3: It's been romanticized , mythologized , turned into documentaries and headlines.
S2: But there's a part of Slab City we almost never hear about the young people grown up there. Today.
S3: Today. Voices del Valle is doing something simple. We're listening not to the legend of Slab City , but to the kids who live it.
S2: From the Imperial Valley. This is voice of the Valley. I'm Santiago Valdez.
S3: And I'm Mitzi. This episode , teens of subsidy.
S2: When people talk about Slab City online , it's either one of two things a wild adventure or a warning.
S3: And if you've watched the documentaries or YouTube videos , you've probably seen the same images again and again. Burn trailers , chaotic camps , the most extreme moments.
S2: But the teams we met told us something important right away. That's not the whole story.
S3: And it's definitely not the only story.
S4: All right.
S2: So , okay , I'm gonna start recording. We're gonna cut all the beginning stuff out. But my name is Santiago Valdez. Uh , we're doing voices with , uh. This is our Slab City episode.
S3: We sat down with Casey , 18 years old , who's lived in Slab subsidy most of her life.
S5: My name is Casey Pearson. I'm 18. I've been here for 15 , 14 years. Um , we came down here from Connecticut. And I was four when we first got here , so. Yeah. Now I'm just living my life home. Yeah. Stuck it out here.
S2: Cassie's brother Timothy was there , too. My name is Timothy Pearson. I'm 20.
S6: I've been here for 14 years.
S3: And Lizzie , also 20 , moved out more recently.
S5: My name is Alyssa. I'm 20. Um , I've been out here for , what , three years? Chillin like a. Villain.
S2: Villain. Almost immediately , the conversation went to something. They've all noticed how Slab City gets framed online.
S5: People talk about the worst that are out here. Do you be watching , like , YouTube videos and shit before you came out?
S2: Oh , yeah. 24 hour challenge memory. Only the bad parts in there. Yeah.
S5: I guess That's what I'm saying. No , Joseph did that. Yeah. No. Joseph showed the bad. Daniel Duncan showed the bad. Um. Explain what? Josh , this YouTuber , he just came out here not that long ago. Like two days ago. I'm expecting him to show. Just a bad two. Yeah , that's all they do is they go around and they won't show them talking to us. They won't show them talking to all the people. Should I say regular people? But they'll show them talking to all the tweakers.
S3: That word tweakers came up a lot. Not as a joke. More like a boundary line. Like.
S2: Like.
S5: Yes , because they , as you see , they burn trailers , they burn it down. It makes it look like crap around here.
S2: She talked about what changes when you grow up somewhere that the internet treats like content.
S5: It's not that bad out here. Like just go to the right camps , hang with the right people.
S3: It's a sentence that sounds simple , that safety isn't guaranteed like anywhere else. It's navigated.
S2: And then Kacey started describing her youth life out there and what disappeared.
S5: Um , we used to go to East Jesus all the time. Yeah. We can't really go there no more. It's just.
S2: What's easy. Jesus.
S5: It's just like this art thing. They used to have. Like.
S2: Like.
S6: Art out of , like , trash. They recycle the trash and make art out of it. Yeah.
S5: Yeah.
S6: They made a , uh , an elephant out of only tires. Oh.
S2: Oh. Yeah.
S6: Yeah.
S2: That's cool.
S6: They have a giant , like alligator that they made out of. Like , I think they welded it together or something like that , but it's a giant alligator with a rocket and smells. It's pretty cool. They got a giant a few giant towers over there. They got a whole bunch of things over there. It's fucking amazing.
S5: Yeah , we used to go to the library all the time , but the library just. It's not the same.
S3: She's talking about places that anywhere else sound like normal teen hangouts , an art spot , the library , someone's couch.
S2: But out here , access changes , places get taken over , and the teens are the first one to feel what that means.
S5: We learn a lot. Being out here , honestly , just like growing up out here is a lot. It was a lot more freedom than being out and about. I was able to learn how to hook up solo. I was able to learn how to build. It used to be so nice. I used to be fun. Beautiful. You can't do nothing out here now.
S3: That's the tension we keep hearing. Freedom and loss , skills and instability.
S2: And then Casey said something that stood out to us. We used to be more kids.
S5: Usually there'd be a lot more kids y'all can talk to. I've been out here just as much as us , but , I mean , we've been out here long , but they come back and forth. Yeah , but they know about this place like that. They don't really come out here right now.
S3: Hearing the voices of the teens out here is rare. Not because it doesn't exist , but because they're constantly leaving.
S2: Online celebrity gets treated like an extreme lifestyle choice. But when you're a kid , it's not a lifestyle. It's your address. It's your bus route. It's your classroom reputation.
S5: So I was bullied in elementary school for living out here , you know , because when they found out , they were like , oh , you nasty , blah blah , blah blah.
S3: Casey describes carrying that stigma into middle school.
S5: And then I went to , um , the school of middle school. Yeah. I was still getting bullied a little bit until I had , like seventh and eighth grade , and I got tired of these bitches. Like , I was like , I'm not about to keep doing this shit with y'all.
S2: Then high school.
S5: And then I went to college at the high school right there , and I was like , nobody with me no more. I'm on duty , dude. I take showers 24 over seven. They'd be talking about my house. My house is bigger than half a year. Old's house is , bro. Look at. That.
S6: That.
S5: They're better. Their thing is better because they're in a house. They have their clothes. Exactly. They got a brand. You know , their mama buys them whatever they want. And she doesn't mean you're the coolest person you could have. You could have the most money , but have the most shittiest personality , the shittiest heart. But it doesn't. It doesn't mean nothing. You know , you can have a nice personality and have a big ass house. You could be rich , you know , like you never know. Some people just are different. People think different , different perspectives of different people out here.
S3: If you've never had to defend your home like that , it's hard to understand how deep it goes. It's not just teasing , it's being told your life is less than.
S2: And while most people only picture Slab City as lawless , Casey pushed back on that too.
S5: Oh , yeah. People were sweating. They'd be like , oh , this is lawless. This is lawless. It's not. The cops would pull you over for driving too fast. The cops would pull you over for going on the wrong side of the road. Yeah. There's no this place is no different from being out there. There's just not houses.
S3: In other words , it's not fantasy. It's a community. And kids still have to graduate.
S6: Um , so you're done.
S2: With high school yet or.
S5: Uh , I'm on my last year.
S6: Or last year. Yeah. Okay. Sure. Yeah.
S5: Yeah.
S6: And , uh , I mean , after high school , you're done , right? You're.
S5: I'm not going to college because I , I'm hoping that my documentary that I'm doing for my , like , life of living out here. That's why this. I don't know why this feels so new to me. Because it's not. This is nothing new to me. I've been.
S6: Your whole. Life.
S5: Life. My whole life. I've been my clipped to my fucking thing. You know , with that thing on my fucking waist with a bigger mic than this. Usually that is huge. And like a big ass movie camera because she works for Hollywood. Yeah , but she's a Sweden girl , so her her producer isn't. Lives in Sweden , so she sometimes has to take trips up to Sweden. She all over the place. She la she does commercials. She just did. She's in her professional movie. Yeah , yeah.
S6: So she's still up like she's still doing.
S5: Yeah , I'm very mobile , so I'm hoping like that kind of gives me a start , you know what I mean? Because my goal is to end up owning a farm way far away from here. I don't want to be here like , I really don't. I want to have. I like horses and shit like that , you know what I mean? So I want to have a whole farm where I can have my horses and I want my own shit , you know? I want what I want. And.
S6: And.
S5: It's my dream , you know.
S6: Everybody thinks they're like , oh , they're out there. They have different views. But I mean , he wants. A.
S2: A. Farm.
S6: Farm. I love horses like , we got the same , we got the same stuff , but we love the outdoors. People. People think that y'all are great. Yeah.
S5: Yeah.
S6: Y'all are just , like , different. Y'all want to live. Y'all want to do drugs or whatever , but.
S2: Then they don't come out here.
S6: And talk to y'all.
S2: That surprised some of us because the stereotype out here says kids don't dream big.
S3: Yeah , but Casey wasn't asking for people to feel sorry. She was describing plans.
S2: Alizée moved from Raleigh to Slab City a few years ago. Her perspective is different because she came in a little older.
S5: It was because I usually don't leave away from home unless it's like something going on , you know , unless something like , I feel uncomfortable. But she was like , I want you to come out here. And I was like , hmm. I was kind of thinking about it. So I was like , let's go. Is that she wasn't just she had just plugged into a wall. Yeah , no , we have to. We run off of power. Uh , solar can do Yeah. So this is where we run out of water. But it's not like every day , you know? It's like we always have water. Like , she lived from living in a house to living in a trailer. And it's basically the same thing. Same thing , just different lifestyles. Oh , you live in a trailer? Nasty. But there's trailers all over the place. Or. Well , they just have walls on the side. They don't show you them. Yeah , but they're trailers , you know.
S3: And then she said something we want listeners to sit with.
S6: Do you guys ever feel like you guys are outcasts , per se? No.
S5: No. Everybody else is outcast. Everybody else , like y'all , are outcast to it. Oh , yeah. Know what I mean? Like. And I keep the circle small. Yeah.
S2: That line flips the usual narrative. It asks who gets to decide what normal is.
S3: Alizée described making a home out of what you have wherever you are.
S6: I like you guys. You guys are true to yourself. Yeah , true.
S5: People keep a pee. Yeah.
S6: And y'all. And you don't see that around? Yeah.
S5: Everybody be doing weird shit. They try to be gang bangers , Nat bangers , all kind of shit. When you. When you find out the hard way. Life ain't gonna be as it seems. You gonna have to always look over your shoulder. You don't always have to worry about own people. Money. You don't have to. Street life. You gonna have to do that regardless if you live in the streets or not. You're gonna have to always learn how to maneuver. Whether get money , get something to eat , something you know , regardless of where you stay at. Some people could be like , oh , like , just because I live in a trailer , I don't know how to hustle. Some people could be like , I have no home. But that doesn't mean you can't make it home into a house. You know , like certain there's certain shit. You you you can be anywhere you go. You could make a home.
S7: In the slums. You do something. Wrong.
S5: Wrong. Something terribly wrong.
S7: We do feeds , as you see. We do. We.
S5: There's clothes here. 247. Every. There's water. There's everything you need. And if you just gotta make the effort. If you don't make the effort , You're suffering yourself. And some people would be like , oh , well , you live in a box. Like , how is it out there? It's not a box. If you actually actually live off grid , you actually like it. You actually sit there and be like , okay , like there's certain shit you won't be able to do at a at a certain house , you know , at a certain place , but it's still a home , you know , you still could be able to relax , you know , chill , shower , eat , you know , where you lay your head at all kind of shit. Some people , some people don't even have that for her.
S2: Slab city wasn't a punchline. It was a place that forced responsibility and choice.
S3: After the sit down interview , we walked.
S2: A lot of the Slab City stories are told from a car window or from the ancients. Salvation Mountain , the quick shots , the quick conclusions. But that's not the whole story.
S3: But walking slows the story down.
S6: I hope that people. That.
S2: That. Listen.
S6: Listen. To.
S2: To.
S6: This can really , like , take.
S8: This and learn from it and realize that everything you see , like on YouTube , everything you see online isn't always true. For example , this is a perfect example. Not everybody's a crackhead here. Not everybody's crazy.
S2: That's the point of this episode. Not to deny the hard parts , but to stop pretending the hard parts are the only parts.
S8: And it's not just one person. It's just everyone in the world. You know , everyone's very judgmental , you know , judging a book by its cover. Yeah , but , like , you shouldn't really judge a book by its cover before getting to know him. You know , you shouldn't always go based off of what you see online and what you see on a video. You know , it's kind of like the difference between a book and a movie. The movie is just going through the actions while the book is describing the actions with the details. So that's what this this is kind of about. You know , we're here doing a book while everyone is doing the movie. You know.
S3: Then the conversation turned to the land itself , the history under our feet.
S7: Hey , they should make a call of duty and subsidy. Because this is. This is the old military. Yeah.
S6: Yeah.
S8: They used to have.
S6: Like , training.
S7: Militaries just out there. And we always hear the bombs. We always hear the gunshots. People go up there and pick up brass all the time. My uncle just did. He went. He had £420 and he got 700 and like $80 for it. I think.
S2: Even the quiet out here has sound.
S3: And even the freedom has limitations.
S2: If you only know Slab City from the documentaries , you might not know the places and people that hold it together.
S3: Like the Slab City Kerry Club , a community center that helps families and kids. It is run by Water Boy , a Slab City resident for almost 20 years.
S9: So I run the Slab City Care Club. We are basically the community center of Slab City. We do three free meals a week food , drop clothing , drop free water , kids Christmas parties , um , for the kids. It's labs , things like that.
S2: He informed us of one of the biggest challenges , which isn't resources. It's perception.
S9: Um , just getting the understanding of what we're doing out there into the public. You know , I mean , uh , you know , it's not just a bum camp out here , like , this is a community with families and loved ones. And , you know , we have community centers and and we have churches. We have everything , everything that every other community has. We're just in the middle of the desert.
S3: And when we ask specifically about teenagers and youth , his answer was honest.
S9: It depends. It depends again , on the parent. You know what I'm saying? If you're not taking care of your kid , then we're going to , as a community , not be real cool with you being here , but you can take care of take care of a family just fine here. You know , I mean , we have literally everything that you guys have in what we call Babylon , um , from running water , hot water to , like , like , everything. But you have to be able to , to support that , to have a family here , I'd say you can't just come here and try to raise kids with nothing. This is still a community that's gonna look at you sideways if you're not taking care of your children.
S2: That's not the romantic version. That's the real one. A place with rules , not just the ones that outsiders expect.
S3: Will probably keep showing up in documentaries. It's obviously visually striking and it's so easy to turn into a symbol , but symbols don't tell you what it's like to be 15 or 18 or 20. Out here trying to be seen as a whole person in a place where people have such little expectations.
S2: That's why we made this episode , because the world is gonna keep telling stories about Slab City. The teen perspective deserves to be part of that narrative.
S3: This has been voiceless , El Valle , and I'm Mitzi.
S2: I'm Cynthia with this. Thank you for listening.
S3: Hosted by Martin Martinez and Santiago Valdés.
S2: Supporting students Sofia Ayala , Margarita Guillen , Benny Lopez and Kenyon Thomas. Slab city teens Casey Pierson , Timothy Pierson , and Alizée.
S3: Edited and produced by Isaac Garcia and Doctor Thomas Taki. Episode music by Spartan Sound Productions and Richard Vega. Credits.
S2: Credits. Music by Emmanuel Twilley. Technical and operational support provided by KPBS. Technical producer sound designer Adrian Villalobos , KPBS audio operations assistant Rebecca Chacon , and KPBS Director of audio Programming and Operations Lisa Jane Morissette.
S3: This programming is partially made possible in part of the KPBS Explore Content Fund.
