Paying subscribers get early access to this episode. To become a paying member or to upgrade your subscription, go here.
April 6, 2026 edition
My guest this week is Estela Lopez, Executive Director of the LA Downtown Industrial Business Improvement District, which encompasses Los Angeles’s Skid Row. With 25 years on the job and a lifetime in the neighborhood, Estela is one of the most clear-eyed, unsparing voices I’ve encountered on what homelessness actually looks like at the ground level.
We talk about how a thriving industrial district became the nation’s most concentrated homeless encampment, why Estela sees this less as a homelessness crisis than a lawlessness crisis, and how the open-air drug economy makes every other intervention nearly impossible. We also talk about the limits—and often the folly—of harm reduction policy, how COVID chaos led to the collapse of enforcement, and what the “housing first” approach gets wrong. She also tells me about the activists who have physically attacked her for speaking honestly about what she sees.
If you’re interested in this subject, don’t miss my recent interview with investigative journalist Sam Quinones about how potent new forms of drugs, especially methamphetamine, have entirely reshaped the picture of street homelessness.
Housekeeping
🤣 Don’t miss my special April Fool’s Day episode with “curiosity coach” Amanda Gertz-Hurdy. It just might change your life.
📝 I’m offering three different writing workshops in the coming months. A women’s weekend workshop on a houseboat in Sausalito, CA; an 8-week coed Zoom course, and a three-night women’s writing retreat in the Catskills. Details and application info here and here.
✈️ The Unspeakeasy is now officially coed and will focus on in-person events going forward. But don’t worry, we’re offering three women’s retreats this year. The first is in L.A. in April and is now waitlist only. The others are on the East Coast in the fall, plus our big coed overnight retreat-a-polooza in October. The fall retreats will be open for registration in mid-April. Visit our retreat page for dates and more info.
🏍️ I am hosting Zoom hangouts for Founding Members on the last Sunday of every month at 8pm ET. The next meeting is Sunday, April 26. If you’re a Founding Member, you will get an email with the link. If you’re not yet a Founding Member, you can upgrade your subscription here.
🎁 Make a one-time donation to the podcast. Everything helps and is deeply appreciated. 🙏
📺 Visit The Unspeakeasy on YouTube.
