Slab City, also called The Slabs, is an unincorporated, off-the-grid alternative lifestyle community consisting largely of snowbirds

History

thumb|right|The Slab City Christian Center in October 2007

Prior to the United States' official entry into World War II, the United States Marine Corps planned a training ground for field and anti-aircraft artillery units in an area accessible by aircraft taking off from carriers near San Diego. To create the training base, were obtained. The government announced that the base was to be named after Marine Corps Brigadier General Robert Henry Dunlap. After construction of Camp Dunlap was completed, it was commissioned on October 15, 1942. The camp had fully functioning buildings, water, roads, and sewage collections. The base was used for three years during the war. It was first settled by a few veterans who had worked at the Marine base, followed later by drifters – then recreational vehicle owners, searching for free camping spots outside Palm Springs. Current residents refer to themselves as Slabbies while tourists are called Normies.

Geography

Slab City is located on roughly of public land, near the east shore of the Salton Sea. It is northeast of San Diego, southeast of Los Angeles and about from Mexico. To the east of Slab City is Coachella Canal, which is fenced, but the fence gets cut open periodically, especially at Slab City, according to the Coachella Valley Water District.

Climate

The area has a large amount of sunshine year round, due to its stable descending air and high pressure. According to the Köppen climate classification system, Slab City has a hot desert climate, BWh on climate maps.

Demographics

The Washington Post reported in 2020 that population is seasonal, and balloons up to about 4,000 during the winter, by some estimates, and dwindles to about 150 in the summer. Since the 1950s, Slab City has drawn a variety of people, such as anarchists, artists, eccentrics, outcasts, retirees, and the impoverished. A 1990 Chicago Tribune article by a journalist who stayed in the camp for a week estimated that winter residents (at the time) were mostly senior citizens over 60 years old. It is a "popular winter destination for transients."

Economy

According to the San Diego Union-Tribunes Fred Dickey in 2012, the most common source of income among the permanent residents is "probably" SSI checks.

Many residents use generators or solar panels to generate electricity. Clean water is dispensed from a tank at the community church. The closest body of civilization with proper law enforcement is approximately southwest of Slab City, in Niland, where residents often went for basic shopping as of 1990. and a skatepark built inside what remains of the military base swimming pool.

In 2002, Salvation Mountain was named a Congressional National Folk-Art Treasure.

The current Salvation Mountain is actually the second construction to occupy the site; Knight began the first Salvation Mountain in 1984, using highly unstable construction methods that allowed the mountain to collapse in 1989. Knight was not discouraged; he rebuilt the structure using better materials and engineering, including adobe mixed with straw.

Before his death on February 10, 2014, Knight had been living in a nursing home. He was able to visit Salvation Mountain for the last time in May 2013; the visit was recorded by KPBS (TV).

East Jesus

East Jesus is an experimental and habitable art installation located in the Slab City area. There is no religious connotation in the name East Jesus – it is a colloquialism for a place in the middle of nowhere beyond the edge of serviceability. The off-grid facility operates with no municipal utilities.

In early 2007, Charlie Russell left his job in the technology industry, packed all his belongings into a shipping container, and sent it to a trash-strewn field, where he began to surround his two cars with sculptures. Russell, often called Container Charlie, renamed this settlement site East Jesus. He died in May 2011. The Chasterus Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit formed after his death in 2011, has since guided the curation and expansion of East Jesus.

East Jesus features a variety of experimental art, such as live events, performance art, music, photography, and most prominently sculptures. Works are continually added, and degrade quickly in the desert climate, despite the presence of caretakers. One such volunteer referred to it, and Slab City as a whole, as a ‘salvagepunk’ ethos. East Jesus pieces are described as decaying, or growing, but always in a state of transformation -unlike traditional galleries- due both to the intense climate, and the thousands of contributing artists who have added to the installation. In 2014, live-in staff were giving dozens of free tours, and hosted visiting artists and overnight guests.

The Range

The Range is an open-air nightclub complete with stage, lights, amplifiers, and speakers, with tattered couches and old chairs for seating. Every Saturday night at around dusk, locals and visitors meet for a talent show that features permanent resident musicians and anyone else who wants to get on stage and perform. The venue is run by old-time resident William Ammon, known as "Builder Bill." Ammon's wife, Robin Ammon, collected old prom dresses for people to wear; these are used when the community puts on a prom, because many residents have never been able to actually attend one.

Government

Dirt roads are graded by Imperial County and are regularly patrolled by the Imperial County Sheriff's Office, as well as by Border Patrol agents searching for undocumented immigrants; Slab City is about from Mexico.

Community

Slab City is divided into a handful of neighborhoods with different characteristics. Residents talked about using CB radio as a bulletin board and adopting radio handles when they spoke to the Chicago Tribune in 1990.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, residents were heavily impacted by the loss of tourist income, which also provided food and water. Social distancing was also a difficulty, as many residents work closely to trade and maintain services. The pandemic was complicated by the elderly population, no health infrastructure within Slab City (the nearest hospital is 40 minutes away, in Brawley), a lack of insurance, a lack of running water and sanitation, and anti-governmental or conspiratorial beliefs. In 2015, the New York Times reported that the usual cause for police response to Slab City is over camping boundary disputes, sometimes burglary, but that methamphetamine use is a recurrent problem. In December 2019, during the two-day Imperial Valley fugitive-seeking effort named Operation Valley Grinch, four fugitives hiding in Slab City were apprehended. The locals also cut the fence

Future plans

Some reports claim that the land is owned by the State of California, while others from 1993 report that the land was purchased by a building contractor. As of 2021, California had not yet decided to sell the land, but the Lands Commission is considering having the land appraised, and, if needed, allow for cleanup due to military waste from the 1950s.

In 2015, several residents formed the Slab City Community Group in an effort to prevent a sale. The group explored obtaining of Slab City in a trust, though this was a contentious issue with other residents.

See also

  • Chocolate Mountain Aerial Gunnery Range
  • Drop City
  • Burning Man

References

  • East Jesus
  • Salvation Mountain
  • Slab City: A haven for the homeless gentrifies On the Streets Ep. 9 (Los Angeles Times official YouTube)
  • Slab City footage and interviews by Sherman George and Greg Durbin, University of California in San Diego Library Digital Collections
  • 1988 San Diego Reader article on Slab City
  • Living Without Laws: Slab City, USA (Vice official)
  • 2004 New York Times article, login may be required.
  • 2003 UK Guardian article.
  • 2020 Photo-essay from The Guardian
  • Slab City: the Legendary Lawless Town in the California Desert