Residents fed up with street takeovers protest "Fast & Furious" filming in Angelino Heights

Angelino Heights residents gathered for one of a planned series of protests against the filming of the newest "Fast & Furious" movie in the area, claiming that the series has brought an increase in street racing and danger to their neighborhood.

The first of the "Fast & Furious" movies was largely filmed in Los Angeles, centering around the Angelino Heights neighborhood near Dodger Stadium in 2001. Since then, the franchise has released eight different films, with the 10th in production, with filming scheduled on Friday and Saturday in Los Angeles. 

As a result, residents fed up with the rampant increase in street takeovers and racing taking over SoCal streets through all hours of the day protested the filming of "Fast X" — the 10th installment of the series — when production crews arrived at the location of Bob's Market, or "Toretto's Cafe," as "Fast and Furious" fans can recall.

"We don't get to see the stars, we just get our street taken," said Karylyn Faris, who lives in the area. She also mentioned the tire marks and burnt rubber left behind by the drivers, a number of which could be seen as Sky2 soared over Angelino Heights Friday morning.

Protestors marched up the street holding signs of loved ones who were victims of injury or death at the hands of street racing, chanting "Race around a track! Film in a studio! Street racing kills!"

"It's out of control now, they gotta start doing something, otherwise somebody's gonna get hurt," said Joe Martinez, who also lives in Angelino Heights.

In just the last year, Los Angeles Police Department has noted a 30% increase in fatalities and a 21% increase in injury directly related to traffic violence, as evidenced by an ongoing double murder investigation stemming from a takeover in Compton in Nov. 2021 and a crash at a street takeover that killed two women in Compton in June, amongst dozens of other instances.

Locals reached out to LA City Councilman Gil Cedillo's office, Film LA, the Los Angeles Police Department and NBCUniversal about the prospective filming in their neighborhood

After failing to hear from any of the organizations, residents then reached out to Streets Are For Everyone (SAFE) and Street Racing Kills, a pair of road safety organizations that combined efforts to set up the protests — scheduled from 10 a.m. to noon and 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. with news conferences planned at 11 a.m. each day. 

"The problem with street racing and side-shows is not just about the noise, burning rubber, and the illegal activities accompanying it. It is about the people injured and lives lost," said Damian Kevitt, the Executive Director of SAFE. 

Additionally, the organizations are asked city leaders to reconsider the engineering of roads in Angelino Heights by installing speed bumps and meridians to prevent drivers from racing. 

"When released, residents believe F10 will only glorify further, and encourage more, illegal street racing and side-shows in their neighborhood and across Southern California, not just for a few days but for years and years," Kevitt said. "Angelino Heights is one of the areas most impacted by illegal street racing and side-shows. Why? Some of the most iconic scenes in the Fast and Furious franchise of movies were filmed in Angelino Heights, and it has become a 'street racing right of passage' for people to film themselves burning rubber or speeding through the neighborhood. While it might be 'fun' for those doing these illegal activities, it creates a living hell for those in the community night after night after night."

Protestors are still calling for a response from the major organizations, who they believe should discourage street racing due to the noted danger it presents to the drivers and the surrounding communities. 

"We do want to prove a point," Kevitt said while speaking with CBS reporter Lauren Pozen. "We want the pressure to be felt, not only on the city, but also on NBCUniversal for a lack of social responsibility."

Lori Argumendo, who helped organize the protests as a member of Street Racing Kills doubled down on that desire to see the studio take some responsibility in reminding the public that their stunts are done in a controlled setting. 

"I would like them to say that street racing kills," she said. "That's what killed my niece. That's what killed the founder's daughter. Street racing — that's why our organization is called Street Racing Kills."