West Hollywood is often celebrated as a progressive and inclusive city, a shining example of equity and acceptance. Yet for some residents, the reality can feel like a farce, reminiscent of Hans Christian Andersen’s folktale The Emperor’s New Clothes. In the story, everyone praises the emperor’s “invisible” garments, afraid to speak the truth. Similarly, West Hollywood proudly wears the mantle of inclusion—while systemic barriers and injustices are plain for all to see.
When I tried to enroll my child, who has special needs, in Camp West Hollywood—a program catering to elementary school-aged children—I was confronted with policies that seemed designed to exclude rather than to include. While other families paid an estimated $45 per day, my costs amounted to roughly $250 per day—an amount so disproportionate it felt punitive. The city provided no clear accommodations that should have been granted under laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, and California’s Unruh Civil Rights Act.
True inclusion means meeting people where they are and ensuring that barriers to participation are removed, not reinforced. But West Hollywood’s failure to fulfill even basic obligations to a resident with special needs — speaks volumes about a deeper issue: a dangerous lack of transparency and accountability in how the city prioritizes its residents.
According to recent census data, only about 5-6% of West Hollywood’s population is under 18, far below the national average of 22%. Narrowing this further, only 2.5-3% of the population—approximately 900 to 1,100 children—are of elementary school age. Camp West Hollywood, designed specifically for this age group, should be a cornerstone of support for the city’s youngest residents. Yet it is not.
To uncover the truth, I recently submitted a public records request seeking data on who Camp West Hollywood truly serves. How many participants are city residents versus non-residents? While I await the results, I suspect that a significant portion of the program’s beneficiaries live outside West Hollywood. If true, this revelation would add salt to an already painful wound.
This mirrors the story of The Emperor’s New Clothes in unsettling ways. West Hollywood’s image as a progressive leader is celebrated far and wide, yet the reality reveals an ugly truth: exclusion, inequity, and a failure to support the vulnerable. Many are unwilling—or afraid—to challenge this narrative. Instead, we continue to drink the Kool-Aid, convinced that the emperor’s garments are magnificent, while residents with disabilities see the naked truth.
Just as it took the honesty of a child to reveal the emperor’s nakedness, it’s time for all of us to speak up and acknowledge the truth.
Great article, such an excellent point this writer makes
The majority that sits on city council disregards all concerns for older adults and those with disabilities. I am sorry you are just another example of what is going on. Look at Fountain Avenue as another example of the lack of compliance when the non compliant ADA sidewalks take a back seat to a phase 2 process that has zero funding yet was used as a reason for an 8.6 million dollar grant to get bike lanes approved
There’s a highly selective sense of inclusion in West Hollywood. I’m amused by the new buzzphrase bantered about from the dais and elsewhere that refers to West Hollywood as a beacon of light, or beacon of whatever. Empty words from people who act like they were elected to program prom night at the local high school. Newbie Danny Hang, who seems incapable of uttering words that aren’t scripted on his screen (likely by his puppet masters at United Here Local 11), has used beacon of something in ways too numerous to tolerate without nausea setting in. I’m with people like… Read more »
…….through the “lens” of my speech writer. Pretty soon that new CC member will start using those two poles with glass thingies to make it look like he’s not reading.
I don’t even see a website for Camp West Hollywood.
Where do you get information on it?
That’s terrible, Rachel.
People also say WeHo is progressive.
I beg to differ.
You are right, Rachel! in addition to what you, sadly, are experiencing with your child, if our city truly wanted to include older adults, and people living with disabilities, perhaps they would’ve given more thought to all the obstacles they put on the sidewalks to block our way and create a dangerous situation for us…but they didn’t… and they still haven’t!
So true.