To properly manage the delicate relationship between the Dominion of Bernalwood and our rebellious vassals from La Lengua, it is important for us to understand the longstanding roots of the La Lenguans’ search for autonomy.
Neighbor Ben recently discovered an important artifact that should assist in this quest for historical context. Hiding in plain sight on a vacant Mission Street storefront just north of 30th Street, he found a vintage decal which pledges fealty to the “South of Army – Mission Merchants Association.”
Who were these proto-La Lenguans? What can we infer about the people who roamed the flatlands in the days before Army Street became Cesar Chavez Boulevard? The decal’s intimation that “He Knows You – You Know Him” suggests they were a paternalistic tribe that was closely bound by kinship ties and sharply-defined notions of geographic solidarity.
Minus the paternalistic bias, the same might be said of the La Lenguans of 2012. The contemporary articulation of La Lengua identity is a relatively recent phenomenon, but this decal demonstrates that the area’s sense of geographic “otherness” has been present for a very long time. Good to know.
PHOTO: Neighbor Ben
Bernalwood 
What a great find!
South of Army = SoAr. Just sayin’…
Very cool… but, south of Army? Like, the southern side of Army street?
I assume the SoA-MMA was referring to what we now call La Lengua.
Oh Christ, I’m being an idiot and ignoring that Cesar Chavez doesn’t exactly end where it intersects Mission. This is what happens when I multitask. Or type.
I think this is pretty obvious: It’s a collection of the creation myths of the proto-La Lenguans. They descended from those entering the area on foot from the Golden Gate Bridge, by outrigger canoe from the Faralonnes, by boat then trolley from the Ferry Building and by spaceships landing at all local fire hose nozzle tributes. Only one is true of course, but that is their secret.
“SoAMMA” kind of rolls off the tongue nicely, doesn’t it? Predecessors of SOMAites, for sure. This is a significant leap forward in the anthropological studies regarding the area’s population.
spelling, spelling!
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