The South Bay is a region in the southwest peninsula of Los Angeles County, California. Its name stems from the fact that it stretches along the southern shores of Santa Monica Bay, which forms its western border. Its other boundaries are San Pedro Bay on the south, the Century Freeway on the north, and the Los Angeles River on the east. (The cities of Compton and Lynwood lie within these boundaries, but are generally considered extensions of South Central Los Angeles and not part of the South Bay.) The Harbor, San Diego, Gardena, and Century Freeways provide the region with its principal transportation links. Several ports and harbors in the South Bay provide access to Santa Catalina Island, a popular resort.

Communities in the South Bay include:

• Carson
• El Segundo
• Gardena
• Harbor City
• Hawthorne
• Hermosa Beach
• Lawndale
• Lomita
• Manhattan Beach
• Palos Verdes Estates
• Rancho Palos Verdes
• Redondo Beach
• Rolling Hills
• Rolling Hills Estates
• San Pedro
• Torrance
• Wilmington

People

The South Bay is one of the most culturally, economically, and ethnically diverse areas in the United States, with a largely even distribution of population among persons of European, Asian/Pacific Islander, African, and Latino ancestry. However, it is fairly segregated, with blacks and Latinos concentrated in the eastern and northeastern parts of the area, and whites, Asians, and Polynesians in the other portions. The region's inequality is fairly dramatic: while parts of Gardena and Hawthorne are some of the most impoverished areas in the state of California, the Beach Cities on Santa Monica Bay and the communities of the Palos Verdes Peninsula are some of Greater Los Angeles' wealthiest suburbs.

Education

• California State University, Dominguez Hills
• Los Angeles Harbor College

Media

In addition to the Los Angeles Times, the South Bay cities are served by their own daily paper, the Daily Breeze . The Daily Breeze is usually center-right in terms of its political stance.