Today started with a tour of a small Polish community and ended with a trip to Bucktown. Walking around the Polish community was so interesting because I was the one that did not belong. In America, I did not speak the common language. I did not know how to describe what kind of pastry I would like. But at the same time, it was so great to walk in to a gift shop and buy a great card without English on it, without really communicating verbally.
Polish buffet: prepare to be stuffed. The food was great, and the cheese blintz was phenomenal.
Polish museum: We were there to learn about the history of the Polish and their immigration; instead a current conversation overshadowed the museum. We were sitting listening along with a group of Master's students. The speaker asks for questions/comments, and a black woman speaks up about the segregation of Chicago. In her eyes, the amount of segregation in the city is overwhelming compared to other places that she had lived. She said that she hated the artificial restrictions, and not being able to live in certain places due to racial boundaries. As soon as she finished speaking, a white woman on the other side of the room (interesting visual division), and says that she loves going to visit the ethnic neighborhoods.
All at once, the white woman had reconfirmed the racism that the black woman has always dealt with. You could see it in her eyes: after that, she completely shut down. The white woman expressed the privilege she has always had. It is lovely to her to go "visit" the neighborhoods, but she has not had to feel the separation and the coldness of being the 'wrong' color for a certain area.
Bucktown: the place to be... for 1.79 million, that is. This is not lake-shore property... This is in the city, on a side street. Welcome to the cost of cool.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment