Chicago – a small glimpse into America…
https://www.democracynow.org/2019/3/20/the_torture_machine_flint_taylor_on
I have said this before, and I will say it here, now, again. If you are White, Caucasian, or however you label yourself as “not of color”, it is near impossible for you to understand the reality of being a Black man in Chicago. It is impossible to understand what it is like to be a Latino man in Chicago. It is impossible to understand the reality of any man of color in this city.
The level of racism that permeates every level of this city – from the massacre of the Blackhawk Indians on which the city was founded – to the red-lining of neighborhoods Black people would not be allowed to live in after the Great Fire of 1871 (this boundary still resonates in this city with the majority of the Black community still relegated to the southside, the original space set aside for the Black community) – to some of the worst Black urban slums in America – to the city police assassinations of Black community leaders – to revelations that the police were systemically torturing young Black men over a thirty year period – to the millions in reparations the city then had to pay to the survivors of this torture – racism seeps through this city like a malevolent fog, wasting everything in its path.
https://www.democracynow.org/2019/3/20/the_roots_of_police_violence_in
A recent three-year study discovered that 300,000 Black people have left Chicago over the past decade due to racism.
Police officer Jason Van Dyke was recently sentenced to just 7 years in prison (he can be released in 3 years for good behavior) for shooting and killing an unarmed teenager (Laquan McDonald) – Van Dyke shot McDonald 16 times – 15 of which were in the back.
Van Dyke will do his time at Otisville Federal Correctional Institution in New York state. Forbes magazine ranks Otisville as one of the “ten cushiest prisons” in America.
Black people in this city can do more time for unpaid parking tickets.
https://www.democracynow.org/2019/3/20/court_upholds_chicago_officers_7_year
I recently judged Chicago high-school History projects for the National History Competition. All of the projects had to have a Chicago theme. Every single story had racism as either the main theme or sub-theme of their project. Every single one.
I discovered as well that the very campus I was standing on to judge the projects had itself once been a Black community that had been forcibly evicted in the 1960’s, and their community bulldozed to make way for the campus.
The city reeks of racism and its attendant henchman: political corruption.
Systemic racism goes to the very top in this city – with a multitude of politicians, police and fire chiefs, school superintendents and the like – Democrats and Republicans – good upstanding citizens all – reaping the rewards of a rigged system – getting a slap on the wrist should they have been particularly egregious in the their behaviors and dumb enough to get caught. The FBI are currently investigating 8 city aldermen for corruption.
In a recent economic survey of the financial health of the largest 100 cities in America, Chicago came in dead last. Corruption and systemic racism were cited as two of the greatest obstacles to the city moving forward.
Now, if you are white, and live on the northside of the city, then you absolutely love the city. Great architecture, with vast northside city parks, public golf courses (there are 3 within a 15 minute bike ride of me), 18 miles of lakeside bike lanes and world class beaches, great food, music, theater, an abundance of relatively cheap housing options – in that sense, Chicago is a fantastic city.
But the dichotomy of the northside from the south and westsides of the city is like comparing cities from two entirely different planets.
Most White Americans refuse to acknowledge the historical impacts racism has had on the country – most White Chicagoans believe that the Black community exaggerates their problems; they just need to get an education and a job and everything will be fine.
As an outsider, a Canadian implanted in Chicago for a few years, it doesn’t take long to realize that it is a city that simmers like a pot of slowly boiling water – just waiting for the next spark that will blow the lid off the city, once again.
Sisyphus 