Out & About Town: North Lawndale

I've purchased and purused various touristy types of books about Chicago that emphasize walking our neighborhoods to actually understand and appreciate them. I took that opportunity tonight when I visited North Lawndale as part of my Junior League of Chicago placement in Project CON:CERN. Our project involves assisting a community organization with developing a volunteer management plan, focusing on recruiting, training, retention, and appreciation efforts.

At about 5:20, I boarded a Forest Park bound CTA Blue Line train at the Jackson stop, heading to the Pulaski station. I narrowly missed the #53 Southbound bus, so I began to walk in the waning daylight toward my destination. I walked past a high school, a large handful of empty lots, some buildings that look like they should be condemned, a funeral home, a few convenience stores, and a few hair salons, including one that looked like it had recently been redone. I was extremely aware of my surroundings, recognizing that crimes can happen anywhere in this city, as highlighted by the latest rash of robbery and assault cases in Lincoln Park. What I did see was extreme poverty, with too many people lacking a proper winter coat (hopefully they were simply underestimating the continuing downspiral in our temperatures) as well as commercial activity. I think that there may have been a grocery store on one of the cross streets with Pulaski, but I'd bet this neighborhood is considered to be a food desert. Our agency contact admitted there are racial issues in the high schools between the Latino and African-American populations, tensions that are rising as the number of Latinos rises in South Lawndale, which the white residents created as a concerted effort about forty years ago to be referred to as Little Village.

So many thoughts swirled as I walked and on my way back into the Loop. First, I thought about St Vincent DePaul's insistence that we not only serve the poor, but also know the poor. I am so blessed to have undertaken this degree program at DePaul -- it is truly challenge to serve at a greater capacity, with a deeper sense of humanity and dignity, and a new development of self. Second, I considered the topics we discussed last week in Ethical Leadership -- how do we address racial issues unless we are willing to name them? Is the state of racial politics actually better or is it just more insiduous? And have we given up on the duty to create equality, instead blaming groups for not moving quickly enough, despite the lack of resources? Unfortunately, my walk did not provide me with any great deep insights, but it did provide me with a wider understanding of my home. Oh, Chicago, how I adore thee!

Antenuptial agreements

One of the fun ironies from my fascination with family law is that originally prenuptial agreements were called antenuptial agreements. Makes sense when you see it spelled, not so much when you say it aloud. So the Love Lawyer talked about the other kind of agreement -- the cohabitation agreement. Also advised for anyone not married that care to purchase property together :-)

Chicago -- Illinois' Largest College Town

No one should be surprised that there are more students in Chicago's Loop/South Loop than anywhere else in this state. After all, per the Chicago Sun-Times there are 25 different institutions of higher education right here. And I proudly work here in the Loop for the largest Catholic university in the country -- DePaul. But as a reminder, nothing I say in this blog in any way represents the viewpoints or positions of DePaul!

Censoring & the Kindle

This blog post made me sigh. It made me think about why I believe it is okay for parents to go through your room -- I don't want anyone legislating what I or my (imaginary) kids should read, watch, or say. However, that doesn't mean that everything is age appropriate so though I don't think Mom rifled through my room very often, I fully recognize that she was responsible for my well-being (BTW, thanks for that Mom). But this whole Kindle business makes me also consider all the ways our government and corporate America have promised one thing, and given us something completely different (ex: broken treaties, corruption, ignored privacy agreements). If only we'd all be better about keeping our promises. Don't worry, Michael, I promise I'm looking at the woman in the mirror first. And thank you sweet Jesus for my Chicago Public Library card.

Win a $600 shopping spree from Alice.com!

My worst shopping experience was one of those post-Thanksgiving rushes. I’d just moved to Chicago, but was home for the weekend in Nebraska with my family. I needed a new winter coat that I could run in so we headed to the great deal on Columbia jackets near my mother’s home. I realize that people take the post-Thanksgiving thing seriously (I’ve worked as an Assistant Store Manager at a big box retailer), but I couldn’t believe the woman in front of us that was SCREAMING at the clerk because the color and size she wanted were no longer there. This was especially appalling because it was already 11 a.m. — what did she expect? That’s really late for one of these mornings! I felt horrible for the clerk and ended up finding a security guard to help escort this raving lunatic out of the store. I’ve rarely been so ashamed of my fellow human beings before.

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