“It was recently brought to my attention, by a wise and insightful individual (who also happens to be a Southside resident, and one deeply involved in its community), that it is not uncommon for people to speak about the Southside, even subconsciously, as if it needs ‘saving’.”
Kiera Wilhelm, Gadfly Forum #5
You may not know this.
Gadfly does.
There is gang activity on the Southside.
I call them the Southside Warriors.
The membership includes Olga Negron, Stephen Antalics, and
Kim Carrell-Smith.
When it comes to slurs on the Southside, Kim showed at the April 8 Planning Committee meeting that she can be deliciously and politely feisty.
Finished with her professional comments on the proposed project at 404 E. 3rd., Kim put on her warrior hat:
- the developer said something that got my hackles up
- long-time resident, love the Southside
- prefer not to hear developers say such things as “neighborhoods of no consequence”
- because we live in those neighborhoods
- and we value them
- and we find them very safe
- and secure
- and our crime rate is lower than the north side
- you are feeding an unfortunate perception
- your perceptions are perceptions not reality
- I hope you will not be feeding students (tenants at 404 E. 3rd) that same perception
- I hope that you will give them a sense that they are in a great location
- with a lot to do
- and that those neighborhoods are not antagonistic toward them
It was a great moment, I tell you — Gadfly was hooting, hollering, and drumming on his wastebasket on his side of the Zoom!
Makin’ an utter fool of himself, he was.
In this vein and in this mood, Gadfly recommends that you re-read Kiera’s fine mini-essay on the Southside in Forum #5.