Chicago: we just keep scaring them away, don't we? (title, cities)

[edsg25]

Originally Posted by ChicagoMeO

There is a new tour of Chicago - the River Tour by Geoffrey Behr (channel 11). It was made like last year i think, and i shows the river level of Wacker Drive, there are some really cute restaurants that i never knew existed - i.e. the one on Lasalle and Wacker, river level. So cool! In fact, the whole river walkway seems very cool. i will have to go there this summer.

this is a video that everyone should see. Geoffrey Behr at his best (then again, he's usually at his best)

[lepoisson]

Originally Posted by edsg25

I think our level of international visitors stems from the fact there are few places anywhere near Chicago that is on the visitors' radar. In comparison, if they are coming to NYC, they are able to take in DC, Boston, and other spots in the visitor friendly northeast corridor. If they're heading to California, they can put a package together with LA, Disneyland, Tahoe, Yosemite, Wine Country, Big Sur, Carmel and Vegas.

Yeah, I think that's the main reason. Also, a good comparison is where Americans go in Europe. Most go to London, Paris, and Rome because they offer the most activities for tourists. There are cities like Manchester, Lyon, and Milan which I would compare to Chicago.

Funny enough, most of the people I drive around say they really enjoy Chicago and have been impressed by the cleanliness and beauty of the city, and will definitely return, but few people say they'd actually be willing to live here.

[BigLake]

Originally Posted by lepoisson

Yeah, I think that's the main reason. Also, a good comparison is where Americans go in Europe. Most go to London, Paris, and Rome because they offer the most activities for tourists. There are cities like Manchester, Lyon, and Milan which I would compare to Chicago.

Funny enough, most of the people I drive around say they really enjoy Chicago and have been impressed by the cleanliness and beauty of the city, and will definitely return, but few people say they'd actually be willing to live here.

I think I'd compare Chicago (travelwise) more to Barcelona, Frankfurt, Berlin, though I think Milan is appropriate.

[Hkhan21]

Maybe if then good and non-obnoxious ones maybe moved here instead of NYC and la

[MassVt]

Originally Posted by edsg25

this is a video that everyone should see. Geoffrey Behr at his best (then again, he's usually at his best)

I have a 10-year-old CD of Geoffrey Baer, doing a tour of Chicago via the L. Very, very good...

I think of Chicago as being a destination for Midwesterners especially, and as an old convention headquarters, and with some outside-of-Midwest tourists and some foreigners, too. I don't think it has the same draw as NYC and LA, but who would? If Chicago did not have Lake Michigan on its doorstep, then it would lose some of its appeal, though...

[Sunbiz1]

Originally Posted by edsg25

tourism in Chicago has never been better....

Chicago tourism numbers hit record high, topping 55 million in 2017 - Chicago Tribune

Half of which were Cub fans smart enough to relocate.

[BIG CATS]

Originally Posted by usamathman

People use Chicago crime as a coded way to communicate their hatred for all black people.

Plain and simple.

Pffft.


hahahaha


You don't believe that! Do you?


Crime is a very real thing in CHI. And yes, its committed mostly by blacks. That's just the truth of it. It has NOTHING to do with masked racism. You sound like the typical CNN analyst.

[TBideon]

Crime is weirdly over- and also under- exaggerated in Chicago, a bit of a paradox. On the one hand, the homicides are limited to mostly a handful of southside and west neighborhoods, with a few spread out in Uptown, Rogers Park, and the occasional downtown outlier. So when people talk about Chicago being the murder capital, they and others act like the city is a giant shooting gallery. It really isn't.


But then there's the flip of the coin, and that's the criminals, predominantly black though with plenty of Hispanic too, are everywhere and cause havoc in the trendy neighborhoods as much as they do the gritty. Boystown and much of Lakeview have enormous amounts of criminal activity nightly, and those areas are as fun, touristy, and supposedly safe as it gets. And trust me, it isn't the residents at fault. People get menaced and harassed daily on the trains by the usual suspects, and without any real recourse. Carjackings are up dramatically, and I'm not talking about Englewood or West Humboldt - I'm looking at Wicker Park and Bucktown. People get pulled off their bikes and attacked on the 606 and lakefront. Hell, we've even had beaches closed because the hooligans were causing problems. And don't get me started on property crimes, both in the flourishing commercial districts and also residential.


There is a large enabling culture of criminal behavior and activity in Chicago; maybe it exists to some degree in all cities, but it's very open here and is obviously racially (or socio-economically, or culturally, or whatever the excuse of the day is) connected. So while we get unfairly maligned as being the murder capital, people are far too accepting (perhaps even encouraging) of so much non-homicidal criminal activities.

[Vlajos]

Not surprising to see the record numbers. Just walk downtown, there are tourists everywhere and hotel occupancy rates are still rising.

[personone]

Originally Posted by TBideon

Crime is weirdly over- and also under- exaggerated in Chicago, a bit of a paradox. On the one hand, the homicides are limited to mostly a handful of southside and west neighborhoods, with a few spread out in Uptown, Rogers Park, and the occasional downtown outlier. So when people talk about Chicago being the murder capital, they and others act like the city is a giant shooting gallery. It really isn't.


But then there's the flip of the coin, and that's the criminals, predominantly black though with plenty of Hispanic too, are everywhere and cause havoc in the trendy neighborhoods as much as they do the gritty. Boystown and much of Lakeview have enormous amounts of criminal activity nightly, and those areas are as fun, touristy, and supposedly safe as it gets. And trust me, it isn't the residents at fault. People get menaced and harassed daily on the trains by the usual suspects, and without any real recourse. Carjackings are up dramatically, and I'm not talking about Englewood or West Humboldt - I'm looking at Wicker Park and Bucktown. People get pulled off their bikes and attacked on the 606 and lakefront. Hell, we've even had beaches closed because the hooligans were causing problems. And don't get me started on property crimes, both in the flourishing commercial districts and also residential.


There is a large enabling culture of criminal behavior and activity in Chicago; maybe it exists to some degree in all cities, but it's very open here and is obviously racially (or socio-economically, or culturally, or whatever the excuse of the day is) connected. So while we get unfairly maligned as being the murder capital, people are far too accepting (perhaps even encouraging) of so much non-homicidal criminal activities.

Good post. I completely agree. While most of the crime is on the South and West sides, the majority of high profile violent crimes that have happened in other neighborhoods, unfortunately have involved African American suspects. That is part of the reasons for the stereotypes. The city demographics are approximately evenly split with about 30% each white/black/Hispanic and about 10% Asian.

It's unfortunate that many of the residential neighborhoods are segregated by race because people don't get to see that there are plenty of hard working, law abiding families of all races. Instead they see the few bad apples and it perpetuates the negative stereotypes.