Is Chicago really dangerous? (Cicero, Berwyn: section 8, crime rates, safe neighborhood)

[Lookout Kid]

Yes, Chicago is dangerous. But it's also not dangerous at all. Drover hit the nail on the head in his initial post.

There is a lot of hysteria in the media about inner city crime, and much of it is blown out of proportion. If you avoid gangs, drugs, and live in a decent neighborhood, you are more likely to die in a car wreck driving around the suburbs than to become the victim of a serious crime in the city. Seriously!

[CarolinaBredChicagoan]

All I know is this. (And let's all knock on wood, eh?) I've never been robbed, mugged, had my car broken into, been physically threatened, or even had any truly uncomfortable situations in the 5 years I've lived here.

I've taught on the South Side (56th and Western, Bronzeville, and Pilsen) and the very rough near-South suburbs of Harvey and Dolton and spent time in Uptown, Rogers Park, Hyde Park, and other areas that are dodgy in spots. I've gotten a few "who's the white boy" looks, but never had anything bad happen beyond a little discomfort... which is really half my fault for feeling uncomfortable.

My car was broken into twice while I lived in an EXTREMELY "safe" area of North Carolina. I've seen pretty savage fights in small Southern towns. A close friend of mine was mugged in broad daylight by knife-wielding teens in the safest area of London. Point is, you never can tell. Be alert. Every area can be safe. Every area can be dangerous. Just because a place may be different doesn't mean it's unsafe.

[CUBS07]

There's a Chicago gang special on Fox News at 9pm tonight.

Yes there are many worthless POS here would would rob or kill you for a $1

[j33]

Originally Posted by CarolinaBredChicagoan

All I know is this. (And let's all knock on wood, eh?) I've never been robbed, mugged, had my car broken into, been physically threatened, or even had any truly uncomfortable situations in the 5 years I've lived here.

I've taught on the South Side (56th and Western, Bronzeville, and Pilsen) and the very rough near-South suburbs of Harvey and Dolton and spent time in Uptown, Rogers Park, Hyde Park, and other areas that are dodgy in spots. .

Heh, I grew up not too far from Harvey, it wasn't the best part of town (and still isn't), and I have had some problems in that part of the Chicago area but nothing major (some verbal threats, purse stolen, etc). Granted I've not been back down there for over 10 years. Now, I have had my car broken into quite a bit over the years, but I just learned never to keep much in it (although I got rid of my car over 3 years ago, so that is one less problem that I have).

[M TYPE X]

Originally Posted by soothsayer1234

I think the entire country is dangerous, at this point. The south, as a region, is the most dangerous, hence the probs in Miami are partly just its geographical location in the south. The midwest as a region is pretty safe. Most of the midwest's crime is highly concentrated in its inner cities. Even in the Detroit metro, you can live in a lovely suburban area, and never know that you were 15 miles from the city. Chicago has a more active city center than other midwest metros, however, the crime is largely concentrated in the city here as well. The best advice I can give you about the city is this...just know where you are going, and dont be naive. You will likely be approached by panhandlers/scammers downtown and in the poor areas. Don't interact with them in any way. If something makes you feel wrong about a situation, act on your hunchess and avoid it.Simply be smart, and you should be fine.

Agreed re South and Midwestern suburbs.

More Blues Brothers, less Miami Vice: hey, it's a trade-off.

[AmyMapQuest]

Hi Gabry,

Like any other major city, Chicago has its issues. However, I live on the Near North Side and I don't have to duck from gunfire while walking up to my apartment. There are pockets that are worse than others, but overall, no worse than any other major city, such as NYC. Many smaller cities, like St. Louis, for example, have a much greater crime problem than Chi.

Just be smart (i.e., don't walk with a $100 bill sticking out of your pocket while waving your hands) and you'll be fine.

Any other questions, please ask!

-A.

[aragx6]

This is admittedly off topic, but I'm from St. Louis and I have to stand up for it. The reason St. Louis looks very dangerous based on crime statistics is this:

Chicago covers 234 square miles
Memphis covers 314 square miles
Kansas City covers 318 square miles
Houston covers 602 square miles

St. Louis covers only 61 square miles. This is because St. Louis is not a part of St. Louis county (they broke off in the 1800s) and therefore its never been able to swallow up areas around it as most cities do as they grow.

The result is that areas like Clayton or Webster Groves and other safe areas that would probably have been annexed years ago in any other city are outside of the city limits, and their extremely safe crime stats don't get counted to average out the admittedly bad areas (there are some, just as in Chicago.) Thus, the statistical crime rate of St. Louis sky rockets.

If you compare metropolitan areas St. Louis is the 130th most dangerous metropolitan area - which is actually incredibly safe considering its the 18th largest metro area in the U.S.

... OK I'm done now

[Lookout Kid]

No one is talking about the suburbs, though. We're talking about the city of St. Louis, which is really dangerous for its size! And that's largely because it was abandoned by the middle and upper classes decades ago, and gentrification has been too slow to remedy the problem.

[JesusisLord]

Every big city has rough areas and nice peaceful areas.

[aragx6]

Lookout kid- you are absolutely right about St. Louis' problems, but the city's size is what makes it seem very dangerous. St. Louis has some beautiful thriving neighborhoods in the city limits such as the Central West End, but it also has some of the worst crime in the metro. Clayton, which is just on the border of St. Louis, and is an incredibly safe area, would almost certainly be a part of the city if it weren't for the the history of the relationship between the city and county. If Lincoln Park and much of the northside was a suburb then Chicago's crime rate would be higher, but that doesn't really mean people should think of Chicago as a bad place to live. There are places to avoid in St. Louis, but when you realize how skewed the data is because of the huge difference in size, you start to see that it has just as much going for it as other similarly sized cities.