East Orange And The Like-I Wouldn't Do It. (Newark: home, wedding)

[star18]

I just wanted to give my 2 cents on moving to areas like E.O. and Newark. I grew up in E.O. and it was hell going to school. I am an AA female. By the time I got to high school, I got a lot of attention b/c I was pretty so the boys were nice to me which caused the girls, the popular girls, to hate me and they verbally terrorized me every chance they got. B/c there was so much violence in the school (the police patrolled the halls), this was not a big deal to the school. Eventually, although I got up every morning and left the house, I stopped going to school. So I got D’s and F’s in everything, including gym. I was practically a drop out. Just a little background, I was always placed in the gifted and talented classes so I wasn’t a “stupid” kid, I was scared and I didn't care enough about school to be scared 5 days a wk. So to make a very long story short, my mom died when I was in the 10th grade and I was sent to live with my aunt who lived in W.O. Talk about a different world. I started going to school again and was able to get 2 yrs of decent grades. I got into college and went on to law school. I now live and work in NY at a top law firm. But my point is, had I not left E.O., I would have NEVER made it to college—probably barely out of high school. And btw, on my way home from high school, at about 3:30 pm, I was robbed, twice—the second time the drug addict took my deceased mom’s wedding rings. I lived about a 20 min. walk from the high school. Maybe I shouldn’t of had them on a chain around my neck but I was only 15 and it made me feel close to her. So it burns me a bit when I hear people saying, if the parents are involved and the kid is good, the kid will do ok at any school. It takes more than involved parents and a good kid to “get through” in certain areas. I am now looking to move back to NJ and you couldn’t pay me to move back to E.O. or a similar area. WHAT. And I don’t even have kids. I’m not saying people shouldn’t move to these areas but let’s not be delusional—especially if you have kids. It is hard for “good” kids to “get through” in these types of areas. I’m not trying to offend anyone, this is just my 2 cents.