Cabrini-Green Housing Projects

[Milliano]

Originally Posted by KevK

Chicago is and always has been a very segregated city but it offered far more economic opportunity for the Negro in the south many decades ago. A Negro could arrive in Chicago and be working at a good job within a day or two- a much better job than the rural racist south could or would ever offer him. But he was forced to live within the confines of the "coloured" part of Chicago no matter how much he made or how many whites he worked along side with at the steel plants and hog plants. On the other hand, in the south, blacks generally lived in close proximity to poorer whites. While schools were separate, residences often were not. After the civil rights movement opened up jobs in the south for the black people, they quit coming to Chicago and they are now moving back in droves to the south for the great opportunities that are here (I live in GA but used to live in Chicago). It used to be in the south that the blacks were told "we don't care how close you get, just don't get too high" and in Chicago "we don't care how high you go, just don't get too close". The projects were built to keep the blacks segregated in Chicago.

Something that caught me when skimming an academic book called "Conditions of Happiness". It mentioned that, in the few decades just after WW2, average happiness levels (yes, they actually study this stuff scientifically, fairly reliably) across the US population increased, especially amongst lower income groups. EXCEPT for black people, who became LESS happy. Blacks in the South, on average became slightly more happy over that time period, just as did whites. But in the North, there were significant declines. Especially amongst blacks who were more educated and held 'better' and higher paying jobs. So there was a reverse correlation in the North (and still might be?) for income and happiness for blacks. This is particular because, for whites in the USA, and for the people of almost every other country of almost any time period, if there is any correlation between income and happiness, it's a positive rather than negative correlation. So basically, the blacks in the North that 'got ahead' the most in society, got educated, got jobs in white dominated fields, were not only less happy than the average adult black person but less happy than their non-black co-workers.

But to simplify it, the data showed that blacks in the South, the place that is/was supposedly backwards and terrible to live in, were on average significantly happier than blacks in the North.

[AQUEMINI331]

Originally Posted by KevK

Chicago is and always has been a very segregated city but it offered far more economic opportunity for the Negro in the south many decades ago. A Negro could arrive in Chicago and be working at a good job within a day or two- a much better job than the rural racist south could or would ever offer him. But he was forced to live within the confines of the "coloured" part of Chicago no matter how much he made or how many whites he worked along side with at the steel plants and hog plants. On the other hand, in the south, blacks generally lived in close proximity to poorer whites. While schools were separate, residences often were not. After the civil rights movement opened up jobs in the south for the black people, they quit coming to Chicago and they are now moving back in droves to the south for the great opportunities that are here (I live in GA but used to live in Chicago). It used to be in the south that the blacks were told "we don't care how close you get, just don't get too high" and in Chicago "we don't care how high you go, just don't get too close". The projects were built to keep the blacks segregated in Chicago.

Well I think with many of the blacks that are headed back down south, especially to boomtowns like Atlanta and Charlotte, there are bound to be some dissappointments. Not everybody who packs up and moves to the ATL has a $75,000 job lined up for them the moment they arrive there. As a matter of fact, few people do. But a LOT of people, ESPECIALLY black people, move to Atlanta and other booming parts of the South with those kinds of aspirations. It's very similar to the hopes and dreams that southern blacks had when they moved up north during the Great Migration.



What people have to learn is that even though some places do present more opportunities than other places, ultimately it's about the individual and the individual's own unique skills and ability to not just survive, but thrive in any environment. Changing your address does not automatically guarantee a change in your overall quality of life. It can help, but moving to another city or state in and of itself will not help you. I speak from personal experience on this - I had to learn the hard way that unless you change your behavior and your attitude, the only thing that will happen is that you will move to another place and find people who are just like the ones you left back home, and eventually you will fall victim to your old habits and your old ways and your old lifestyle, only this time you'll be in a different city. And that'll be the only difference. Geography only means so much when it comes to people's ability to enjoy a higher standard of living. Ultimately it's about YOU and what YOU do to make your life better.



Both Chicago and Atlanta are large metropolitan areas (though Chicago is much larger) which have many, many opportunities for success, especially for blacks. Many people in my hometown of Birmingham, AL had the false hope that by moving to the "big city on a hill", i.e. Atlanta, that was only 2 hours away, one could automatically improve their lives, and many found out the hard way that Atlanta is not magic. It's not like once you cross the city limits, they're handing out checks. No, it doesn't work that way. You have to make the city and all of its opportunities work for you. Chicago offers just as much, if not more, than Atlanta does. And this is for anybody, black, white, whatever. Yes, Chicago is segregated, but hell Atlanta is too, and so is every U.S. city to some extent. The most integrated city i've ever been to is New York, and even though that city is a true melting pot, there are still pockets of segregation. There are still places that are predominantly black, or predominately Puerto Rican, or Italian, or Jewish, or whatever. And wherever the city lacks ethnic segregation, you can bet that there's economic segregation. Now that's one type of segregation i really don't see going away anytime soon - but I digress.


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[swanson2]

Cabrini Green


http://youtube.com/watch?v=Ze8dXTv55UU


http://youtube.com/watch?v=zfFq-WBJoXI

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by lisak64

There are far worse projects in Chicago. Cabrini Green is nearly gone and it's surrounded by gentrified housing now.

Exactly, and there's no plan to take most of them down to my knowledge, which is why I'm kind of raising my eyebrows over the whole Cabrini thing. Are the projects good? Absolutely not, but the situation has to be addressed evenhandedly (all projects treated equal) and fairly (don't dump all the former residents off on poor suburbs). Not so sure that's happening, on either account.

[opinions2]

In my opinion "unwed mothers" being supported by these programs led to destroying the very families that they were to help (we have the numbers). Lack of responsibility for ones own children and survival. Somehow we have created a whole section of society that depends on the government for everything. The children suffer in the end and the cycle continues, where ever the population lives.

[memo92]

.....boring

[Avengerfire]

[roboto]

Ive been in different projects throughout chicago, as they are being rehabilitated, or torn down. Ive been to slums in Manila, Philippines. These slums are REAL. Slums in the Philippines, and other developing nations, are much much worse, way poorer. And there is way way less oppurtunity for upward mobility.

I agree with Aquemini, people need to create their own future and path and be strong and resilient. We have millions more opportunities here in the US, that immigrants from third world countries would DIE to have. Even if you live in the projects, you still have tons more opportunities, its just that many lack perspective on whats truly possible, or just dont care. Its a shame what happened.

Also keep in mind the gov not only concentrated poverty, but fed these communities with drugs (purposefully, look at how the Iran contra was funded by drug money) which effectively destroys communities. If this happened in richer suburbs with political power, they would force the dealers out.