While I was out to dinner with a Friend of mine tonight, she mentioned over Chinese food in downtown Olympia that your safety is compromised in big cities and if I lived in downtown Tacoma or downtown Seattle, I had better watch my back. I wasn't offended by her comment as much as I didn't know how to respond to it in the way that expressed my opinion of people's misconceptions of cities. So that is why I am writing this blog on a sleepless Friday night so I can examine my views on their views of the city. Make sense?
She along with my family and other Friends that live in suburbia like to keep me informed of the dangers of the "City". In my Urban Studies class, "Images of the City", we are learning about the different representations people get through media, literature, art, film etc. Negative images of crime, poverty, gang violence, drugs and immorality, more specifically race and minorities.
In sharp contrast to popular media are Tacoma's positive community building blogs. Exit133 and FeedTacoma, both put out happenings in the area that aren't related to crime or violence or race. Instead they focus on positive change, change people want in the city, local stores and local events. Of course they aren't mainstream enough where my Friend down in Oly will know of Tacoma's community nor will my mom's view of Tacoma will drastically be changed. But what if they were aware though of these blogs? What if these blogs were as big as king5 news? Well for one thing, the suicide rates would go down. I swear I get so discouraged and sick by watching the news because it so full of crime, murder and death, it depresses me to no end. That's another problem for another blog though.
Seriously though, if these news broadcasts picked up some of the stories that these local Tacoma blogs pick up, people's views would start to change. I think people would start to see it on their own level instead of as a place they can easily look down upon. Cities are a beautiful place to visit and explore, but the idea of living in one repulses people. I don't blame them, the constant noise pollution sucks, but I don't feel that cities are all crime and violence as they are portrayed to outsiders. I have lived in Tacoma for two months now and while my inner fears sometimes take over, my trips to Stadium Thrift way are pleasant. The Sunday service at the Presbyterian church was full of welcoming people who weren't out to pick my pocket for offering. lol.
What I am trying to say is that it's extremely shallow to label a place a certain thing until you have gathered enough of your own experience there to gain enough evidence to support your claim of that place. In other words, don't be judging unless you've walked a mile in your own shoes in the city.
She along with my family and other Friends that live in suburbia like to keep me informed of the dangers of the "City". In my Urban Studies class, "Images of the City", we are learning about the different representations people get through media, literature, art, film etc. Negative images of crime, poverty, gang violence, drugs and immorality, more specifically race and minorities.
In sharp contrast to popular media are Tacoma's positive community building blogs. Exit133 and FeedTacoma, both put out happenings in the area that aren't related to crime or violence or race. Instead they focus on positive change, change people want in the city, local stores and local events. Of course they aren't mainstream enough where my Friend down in Oly will know of Tacoma's community nor will my mom's view of Tacoma will drastically be changed. But what if they were aware though of these blogs? What if these blogs were as big as king5 news? Well for one thing, the suicide rates would go down. I swear I get so discouraged and sick by watching the news because it so full of crime, murder and death, it depresses me to no end. That's another problem for another blog though.
Seriously though, if these news broadcasts picked up some of the stories that these local Tacoma blogs pick up, people's views would start to change. I think people would start to see it on their own level instead of as a place they can easily look down upon. Cities are a beautiful place to visit and explore, but the idea of living in one repulses people. I don't blame them, the constant noise pollution sucks, but I don't feel that cities are all crime and violence as they are portrayed to outsiders. I have lived in Tacoma for two months now and while my inner fears sometimes take over, my trips to Stadium Thrift way are pleasant. The Sunday service at the Presbyterian church was full of welcoming people who weren't out to pick my pocket for offering. lol.
What I am trying to say is that it's extremely shallow to label a place a certain thing until you have gathered enough of your own experience there to gain enough evidence to support your claim of that place. In other words, don't be judging unless you've walked a mile in your own shoes in the city.
2 comments:
And so much depends on where in the city you are. Even downtown areas have different districts that have different feels during different times of day. I have been scared and enthralled and safe and excited in New York, LA, Chicago, Seattle and Tacoma. Get to know your city. It is worth it. Nice blog by the way.
My mom was all scared I'd get shot when I told her I was moving to Tacoma. I've heard similar things from others who grew up in rural areas as well.
I love the city and have had nothing but good experiences in Tacoma. There are weirdos and crime everywhere- my parents live in cow-town and their cars were recently broken into. They thought it was the kind of thing that happened in the city.
Luckily, because of their experiences visiting me in Tacoma, their opinions of Tacoma have definitely changed.
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