City Life

Maria and I went to a fund raiser for our alderman last night. Mike is a hard working and strangely humble man considering his chosen profession. His success in this area is evident in the rebirth and re-gentrification of the neighborhoods in his ward. Yet he defers the success of this rebirth to the developers and citizens of the area. This is only right in that it is true they take the risks while Mike's job is to see that "the city stays out of the way." He is right in the idea that buildings and business don't make a community, people do. On the other hand without the business that provide the jobs and services, the community is hallow and stale, just ask people who have realized the sterility and sameness of the suburbs. In and attempt to provide a comfortable and secure environment many "new" communities have become Disneyfied and boring. What many people find they really need to stimulate them are the choices and a diversity of a cosmopolitan life.

City life is different from living in even a midsized city like Appleton. There is much more diversity. And I mean that in the sense of life styles and viewpoints as well as the obvious racial and ethnic diversity. We need to respect each other and allow for these differences in our everyday lives. We have to wear the talisman of our diversity with the idea that not everyone wants the differences shoved in their face. We learn to understand what is real and what is some ones use of diversity to get an advantage they neither deserve or need. We have to think more about the actions we take and the decisions we make.

This allows for a much more stimulating environment. To witness the different life styles and to understand that they are no threat to you or your standing in the community is to become a broader thinker and more tolerant human. The experience widens your world view and might, I say might, change your mind about people you previously didn't understand. Mostly, it debunks the myth and mystery surrounding people and practices that you previously had little exposure. It strengthens the idea that while we are all somewhat different, we have much more in common than we might realize.

This type of thinking allows for a higher density of population to live shoulder to shoulder and develop a sense of community and belonging for all of the people living within the city. Dose Milwaukee have a long way to go? You'd have to be a rabid Pollyanna not to see the gap between our poorer black citizens and the broader community, but I prefer the optimistic view that as long as we address the problems and they are being worked on there is hope. Moving to the suburbs to get away from them does not work.