A Legacy Lived On

With the closing of the last Cabrini-Green public housing building yesterday, I've been thinking a lot about classism & racism's legacy. I grew up in a housing project in East Tennessee & quickly got the message that we were low priority to our teachers, the police, & most everyone. Being left out, forgotten, & intentionally disregarded was a way of life for Cabrini-Green residents even in the phase out planning. I remember learning about the attack on "Girl X" months after it happened because the media had been solely focused on JonBenet Ramsey. Even the police didn't help. It was the controlling gang that found "Girl X's" perpetrator & turned him over to police. Yet the ppl I know from Cabrini-Green have told me how much they loved their community in spite of the nearly unchecked violence. Community is an amazing factor & one that makes the oppression of the projects bearable & for some it's even transformative. It was for me.