The ghettofication issue

[Sean Wheeler]

I find the idea that Lakewood is turning into a ghetto to be problematic. I recently spent a month walking the streets of this city every evening. I felt safe, heard no gunshots, and was not accosted by anyone. The houses appear to be spacious, well kept, and not abandoned. The businesses sold more than liquor, cigarettes, and lotterety tickets. I think we need to be mindful of what a ghetto in America really is.

Admittedly, the urban culture is the dominant culture in America at this moment. For proof of this, look no further than advertising, fashion, and art. Is urban ghetto? Does a cultural shift away from grunge (the previous dominant cultural force) mean that our cities are under seige?

I strongly feel that the notion that "Lakewood is changing" or "Lakewood is ghetto" to be thinly veiled racism. Rather than embrace the diversity of this city, many of our residents are isolating themselves from it. Isolation breeds ignorance.

We need to be concerned about our community. But the best way to do it is further engagement, not further isolation. Take a walk in these so-called ghetto areas. Talk to the people that you fear and see them for who they are; your neighbors.

[David Lay]

Now that a lot of public housing in Cleveland is being torn down and replaced with condos, residents are moving to the suburbs...Lakewood being one of them.

[Sean Wheeler]

and...?

People are moving to Lakewood because they are leaving Cleveland. What does this mean? Are there inherent problems in this? What are they? How can we anticipate them? What are we doing to welcome those choosing to relocate to Lakewood?

[ryan costa]

It is the perception that people are becoming louder and more vulgar or stupid or nuisance-y. N-Ville for Nuissance ville. Or that more of such people are moving in.

By "urban" culture people generally mean hip-hop culture, but it is impolite to say that cuz it might be racist. When I think of "urban" I think of my grandparents or Mary Tyler Moore show.

My apartment duplex was cited for code violations recently. so were a few neighbors. Yesterday neighbors were scraping and painting their garage. I guess they are white. From their truck stereo was playing some hip hop loud enough for half the block to hear. Every verse contained lyrics such as "suck my @#$7" "she ain't nothin' but a @#&$3" , ".....and @#$*#", etc.,etc. I'm not casting value judgements; I'm sure this music is profound social discourse. I'm not sure their extremely loud, hyperactive, ADD little kids pick up on this though. Or their mistreated pit bull-type dog. But the pickup truck is new and they keep it waxed and its got bitchin' speakers and the lawn is mewn. I could feel the property values appreciating and smell businesses opening up all around.

[Jim O'Bryan]

Ryan/Sean

Priceless exchange. Both nail it 100%

These are people moving to homes. Are we prepared. Do we really rejoice in the new found diversity, or do we keep one foot in Beau Villagé just in case it gets to diversified?

Sean

Ken, Dan and I have found much the same. We have always found good people living when sent to a "bad area." To be honest we have found some of our nicest neighbors in the "worst" areas.

We have found out that even the "kids" are good people if you stop and engage them. This week Ken and I are looking to challenge the "thugs" that play basketball on Dowd. Family Room Director Toni Gelisimino is coming along as our wringer as she is ex-state champ. If you know these guys please don't tell them about Toni. It is our only hope.

Ghettofication = "I love diversity, it is the brown, black or asian faces that bother me. Also some of those Bosnians, Albanians, Europeans have those funny accents. Makes them hard to understand. But ouside of that I am down with diversity, then there is those other people that drive me nuts..."


.

[Phil Florian]

To be fair to rap music, I don't want to hear "wholesome" country music or Amy Grant blasting, either. Noise is noise, regardless of who likes the music or not. It gets that loud and they don't turn it down if asked, police are called.

I think "ghetto" could be used as a racially-tinged word but I don't think it has to be. I think when we say "ghetto" it is more about a fear that we will be surrouned by people who don't care...about themselves, about their home/property, their neighbors, their children, etc. And worse, we find that we live in a city where the City Hall, and by extension the services that spring from it like the police, housing inspectors, etc., don't care. Cleveland fits the bill. I know people make "ghetto" a racial issue but it really isn't. I work in parts of Cleveland that are clearly "ghetto" but are very racially diverse. In fact, I would argue that, at least on the west side, neighborhoods in Cleveland are much more racially diverse and 'mixed' than anywhere else in the County. Sure, you have areas that have a higher density of people from certain ethnic backgrounds, be it hispanic, arabic, etc. but most are filled with people who don't have the time or the money to find places that "look" right but instead are ones that offer cheapest housing.

The biggest factor in these tougher neighborhoods that I can see from working with people there and in their homes is that very few have homes that are much above dilapidated yet most aren't the owners. Most are riddled with crime and when police are called, IF they show up, they show up hours after the fact. Couple these things with that PD article last week (I think) about the fact that Cleveland Housing Inspectors are, to be nice, horrible at their job you have a group of people who are isolated in their own homes, fearful to go outside, don't have any interest in taking care of their homes yet have no fear that anyone will make them do anything.

I think as long as Lakewood has a strong police force, an active housing department that will cite and enforce violations on property management and lots of concerned citizens, we will do fine. It will be rough going as new people move in and test the system but with time we will all be better for it, both for long-time residents and the new ones that find Lakewood to be their home.

Trust me on this. Many of the bad tenants that I have worked with in Cleveland have this cycle. They move into a place, fall behind in bills, trash it, and when they are about to get evicted they run and find a new place. They are always able to find a new place to go and for some reasons landlords continue to rent to these kinds of people. I don't think Lakewood would tolerate that kind of property abuse and, hopefully, aren't that desperate for tenants that they won't check where their people last came from. Someone who has lived at 5 different properties within 5 years within a few square miles will be put in the "NO!" bin if I ever owned a rental. Sadly, most landlords in Cleveland don't check and don't care if at the very least their rents are paid.

But seriously, are we close to this, yet?

[DougHuntingdon]

I am sure there are a select group of Lakewood residents who are racist and get bent out of shape only because they see a few more darker skinned types around town when they peer out from their suv with offroad tires and brush guards, compared to a few years ago.

However, many races/ethnicities are contributing to the ghettofication of Lakewood. It's not just black hoodlums. It includes whites who belong on the Jerry Springer show. It includes Arabs who pack a double with 20 people that is designed for 8 and take up half the block with all their vehicles, with the patriarch yelling at various adult women (his harem?). It includes Hispanics who don't clean up their own litter in their own yard after a Quinceaños.

Doug

PS I walked past Moe's Hookups yesterday. I see he finally took his last shirt down that was hanging in the window. Next door, it says East End Market coming soon, but I didn't see much evidence of activity.

[Sean Wheeler]

wow doug. how's that for offensive? did you leave anyone out? it is a forum after all.

[Mark Crnolatas]

Some years back, we did quite a bit of business in Parma, and at that time the city of Parma was in the same "position", for lack of a better word, then, as we are now.
It might prove interesting to talk to some people from Parma now, and get their views on the evolution of their city. People are people, so it could possibly be interesting.

[Charyn Compeau]

..

[Kenneth Warren]

It is good that under the discourse of the ghetto we can express our interests and intentions to gather up the common sense, energy and will required to confront chaos-making and disorder in Lakewood neighborhoods. Such informal enforcement of good neighbor social norms is always a sign of health and vitality in urban spaces.

The world is changing. The chaos and disorder often associated with the ghetto are spreading. Diversity without social norms is stressing neighborhoods. Neighbors are distracted and disinterested in making the considerable effort to establish and enforce social norms across a diverse platform.

That's the reality. It's not unique to Lakewood, or inner ring suburbs for that matter.

Having just returned from a jaunt to the East Coast, I believe I captured a pretty good comparative sense of the lineaments of ghetto now advancing across these United States.

With my youngest son, we traced the early places in the family’s New Jersey years. We hung in one upscale borough – Leonia. We walked another largely Hispanic town – Dover. We visited Philadelphia, Queens, New York, and New Hyde Park, New York.

Now back, I am actually encouraged with how well Lakewood is holding up its informal enforcement of good neighbor social norms compared to other places, some much higher on the socio-economic ladder.

I would suggest that the social capital in these East Coast neighborhoods has not yet amassed to confront the creeping disorder that teens from various classes and races are imitating.

In upscale Leonia, New Jersey, I was surprised to see at the town gazebo upper middle class “white tee shirtâ€Â￾ homies spanning ethnicities and races – Korean, Caucasian, African, Indian - littering like the Lakewood punks who gobble outside Taco Bell and leave a mess.

Leonia is a fabulous little borough, just over the Hudson River, from Washington Heights. Houses in Leonia start at 600K. The town is known as the “Bedroom of Columbia.â€Â￾

The litter on Leonia’s main drag was even worse than I find Detroit Avenue.

In Dover, New Jersey, I visited the library I once directed. There on the steps I found three teens eating, with one tossing his garbage in the landscape. On Blackwell, a Hispanic leaned heavily on his pitbull as we walked by. The dog barked and snapped. Slightly intimidating.

In New Hyde Park, New York, where houses start at $400K, I saw graffiti in places I never had seen it before.

It is easy to get discouraged by signs of chaos and disorder in Lakewood. However, it is important to look around the nation at the chaos and disorder, and the diffusion of “urban cultureâ€Â￾ to upper middle class teens who want to feel the power of transgression.

Bottom line is each one of us in Lakewood has the power to advance the informal enforcement of good neighbor social norms, something critical to the continued health of our city and a positive sense of diversity.

Some may read race into chaos-making, disorder and signs of rebellion that mark urban culture. However, race is not the issue.

Good communication and firm expectations that each one of us will advance the informal enforcement of good neighbor social norms and maintain safety and stability is the crux of an effective and sensible urban practice in Lakewood’s working class enclaves.

Kenneth Warren

[Mark Timieski]

If I’m not mistaken, a ghetto is a place where a group of people are united in religion, race, or culture (voluntarily or non-voluntarily). As far as suburbs go, I don’t think we qualify for this title, if anything census figures show a movement away from monotony.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghetto

Are we talking about: Entropy – Disorder or randomness.

There is a scientific study (Thermodynamics) of how work effects a system. We find: entropy is always increasing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_law ... modynamics

Does this mean we are doomed?

Physics offer us a lesson: We work to organize, the natural state is disorganization. If we are not organizing we are being unorganized by the mysterious forces of chaos.

Taking part in activities that help organize the community fend off the natural order of entropy. Activities as simple as taking a walk place a human presence on the street and help reinforce order. Picking up a piece of litter helps return order. We cannot tolerate disorder, but we must continually work to create order.

I appreciate my fellow residents that do not hesitate to get involved as required (and it is required).

[Scott MacGregor]

At the risk of sounding sanctimonious, there are only two kinds of people in this world -good people and bad people.

Lakewood is becoming increasingly diverse, that's for sure, but African-Americans will not be heading back to the Ivory Coast anytime soon and if we all pull up stakes like our parents did and keep moving westward, we'll only hit Lorain anyway and then the damn thing will start all over again.

If we should be intolerant of anything, we should be intolerant of our own prejudices and fears. The diversification of America is well underway and visiting a town near us today.

Racial tolerance is something my parents never taught me. Unfortunately, the Great Generation that weathered the Depression, WWII, and Richard Nixon -were unable to spend ten minutes and take a shot at creating racial equality in this country.

Now it is up to our generation and our kids generations to get it right and only a fearful white person would disagree that INCLUSION, and OPPORTUNITY is the only way to create what MLK called "the promised land" --for all of us.

Lakewood has to hold the line.
Lakewood has to be a success story.

I can't think of a better town in America that could successfully make this inevitable transformation.

I was born here, I hope I die here. I love this town no matter what color it is.

[Mark Crnolatas]

All the things said above are very well said, indeed. I think that the bulk of the inhabitants of the Wood are hesitant to discuss the Afro-American influx vs. the past. Subtle bigotry or out and out bigotry is what should be eliminated.

I'm a firm believer in "law and order", and as long as we do not bury our heads in the sand, as long as we learn from other cities, we can apply what we as a city have learned, as in anything else, and use that knowledge to allow the evolution of our city do exactly that. Evolve, and with guidance by good citizens, a firm City Hall, vigalent building inspectors, our protective police dept, our city will evolve in a way other cities will study, rather than just be "another inner ring suburb".

[Brad Babcock]

There are a lot of valid points in this discussion. While I'm not a law-and-order type, Mark and I can probably find some common ground. I might define a ghetto by what it is not.
It is not place where people have respect for one-another. Respect would include tolerance of other skin colors, religions or personal habits and values. Respect is a two-way street. By tolerance, I don't mean that people simply accept the loud music or offensive habits of others. That is where maybe a little dose of law-and-order comes in handy.
It is not a place where people care about their surroundings. They don't own have equity in their surroundings, either in a personal sense or a monetary sense. That one is a little tougher to enforce.
By being a place where neighbors respect each-other, care for their surroundings and take action to maintain those standards among others, Lakewood will keep from becoming a ghetto.
That is not to say that some crud (defined by their behavior) will not move into the city from time to time. When they do, hopefully one of two things will happen: They will learn and adopt their new neighbors' attitudes, or they will discover that Lakewood is not the place for them.
One disturbing trend I have seen is that "ghetto" has become stylish. This is basically fake ghetto. Is this just the rejection of the previous generations' values tampered by pop culture an the media? Is it tempered by some under-lying guilt about growing-up in the relative comfort of suburbia?