Yesterday evening, I went to my first Uptown hall meeting with a small group of JPUSAs to support alderwoman Helen Shiller and see what people had to say about the violence in Uptown. And I'm glad I did. Not only was it interesting, but it felt good to support the good minority.
A lot of the things that were said were true... the gang shooting has gotten worse this year (it was getting better) and there are a lot of druggies and homeless people. However, it was heart breaking how most of the people attacked Shiller and how they applauded and went nuts (in favor of what was being said) when people talked about the police not doing their jobs, and people needing to be locked up in jail and taken off the streets...In other words, most of the people wanted to just get rid of all the "bad people", rehab centers and homeless shelter to make their neighborhood safe and nice looking. There were, fortunately, people that would say, "Yes, we do have a gang, homeless and drug problem, but the only way we can help the police and our neighborhood is to work together and to help these people who mostly come from bad backgrounds and who don't really know any better". Why are people so selfish? I don't get it...
And, personally, I like Uptown. I love the fact that it's so ethnically different, I love the homeless people and the crazy people on the street and, most of the time, when I walk out the door, I don't feel unsafe. I know God's watching out for me and that's why I'm here.
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