#13 | Posted by Greatamerican
Here are some of the things I had in mind:
*A substantial number of jazz musicians are without health insurance. Time after time (sry) I've seen various communities of (mostly black) jazz musicians come together to stage benefits to help another player who got sick and couldn't afford his medical bills. Most of these players have little money themselves, and it always looked like they were contributing a fair amount of the money that was collected.
*In a traditionally black neighborhood where some friends lived, most of the community went to the same neighborhood church, had their own set of community celebrations, parades, etc.
*Another traditionally black neighborhood I know well had a history of problems with drugs and violence. Community members undertake voluntary patrols, though -- they make a point of knowing who "belongs" in the neighborhood, have eyes out their windows and observers out on bicycles, and call out /report suspicious activity. It's now much safer than a nearby neighborhood that's predominantly white.
*I've been a new white face in a couple traditionally black neighborhoods, and was surprised the first time a black neighbor I barely knew came by asking to borrow $5-20. Seems to be understood that everybody comes up short sometimes, and when that happens, you help each other out.
Your limited perspective bothers me not just because it's racist, but because I think it's hard to understand how devastating things like Hurricane Katrina were if you don't understand the nature of the communities it destroyed.
