Take a Drive
I’ve come under a lot of criticism lately for my own criticism of the powers that be and the city’s rising crime problems. I’ve been called a carpetbagger, told to go back where I came from, and if it weren’t politically incorrect, some of my critics would gladly drop the n-word if they could get away with it. They’re upset that I relentlessly point out the major challenges facing this city. My response, “get out of your house and go take a drive around Indianapolis.”
Because of my jobs, I get to do something not a lot of people do, I get to see a lot of this city a lot of the time. On any given day I hit three to four of the townships. And it’s not to talk to elected officials. Today, I decided instead of taking the Interstate back to downtown from Ivy Tech’s Lawrence Campus I decided to use city streets. I went down Post Road and swung through the old neighborhood where we used to live when my Dad worked at Fort Ben. I took 38th over to Emerson, Emerson to 25th street, 25th to Keystone and then winded my way back downtown.
I saw neighborhoods that looked like they had been devastated. The scenery included abandoned homes, unkept lots and individuals who looked like they had given up on everything. As I drove through these neighborhoods all I could think of was that these are the people who have the smallest voices and are impacted the most by crime and neglect. The conditions they have to live in is as criminal as the people who break the law. And if one of them is a crime victim, they’ll be treated as another statistic.
It’s real easy to get outraged about the State Senator who is mugged or the woman who is attacked across the street from city hall, but I really wonder if any of my critics would ever take a drive through one of these neighborhoods if there weren’t some media attention involved or an opportunity to showboat.
Fundamentally, I don’t mind the criticism whether it shows up in e-mails or posts on this blog. To quote a line from one of my favorite stage plays, “Inherit the Wind”, my job is to “comfort the afflicted and afflict the comforted.” If no one’s getting upset, I’m not doing my job. I just wish my critics would get as upset about the conditions I write about as they do with what I write. All they have do is get in their vehicles and take a drive. But I guess it’s easier to come after me.
