the last lights on Cabrini Green

photo: l.baldeshwiler

Last Monday I decided to check out the Cabrini Green art project. Living about 29 miles away (from Cabrini green) and being later in the evening to travel alone, I jumped in my car and headed up to Chicago. 

When I began I decided to try to document my journey up to the project. I was amazed at what I found in the video afterwards.

Last lights on Cabrini Green - VIDEO

The video starts in a suburb. It can be any suburb really. Take main street along the cookie-cutter houses to a commercialized drag of IL83. We pass a Burger King, Walgreen's, Dairy Queen, McDonald's... Past a car dealer with several of the same exact cars and get on the expressway. Go north, up the great divide and off at Division. Pass over two bridges and Cabrini is on the left. 

I can see the lights from before the second bridge.

I pull around the block and sit in the parking lot and watch the west side's lights flicker. It’s somewhat hypnotic with how this silent building can be screaming with the lights.

I felt really irresponsible. As being a person from the middle working class that hasn't really had (financial) struggle in my life, or has ever suffered neglect from the government (housing wise)- I felt rather off driving 60 miles in total, (which cost me 12 dollars in gas,) to look at the last building of an era of neglect and abuse. 

The artist was successful in creating a dialogue of what we prioritize. 

I am more aware of how good I really have it. I have enough cushion to live in a suburb and drive anywhere I need to. Spend thousands of dollars on post-high school education and equipment. Only to gawk at the dilapidated building of people who didn't have anywhere near as nice as I did. (Just this week my laptop died- within the next day, a new one was on the way….)

And what for? We have become aware of the slumming/unslumming process. Examining who is charge of city planning and unslumming is not the person who has experienced the slums. It’s another person of a similar well enough to do background.

The removal of Cabrini Green may have brought some property values up in that area and also may have lowered some of the crime rates- but I’m sure I’m going to be watching the same cycle- just another day and another neighborhood.

(this video may be choppy. I felt Greenday’s Welcome to Paradise was somewhat fitting of the music I know. If not, mute...)