My Neighborhood is now MY SLUM!

I used to live in my own version of the Real World, Bronx, NY - then somewhere along the way, it got switched to the unfortunate assignation “poorest Congressional District in the Nation.” Well, most folks call where I live “the hood.” “The Hood” is commonly referred to as a neighborhood whose inhabitants are primarily of the same ethnicity, in my Bronx case, that would be primarily African-Americans and Latinos, with sprinklings of Africans and Mexicans. Well, my friends, I am officially renaming my neighborhood “the slum.” YIKES! I can’t believe that I said that either, but here is the deal…As I understand it, slums are lower class neighborhoods that might earlier have been steady communities.

What has happened to my neighborhood? My grandmother first moved onto our street in 1965. It was a neighborhood of tree-lined streets, with working class people of different ethnicities. There were our Jewish neighbors the Marcus’s and the Toledo’s; the West Indian’s, like Mrs. Williams; the Puerto Ricans, like the Medina’s, Tony and Pete’s family; and "regular negroes" like the Quick’s family and mine.

Why do I suddenly call where I live the slum, you ask? Well, yesterday, I discovered grafitti on my porch door. It said, "F%^$ you, bitch. Suck my *D(Y." Wow. Have you ever? I don't feel as badly as I did when I first discovered it, though...4 of 6 houses on my side of the street going south have similar artistry attached to their facades. Now what? This was discovered on Monday, May 19, 2008. What is one to do? I know...call the police. After all, this is a huge quality of life issue! So, guess what I did? I called the police! I am still waiting for them to show up! I have waited to clean this crap off of my house so that a police report can be taken, and the great folks from the 44th Precinct have yet to show. Now, I don't want you to think that I am down on the NYPD - I am not. I am realistic, however. On at least three (3) occasions, I have called "911," and I continue to wait for them to show. It is a damned shame!

Hello. Police. Are you there? Are you coming? Should I turn off the lights?!
Blogger's Note: The police showed at my home at a little after 9:00pm on Friday, May 23, 2008