This article is blowing up Philly. And it's about to blow up nationally

[msanthrope]

9. I would have liked Mr. Huber to interview some of the long-time Black homeowners south of Girard.

On my block alone there are 4 households that are Black, primary residence, owned, and been in the neighborhood over 20 years.

Their views tend to mirror the Russian and Panamanian women's. You presume "ignorant spoutings" but let me tell you what transpired in my neighborhood a few years ago:

My car was jacked up and two wheels stolen. One of my neighbors noticed it and rang my doorbell.


"Msanthrope, some (n-word) fucked with your car," was what my Black neighbor said to me. My neighbors gathered as I went to the car, called the cops, filled out a report, got a tow, etc... To a person, every single Black homeowner expressed dismay in racial terms to me. Racial terms that I would not have used nor did I feel comfortable in hearing.

Race is complex. You do have a permanent Black underclass that engenders different feelings than the White one does. I think not addressing that leads to an over-simplification of race/poverty.