“Harlem has been transforming into a place very few of us had imagined. But it’s not all roses. Although many negative elements in Harlem have been muffled there are still safety precautions everyone must take. “
The other night I had an amazing time at Londel’s restaurant on 8th Avenue. The place is nothing short of classy! I’ve always said that it deserves to be mentioned in the same breath with other Harlem heavyweight spots like Lenox Lounge and Minton’s Playhouse. The night could not have been scripted any better either. The jazz band was a pure auditory delight. The food was 4 stars as usual. I made my way outside the restaurant with a giant grin of satisfaction. I was proud that I could still enjoy an active nightlife without having to trek downtown. When I walked out the restaurant and started making my way home, however, I toned down my exuberance, put my hands in my pocket and returned to walking with a little kick in my gait. Why did I do this? Because I live in Harlem. I will call too much attention to myself if in eyes of the neighborhood boys I stand out too much. It’s the Clark Kent/Superman phenomenon I’ve been used to. It’s the reality of where I live. You never want to become a target when you walk alone in Harlem. It’s the same reason that when I attended Fordham Prep I would leave my suit jacket in my locker and wear my shirts tucked out with sneakers when I took the bus home or else the public school boys would have me for lunch. It was the instinct of survival.
Many things in Harlem have changed on my watch. In my opinion the first major “sign of things to come” was the first Pathmark on 125th Street. I only noticed it because I attended a church that was caddy-corner to it. Over in West Harlem no one had a clue a 24-hour supermarket had opened because it was all the way east on Lexington Avenue. Then came the Magic Johnson Theater, Disney Store, H.M.V., and Old Navy. It was the first time I said, “Hey, they remembered us!” At that time you started to see a larger diversity of people walking about Harlem. It was truly amazing. What followed was a boom of stores, restaurants, condo-buildings, and eventually…Starbucks! Tour buses began running up and down Harlem during the weekends. It happened with such a blanketing effect that at times you felt you were transported to some other neighborhood. All of a sudden there were all these young newcomers walking their dogs in St. Nicholas Park, strolling through Marcus Garvey Park (or Mt Morris) with their little kids in coach, and tanning at Riverbank Park. It was quite a site. You couldn’t even square these images with the memories I had of Bloods walking up to random people on the streets and slicing their faces when they asked you for the time. You didn’t even remember that there was a coalition of prostitutes “servicing” the overnight truckers right by where Talay and Covo now stand on 12th Avenue. This was the new Harlem in the making; a giant collage of people of all colors and classes getting along, listening to live jazz, walking their dogs, and drinking venti latte’s. Even I bought into the illusion of Urban Utopia.
This Second Renaissance, however, has given some people a false sense of security about Harlem; to the point where many have turned their Spidey senses to OFF. So much so that when confronted about recent shooting of a 13 year-old on Adam Clayton Powell Blvd or the triple shootings last Memorial Day many people reacted with the same sort of shock and awe that a family in Riverdale or Nassau County might express. You know…the “Not In My Backyard?!” look or bewilderment. Recently, the Gothamist reported on a kid who was mugged for his MP3 player Paolo Mastrangelo from NYC The Blog posted about a Hamilton Heights resident who was mugged for his iPhone on 145th St. When he looked to the officer-on-the-scene for some consolation he was told that this kind of stuff happened a lot with people who “look like they don’t live in the neighborhood”. It reminded me that although Harlem has been undergoing one of the most ambitious face lifts in a long time, there is still much to go. I say this to all of you who are integrating into the neighborhood. I’m sure that when you looked up those Flash-based real estate websites you weren’t told that drugs (and drug dealers), muggings, rape, and even homicide still exists in Harlem. I’m not trying to shock you into shuttering your windows and becoming a prisoner of your own home or to make you leave the neighborhood. You came here for the same reason my family moved here 20 years ago. It was one among a small list of places we could afford in New York. This is merely a reminder that you set your clock to reality. Be alert when you walk the streets alone at night or when you leave the bars and restaurants. Don’t be flaunting your ipods or blindly texting on your SideKick when you’re walking alone at night. Never let your guard down. This is New York City after all!
Harlem has been transforming into a place very few of us had imagined. But it’s not all roses. Although many negative elements in Harlem have been muffled there are still safety precautions everyone must take. Those precautions are pretty much particular to wherever you live, but remember that you live in Harlem; not SoHo, Park Slope, Carroll Gardens, or Ocean Avenue. Yes this is where the Renaissance took place. Jazz musicians, artists, and poets flourished here like in no other place in the country. But this neighborhood also has a dark history rooted in one of the worst waves of heroin, crack, AIDS, unemployment, poverty, and crime. It will not simply fade away. Many families here are still recovering from those debilitating blows. It’s taken decades of effort by working-class families, churches, community centers, politicians, and the NYPD to make it more livable than it was in the 80’s and 90’s. We still have more work to do and I hope that all of you who are my new neighbors will help in the effort.
yojimbot
October 10, 2008
In other words, keep your head on a swivel!