Chicago Introducing Itself to Me
It’s mind boggling how we are already at the end of this Discover Chicago class. Even though I live about forty five minutes from Chicago I still had little to zero knowledge of Chicago itself. In all honesty I didn’t think I was going to learn as much as I did in this class. I thought of this class as only a required class at Depaul and there wouldn’t be much to it. But throughout this class it’s been able to shift and shape my perspective on Chicago and the general idea of walking. It is crazy to me that this class has been able to teach me about walking in Chicago because when I first submitted my request to be in this class I never thought I would learn a different way to walk. I’ve also learned how to appreciate history, national landmarks, and art throughout Chicago. I’ve never really fully appreciated the history, national landmarks, and art that Chicago holds.
What is walking? At the beginning of this school year I would’ve said “Walking is being able to get from point A to point B.” This made complete sense to me because getting from point A to point B was the whole idea of walking in itself. In my entire life I don’t think I really ever thought of walking on a deeper level. I’m from the suburbs and I rarely ever walk unless it was me leaving my car to go to a store. I would drive everywhere throughout the suburbs because I had my car and most stores or places I wanted to go I did not want to walk. So coming to the city, with no car, forced me to walk everywhere and learn how to take public transportation. Honestly I hated the idea of having to walk everywhere and take the train before I moved in but throughout this school year I’ve learned to love it. I’ve learned that walking has multiple purposes instead of just getting from point A to point B. Through this class I’ve learned that walking can be very therapeutic and almost have a calming effect on me. I never would’ve thought of myself as the type of person to just go out on random walks because I always thought “What’s the point?” But I’ve found that walking can help my brain and mind decompress. When I found that walking can be an outlet for me to help relax and get my mind off of things it really helped me this past school year because it can be very stressful living away from home and starting your first year of college. The very first thing I learned about myself when I moved out to the city was how oblivious I was when walking. I’ve been able to learn how to walk mindfully instead of obliviously. I started to question things throughout my walks more, I would ponder what might’ve been there before, why were there communities against gentrification, and so on. In the picture inserted below is a house I came across on one of my walks. As I stood there observing this beautiful brick house I knew right away that it was one of the newer homes in the neighborhood because of its modernized look to it. I knew it was modernized from the build of the house, it was long and tall, large windows, and black exterior. I personally fell in love with this house and it in a way gave me inspiration of something to work towards, something I would want in my future. I’ve realized now that walking can not only get you from one place to another but it can inspire you and teach you.
In the reading The Solitary Stroller in the City Rebecca Solnit says “Cities have always offered anonymity, variety, and conjunction.” I’ve been able to experience anonymity, variety, and conjunction in Chicago. There’s anonymity drawn and painted all throughout the city. In almost all of the walks I’ve taken for this class I always see a mural on a random wall. I’ve seen multiple beautiful murals throughout Chicago but I always wondered the same things. Who did this? Why is it here? What was the artist’s purpose of this mural? Though I may never find the answer to these questions, I’ve realized that these murals can set a vibe to its location, tell a story, and that the artist who did the mural had a purpose for people to figure out. Variety is everywhere in Chicago, there’s a variety of ethnicities, food, and history. Coming from the suburbs there wasn’t much variety to begin with. In the suburbs I thought everyone was in a way all the same, they all acted the same, wore the same clothes, and had the same personalities. In the city it is completely different, everyone expresses themselves in their own way, they have their own style, thoughts, and opinions. Conjunction is also everywhere in the city. I think of the city as fast-paced and busy. There is always something happening at the same time. Someone may be shopping at a store while another person is walking their dog. Or while I’m at my dorm working on homework someone else might be at a park enjoying the weather. The possibilities are endless but the city never stops. When I first read this quote from Solnit I never really understood it until I started living in Chicago and walking everywhere. Chicago offers a lot more than what meets the eye.
Chicago holds so much art throughout everywhere but a popular one is the Y-Symbol. The Y-Symbol can be found anywhere throughout Chicago, on fences, public buildings, and so on. It’s officially known as the “Municipal Device” and it’s supposed to be a symbol of civic pride. The Y-Symbol represents the three branches of the Chicago River, which forms the letter “Y” at the “Wolf Point.”
When I decided I wanted to go to DePaul for college and I wanted to dorm here my family would always warn me to stay from the south side, don’t go too far outside Lincoln Park unless it’s at the Loop campus, don’t walk alone at night, and so on. Since I was told these types of things before moving into the dorms I grew nervous and afraid to explore the city. In my first couple of weeks at DePaul I grew comfortable with the Lincoln Park area because it was recognizable and felt safe. But I came to the realization how this limited my experience of Chicago, at that point it wasn’t an experience in Chicago it was an experience in Lincoln Park. But I decided I wanted to go out of my comfort zone and explore the city. Through this class I’ve been able to learn that my feelings of being in the unfamiliar or potentially in danger could be a complete misconception. It’s no secret that Chicago holds violence, it’s reported on the news a lot and it gives a misconception that that’s how Chicago is all the time. I can understand the worry my family had when I moved out here because Chicago’s reputation has been shaped by portrayal in films and television, news coverage, and politics. When I came to Chicago I came in with the attitude and belief that my family had installed in me and caused me to get comfortable in one place. It made me weary of exploring and going into the unfamiliar. But through this class and over time I got over these beliefs and attitudes so I could seek out the unfamiliar whilst doing this I still have to advocate for my personal safety.
Walking in Chicago can be completely different for all people. I often think of my peer’s point of view as they walk through the city compared to mine. I often think about how men are most likely not thinking about their safety or they are not as alert as women have to be. In the reading Walking After Midnight Solnit writes “Legal measures, social mores subscribed to by both men and women, the threat implicit in sexual harrasement, and rape itseld have all limited women’s ability to walk where and when they wished.” Men aren’t limited to walking in this way, they do not think about potentially getting sexually harassed or rape. Though some men can also be limited to walking in a way women are. In the article Walking While BlackI Cadogan says “I wasn’t prepared for any of this. I had come from a majority-black country in which no one was wary of me because of my skin color. Now I wasn’t sure who was afraid of me.” Black men are also limited to walking, police may “bully” them and accuse them of things just because of their skin color.
Works Cited:
Garces, Sabrina. “Rebecca Solnit, ‘Walking after Midnight: Women, Sex and Public Space’.” Rebecca Solnit, ‘Walking after Midnight: Women, Sex and Public Space’, Blogger, 7 Nov. 2020, https://sabrinacontextualstudiesblog.blogspot.com/2020/10/rebecca-solnit-walking-after-midnight.html.
8, Garnette Cadogan July. “Walking While Black.” Literary Hub, 26 Mar. 2019, https://lithub.com/walking-while-black/.
Solnit, Rebecca. “Chapter 11: The Solitary Stroller and the City.” Wanderlust a History of Walking, Granta, London, 2014, pp. 176–204.
“Chicago: The Y-Symbol / Municipal Device.” Public Art in Chicago, http://www.publicartinchicago.com/chicago-the-y-symbol-municipal-device/#more-22304.
