COMMUNITY ACTIVISM IN OAK PARK: COMPETING AGENDAS ...

ightly painted bungalow in Oak Park, I asked Maria if she visited the 40 Acres Art
Gallery often. I also asked her if many people in the neighborhood attended art events at
the gallery. Maria laughed and said,
I sometimes go to the art gallery if I’m looking for something to
do. But there aren’t a lot of people from the neighborhood that go
to the art gallery. Most of the people that go to the art gallery are
middle-class Caucasian people who live outside of the
neighborhood. Most people from the neighborhood also don’t go
Starbuck’s to get coffee. Law students from the nearby
surrounding area are the ones that mostly buy coffee there or
people who are driving on their way to work. The poor people in
this neighborhood don’t visit the bookstore, art gallery, or coffee
shop. The business that they get comes from middle-class people
who live outside the neighborhood.
I asked Maria if she thought the efforts to revitalize the neighborhood were improving the
community and she replied,
I think the neighborhood is looking better and more attractive with
the new businesses coming in, but I really don’t think the
neighborhood’s drug problems are getting any better. After arrests
are made the drug dealers and users just come back out on the
street. People think that the poor in this neighborhood are the only
drug users here. But I’ve seen a lot of rich Caucasian people drive
into this neighborhood in fancy cars and convertibles to buy drugs.
They have money to buy drugs and the cops aren’t going to bust
them because they don’t fit the stereotype of a typical drug user.
In sum, there are many middle-class residents who live in Oak Park who do not
choose to participate in community politics. But although they choose not to participate
in revitalization projects, they are aware of the issues that plague their community. They
enjoy the community for its quaint and unpredictable appeal and choose to reside in the
community because of its affordability and proximity to the freeway and Downtown.
Further, these middle-class residents acknowledge the problems that are taking place in
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