I have lived in Chicago for more than 35 years and have volunteered with Chicago Greeter for nearly half that time. Purportedly I know the city well. Actually I know only the lakefront from the South Loop to the Evanston border. There are many South and West Side neighborhoods I’ve never been in.
You know why if you’re a Chicagoan. The South and West Sides are reputedly unsafe. I’ll go to their tourist attractions when public transportation or a car drops me at the door but otherwise stay in my comfort zone.
When I heard about the book Don’t Go: Stories of Segregation and How To Disrupt It, I wanted to know what the authors have to say to well-intentioned people who perpetuate segregation by staying away from “dangerous” neighborhoods overwhelmingly populated by people of color.