Sunday, May 3, 2015

Final Reflection Paper

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Chicago, on Lake Michigan in Illinois, is among the largest cities in the U.S. Famed for its bold architecture, it has a skyline bristling with skyscrapers such as the iconic John Hancock Center, sleek, 1,451-ft. Willis Tower and neo-Gothic Tribune Tower. The city is also renowned for its museums, including the Art Institute and its expansive collections, including noted Impressionist works. Chicago has been named the city of the century and why not? After all the developments of this great city it deserved something like this. Invention is the creation of something new but what really matters for economic growth is innovation, the act through which the new inventions are successfully introduced.

I am an international student from Bangladesh. This is the first time I came to Chicago, in fact this is the first time I came to the United States and I came here since I got admitted to Illinois Institute of Technology. Before coming here I heard a lot about Chicago and the US since I have quite a few relatives living in the US. But hearing stories and experiencing the things for real is totally different. Since this is my first semester here I really did not know anything about Chicago so I thought taking this class would help me learn about the city and when my parents or relatives came here to visit I could show them around this wonderful city.

When I was back in my country the only things we would hear about the US was centrally from New York because almost every person who came to the US from our country would get settled there and also all the news that we heard was about NY. I never actually got to hear anything about Chicago except that it was freezing cold and it has a very high crime rate although I have a few relatives and friends here. But I am so glad that I was accepted to this University so that I could get a chance to live and know about this wonderful city of Chicago. There are a lot of things I learned about Chicago from this Global Chicago course. We visited some of the neighborhoods and got to learn about the different customs and cultures of the peoples living in different neighborhoods.

Chicago is full of immigrants from different countries and they have different customs and cultures. By going to these neighborhoods I got to see these different customs and cultures for myself. We visited neighborhoods like Bridgeport, Little Italy, Chinatown, Pilsen and Bronzeville, the neighborhood we live.

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So the first neighborhood we visited was Bridgeport and it was first populated by the Irish immigrants. The Irish settled in this area but it does not seem so now if you go there. Bridgeport is now populated by more Chinese people rather than Irish. In fact we did not see any Irish when we visited Bridgeport. This shows the change of culture and migration of people.

We visited Little Italy, the name gives the idea that it should be Italian and it is. Taylor Street is famous for its Italian Restaurants and they still have some Italians living in the neighborhood unlike Bridgeport.

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We visited Chinatown to get to see the Chinese customs and cultures. Chinatown is actually a place filled with Chinese people. There are various Chinese organizations and restaurants in Chinatown. Although they want people to visit their neighborhood you really don't feel welcome there yet people still go there to have Chinese food.

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Next we visited Pilsen. It is a predominantly Mexican neighborhood and it is famous for its murals. It is also a very crime prone neighborhood which is full of gangs. But the Mexican restaurants there are very good and if anyone wants good quality and authentic Mexican food then Pilsen is the place to go to.

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 By visiting all these neighborhoods we got to know about the cultures and customs of different immigrants living in different neighborhoods. Some of the people have integrated with the American culture but there are others who have stuck to their culture and did not integrate. By taking this course I got to analyze the assimilation, multiculturalism etc. of different ethnic groups and immigrants which I would not have if I did not take the course. From these neighborhood visits I got an idea of how diverse the people living in this city are.

The chart below show the races existing in Chicago over the years:

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Before taking this class what I thought was that Chicago should be a city full of white Caucasian people because this is a city in the US. When talking about the US in our country that is what we picture but coming here and seeing the different types of people living here gave me another type of perception. Even in our University we see a lot of diversity among the students as there are a lot of International Students coming here every year. I, myself, is an International Student so it should not be a surprise to me that there are so many International Students. Sometimes it doesn't feel like I'm in the US because the people around me are speaking different languages and most of them are Chinese. We learned about a lot of things in this class. We learned about racism, assimilation, multiculturalism, pluralism, the creative class etc. Racism has always been an issue in the US and in some parts of the country it still is. Even in Chicago racism still exists and it is a shame for the city.

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I had a slight idea about the crime and violence of the city but being here and hearing that you can't go to some parts of the city alone at night really makes me wonder. The crime rate is high in different neighborhoods and low in others and now there's some websites which allow people to see which type of crimes occur where and what time so that they can avoid that place. As US is a developed country this should not be the case, the crime rate should be negligible and all the places should be safe for general people at all times.

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As I mentioned earlier that our University is a host to a lot of International Students and so it is normal that in our classes the students are from various countries, ethnic groups and races. From my peers I learned about their cultures and traditions, we even students whose parents were immigrants. We had a class where a guest lecturer, Dr. Ntihigera, came and spoke about the African and other refugees in Chicago. From her lecture we learned about the African refugees and how hard their lives are. She told us to talk to our peers and learn how to greet people in our own culture and share it with each other. That was a really good experience and we learned how to greet different people in different countries or cultures.


Chicago is already a global Chicago and is ranked 7th in the global city rankings in the world.

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 From the above pyramid where Abraham Maslow shows the hierarchy of needs for the development of an individual which can be compared to that of a city. At first the physiological needs are to be met which is fulfilled in the city of Chicago. Then comes the safety, well Chicago is not the safest place in the world. The safety of the city has to improve in order to develop because no development will occur where people would be afraid to go to. After that the transportation and infrastructure of the city has to be improved. The problems Chicago has are road maintenance, broken bridges, no separate bus or cycle lanes on every road, no high speed trains and cta trains not covering all the parts of the city. To build a global city these infrastructural problems have to be fixed. After these comes the education and Chicago is doing pretty well in that sector as there are some world class Universities like UIC, Northwestern, IIT etc. in the city.

Business manufacture and industry is the next step on the way to being at the top. Chicago is doing pretty well in that sector too but there is always room for improvement. The main business area in Chicago is in the downtown area and the companies that exist are not bringing much innovations anymore. The way this can be improved is if the business industry is spread over different areas other than just the downtown area and new start up companies can help expand the business industry as well. Also another way to develop the business is to bring foreign delegations to the city so that they can start trade business with them and they might even want to start some of their businesses here.

Arts, Sports and Culture may as well be the thing that gives a city the most global attention. Chicago is the home to many famous celebrities like Michael Jordan, Oprah and having world famous stars gets global publicity. Also Chicago is famous for its sports team like the Cubs, Bulls, White Sox, Sky, Bears, and Hawks. These teams cover American favorite sports like basketball, football, baseball, and so on. Adding to that Chicago was a candidate to host the 2016 Olympics but Qatar got the chance instead. There are different events which are celebrated in Chicago like St. Patrick's Day (Irish Holiday), Annual Jazz Festival etc. which give the city a global attention. Chicago is also the home to many different museums. There are museums like National Museum of Mexican Art, Alder Planetarium, Chicago History Museum, National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame, Chinese American Museum of Chicago etc. These museums contains priceless artifacts of different cultures and countries which attracts people all around the world.

Development in all these sectors will result in the overall development of a city. The goals for the city of Chicago is to become a major North American transportation hub with diverse interconnected, intermodal systems; a center of research and education; committed to opening up assets and infrastructures for urban technology investment, sustainability, and experimentation; allow and encourage public access to data and a city of neighborhoods, each with its unique presence and opportunities. If all these goals are met then Chicago is bound to improve in the ranking of the global cities.

Tuesday, April 21, 2015

Bronzeville

Bronzeville is a neighbor hood located in the Douglas and Grand Boulevard community areas on the South side of the City of Chicago around our University, the Illinois Institute of Technology. Bronzeville was known as the "Black Metropolis" in the early 20th century due to to the significance of African-American urban history. Bronzeville is one of the largest neighborhoods in Chicago and although it has not developed much like the other neighbor hoods but it is reemerging and bound to bloom very soon.

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Since the neighborhood is so large it is not possible to visit all the places in one day but we tried to visit as many places as possible. At first we went to see the Victory Monument located on 35th and King Drive. The Victory Monument designed by sculptor Leonard Crunelle was built to honor the Eighth Regiment of the Illinois National Guard, an African-American unit that served France during World War I. The monument features three bronze relief panels depicting life sized figures: A classically draped African-American female representing motherhood, another classically draped female figure wearing a helmet and on her left hand the names of the battles the African-American soldiers fought, the other one is a bare chested African-American soldier symbolizing the soldiers who fought for the country.

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After that we visited The Great Migration Statue located on 27th and King Drive. Alison Saar's bronze figured statue is known as the Great Migration Statue. The statue symbolizes the thousands of African Americans who migrated to Chicago in the early 20th century in the hope of freedom and opportunity. The traveler's hand is raised as to salute the new home and the suitcase on the other hand symbolizes the journey. Also the statue is facing the north which is the destination for the people.

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We went to the Harold Washington Cultural Center after that. It is located in 4701 S. King Drive. Harold Washington was the 51st mayor and the first African-American mayor of Chicago. A fun fact is his birthday and my birthday is on the same day. April 15th. The Harold Washington Cultural Center's mission is to preserve and protect the rich, diverse culture, and history of African Americans. The Cultural Center hosts events like plays and skits, different fundraising events, parties and bands etc.
We came across the Chicago Defender Building located at 4445 S. King on our way back from Harold Washington Cultural Center. The Chicago Defender is a Chicago-based weekly newspaper founded in 1905 by an African American.
Also at 3624 S. King Drive is the Ida B. Wells-Barnett House. Ida B. Wells is known for being a pioneer in the civil rights movement. She was an African-American journalist, newspaper editor, suffragist and sociologist. She also documented the lynching in the United States which was a racial abuse against the blacks.

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The Bronzville Walk of Fame located at King Drive between 25th and 35th Streets is a very significant part of Bronzeville history. There are about 91 bronze plaques on the sidewalks, medians and crosswalks which commemorate more than 100 residents who made contribution to the African American community in Bronzeville. There are individuals such as jazz musician like Louis Armstrong, poet Gwendolyn Brooks,the first African American astronaut Robert H. Lawrence Jr.

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Meyer's Hardware/Sunset Cafe located at 315 E. 35th St. is another great place to visit. Although from outside it's just a hardware store the rich history makes it so much more. The venue opened in the 1920's as the Sunset Cafe. It was a "black and tan" night club, one of the few integrated clubs. It once hosted performances by jazz legends such as Ella Fitzgerald, Louie Armstrong. When the hardware store was moved into the space in 1960 the incredible jazz legacy was uncovered.


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The Supreme Life Building on 3501 S. King Drive is a nice place to visit. The building served as the headquarters of the Supreme Life Insurance Company which was the first African-American owned insurance company in the northern United States. The company was built in the 1921 and it became a symbol of predominantly black Bronzeville neighborhood's economic success. The building is one of the nine buildings designated as part of the Black Metropolis-Bronzeville District.

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The other important and famous places in Bronzeville are: Eighth Regiment Armory, (3353 S. Giles) is on the National Register of Historic Places because it was the first armory in United States built for an African-American military regiment known as Fighting 8th. The Sutherland Hotel, (4659 S. Drexel) is famous as some of the famous jazz greats such as Dizzy Gillespie, Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Nancy Wilson stayed and performed in this hotel. Welcome Inn Manor (4563 S. Michigan) was built in 1893 is a famous bed and breakfast. It represents the early architectural style of Chicago.

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Besides these there are a lot of Churches in Bronzeville. Like the Pilgrim Baptist Church (3301 S. Indiana) which was designed as a synagogue by Chicago architects Louis Sullivan and Dankmar Adler. The first congregation there was of Reform Judaism. Bright Star Church (735 E, 44th St.) is famous for it's community service activism. The Quinn Chapel Church, First Church of Deliverance, Ebenezer Missionary Baptist Church etc. are the other famous churches of the area. The Wabash YMCA located in 3763 S. Wabash is an important organization for the African-American community. It served as an important social center within the Black Metropolis area and provided housing, job training for the African immigrants.
 
Pilgrim Baptist Church
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Wabash YMCA
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The Mecca Flats were an apartment housing all African American residents. Mecca Flat Blues was inspired from this monumental apartment but now in place of that apartment stands the Crown Hall building of our University, Illinois Institute of Technology.

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References:

"About Bronzeville." - Chicago Neighborhoods. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.choosechicago.com/neighborhoods-and-communities/bronzeville/>.

"Alison Saar's Monument to the Great Northern Migration." City of Chicago ::. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/chicago_s_publicart-alisonsaarsmonumenttothegreatnorthernmigrati.html>.

"Chicago Jazz History Revealed at Meyers Ace Hardware - Chicago Patterns | Chicago Patterns." Chicago Patterns RSS. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://chicagopatterns.com/chicago-jazz-history-revealed-at-meyers-ace-hardware/>.

"Harold Washington." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2015. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.

"Harold Washington Cultural Center." Harold Washington Cultural Center. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.broadwayinbronzeville.com/>.

"In Chicago's Bronzeville a New Wave of Resurgence Is Picking Up Steam." In Chicago's Bronzeville a New Wave of Resurgence Is Picking Up Steam. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.chicagonow.com/chicago-advocate/2015/03/in-chicagos-bronzeville-a-new-wave-of-resurgence-is-picking-up-steam/>.

"Mecca Flat Blues." City of Chicago ::. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/supp_info/MeccaFlat.html>.

"Public Art in Chicago: Bronzeville Walk of Fame." Public Art in Chicago: Bronzeville Walk of Fame. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://chicago-outdoor-sculptures.blogspot.com/2009/09/bronzeville-walk-of-fame.html>.

"Supreme Life Building." COC. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://webapps1.cityofchicago.org/landmarksweb/web/landmarkdetails.htm?lanId=1431>.

"Wabash YMCA of Metro Chicago." Wabash YMCA of Metro Chicago. Web. 22 Apr. 2015. <http://www.ymcachicago.org/wabash>.





Wednesday, April 1, 2015

Pilsen

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Pilsen is a neighborhood in the lower west side community area of Chicago. The Germans and Irish were among the first who settled in this neighborhood in the 1840's (Pilsen). The name owes to the next generation of Eastern immigrants, the Czechs. A restaurant owner named his restaurant "At the City of Plzen" and as people liked it they ended up calling the entire area Pilsen. Now Pilsen is a largely hispanic, predominantly Mexican neighborhood on the south side of Chicago bordered by the Chicago River north to 16th St (1600 S), and the Chicago River west to Damen Ave (2000 W) (Chicago Neighborhood). It is known for its proud Latino heritage, vivid outdoor murals and authentic Mexican cuisine.

Being in Pilsen and seeing all the murals, the different shops and restaurants gives a very different feeling. The murals are very creative and each of them kind of have some meanings. My friends and I started our excursion by first of all being late. We had to wait for the bus but instead we started walking towards 18th street from Roosevelt and finally when we got on the bus we were almost there but yeah we finally got off at Paulina and walked to the pink line. On our way there we saw parts of the neighborhood and it was not surprising to see that almost all the shops, restaurants etc were Mexican.

As we walked through from the train station towards West 19th street we came across different murals. The first one probably represents the ancient history of the neighborhood. The second one shows the diversity among the people as people from different country has a part to play. There are some gangs in that part of the area and they often mark their territory using murals or writing on the walls. I was able to safely view some of those without being attacked by any gang members.







 


The neighborhood is full of residential houses and shops. The residential houses are normally for family but we saw a student housing on 18th and Paulina. It was a pretty nice place with Dunkin Donuts in the first floor. We also went in to have some food there but that did not have any Mexican taste in it though.


We came across a school on the way to the National Museum of Mexican Art. Even the school had murals painted on it. We were a bit far away so we couldn't get a clear view of it but this shows the importance of murals as a form of public communication. These were probably painted by some students of the school.


Also there was a park named Harrison Park which has a huge area offering lots of sports including soccer, baseball, tennis, playground and even a swimming pool. The people coming to the museum probably go there after visiting the museum and we would have gone there too but we did not have enough time. Maybe next time we will. When we were passing by we saw a lot of people there playing soccer or baseball. I think there were students from a school that came on a field trip there on that day too as the museum was crowded too. 

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Finally we reached the museum and the art that we saw was mesmerizing. It had all the cultures and all the different aspects of Mexican culture, the past, the present, the future everything. It took us about an hour to go through it all and we were able to get some very good pictures of the arts inside the museum. 

















After our tour of the museum we got pretty tired and hungry and being in Pilsen surrounded by all those Mexican cuisines was probably a very good thing. All the Mexican restaurants have so many delicious foods and some of them cater food as well and not only to people living very near but also to people living a bit far away. We went to Sabas Vega on 1808 S. Ashland to have lunch and I'm glad that we did because the food there was so delicious. Although the restaurant was not very big and there were only two people managing it the food was so good. We were offered free chips and the sauce was really good. I ordered a Tostadas while my friends ordered Burrito and Torta. All of these were too delicious but we could not eat much as we were full. But the next time we go we will definitely go in with an empty stomach. 




As I roamed through the neighborhood all I saw was Mexicans and Mexican restaurants, shops etc although it was founded by Czechs. This is a good example of the diversity and change of community with the change of time. Since the immigration of the Mexicans they have adapted quite well with the culture and traditions of the US. This shows the diversity of Chicago as it is another neighborhood full of colors, cultures and traditions like most of the other neighborhoods.

References:

"Pilsen." Pilsen. Web. 2 Apr. 2015. <http://www.encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/2477.html>.

"Chicago/Pilsen." Pilsen Travel Guide. Web. 2 Apr. 2015. <http://wikitravel.org/en/Chicago/Pilsen>.

"Pilsen." Chicago Real Estate. Web. 2 Apr. 2015. <http://www.chicagoneighborhoods.cc/neighborhoods/pilsen.html>.