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"Are We a Nation of Boors?"
These kids I see today, they're loyal to...what? Yes, here in Baltimore I see plenty of Orioles and Ravens gear, but clearly the loyalty of youth, and adults, as well, is not steadfastly with the home teams. That kid wearing the Michael Jordan Chicago Bulls tank-top is not loyal to Chicago, a place he probably never has seen. He's loyal to a style, to an image, to a mystique, to Nike (whose swoosh-logoed cap probably adorns his head). Why? To be sure, pervasive mass media plays a significant role. But also, I think, that kid lacks loyalty to Baltimore because he doesn't feel acknowledged as someone who matters, who is part of this city, part of an intricate urban weave. In dozens of ways, he's told he doesn't count, doesn't matter. He's unacknowledged as a citizen of worth. So the hell with it-his loyalty is up for grabs, with shrewd marketers doing most of the grabbing. All around me, cars sport bumper stickers that tell me about their drivers. I've Got a Great Kid at Franklin Middle School. Musicians Know the Score. Vietnam Veteran. Pro Family-Pro Children-Pro Choice. I'd Rather be Bowling. Dedicated to Pissing Off the Radical Right. Why is everyone telling me these things? Why is it important that I know your church, your kid's grades, your leisure pursuits, your sexual orientation? The answer, I think, is that people feel unacknowledged, daily. They plaster their identities on minivan bumpers because they feel a quiet desperation to be recognized, to fit somewhere, to show that they matter to someone, since daily urban life tells them that they matter for nothing. Strike a blow for civility, and clean bumpers-look a stranger in the eye tomorrow, and tell her, "Good morning." RETURN TO JUNE 1998 TABLE OF CONTENTS. |