With the recent wave of White migration in the U.S. from suburbs to Metropolitan areas, concerns arise about the social repercussions, specifically in the recreational aspect such inflow into previously majority-non-White stigmatized communities could entail. Following the history of divestiture in Chicago’s predominantly Hispanic neighborhoods, particularly Humboldt Park, exacerbated by the persistence of racially discriminatory narratives, the availability of leisure activities for Whites and non-Whites would likely not correspond. However, this contradiction seemingly stems from not the availability per se but the implications those narratives propel that hinder accessing this availability in the first place, especially for Whites over other racial/ethnic groups.
Before the group-by-group dissection of inclusivity of leisure opportunities in Humboldt Park, one should understand the neighborhood’s racial demographic identity and its place within the larger Chicago Metropolitan area. Situated on the West Side of Chicago, Humboldt Park’s boundaries are Pulaski Road to the west, North Avenue to the north, Western Avenue to the east, and the Union Pacific tracks to the south. Despite gentrification, Humboldt Park remains a majority-Latinx enclave, with its current racial/ethnic composition being 52.0% Hispanic/Latinx, 40.9 % Black, 5.4% White, and 0.5% Asian (U.S. Census Bureau, 2015, as cited in Harris et al., 2021). This analysis focuses on the utilization of available leisure resources and services by the first three racial/ethnic groups due to the overwhelmingly disproportionate constituency of the latter group, signaling markedly lower participation.
The determining factor in the accessibility of recreational opportunities for the neighborhood’s residents is the Chicago 606 Trail, which traverses multiple neighborhoods, including Humboldt Park to the west (Harris et al., 2021). The 606, the second-largest greenway project in the world, provides wide-ranging recreational opportunities, encompassing elevated trails for hiking, running, playing sports and music, art installations, festivals, vendors, and interaction with nature through incorporative landscape design. Moreover, the 2.7-mile greenway connects multiple demographically different neighborhoods through its linear park, allowing greater communication and cooperation between racial/ethnic groups regarding recreational services and programs (Harris et al., 2021). Despite these transformational opportunities, the current recreational landscape of Humboldt Park remains restraining and isolated, mainly due to its historical stigmatization as a crime-ridden and disorderly neighborhood (Harris et al., 2021). The stereotypical image of the neighborhood as a ghetto largely stems from its past association with the Latin King street gang, negative ethnic connotations perpetuated through media, and decades-long community divestment. This stigma of violence and disorder attached to Humboldt Park’s community of color explains the contrasting recreational behavioral tendencies between racial/ethnic groups within the community.
Due to these perceptions of danger, Whites tend to avoid using the 606, either opting to pursue their leisure activities in the eastern parts, near affluent and gentrified neighborhoods, or minimize their activity. Although the neighborhood recently showed promising changes, partly prompted by gentrification, the historical narrative of gang violence has long become part of Humboldt’s identity (Harris et al., 2021). As Harris et al. (2021) further remark, despite not having a first-hand experience or witnessing crime-related violence, White users generally characterize the neighborhood as threatening, with descriptions like “sketchy,” “ghetto,” and “unsettling” (p. 13). Although White residents acknowledge the inaccuracies of these stereotypical notions, they still report fear of living there, underscoring both the inner- and outer-social avoidance tendencies (Harris et al., 2021). Furthermore, White users cite the trail maintenance and aesthetics in the western segments as being overlooked and disorganized as part of their limited enjoyment of procreational activities in the neighborhood (Harris et al., 2021). This substandard maintenance, combined with Humboldt’s dangerous reputation, results in a White behavior characterized by the inability to enjoy and avoidance of the otherwise nondiscriminatory wide-ranging recreational opportunities available within the 606.
In contrast, Humboldt’s Hispanic and Black users demonstrated more dynamic participative behavior, especially observed in the recreational activities of Latinx youth. Harris et al. (2021) note that Latinx adolescents were frequently observed recreating and socializing with other adolescents along the greenway. Their descriptions of the 606 included a “safe place” to “chill” and “hang out” (Harris et al., 2021, p. 17). The greenway provided a welcome amenity for the community, serving as an epicenter of recreational activities to participate in without being concerned about the risk of violence. Furthermore, Humboldt’s youth of color frequently participated in sports on grassy areas, jogging and riding bicycles along the trail, and playing A.R. games, while parents extensively socialized, and elders played domino. (Harris et al., 2021). Moreover, the greenway also featured a local vendor distinguished as a “staple of the Puerto Rican community,” encouraging cultural exchange through the appreciation of foreign cuisine and community engagement (Harris et al., 2021, p. 20). Effectively, Hispanic and Black recreation is characterized by proactive participation, often despite and against the stigma of violence.
In summary, comparing the recreational behavior between the specified racial groups, particularly White and non-White, suggesting the former seems to enjoy fewer leisure opportunities than the latter due to limited availability would be a misinterpretation. Instead, evidence suggests that despite poor maintenance and a history of violence pertinent to Humboldt Park, racial/ethnic groups within the neighborhood are offered similar leisure opportunities within the recreational landscape the greenway provides. Rather, the difference in recreational behavior likely stems from the difference in cultural perceptions about the implications of participating in leisure activities, specifically, crime-related victimization due to precedents of gang activity in the neighborhood. In a majority-Hispanic and Black community, the relatively small proportion of Whites could also contribute to their feelings of isolation induced by the fear and lack of communal recreation, which only accentuates the perceptional difference. Since this difference is substantially perceptual, Humboldt’s recreational inclusivity within the greenway did not deter active Hispanic and Black recreation.
Reference
Harris, B., Schmalz, D., Larson, L., & Fernandez, M. (2021). Fear of the unknown: Examining neighborhood stigma’s effect on urban greenway use and surrounding communities. Urban Affairs Review, 57(4), 1015–1048. Web.