Yesterday, I attended a candlelight memorial for Rickey the Pirate, held on Spring St. and sponsored by some self-defined hipsters/new-downtowners/interlopers or in other words, downtowners who live west of Main St. Listening to them describe themselves in that way, I wondered if they thought of me and other CCE/Skidrow residents as their country cousins -- not as urbane or hip as themselves. And then... an eye-opening moment occurred. Russell Brown shared his memories of Rickey. They were the memories of a true friend, who spoke of caring for Rickey not out of a sense of feeding a do-gooder ego, but with real love and years long commitment. Even more enlightening was that his sentiments were echoed by each of the other hipsters/new-downtowners/interlopers in attendance as they shared more memories of Rickey. Most notable to me was the realization that our cousins get it. As they spoke of real help coming in the form of long-term commitments to improve the quality of life for Skidrow residents and partnerships that would bring about that improvement, I felt encouraged and... Touched. As myself and other DLANC board members embark on a Fighting For (not against) campaign I look forward to working with friends/cousins/ect... who get it and know that real help is not a hand out, but a hand up.
Posted on: Sat, 28 Jun 2014 07:34:03 +0000
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