Category Archives: poverty

Derogatory place nicknames – UPDATE # 4

Posted on August 13, 2018 by

Last weekend (originally published in 2013) a derogatory nickname was overheard for a city here in Michigan that I had never heard expressed before in my 21 (now 26) years of being a resident of this state. For some reason … Continue reading →

Posted in cities, civics, civility, culture, general, geography, history, humanity, inclusiveness, poverty, racism, revitalization, Sexism, writing | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

“Just Mercy” Will Rip Your Heart to Shreds

Posted on June 11, 2018 by

In all my years, I have never read a more disturbing, yet compelling book. The injustice and inhumanity described in Just Mercy will literally rip your heart to shreds and bring tears to your eyes. Just Mercy must be made … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, art, book reviews, books, charities, civics, Civil Rights, civility, culture, diversity, history, human rights, humanity, inclusiveness, injustice, literature, politics, poverty, reading, social equity, Statistics, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Great ‘Reverse’ Migration May Be Disastrous for Many Northern Cities and States

Posted on June 8, 2018 by

Between 1916 and 1970, more than six million African-Americans migrated northward to work in factories and live in cities across the Northeast and Midwest. Today, there is mounting evidence that this great migration has reversed itself, as those who can … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, Civil Rights, civility, culture, demographics, economic development, economic gardening, Economy, education, entrepreneurship, family, geography, government, history, Housing, humanity, immigration, inclusiveness, planning, politics, poverty, social equity, Statistics, urban planning | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Designate I-85 the “Civil Rights Freedomway”

Posted on May 3, 2018 by

It is my suggestion that Interstate 85 (I-85) Between Virginia and Alabama should be named the Civil Rights Freedomway. I make this suggestion because of the large number of important historical sites of the Civil Rights era located along or … Continue reading →

Posted in adaptive reuse, Advocacy, Bus transportation, charities, cities, civics, Civil Rights, civility, culture, diversity, geography, historic preservation, history, human rights, humanity, inclusiveness, land use, Maps, peace, placemaking, planning, politics, poverty, social equity, tourism, trails, transportation, Travel, volunteerism | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mending Interstate Injustice – Freeway Capping Projects

Posted on April 28, 2018 by

In recent years there has been an effort in some cities to mend some of the wounds of Interstate Highway era gashes that were savagely cut through American cities. A method for healing these scars has been to cap the … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Advocacy, architecture, Cars, cities, Civil Rights, civility, density, diversity, downtown, economic development, environment, geography, Green roofs, historic preservation, history, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, landscape architecture, pictures, placemaking, planning, poverty, racism, revitalization, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, Statistics, transit, transportation, Travel, tunnels, urban planning, walking, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Interstate Injustice: Plowing Highways Through Minority Neighborhoods

Posted on April 7, 2018 by

The list provided at the end of the post is a partial tally of the once vibrant, historically Black and Latino neighborhoods that have been largely decimated by Interstate Highway construction. Much of this community displacement and destruction took place … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, Civil Rights, economic development, environment, geography, health, history, Housing, humanity, infrastructure, land use, Maps, planning, politics, poverty, racism, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, traffic, transportation, urban planning, zoning | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Driving and striving to survive a broken ‘Merica

Posted on January 6, 2018 by

I will never, ever look at a recreational vehicle, van, motor home, or campground the same way again. Not since reading Jessica Bruder’s engrossing, informative, and heartbreaking new book entitled Nomadland. I have long imagined, envied, and eagerly anticipated my … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, ageism, art, book reviews, books, Cars, civics, civility, consumerism, culture, demographics, economics, Economy, family, geography, health, Health care, history, homelessness, Housing, human rights, humanity, Labor, literature, logistics, minimalism, politics, poverty, product design, reading, shopping, social equity, Statistics, transportation, Travel, unemployment, Women, writing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Bigotsburg of the week – Shreveport, Louisiana

Posted on August 25, 2017 by

How many times has it been repeatedly demonstrated that urban highway construction projects have far too often been used as a tool for so-called “urban renewal?” Urban renewal in this context meaning an illicit tool for bulldozing historically African-American, Latino, … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, culture, diversity, geography, historic preservation, history, infrastructure, land use, planning, politics, poverty, racism, social equity, spatial design, transportation, urban planning | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Canaries in the climate change coal mine

Posted on January 19, 2017 by

I challenge any partisan climate change denier to travel to Alaska and tell the residents of the 31 communities shown on the map depicted above that climate change isn’t real. It’s easy to sit behind a microphone and blow steam … Continue reading →

Posted in Advocacy, cities, civics, civility, climate change, Climate Change, culture, diversity, economics, environment, geography, health, humanity, land use, Maps, nature, planning, poverty, rivers/watersheds, Science, spatial design, Statistics, sustainability, topography, urban planning, weather | Tagged , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Building a peaceful community with good planning

Posted on July 22, 2016 by

Building a peaceful community does not just result from how we treat one another (see previous post), but can be literally develop based on how we design our communities and allocate funding. The days of the “wrong side of the … Continue reading →

Posted in Active transportation, adaptive reuse, Advocacy, airports, Alternative transportation, architecture, Bus transportation, Cars, cities, civics, civility, climate change, commerce, culture, diversity, economic development, environment, gentrification, geography, health, historic preservation, history, homelessness, Housing, humanity, inclusiveness, infrastructure, land use, Love, new urbanism, peace, placemaking, planning, pollution, poverty, rail, revitalization, social equity, spatial design, sprawl, sustainability, third places, traffic, transit, transportation, Travel, urban planning, walking, zoning | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment