110833821
Many suburbanites have a false perception about South Philadelphia and Philadelphia in general. Their entire perception of the city is gathered from the crime reported on TV news. They envision South Philly as a place dominated by mob hits and fights over parking spots.
We, as South Philadelphians, are rightly angered by that stereotype. In our righteous anger, some South Philadelphians are guilty of the same blind spot when it comes to our city. In some ways, some of you wear the same blinders as those critical suburbanites. You can be every bit as insular.
It is shameful that too many South Philadelphians know little about their own city. They will travel far and wide and appreciate the unique culture that other cities here and abroad have to offer and never realize the treasure that lies minutes away from their own homes. Many South Philadelphians believe that life begins and ends in their neighborhoods and South Jersey.
I have nothing against South Jersey. Without South Jersey, there would be no seashore. I am not against shopping in South Jersey malls, but there is something wrong when you live here and have never shopped in the city. How can someone raise kids here without ever taking them to the Philadelphia Museum of Art or Independence Hall? Why is it some of you will go to New York for a Broadway show, but never once have stepped inside one of our own theaters? Whether you like classical music or not, how can you live around these parts and never experienced a performance by the Philadelphia Orchestra?
How is it they never took their kids to see the Christmas show at John Wanamaker’s — now Macy’s? Why do so many of the folks down here think that the entirety of Philadelphia is wrapped around its sports teams? How can they blame the rural legislators in the western part of our state for thinking that Philly is a Babylon of crime and corrupt politics when so many of our own citizens feel the same way?
Remember that phrase, he or she has never been above Broad and Snyder? Incredibly, that criticism is not only figurative, but literal as well for some South Philadelphians. These are not bad people. Many of them embody the very attributes that are all too often missing in American life — love of family, solid values, and generosity. They are the strength of our nation. At the same time, they can be clannish beyond belief with a small town mind-set that is inherently suspicious of anything and everything that is not just like them. They live in their little enclaves, seemingly too insecure to deal with the outside world. They hate it when that outside world seems to encroach on their own space. An example of that is the criticism I hear from some South Philadelphians about the changes that have come to East Passyunk Avenue.
They moan, “Oh what has happened to Passyunk Avenue?” as if it has been irretrievably lost. What has happened to East Passyunk Avenue is that it has been saved from the oblivion that threatened the area not too many years ago. What was once a dying business section, hopelessly lost in the past, a place deserted by the very folks who complain about the way it has now changed, has become the hot spot for dining in Philadelphia.
Most of the new creative restaurants are no longer springing up in Center City, but right here under our noses, on East Passyunk Avenue. While the entire region rejoices at the renaissance that is taking place in our area, some of us see only the intrusion of people who are not replicas of our own small world. While food critics from all over the nation are now praising the food scene in Philadelphia, some of our people still believe that the only place to dine out is across the bridge. That leads me to a few words about some of your criticism leveled at our own food critic.
Phyllis Stein-Novack has neither asked nor needs me to defend her from her critics who gripe when she reviews a restaurant that is not strictly within the confines of South Philadelphia. But her critics are often part of the insularity being discussed in this column. Most of these restaurants are within a half hour of their door (less if they used a bus or subway, but perish the thought that they would use public transportation; they would rather complain about not being able to find a parking spot or the high prices Center City parking lots charge).
Reading their constant complaints, you would think these restaurants were eight hours instead of 18 minutes from their homes. And there’s the economic benefit of spending money here to boost our economy. But the most egregious part of their insularity is not which restaurants they patronize or where they shop; it is in not appreciating the unique history of their own city and their failure to involve their children or grandchildren in sharing the adventure that is Philadelphia.
No other American city can tell us more about who we are as a people and where we came from than Philadelphia. It’s time for them to leave the cocoon.
Contact the South Philly Review at editor@southphillyreview.com.
110833821
110833831
