Celebrities are consumer goods. Reading gossip in the press or on trashy blogs and fantasizing over new babies, new outfits, juicy breakups, and emotional breakdowns is a form of escapism. The allure is obvious: celebrities embody some of our culture’s dominant desires—for wealth, status, beauty, exposure, mobility, access, and glamorous lifestyles. Like all consumer goods, celebs are manufactured. An entire celebrity industry populated by advertisers, event planners, paparazzi swarms, and a slice of the media dutifully fabricates images of these people and of the worlds they inhabit, images framed to appease and reinforce these desires. But what happens to a person in the media spotlight? What happens to an inner life or a family life constantly bombarded by the glare of the cameras and the public? Read the rest of this entry »

The South Side Community Art Center (SSCAC) is like one of those half-forgotten, yet deeply comforting places found in dreams: walking along a Bronzeville city street, you suddenly find yourself at an old, worn Edwardian house that seems to tower over the surrounding buildings. Opening the door of the distinctive little castle, you come upon a large gallery of shiny oak parquet. With luck, there may be a crowd of locals gossiping inside the main gallery, and perhaps even a man at the piano playing “When the Saints Come Marching In,” with an impromptu chorus. In short, this gallery is quite warming, memorable, and intimate. Read the rest of this entry »

Historically known as Chicago’s “Black Belt,” “Black Metropolis,” or even “Black Ghetto,” Bronzeville has long been the center of Chicago’s African-American culture. Famous residents have included Ida B. Wells, Gwendolyn Brooks, Sam Cooke, Lou Rawls, and Louis Armstrong. The ’50s and ’60s saw a disastrous urban renewal program replace the area’s theaters and tenements with squalid public housing high-rises and vacant lots, but recently the area has experienced a renewal, particularly along 47th Street by the Green Line and Red Line stops. Read the rest of this entry »

Like a safe haven rising from the ashes of a forgotten warzone, the Bronzeville Coffee House shines with friendliness on the corner of an otherwise darkened and derelict street. Its windows are rimmed with glowing blue lights, its interior looks warm and welcoming, and upon stepping inside, the visitor is immediately taken aback by the chic, almost posh interior—images that simply do not jive with the outside environment. Painted in soft pastels and rich, bright colors, the walls are hung with large modernist paintings that often showcase African-Americans. Luminous conical lamps descend from the ceiling on slim steel poles, lending the café a softly dimmed atmosphere. On either side of the doorway, two rows of tables extend into the depths of the room, stopping only when they press up against the bar or when they come within a few meters of the opposite wall. Read the rest of this entry »

Walk past Bronzeville’s Gallery Guichard on any given night and it’s likely that your eyes will be drawn to the bright colors illuminated inside its windows. The sight is enough to catch anyone’s interest, which is what happened to Tempestt Hazel, a student at Columbia College who is now the assistant gallery manager. She became curious about the gallery after passing it on her way to and from school. “You can’t help but be drawn inside,” she said. Read the rest of this entry »

“Who here is the next Oprah Winfrey?” Hands pop up around the room. Ron Carter, editor of the Chicago-based South Street Journal, is addressing a room filled mostly with ninth-grade girls from the Young Women’s Leadership Charter School, who are gathered alongside a handful of volunteers, journalists, and activists at the Swift Mansion in Bronzeville. Next, a man named Storm steps to the front of the room and performs a song. He raps about the strength of the individual in making social change. “Music is a movement!” he repeats. Now and then, the sound of chattering around the room drowns out the performance and teachers begin fervently shushing, trying to quell the noise. Beauty Turner’s voice cuts through the cacophony: “We can sing together, but we sure can’t speak together!” This seems to quiet everyone down, and Turner begins to lead the crowd in chanting “No justice, no peace! No justice, no peace!” Soon, the crowd is led outside to a yellow school bus. The Ghetto Bus Tour begins. Read the rest of this entry »

The Bronzeville/Black Chicagoan Historical Society existed long before its official inception eight years ago—albeit in a much less formal incarnation. Namely, the institution’s beginnings lay inside founder Sherry Williams’s head. Her detailed knowledge of the city’s African-American heritage lay just behind pursed lips, on the tip of her tongue, waiting for the opportunity to make itself heard. The chance emerged often on family trips throughout the city. “We would take King Drive and I would point out all the homes of notable African-Americans in the community,” she explains. But her children did not share her level of enthusiasm. Williams remembers their impassioned pleas, recounting them with a laugh: “Mom, quit it, we can’t take it anymore! Why don’t you form a society!” Read the rest of this entry »

East 47th Street is lined with confusing sights. Moving west from Kenwood into Bronzeville, one passes boarded-up storefronts and empty lots and a long-abandoned gas station whose hand-painted sign advertises gas for $1.26 a gallon. However, among the decay are signs speaking of vibrant life: new housing, restaurants, and high-end clothing stores. Approaching from the east, the corner of 47th Street and King Drive opens like a flower on a patch of dusty earth, its striking beauty unexpected by a first-time visitor unfamiliar with the South Side beyond Hyde Park. Read the rest of this entry »