Who are you?

I am a Black woman of 79. A wife, a mother, grandmother, sister, an aunt, friend.

How do you identify?

I identify myself as an older black woman of distinction.

How do you want to/prefer to be seen?

It all depends on where the location is. How do I like to be seen? [In] regal attire.

Could you tell me why you live in a city?

I live in a city because I was born and raised and I've never thought about going anyplace else.

Can you tell me about a memorable urban experience you have had?

Oh, I attended and graduated from a prestigious university.

And what was prestigious about it?

I was the only one of my siblings that went back to school and attended a university setting and graduated.

And why do you want to do that?/

I started junior college when my children were babies and in first and second grade, and I did that because I wanted something to do while they were in school and before I went to work. So I went to college and I enjoyed it, and I stopped going due to health issues and went back 10 years later.

It was an urban college. I didn't see anyone that did not look like me. And did or didn't that did look like me in junior college. But as I went to the university setting, I had different professors that were from different places. In fact, the one that was memorable to me was when I did a literary English class and my professor was a Muslim. It was such an exciting class that I will always remember her and the way that she taught her. We read books [I had never heard of]. That was totally out of my box.

Oh, so you were exposed to new ideas.

New ideas, new horizons, new authors. And it really made me go read into deeper and more meaningful literature.

How supportive do you feel the city is to your needs?

In some aspects and then not in others. I don't think it supports the needs of people that need help.

I'm sorry [I mean] disenfranchised mothers. Single mothers with children that have to work two or three jobs to make ends meet. I think that's very disconcerting to them and their children. Their children are being left without a parent and the mother is working and can't really be there for her children like she wants to because she's tired. So it's heartbreaking to see that.

What about outside of like taking care of the children? What about the experience of the mothers? Like, what do you think it’s like like for them as people?

Oh my. So because I was. I was that mother that worked and [was] so tired that [due to] all kinds of challenges. If she wants to improve herself, maybe she wants to go to school, then that even takes more time out of who she is as a parent. And sometimes not only that, but they're being ridiculed as a parent because you aren't there for your child. She misses out on a lot of the child's life, and the child is missing a lot of that nourishment that they need from that parent.

Do you feel included in the city (as a person of value)?

Well, I think yes, because I lived on a block where there were a lot of young mothers that came to me for advice, if not in cooking or just for parental advice. I have, in fact [helped] a lot of [them]. A couple of the mothers have come back through the years to tell me how grateful they were for me to show them how to parent.

What would make the city more convenient for you?

The needs of people are [not] met as far as grocery stores, [there are areas where] you have to travel 10 or 15 blocks to a grocery store. If you don't have a car, then you have to take the bus. The bus is inconvenient because it doesn't run on your schedule; it runs on theirs. You're spending more money than you have to because you got to ride the bus there, you got to ride the bus back. So you're not getting the proper nutritional values for your children. But on the other hand of that coin, on the other side of that coin, you see a lot of young mothers that have more pop and potato chips and that kind of stuff in their cart. Instead of beans and rice, that staple food that could last longer and more nutritious for the child.

What about you personally?

For me, the city's convenient.

[I remember that man] conveniences were public. Public libraries were convenient where you could walk if you want to, to get to learn about anything that you wanted to. If you didn't have access to a computer, you have that convenience. But, on a personal note, I don't know. I haven't thought about that. I don't know. I'd have to come back to that.

Who is part of your community?

Seniors? Senior citizens more so than anything else. Seniors, people that are retired, retired professionals, retired people that worked union jobs. That's what I see a lot now and have privy to if I'm in my community setting.

What else should we know about how you feel about cities?

They can be dirty, they can be frightening, they can be engaging. There are places that you can go and if you take the time to learn, museums and art institutes and things, if you take the time to go. Cities offer a lot as far as tickling your imagination. There's zoos, there's parks you can walk in, plants that you can see. It's so many different things in a city. That makes it convenient, yet it makes it scary. With the different violence that is in inner cities now, seniors don't come out like they used to. You're afraid to be out at night where that never used to be the case, and especially after the pandemic, the normalcy of a city or any place else has changed. So it's not normal anymore. I can't think of a word for it. Normal is not there. It has you looking over your shoulder and feeling uncomfortable when you don't have to. And that part of the city, I don't like.

Is that true, no matter your gender, or would you say.

I would say, yeah, no matter your gender. People disrespect people now; where they used to respect seniors, they used to respect people, but it's not there anymore. Everybody is out for themselves. A lot of people don't want to work at menial jobs anymore. They want quick money. They want it fast. So in order to do that, they have to do something that does not take a mindset. It just takes a gun; and young people, there are more young people and older people, men and young girls and older men sometimes that feel what you have, they want. It's not like they want to buy it or save for it, but if they see you have it, then why can't they have it? So they have the mindset of taking it.

All right. Anything else you would like to add?

I've lived in the city all my life. I have seen different parts of the city, north, south, east and west. I don't think any part of the city is any better than anything. Anyone. Any side is better than any other. And it depends on where you were raised and how you were raised. I've always lived on the south side of Chicago, but I have visited different parts of the North side, West side, and East side. It has always been said, “The West side is the worst side.” But who knows? If you live on the West side, then you think other parts of the city is bad. You have a lot to do in cities if you want to. Some children get a chance in life to see that part of the city where they can venture out, and other children never get a chance to see it because they're stuck in one area, one block because they're afraid, or gang violence is keeping them from doing anything else. So it's good. It's good and it's bad and it's indifferent. And it all depends on who you are and how you perceive it.