Bad Neighborhoods/inner city life

musicismylife78

I never have lived in the inner city or in the projects or in a bad neighborhood. I visited the Tenderloin in San Fran which is infamous for its seedy quality.

My only exposure to inner city/project life besides the tenderloin visit, is my love of hip hop, gritty hip hop like Wu Tang or Biggie or Tupac or Mobb Deep all describe the horrifing life in the ghetto.

Has anyone here visited the projects in other states? Compton? Cabrini Green? Queensbridge? Robert Taylor?

Was the actual experience in the projects similar to what is portrayed by hip hop artists?

Cause I must confess my experience in the tenderloin definitely confirmed for me that rappers speak the truth of their situation

mammasan

I grew up one block from the Pennington Court Projects in Newark, NJ.

Bu2

for some weed once.

South of Seattle

I drove through Compton and was lost on Crenshaw late at night in LA this summer. I didn't think it was too bad. Might be the sunny weather.

Stuff I've seen on the east coast like in Jersey looks a hell of a lot worse.

I live in what snobby NW people might call the "hood" (NE portland)
Yes there are bad pockets, but it doesn't make me lock all my doors and bar the windows.

soulsinging

Cheguevara6 wrote:

I never have lived in the inner city or in the projects or in a bad neighborhood. I visited the Tenderloin in San Fran which is infamous for its seedy quality.

My only exposure to inner city/project life besides the tenderloin visit, is my love of hip hop, gritty hip hop like Wu Tang or Biggie or Tupac or Mobb Deep all describe the horrifing life in the ghetto.

Has anyone here visited the projects in other states? Compton? Cabrini Green? Queensbridge? Robert Taylor?

Was the actual experience in the projects similar to what is portrayed by hip hop artists?

Cause I must confess my experience in the tenderloin definitely confirmed for me that rappers speak the truth of their situation

ive done some volunteer work for the cabrini green legal aid project and volunteered at cook county's juvenile detention center. it's not a life id want.

Brainofdz

I lived in Bushwick,Brooklyn for a year. I found that if you carry yourself with confidence, and treat people with a friendly, respectful demeanor, you have no more problems than in most neighborhoods. I feel comfortable in most neighborhoods as long as I know where I'm going. Looking around cluelessly is a big red flag to neighborhood folk.

dg1979us

I worked at an inner city elementary school through college. Wasnt really that bad, but I certainly wouldnt work at a high school in the area. The kids were great, but a lot of the parents were terrible.

Rushlimbo

I dont know if anyone realizes I'm a black male. I grew up in Brooklyn in the Starret City projects which is a pretty tough neighborhood. We didnt refer to them as the projects but rather as "the pj's" or "govhouse". My auntie just refered to the buildings as "low income housing for ghetto ass people" . While I was there I never really thought too much about how bad the violence and drugs were because I was part of it and it was part of me. After leaving I knew I never wanted to live like that ever again. Pulled my entire family outta there after receiving my masters. Tough life with not much upside for anyone living in the projects.

sponger

I lived in a gang infested neighborhood for a solid year when I about 12 years old. It was a scary place to live in. Before going to friends' houses, I had to think about which territories they lived in. Certain gangs are more tolerant of outsiders than others. A friend of mine lived in an area controlled by a really tough mexican gang, and for the first few visits he had to sort of "escort" me to his house so that the locals would know what my business in their neighborhood was.

I was only a kid, but I could see that it was a life that those people were born into and couldn't escape. Being in a gang was practically the only way to win respect from people.

Sometimes I actually think back and wonder what would've happened to me if my parents hadn't moved to a much, much nicer neighborhood. My guess is that I probably would've ended up joining a gang.

And other than the poverty, there was another common theme in that neighborhood, and that theme was child neglect/abuse. The poor love to spank their kids like there's no tomorrow. And if those kids aren't being spanked, they're just being totally ignored.

sicnevol

i lived in a pretty good area, but Iwen;t to what Indiana considers an "ghetto" high school, lot of violence, lots of drugs and lots of jail time for most people.

MrBrian

i've been to a couple townships, but not in the US of course. does that count?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Township_(South_Africa)

know1

Cheguevara6 wrote:

I never have lived in the inner city or in the projects or in a bad neighborhood. I visited the Tenderloin in San Fran which is infamous for its seedy quality.

My only exposure to inner city/project life besides the tenderloin visit, is my love of hip hop, gritty hip hop like Wu Tang or Biggie or Tupac or Mobb Deep all describe the horrifing life in the ghetto.

Has anyone here visited the projects in other states? Compton? Cabrini Green? Queensbridge? Robert Taylor?

Was the actual experience in the projects similar to what is portrayed by hip hop artists?

Cause I must confess my experience in the tenderloin definitely confirmed for me that rappers speak the truth of their situation

On a mission trip with my church, I once stayed a week in an abandoned building in inner city Washington D.C. I don't listen to hip hop at all, but it was pretty eye-opening and rough. At the convenient store across the street, you couldn't even go in the store. You asked for what you want through a heavily barred window and then paid through a small opening. On the last morning, a man was shot right across the street and we watched the police and ambulance come and get them.

jlew24asu

Cheguevara6 wrote:

I never have lived in the inner city or in the projects or in a bad neighborhood. I visited the Tenderloin in San Fran which is infamous for its seedy quality.

My only exposure to inner city/project life besides the tenderloin visit, is my love of hip hop, gritty hip hop like Wu Tang or Biggie or Tupac or Mobb Deep all describe the horrifing life in the ghetto.

Has anyone here visited the projects in other states? Compton? Cabrini Green? Queensbridge? Robert Taylor?

Was the actual experience in the projects similar to what is portrayed by hip hop artists?

Cause I must confess my experience in the tenderloin definitely confirmed for me that rappers speak the truth of their situation

I had to do some work for a wireless company at the robert taylor homes on the south side of chicago. there was the largest drug selling operation I have ever seen (and the only I guess). very organized and successful. a co worker and I stayed out of their way and they stayed out of ours. but it was extremely intimidating