Introduction
In 1921, Tulsa, already a racially divided city, was the site of one our country's worst race riots. Ninety years later the city is just as cleanly divided by race and economics. If a pedestrian stands at the corner of Peoria, a major north/south street, and Admiral, the east/west street that bisects the city through downtown and creates the North and South designations of the two parts of the city, she experiences a phenomenon that is striking, but probably not unique to many American cities. Looking south, the pedestrian sees an older neighborhood in the midst of a resurrection; in fact, the new hip café just within view is called the Phoenix Café, appropriately. The residents are almost exclusively white. Looking north, she would see almost exclusively black Tulsans. This distinction extends a mile or two east and west, but with little exception to the northern and southern extremes of town.
Again, with but few exceptions, we see contrasting economies straddling the same geographic split. Some of Tulsa's wealthiest residents live along several miles of South Peoria; on the other side of Admiral, the farther north you live, the greater the poverty you probably live in. This is the center of life for most of my students. This is where they live, have lived, spend time with their friends. When Tulsans talk of north Tulsa, it is usually in the context of crime, poor housing, or bad schools. Most Tulsans choose not to venture that far north. It is an inhabited ghost town; indeed, it is Tulsa's invisible city. In the collective consciousness of our city it has achieved mythical status as a place populated by only the poor and criminal.
I don't know if my students realize how much they are a product of their circumstances and geography. I want them to learn not only that they are, but also that they can control how they interact within them. They can become actors instead of props. While their lives and environment can be full of strife, these energetic, creative young people have the ability to see and create beauty around them. It is human nature to do so. This unit will cause them to reflect on their environment and undertake an academic study of it, and to find and engage in its manifestations of beauty.
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