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CommentsIs Your 'Hood' Neighborly?
By Beth IngallsPublished: August 16, 2009
Neighˇbor, n.
1. One who lives near or next to another.
2. A person, place, or thing adjacent to or located near another.
3. A fellow human.
4. Used as a form of familiar address.
The recent arrest of Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates at his own home in Cambridge, Mass., has sparked nationwide controversy and debate about racial profiling and race relations in America. Gates was arrested for disorderly conduct after a woman phoned 911 on behalf of a “concerned neighbor “ who believed two men were breaking into Gates’ home. Gates had just returned home after an overnight flight from Asia and couldn’t find his house keys. He asked his driver for assistance and together they were able to force the front door of his house open. The police arrived soon after and when they came to the door, a tired and confused Gates, who had no idea why they would be questioning him about a robbery at his own home, became agitated. He was taken away from his residence in handcuffs and although the charges were later dropped, the damage was done.
President Obama, after commenting publicly that the Cambridge police “acted stupidly” when they arrested Gates, found himself in the thick of the whole debacle and invited all the parties involved over to the White House for a beer to help smooth things out.
While the news media and the blogosphere went crazy with “Gates-gate,” and Rush Limbaugh droned on incessantly about Obama being a racist himself, I began thinking about something entirely different: Why wasn’t Gates’ own neighbor able to identify him in broad daylight?
Have we become so disconnected from each other that we are unable to recognize our neighbors, let alone an individual who lives practically across the street? I find this very blatant example of community decay just as troubling as the race issue itself.
When I was Mayor of Truckee, I did lots of “ceremonial” things like cut ribbons and attend community events, and while some were great fun and others more tedious, they all made an impact on me.
As I pondered the Gates incident I recalled an annual August event, National Night Out. The tagline for NNO is “America’s Night Out Against Crime,” which makes the whole occasion sound more ominous than it really is. The purpose of National Night Out is simply to come together for one night a year to get to know our neighbors. In our fast-paced world devoid of front porches and rocking chairs, it’s become much easier to lose touch with those around us. Knowing our neighbors is not only a fundamental part of being human and an integral part of building communities, but it helps prevent episodes just like the Gates arrest. It’s also the cornerstone of community policing, a strategy which has been adopted by hundreds of police departments across the country including the Truckee Police Department.
Growing up, my family moved dozens of times. Back then, there was an organization called Welcome Wagon. When a family moved into a new neighborhood, the Welcome Wagon came to the door with useful community information and coupons to businesses and more. (Ironically, an internet search revealed that the Welcome Wagon only exists online now!) But it was also much more common for surrounding neighbors to stop by in person to welcome a new family. When’s the last time you baked your new neighbor a pie?
Think how differently the now infamous scenario would have gone if Henry Gates had known his Cambridge neighbors. Most likely, his neighbor would have seen that he was struggling to get into his home and would have gone over to offer assistance. Or perhaps Gates would have gone next door himself, where his neighbor kept an extra key for him. In a neighborly world, it’s doubtful that the police would have been called.
I know life is more complicated and dangerous and fast paced than it used to be, but there are so many reasons why it’s good to know your neighbors. Here in Olympic Heights I’m happy to say we all know our surrounding neighbors pretty well. Olympic Heights is one of the older subdivisions in Truckee, full of long time residents and very few second homeowners. But there are lots of neighborhoods in Truckee. How is yours doing? Let’s all take some time before winter comes to build our neighborhood relationships up and get to know each other better (beer can be included). The rewards are fantastic and the benefits will be long lasting, both personally and for our wonderful town.
~ Discuss this article with the author. Email bingalls@moonshineink.com.
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