Jacob Riis Elementary
So the irony goes again. The demolition of Jacob Riis Elementary, named after one of the first social reformers of our time.
The school for decades was the central educational institution for many Chicago Public Housing children, residents of the ALBA homes, and decades before that, for poor Italian immigrants. In a historically underprivileged community with limited resources it seemed appropriate and morally motivating to have a school that symbolized raising awareness about the grim realities of poverty.
Jacob Riis put a face on the lives of many but with the demolition of this school we see that in reality, The Other Half are still faceless abstractions.
The school for decades was the central educational institution for many Chicago Public Housing children, residents of the ALBA homes, and decades before that, for poor Italian immigrants. In a historically underprivileged community with limited resources it seemed appropriate and morally motivating to have a school that symbolized raising awareness about the grim realities of poverty.
Jacob Riis put a face on the lives of many but with the demolition of this school we see that in reality, The Other Half are still faceless abstractions.
