Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
ledge of hunger, homelessness, and deprivation, having lived these over her life. She
grew up poor on Chicago's South Side, at the height of Chicago's second regime of
“black ghetto building” (1945-65) where low income Black households were system-
atically stashed and isolated (see Hirsch 2005). The South Side at this time was pro-
foundly segregated, disproportionally poor, and aptly characterized by William Tabb's
(1970) moniker “labor plantation economy.” Job opportunities for locals were largely
confined to arduous assembly-line and laboring work, with wages overwhelmingly
paltry(Osofsky1967;Hirsch2005).AsaSouthSidekidwhowenttoalocalpublichigh
school, she almost never ventured outside of the area.
Figure 3.3
Chicago's impoverished neighborhoods: Proportion of population below poverty level
by neighborhood areas, 2010.
Jackie's recent history further illuminates this worry. Twelve years ago, desperate to
moveherandherhusbandoutofpoverty,Jackie coboughtBeebe's asthesolutiontoher
fears. Her husband, a Chicago police officer, pushed the undertaking with great enthusi-
asmandhope.Assheputittome,“thiswasourdecision[buyingtheclub]…itwasour
