Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
context. A broken syringe can have several meanings, depending on whether it
lies on the floor of a doctor's office or in an elementary schoolyard late at night.
On the walls of an inner-city school, the absence of graffiti is as important as
its presence.
One young woman student wore a rabbit-fur coat, skin-tight and revealing
dresses, high heels, and layers of jewelry to class. Her clothes suggested a pos-
sible identification with pimps and prostitution. (Her active involvement in
this lucrative profession was later confirmed by the director and, in an unso-
licited and coincidental meeting, her probation officer.)
Kirk and Dee wore special emblems on their jackets that clearly stated their
gang affiliation. I eventually learned that only one of them maintained a gang
affiliation. The other young man was wearing his brother's jacket.
An expensive “white elephant” of a building takes on special significance
when viewed within the confines of a township lacking rudimentary services
and utilities. The outcropping hints at political patronage, poor planning, and/or
misdirected resources. A South African woman standing in front of her modest
home takes on greater meaning and significance when situated within a larger
squatter settlement in South Africa (see Figures 3.4 and 3.5). It becomes a polit-
ical statement about the scope of poverty and injustice.
Figure 3.4
Woman in squatter settlement
