DEAR EDITOR:
At home on the
”
bad
”
side of town:
I’ve been reading with amazement and amusement and disgust the
recent references to the neighborhood around Eliot School as
the
”
bad
”
side of town.
DEAR EDITOR:
At home on the “bad” side of town:
I’ve been reading with amazement and amusement and disgust the recent references to the neighborhood around Eliot School as the “bad” side of town.
Bad? It is a neighborhood largely populated by working people, many with low incomes, but hard-working nonetheless. Is that bad? These are people who serve you in restaurants, clean your homes, care for your children, remodel your house, and landscape your yard. Are they bad? It is a neighborhood rich in immigrants, people who have moved to this country in search of a better life for themselves and their families. Is that bad?
A year ago my family and I moved to our home near the Eliot School. We live in a diverse community of older homes and bungalows, each one different from its neighbors, with many mature trees, making it a very pleasant place indeed. We’re within walking distance to downtown (I love browsing antique stores and going to the coffee shop on weekend mornings.) We’re also within walking distance of two parks, a supermarket, a drug store, numerous restaurants, markets, clothing stores and a hardware store. I can drive my kids to the doctor’s office in three minutes. And I can drive to all the retail establishments east of the freeway in no time at all. I can be at my job in eight minutes. Not bad!
There are lots of kids on our block (They don’t look bad. They look like kids.) There are lots of parents, too. Each morning and afternoon a parade of parents can be seen walking their children to and from school. Some of them wear the uniforms for the jobs they work at while the kids are in school, getting there on foot and by bus. They’re good people.
But wait, you say! What about crime? The truth is, in almost a year, we have had ZERO break-ins, ZERO cars stolen or vandalized, ZERO unpleasant incidents, and ZERO items stolen from our front yard, including strollers, toys, expensive tools, and a telescope that were left in full view.
I have lived in New York City, Ithaca N.Y., San Jose, and Morgan Hill. But now I am home, on the “bad” side of Gilroy. And it’s not bad.
Jan Bernstein Chargin, Gilroy
Submitted Thursday, March 13 to ed****@****ic.com
The Golden Quill is awarded occasionally for a well-written letter.