Inaugural Rant!

MAY DAY, MAY DAY! HEAR YE, HEAR YE! Our Providence schools are in a bind; dollars are not there for scholars, yet we host one of the wealthiest educational institutions in the nation! In our neighboring town of CF, a curfew has been put in place in an attempt to quell recent citizen to citizen violence while we advertise our down city nightlife! And our traffic continues to snarl despite our beautiful new bridge span – (it appears to be some kind of urban performance sculpture!)

But in the face of these frustrations, it’s SPRING IN PROVIDENCE and I feel once again a kind of IRRATIONAL HOPE. Despite all the signs and omens, our unique city state and its diverse salad bowl of cultures and contributions beckons me to confront the critics and naysayers, to spotlight evidence of hope and possibility even as I focus on the foibles that threaten the health and happiness of our town.

Yes, I am your new harbinger of relentless ranting and irrational hope. In this occasional column for the site that hopes to ‘Connect Providence’ I will be musing about both the contradictions and irritations of our city and it’s surrounds – while providing sketches of the unexpected beauty and goodness that can bring us back from the brink of despair.

Yes, I am a transplant – with 30 years of residence in the Providence area that makes me both a home-girl and a newcomer. For 15 years of my tenure in the Red Chicken state I toiled in neighborhoods across our city, and lived in many zip codes – Olneyville to Academy Ave, the Hill to the Park, finally landing just north of the city line in sister city No. P.

As I gaze on our city lights down the road with both awe and consternation, I will continue to challenge the contradictions, while ferreting out examples of our goodness. Tonight I gaze toward our urban center glitz that overshadows the swollen neighborhoods where youngsters yearning for the advantages of the ‘Hill’ can’t have art or music in their schools, and I’ll return to my intro remarks:

Why IZZIT? Why do the citizens of Providence who bask in the comfort of the eastern zips shut tight the purse, close the shutters, and send their children to select schools while the children of the south and west clamor for a decent chance through education? Yes, spring is here: the city will soon be blooming with the new growth of the season. How can a city with so much appearance of prosperity close the door on public education?

I believe we are a city and state of good will – I believe the resources and energy and inspiration exist to confront this dilemma in our public halls of learning. With my irrational hope I believe we can meet the challenge.

Still I ask you… WHY IZZIT? (All responses and solutions welcome!)