So I went out canvassing this afternoon. Just to give you some context, I was canvassing in Southwest Philly which is one of the most diverse areas in the city. To put it bluntly, "we got everybody." African Americans, Africans, Asians, Whites and a lot of immigrants. Most of the area is economically depressed but there are many middle class people who live in the area. I live in the area and earlier this week, Michelle Obama, Jill Biden, Mayor Nutter and Governor Rendell held a rally in our area. Southwest Philly has had its share of racial animus and from what I hear there is still some undercurrents of racism. When I was growing up, two black families' homes were fire-bombed for moving in the area (early 80's). There is also tensions among some AAs and the African immigrant community culminating in a vicious beating of a young boy from Liberia.
↧