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Photo by Thom Carroll of The Philly Voice
As November comes to a close, December creeps in bringing rattling winds to torment students waiting for the 2 on 17th Street. But an even greater tragedy than the frigid nipping of students’ faces and the steadily darkening of our days has occurred on that block. Just when students could use a longtime friend or a symbol of happiness the most, the famous and beloved Rat Mobile has vanished.
When I first realized that the Rat Mobile was missing from its usual spot behind the gates of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98, (IBEW 98) I didn’t think much of it. Naively, I began checking out the window of 301, hopeful for its return, every day first thing as I walked into advisory (even days when my math homework was not done yet). But with each day that passed, my worries increased. I wanted to know if others noticed the disappearance. Trying to stabilize myself through a hurricane of emotions, I set out to find answers: what the Rat Mobile meant to other people, how they were coping with this loss, and how this atrocity even occurred in the first place.
Before turning to the masses, I did some research about the Rat Mobile’s purpose. According to a Q&A by The Philadelphia Inquirer with John Dougherty, Business Manager of IBEW 98, the Rat Mobile is used as a “mobile protest unit” that “travel[ed] to the job sites and summer shore residences of unscrupulous developers and contractors who cheat the city out of taxes and other revenue sources.” However, after a quick look deeper, a search of Dougherty’s name on the Inquirer’s website lead me to over a dozen articles about his recent indictment for corruption and embezzlement of union funds. The irony was not lost on me. But unlike Dougherty, the Rat Mobile has not been corrupted as a symbol for justice.
After learning some background, I began to patrol the halls in search of people’s thoughts on the subject. Some students I consulted admired the Rat Mobile for its role as a symbol of justice. Shane Cohen-Mungan (12-1) commented, “Every time I saw it, I felt inspired to take on the dirty capitalists, but now I have to search for inspiration elsewhere.” Lucy Duckworth (11-1) shared how the Rat Mobile used to always brighten her day, and how its absence is felt in her life. “I smile once less every time I walk by where the Rat Car used to be,” she said. Sam Njiru (10-3) admitted: “I have semi-strong feelings about [The Rat Mobile] but I mostly wanna be featured.”
Knowing how important the Rat Mobile was to everyone, I wanted to find out why it has vanished. I approached a manager of scheduling for IBEW 98 and was told that if I left my contact information I would be reached out to for an interview. Weeks have gone by, and I am sorry to say that I have not received a single email nor phone call for followup, let alone any details about the Rat Mobile’s whereabouts to console you, Dear Readers. One begins to wonder, could there be a meaning behind the initially promised interview, and then the sudden ghosting of IBEW 98?
The Rat Mobile appears to be gone, perhaps forever. But hopefully we’re strong enough as a community to move past this tragedy.
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