A Walk In Segregated Philadelphia

By: Lael Bernard November 2, 2018

A Walk in segregated Philadelphia

Growing up in Philadelphia is different. Not the normal day to day stuff, but you always have tourists coming to your city, taking pictures, and buying overpriced cheesesteaks. Visitors to Philadelphia think we’re so advanced when it comes to democracy, civil rights and racial issues. Truth is, we aren’t. Philadelphia’s highly racist past is something not often spoken about, but its undertones are still prevalent and effect us subliminally.

Love?

Segregation in Philadelphia is not a thing of the past. Philadelphia is seen as the epitome of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, but we aren’t. There are racial boundaries in our schools and neighborhoods. This reality isn’t hidden. Just look at pictures of the city’s neighborhoods , demographical maps, and even statistical graphs of the city. They all reveal that the city’s racial divide is real and still in effect today.

I interviewed Ernest Milton, a social studies teacher who has been teaching for 34 years and now currently teaches at George Washington Carver High School of Engineering and Science.

Where do you live?

"South Philly"

Has anything changed from when you first moved to Philadelphia to now?

"It’s not as dirty as it once was. There were a lot more tenements and a lot more slums in my youth, but the thing about South Philly is that it has always been separated by artificial borders. So you had Blacks in one part the Irish in another part and you had Italians in another. That was a little bit before Asians started to move in.”

Did you see a lot of people that look like you where you lived when you first moved to Philadelphia?

“Yes”

Do you see a lot of people that look like you when you go to different parts of the city?

“Well there’s still parts of Philadelphia you can go into that are predominantly Black. You have parts of Philadelphia you can go into that are predominantly White, so it depends on what neighborhood you’re in.”

Do you think a majority of black homes in Philadelphia are surrounded by major roadways?

“If you were to isolate Blacks all you would have to do is block off Broad street, make Spring Garden the southern boundary, make Roosevelt boulevard be the northern boundary, and you have the Schuylkill Expressway. Then you have a perfect square”

Some of the neighborhoods in Philadelphia

UNiversity City

This is University City. Full of college student from near and far all trying to get a higher education.

Center City

This is Center City. Bursting with energy, fancy apartments, and people hard at work.

Tacony

This is the Tacony part of the Northeast section of the city. Home to many delicious mouth watering pierogies.

South philly

This is South Philly.Home of Philly’s favorite Italian boxer, Rocky Balboa.

west philly

This is West PhIlly. Home to household names like Will Smith and Boyz II Men.

north philly

This is North Philly. Generations of laughter, soul, and controversy originated here being home to musicians like Jill Scott and Cassidy, and home to comedians like Bill Cosby.

Generations of friends and family have lived and died here. They are all from different places with stories unlike any other. We’re a diverse city, but we fail to intermingle with each other. We're all from the same place, but we never want to know how the next person’s doing. Maybe we live by social class now or maybe we separated ourselves. Whatever the reason, maybe if we start talking about segregation in our city, bring to light that it is a real thing and not something of the past, maybe then we can start to really live with each other.