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Sunday, July 05, 2009
“A black lady owns that house.”
Posted by The Dean of Cincinnati
There are two houses in my neighborhood that did not see fit to clear their sidewalks of large branches that fell during that storm several days ago. The one nearest my own house is property owned by white people. One morning, tired of walking around the mess and getting my dog’s leash tangled, I had my son hold our puppy while I dragged that mess of branches into the people’s yard. At least it wouldn’t obstruct the walkway. It’s still sitting there today, complete with the same cardboard box that got entangled in the mess days ago. When I cleared the walkway in that instance, no other neighbors were on the street. It was a quiet, and solitary activity.
Today, on the other side of my street, my son was riding his brand new bike. And another neighbor still had not cleared branches from the sidewalk. So, once again, I decided to drag them into the yard so my son could ride his bike. This time, however, some guy was walking his dog on the other side of the street. He watched me clear the branches, and then we made eye contact.
“A black lady owns that house,” he told me from across the way.
I thought this a very strange statement. Was this racism? If this same guy had seen me do the same thing to the other neighbors, would he have said, “A white family lives there”?
In that minuscule pause between the normal beats of everyday conversation, my head spun with possibilities. What should I say? A flurry of comebacks zipped through my mind, but I decided on a simple, slightly sarcastic monosyllable.
“And?”
This time, the awkward pause was all his. Apparently, saying that a black lady owned the house should have been all that he needed to say. My question forced him to tell more of the story. He continued, fumbling.
“Well, it’s a two family house. There is a guy who lives on the bottom, and two sisters on the top. They don’t take care of their trees,” he said.
I mused, internally, over that last statement. They don’t take care of their trees? Perhaps my confusion showed outwardly, as the old white man continued, “Every time there is a storm, branches fall out of ‘em.”
I found this answer even more perplexing. I’ve never thought about “taking care of my trees” in a manner as to prevent branches from falling out during bad and windy storms. Looking for an exit strategy, I said, “Well, maybe next time I’ll just drag the branches into their driveway so the car is trapped.”
The old white guy seemed to find that acceptable, and he walked away.
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05 Jul 2009 at 11:21 am | #
Just playing devil’s advocate, but he could have simply been attempting to identify the woman so the next time you saw her you might ask her to take better care of her responsibility in clearing the sidewalk. I don’t think that’s the case. I think you’re probably right and what he was attempting to convey was “A black lady owns that house [and you know how the neighborhood turns to shit when they move in.].” We can’t get in there and know for sure, but it could be the case that not too many black families live on your street. Still, a strange point to make. Still, people should take care of their trees—by which he certainly meant cleaning up after them when there was a storm. Come on, that part wasn’t ambiguous.
05 Jul 2009 at 11:38 am | #
I have a very diverse street, by casual appearances—though I have not thought to count the white v. black v. other ratio.
Here is his whole quote, without my narrative insertions:
It was as if branches falling from the trees is evidence of how they don’t take care of the trees—as if properly cared for trees would not drop branches like this. As in—the other houses on the street did not have branches this large fall from their trees. (They were rather large.)
05 Jul 2009 at 11:56 am | #
“…A black lady owns that house,” he told me from across the way. I thought this a very strange statement. Was this racism?...”
No, that identified his Republican ideology, just ask the whistle-blower.
.
05 Jul 2009 at 01:34 pm | #
I am curious as to how you determined that the house owner or occupant was responsible for the branches when the courts have long decided that falling trees that are not obviously defective are considered acts of god and the responsibility of the removal of falling trees from ones property is up to the owner of the property for the part of the tree that is one the person’s property.
The sidewalks belong to the public right of way and unless we have some idiot official, like the one that charged a citizen with cutting public grass last month, you were within your rights to remove the tree from the sidewalk, but you were trespassing and littering when you threw the branches onto the person’s property.
It could be taken that the person that referred to the black woman was actually giving her respectful acknowledgment for knowing the law and acting within her rights. It could be that she is saying that the written law is on her side and that she is not going to be bothered with unwritten white middle class shallow rules on how she should live.
Now if you are elected to a legislative position, you can pass laws to tell others that they have to live by your rules.
05 Jul 2009 at 02:12 pm | #
Sec. 721-147. Owners of Abutting Property to Maintain Sidewalk.
Where land abuts on a street where there is a paved sidewalk and/or a paved sidewalk with an integral curb, the owner or owners of such land shall be jointly and severally responsible for causing the sidewalk and any curb which is integral with the sidewalk to be kept in repair and free from nuisance. Said owners are responsible for any damage caused by said repair to the gutters adjacent to their property.
05 Jul 2009 at 02:30 pm | #
The city writes a number of self serving ordinances that won’t fly. The One which you cited is one of them. According to the cited ordinance, a property owner would be responsible for shoveling snow from the sidewalk. I am sure you are aware that the city cannot force an owner to shovel the sidewalk but they could cite the owner because they are fascists and they have conditional immunity. The will lose if anyone takes it to court. The city knows this but still allows the law to remain on the books because they can often intimidate some citizen.
Also there is state law that specifically mandates that the municipality is responsible for maintaining the right of way to be free from nuisance.
So are you supporting the fascists?
05 Jul 2009 at 02:33 pm | #
PS
Can we assume that you agree that your actions of throwing the debris onto the person’s property was an act of trespass for which you are guilty?
05 Jul 2009 at 03:36 pm | #
I am guilty of nothing save clearing the sidewalk for the property owners, so they don’t have to worry about it, proving passage for everyone in my neighborhood - without approaching City Hall, sending fake bills, etc.
05 Jul 2009 at 03:39 pm | #
http://www.ci.sandusky.oh.us/engineering/engineering-sidewalkcurb.htm
The City of Sandusky Sidewalk, Curb and Gutter Program is a citywide program intended to improve the safety and appearance of neighborhood streets and sidewalks. The Ohio Revised Code, Chapter 729, makes provisions for this program and places the responsibility on each property owner for the sidewalks and curbs abutting their property. More important however, is the fact that courts have held that property owners may be responsible for injuries to people who have fallen due to defective sidewalks.
06 Jul 2009 at 04:21 am | #
Dean, your story reminds me of the following experience:
Few weeks ago, my 9 year old grandson’s appendix was taken out. I went to visit him at his home. While I was visiting him, one of his teachers, from the private Baptist school he attends, came to visit him. My grandson and my daughter informed me that this was his favorite teacher. My daughter relayed the following incident that happened in the school, which involved this teacher.
An African-American student had called a white student a “cracker.” This teacher who is white, told the African-American student that calling a white student a “cracker” is like calling a black student a “nigger.” The African- American student reported this to his mother. The mother reported it to the school administration. It appears that all agreed that the teacher did not call the student the N-word.
What I find interesting in this situation is: if a white student had called a black student a “nigger” would the teacher had said to the white student that calling an African-American a “nigger” is the same thing as calling a white student a “ cracker?”
06 Jul 2009 at 08:33 am | #
I hope not!
06 Jul 2009 at 09:50 am | #
For guest 77,
An educated teacher should know better than to use offensive words even if he or she is trying to make a point with 9 year olds. Take race out of it. If it had been a boy and girl involved and the boy called the girl a “bitch”, should the teacher then explain that its like calling a boy a “dick”? Or would the teacher say calling someone a “fag” is like calling another a “dyke”? The list could go on and on. The teacher was wrong for not saying words like “cracker” are not acceptable and leaving it there. Even though she did not call the kid a “nigger”, she still should have been reprimanded. She could have picked any of the above terms but she instead used “nigger” to make her point. I hope she was reported to the state.
Dean, I’m wondering how your old white neighbor refers to you and your family when telling others about how well you keep your yard. You should interview him to see if he is racist.
06 Jul 2009 at 08:27 pm | #
Here is an interesting point to ponder….Was large Marge Schott truely a racist- or was she a product of the generation? If you talk to a lot of her players- most of them did like and respect her. Some of the younger ones- did not and saw her to be a racist- but the older ones did like and respect her.
Think about it- in the time when a lot of people of her generation- were raised to think that Hitler did do a lot to build the infastructure of Germany with the Autobahn, the Volkswagon, the food distribution network, hospital care, youth clubs (Hitler youth did have cooking, sewing, farming and scout like clubs-not all political) and a lot of German Americans were members of it- And she did clarify the comment with- “now if you take out what he did to the jews”- but that got edited out…just to make the story… and being a woman in the all male club of baseball- the male reporters were just out there gunning for her knowing she would be drinking and was an easy target to make stupid mistakes.
But in reality- was she truely a racist- or a product of her generation? Before you answer- think about how she was raised, what she had to over come being the only woman to own a auto dealership and how she fought that battle, and then the battle to fight to own a major league team, plus the disease of alcoholism. WAS SHE TRUELY A RACIST….. Don’t jump with your first reaction..think….she would have been close to 100 years old now….look back in your history book and all the things she saw happen and change….and top on her alcoholism…
The easy answer is yes….but the educated answer is…we don’t know.
06 Jul 2009 at 08:32 pm | #
Life’s a bitch sometimes, isn’t it Dieter? The City makes you clear branches off of your sidewalk and they make you clear snow & ice off your sidewalk. Just like they made you clear all of those tires off of your property.
06 Jul 2009 at 11:11 pm | #
Marge shot was by her own admission a nazi sympathizer. Don’t be ignorant.
07 Jul 2009 at 02:55 am | #
Show me!
07 Jul 2009 at 03:09 am | #
Good points.
Those that criticize Marge generally, are among those that have essentially done nothing for society in comparison to all that Marge has done. I knew Mrs. Schott and, fortunately, I even stopped into visit her a few months before she died. I disagree with the part of what was said (“The easy answer is yes….but the educated answer is…we don’t know.”). I am educated and I do know.
07 Jul 2009 at 12:07 pm | #
Her name is spelled S C H O T T .
There were millions, who sympathized with Nazis including Henry Ford and Lindbergh at one time or another. Nazis promoted stability and those in power like stability; nothing has changed. What is ignorance is your inability to realize the human traits involved. It is easy to judge others from the future.
07 Jul 2009 at 02:39 pm | #
You want us to show you “Deiter”? Ask and you shall recieve. Here you are!
07 Jul 2009 at 04:20 pm | #
First of all, I know how the bitch’s name is spelled I was didn’t proofread, does
that take away from the point I made. Henry Ford is one of the most outspoken
and most prominent antisemites of modern times, he was a shit bag and a hundred
years later, I would never buy a ford. For all your talk condemning our governement
as fascits, it is interesting to see you actually support an fascist regime like the Nazis.
Dieter, you have lost your motherfucking mind if you are excusing one iota of Nazism.
07 Jul 2009 at 04:38 pm | #
Please watch your language!
07 Jul 2009 at 04:47 pm | #
Sorry the outspoken justification of genocide and racism really burns my ass!
07 Jul 2009 at 05:38 pm | #
I don’t have a problem with your passion, just your offensive language.
07 Jul 2009 at 06:51 pm | #
UCstudent!
I never excused fascism. You have made a giant leap to accuse Mrs. Schott of fascism. Is it, in your opinion, that anyone who fails or failed to do everything and anything possible to either stop fascism or to retaliate against any fascist or any fascist act is a fascist?
Is it sufficient retaliation against antisemitism to not buy a Ford automobile to relieve your conscience and avoid being a fascist yourself?
In your argument are you equivocating antisemitism with fascism?
Maybe, you need to define fascism before we are all classified as being fascists.
Me thinks thou use of improper language is a diversion for your lack of understanding.
07 Jul 2009 at 07:40 pm | #
Anti-Semitism, or more generally scapegoating, is a fundamental component of fascist rhetoric. Don’t take my word for it, pick up a copy of Payne or Mosse. Marge famously referred to a black player as a “million dollar nigger” and she proudly showed off her nazi armband, I’d say that qualifies her as a racist anti-semitic bigoted POS. I don’t have a conscience to relieve, but that has nothing to do with me not buying a Ford because he was an outspoken anti-semite. I don’t use Bayer aspirin for the same reason, they carried out inexcusable and completely inhumane experiments on Jews during the holocaust. You are an outspoken bigot, racist and anti-semite as well, nice post on citybeat calling black people coloreds, real classy dieter!
07 Jul 2009 at 08:08 pm | #
ucstudent - spare us your phony outrage. When your fellow liberal .cincy..capell was promoting his anti-Semitism right here in the comment section of this site, you declined to take the chance to condemn him for his bigotry.
If you want to take a stand against racial and religious bigotry I’d applaud you for it. But don’t take the weasel way out by pretending to be outraged by a woman who’s long been dead while giving a free pass to an anti-Semitic bigot right before your eyes.
07 Jul 2009 at 08:43 pm | #
Cincy..Capell calling the old testament a book of jewish fairy tales is not offensive to me, and it is hardly anti-semitism. I’m talking about a woman who said the nazi’s weren’t all that bad. Need I remind you of the “final solution”? Phony Outrage my rear end, I’m talking about the death of 6 million innocent people and the persecution of millions more.
08 Jul 2009 at 03:16 pm | #
UCstudent!
Me thinks thou protests too much.
You seem to be selective in your condemnations. I have never seen you rant about war criminals like Bush and Cheney. And then there was McNamara and all the presidents who he served under. Why do you selectively pick out only six million who were killed and why do you state that they were innocent showing indifference to the others? Perhaps you are saying that they weren’t all that bad. Eh?
You jumped on the self-righteous bandwagon showing your bigotry while blaming your same traits on others.
08 Jul 2009 at 03:20 pm | #
UC!
I allow for your youth and you might not even know McNarara so I offer:
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/07/us/07mcnamara.html?emc=eta1
It is timely and interesting.
08 Jul 2009 at 04:43 pm | #
I think thou protests too little. You are an apologist for genocide and racism. Keep responding though, no one does a better job of making a fool out of you than yourself.