The Isolated Impoverished

This piece was very reminiscent of many of the themes highlighted in the Wire though what especially stuck out to me was the idea of inner-cities and low-income neighborhoods as separate entities from the rest of the cities in which they are located. In the text Anderson talks about how many of the government services that we take for granted in wealthy areas of town such as a strong police force, neighborhood maintenance, trash pickup etc. are virtually non-existent low income areas. This problem is both perpetuated and caused by the systemic nature of our society as well as the infrastructure the government builds to isolate the poor and ensure that wealth and middle-class citizens are not exposed to these areas.  Anderson references the “highway that now allows motorists to drive over North Philadelphia rather than through it- thereby ignoring its street life, its inhabitants, and its problems”.

Because of this culture of systemic isolation of American cities’ impoverished population, a “code of the street emerges” which is what I associated most with the Wire and the distinct cultural norms that exist within the towers and the other spaces dominated by Avon Barksdale and his crew. The Author emphasizes how the basis of this code is respect and respecting the hierarchical nature of relationships and interactions. For example, when Omar steals the stash of heroin from Barksdale’s people, Avon orders them to kill Omar and to lay out his body in a public space so that everyone would know that Avon was the dominant figure within their area of town. Barksdale was disrespected and that behavior would not go unpunished according to the code of the street. What this shows are the dramatically varying societal norms and customs existing among the urban poor and the urban middle class largely as an effect of the governmental infrastructure to deal with the poor.  

My question is in the same vein of the Orsi piece we read the first day of class: With such a disconnect between impoverished and middle/upper-class civilians how can any government, police force, non- profit organization or volunteer possibly make any substantial and effective efforts to alleviate any of the problems found in urban impoverished areas?