Social Media: A “Reunion” of Angry (and Not So Angry) White Working-Class Men and Women

Abstract

In this chapter, the reader gets to hear other voices from that time and place via comments from Social Media. No names or other identifying information are used, and all comments have been somewhat altered, combined, and summarized to guarantee anonymity. Some former City Line residents from my era seem to be angry (usually about the economy and those “others” who now occupy the streets where they grew up). Others, however, do not seem so angry. In fact, some seem to have positive memories of that time and place (another recent self-published book of 12 stories by Crockett (Hope Beyond All Hope: New York Stories. Vision Press, 2015) highlights some of the injuries I talk about, though in a humorous way). Some of the women are angry because that time and place did not allow them to become who they could have become professionally. Meanwhile, the reader will hear some former residents say they long for a time when the legendary John Gotti and other organized crime members lived in the area and kept the neighborhood “safe.” Explanations for these attitudes will be offered at the end of the chapter.