I was not excited about going on the two-hour tour around Harlem because by Friday I always too exhausted to do anything productive. However, I tried to be positive about it.
In overall the tour-guide was amazing. She was passionate, interesting and funny. I was very surprised to see white young woman as a guide. I don’t know why but in my head I had a picture of an old guy who was suppose to tell us something. Unfortunately, no matter how good tour-guide was I did not find topic very interesting. Yes, her narrative was very interesting but when she spoke about condominiums or small houses that are built all over the place I was looking at those building and was furious about idiotic use of space. When we walked around I did not see a single space where kids or elderly people can play or walk during their free time or where they can spend hot summer days. I was looking at the neighborhood and saw that it was not build for the people who have free time. It was a neighborhood for adults who work all the time and only go home to sleep. This problem exists not only in the Harlem but also in all New York City. This city is built for people who work all day. There is no place for children or elderly people.
So when I saw those three-four store building I remembered how my teacher in American high school explained it to me in oversimplified manner: to build an elevator in the building is too expansive, and idea to live in separate house is the American dream. So when we walked around the neighborhood I thought that this so called American dream does not allow people to see rational way of living. It forced people to surrender their freethinking for elusive dream that controls them. It reminds me the comparison that Hugo did in “The Man Who Laughs.” He compared people with a donkey and government with a rider. So one-day donkey will get tired from being controlled and it will become a furious lion that will eat its rider. However, then the lion will again become a donkey and a new rider will control it. American people once were a glorious lion but now they turned into a donkey again.
Conclusion that I made from the tour is that the system won and I can’t see a way to change it. The system won.