That’s the stuff a lot of us white folks don’t hear about (sometimes from our Black friends, but not so much back in the day).

The violence was absolutely fueled by the stuff you mentioned, especially crack during the Reagan years. The redlining, the Dan Ryan cutting through viable south side neighborhoods, all of that.

And even after the Dan Ryan was built there wasn’t such hopeless gunnery. Get this. When I was a kid, my dad actually drove me to Cabrini Green so I could hang out with a friend. I don’t remember ever feeling in danger. I was about 9 years old so it was a long time ago.

But no. Most people in my peer group will point fingers anywhere else than ourselves. It’s a disease of the soul. So is American politics.