Never Say "I Can't Make a Difference"

Never say that 1 person can't have an impact on the social fabric, even if it's only their own, small neighborhood or community. My whole life I have acted to make whatever changes I could.

I'll give you 3 examples, all from my old Chicago neighborhood:

Sometime in the mid-to late 90s, nearly every time I walked my dog through Loyola Park I would encounter someone publicly urinating out there. It kept getting worse, & eventually binge drinking Loyola students added to it, peeing in alleys & even our yards. I finally decided that whenever I encountered this, I would yell at the top of my lungs, "Put it back in your pants & go find a toilet like a human being. We don't tolerate that behavior in this neighborhood."

After a few weeks of this, I began seeing less & less of it. After about 6 months, I hardly saw it at all anymore.

As more Loyola students moved onto my block, there were times when it turned into a dog shit minefield, especially during the winter. I took it upon myself to make up sets of laminated signs "sponsored" by the fictitious North Shore Dog Owners & tape them up & down the block.

"It's the Law - Scoop the Poop"; "Responsible Dog Owners Scoop the Poop"; & my favorite, "Do You Like Stepping In It? Neither Do We. Scoop the Poop".

Yes, I had to repeat it once or twice/year, depending on the population turnover. But it worked.

Chicago ordinance prohibits posting flyers on light poles, traffic light poles, etc. It was generally ignored & never enforced. There were poles on Sheridan Rd. with flyers & campaign posters layers deep & years old. I began to take it on myself to immediately tear down any poster that was glued up & to take down outdated ones that were taped. After a few months, the people posting them began to get the message & fewer new ones were appearing. After a few more months, I began to see other residents following my lead & tearing them down.

Did I talk to anybody about any of it? No. Did I do any organizing? No. I simply set an example, publicly, without fanfare, & that example had an effect. If you're willing to make the commitment, even a single person can make a difference, no matter how small, toward repairing our social fabric & building a more civil community.