How you describe Hadley Park might depend on where you stand.
If you enter from the southeast corner, you'll see a sweeping, tree-lined expanse — verdant in the summer, golden in the fall. Look northwest, and there's the campus of Tennessee State University — a century-old historically Black university. Turn around, and you'll see I-40, one of the highways separating North Nashville (traditionally, Black Nashville) from the rest of the city. Look down, and you'll see ground that used to grow crops, back when Hadley Park was a plantation. Ground that used to stage tanks, during the Vietnam War. Ground where now, every summer, bare feet dance and libations spill out during the annual African Street Festival.
