I remember, as a kid growing up in Bronzeville, the rumbling of the L trains going back and forth to the jobs provided by the stockyards, the sounds of jazz emanating from the bars and clubs just off the boulevard, the smells of soulful dishes and sweets from bakeries and cafes, the calls of the men hawking everything from socks to watermelons, and the spirituality of the gospel sound on Sundays.
Today, Bronzeville has new soulful cafés, coffee houses with fancy pastries, a brewery and wine culture, new assets in the form of the old Forum revisited, the Emmett Till House and Muddy Waters House museums, the elegant Ida B. Wells Monument, spectacular plans for open spaces on the lakefront, and so much more.
