Throughout reading “Down, Out, and Under Arrest” I have found my mind gravitating back to a central theme of the class: community. Upon being asked what community was during one of the first classes of the semester, I was immediately perplexed and I have kept circling back to that question. I have been intrigued by the complicatedness and variety of definitions of community, and when I sensed a seemingly unlikely community in crime-ridden Skid Row, I posed the following question to see if my classmates sensed this as well:
“Community” has been an overarching theme all semester, and there is definitely not one clear definition for it. How do Steel and his crew represent a paradoxical idea of community, given that they congregate with each other to stay out of trouble, but in an “effort to set themselves apart from the ‘typical’ Skid Row resident” (Stuart 128-129)? Can a “Purgatory” or “halfway point” truly be a community? What other paradoxical ideas does Chapter 3 present regarding how residents perceive and think about Skid Row once they live there as opposed to before they did?
The discussion around this question tied in with other topics of the lecture offered a variety of viewpoints and responses. In one way, Steele and his crew defy community because they aim to separate themselves from the rest of the geographically concentrated group of people in Skid Row. In another way, however, they create their own community within Skid Row by choosing to group up together by working out together to stay out of the way of the police and harm’s way. Even though Skid Row is described as a “purgatory” where people don’t typically choose to reside, once they are there, by choice or not, key aspects of community form through groups like Steel’s. Community is typically thought of as a place people choose to be, but parts of “Down, Out, and Under Arrest” challenge common notions and bring to light different ways in which community can be formed.
I agree that the alliance that Steel and his crew form is unique as it fits both the definition of community, whilst also challenging it. I think that individual’s backgrounds prior to coming to Skid Row play a significant role in influencing individuals incentives to engage with other Skid Row residents. As Steel did not grow up in Skid Row, he holds a far more negative view of the area, in contrast to Malcolm (a member of LACAN) who grew up in the neighborhood. Consequently, it is understandable that Steel does not feel the social responsibility to integrate better with the neighborhood. When reading this chapter in the book, I would have agreed that this group fit the definition of community, as they use the weight pile to organize together, even if they kept themselves separate from the rest of Skid Row’s residents. However, as the police disbanded the group, and slowly many of the men stopped working out, it illustrates how the group was not strong enough to overcome their environment. Therefore, I would argue that Steel and his crew were not a community, as they were too fragile to exist within the Skid Row community for a significant period of time. The lack of longevity makes me less inclined to define the group as a proper community, as other groups such as street vendors and LACAN were able to resist pressures from the police.
After reading your question, I pondered about who defines a community. In looking at Skid Row, the residents are a forced community that become bonded by a thwarted sense of belongingness. Rejection from the government and isolation from the outside world, creates a community in of itself. A community can be defined as a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common or a feeling of fellowship with others, as a result of sharing common attitudes, interests, and goals. Does the word community contain even those who are forced into that particular group? The residents of Skid Row defiantly live in the same place, but do they have common interests and goals? Are they all residents there for the same reason?