Date: Wed, 17 May 2000

Dear President Stukel:

I am extremely dismayed at the demolition of the historic Maxwell Street Neighborhood by the University of Illinois at Chicago. It is unthinkable that a university, whose function is to promote knowledge and preserve culture, would physically annihilate an area so important historically, socially, and culturally to Chicago and the entire country.

An area that was the primary gateway to Chicago–and to America–for countless immigrants, particularly those of Jewish, African-American, and Mexican-American ancestry, is eminently worthy of preservation. History consists of more than what lies between the covers of books or has been captured on video, tape, and disk.

The director of the UIC South Campus Development project, Stanton Delaney, has been quoted as saying that Maxwell Street’s heritage can be preserved through such means as using the original paving, "special" light fixtures, and historic markers. Evidently, he believes that the history of the district lies not in the buildings themselves, but in evocative commemorations that make a mockery of the area’s proud past. The history of a place consists to a great extent of its material culture, which has shaped the lives of the people who live there. Buildings are part of that material culture. By Mr. Delaney’s logic, it would be acceptable to level New York’s Lower East Side–another gateway for immigrants–and substitute a historical marker or a museum.

To be sure, what took place on Maxwell Street was not the work of presidents, kings, titled noblemen, or generals, and may never have made the headlines of the world’s great dailies. Rather, the Maxwell Street district was a place where ordinary people lived out their lives, toiling largely in obscurity, but leaving the magnificent legacy of a world class city. These immigrants built Chicago. Preservationists are keenly aware that it is not only the Mount Vernons and the Grand Central Stations of the world that must saved, but also structures which, however "humble," have played a role in building and sustaining a community. In the words of Bertolt Brecht, history is more than "the names of kings." By destroying Maxwell Street you are destroying the history of the city, and by extension, part of the history of the nation.

In more recent years the Maxwell Street district has been home to many African-American citizens of modest means. It is still a vibrant neighborhood, with businesses serving local residents, selling the likes of polish sausage, derby hats, blues tapes, and t-shirts. Displacing these people from their homes is unconscionable. It recalls the long-discredited urban renewal policies of earlier decades, known in common parlance as "Negro removal." It is inconceivable that such bankrupt policies, which once destroyed entire communities, are being resurrected in the 21^st century. The lessons of Columbia University’s planned expansion into Harlem in 1968 seem to have been completely lost on UIC.

Today, at the 11^th hour, policymakers are recognizing the importance of reviving the core of America’s large cities, by restoring the vibrancy that once was such an irresistible magnet for residents and visitors. UIC’s atavistic approach is to make the "hole in the donut" even larger. The unifunctional educational complex proposed to replace Maxwell Street serves the needs of a population vastly different from the one displaced.

Maxwell Street’s role as the birthplace of Chicago Blues, a universally acclaimed art form and the foundation of virtually all popular music worldwide today, is being widely recognized. Ironically, its fame has spread as a result of the recent and planned demolitions. Blues artists have expressed their support for saving Maxwell Street, among them singer Johnnie Mae Dunson, "The Queen of Maxwell Street," who played on Maxwell Street for decades and will be performing at this year’s Chicago Blues Festival. To destroy Memphis’s Beale Street, the birthplace of Southern Blues, would defy belief. It is just as inconceivable to contemplate the destruction of Maxwell Street, when it could be preserved as a living museum like Beale Street, which draws visitors from all over the world and is a major asset to the city.

Destroying the birthplace of Chicago Blues is also an assault on African-American culture. In her recent visit to the famed Chess Recording Studios, First Lady Hillary Clinton noted that "The story of Chicago blues is the story of the African-American experience." The music may have been recorded by Chess, but that music was created on Maxwell Street, largely by African-Americans. In destroying the Maxwell Street neighborhood, you are destroying not only part of the history of the country’s musical heritage, but more particularly–and more odiously–part of the cultural history of the African-American people.

What end can possibly justify this means? You cite the advance of education as the lofty goal, one that on the face of it is difficult to counter. But that goal could be achieved by expanding the university in a different location. UIC would not be the first urban university to create satellite campuses. The cultural and historical losses that would result in demolishing the Maxwell Street district are too high a price to pay. They add up to the loss of community, an intangible as difficult to measure as to define. Familiar, often humble landmarks such as those on Maxwell Street create a sense of continuity and belonging. In reminding us of who we are, where we came from, and what our forebears have achieved, they strengthen community. In concert with our neighbors we shared experiences–happy, sad, good, or bad–on these streets, where the structures formed the backdrops of the lives of generations. The people of Maxwell Street can "relocate" to another area, but it is doubtful they can find one with which they identify so closely, one they may have seen generations of family grow up in, one with which they feel a sense of intimacy and belonging. You are taking all this away from them.

There is still time to save what is left. The "irretrievable loss of historic integrity," for which you are responsible, must not be used as a rationale for destroying the rest of the area. UIC claims it intends to save 21 buildings. In fact, that is a false claim. Of those 21, fully 13 will be saved only in the form of facades. Indeed, the Landmarks Preservation Council of Illinois has condemned the UIC plan. All remaining buildings, which number about 60, must be preserved and restored in their entirety. Too much of the area has already been lost to the wrecking ball; we can’t afford to lose any more.

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For all these reasons, I urge you to work with the Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition to seek official historic district status for the district in order to save this unique and irreplaceable part of Chicago’s history and culture.

Sincerely,

Judy Reardon

cc: Hon. George H. Ryan, Governor of Illinois

Hon. Richard M. Daley, Mayor, City of Chicago

Hon. Jerry Butler, Commissioner, Cook County

Hon. Jesse Jackson, Jr., U.S. Congress

Reverend Jesse L. Jackson, Sr., President and CEO, Rainbow/Push Coalition

Editor, The Chicago Tribune

Maxwell Street Historic Preservation Coalition

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