Eyes on the Street

“Mommy, you’re Black,” my three-year-old boldly said to me. It came out of the blue while we were sitting in our living room. I wasn’t ready. I had to be.

I’m a Black woman living in a mostly white Philly neighborhood during the pandemic and civic unrest. I won’t tone myself down to make you more comfortable.

Urban anthropologist Katrina Johnston-Zimmerman argues that in order for cities to be “human-centered,” white urbanists need to actively be anti-racist.

I’m a Black man in North Philadelphia who survived prison and helps people returning to the community. We need to reinvent policing from the ground up.

Given Kenney’s past record of deferring to police and FOP leadership, how seriously should Philadelphians take his new police reform plan?

Philly’s arts office responds to the cultural and ethnic diversity that makes up our vibrant neighborhoods.

When the 2008 financial meltdown happened, we knew we had to move fast. Now, another economic disaster looms and Philly has a chance to lessen its impact.

For more than a decade, African Americans called for the removal of the Rizzo statue. Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney has finally heard them.

Police brutality brought protesters into the streets. But the city’s "inadequate" response to COVID-19 contributes to anger, writes Rev. Malcolm Byrd.

People damaged historic buildings in the aftermath of protest. Let’s not mourn. Instead, think about the values and stories we tell with our architecture.

Preservationist Paul Steinke rediscovers the wondrous yet fragile beauty of his West Philadelphia neighborhood, taking readers to 8 Garden Court sites.

The SEPTA board will soon vote on a fare proposal created before the pandemic. Should the fare plan change because the economy has changed?

The public utility of the internet is especially clear now in a pandemic, when we go online for school and health information, writes Devren Washington.

An urban planner reflects on how Philadelphia’s street design, transit and neighborhoods could change as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

A surge of evictions is expected this summer when city courts reopen and a proposed budget cut threatens to worsen the crisis, writes a retired Philadelphia judge.