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Saturday April 14 3:29 PM ET

Prosperity And Blight Collide in Cincinnati Unrest

By Jason Straziuso

CINCINNATI (Reuters) - In Cincinnati's historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, the windows are boarded up on some of the buildings listed as national architectural treasures, and residents of this predominately black community do not feel greatly revered by their fellow citizens these days.

The German immigrants who lived here in the 19th century left not only the name copied from the famous Rhine river, but also such a rich architectural heritage that the area has been designated a National Historic Place.

That distinction has not done anything to quell the anger of the many African Americans who now call this historic district home, who are seething over the shooting a week ago of Timothy Thomas, an unarmed, 19-year-old black man, by a white policeman, Steve Roach.

It was the 15th killing of a black man by Cincinnati police since 1995 and the fourth since November. No whites have been killed by police during that period.

While police defend their tactics as self defense, blacks feel they are being targeted by police in what is called ``racial profiling.'' The resentment of some blacks has spilled into the streets in the worst race rioting here since the death of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. in April 1968.

``The anger goes way back,'' said Carolyn Wright, 52, pastor of a black church in the community. ``In addition to killing black men, it also is an economic issue. We have problems here, no jobs, nothing for the kids to do.''

Poor People, Rich Architecture

Over-the-Rhine is a neighborhood where prosperity and rich history sit uneasily alongside urban blight.

Music Hall, a huge 19th century Gothic structure and magnet for local culture as host of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, is surrounded by nothing but empty lots.

Community leaders proudly point to the Findlay Market, a thriving open-air market with fresh produce, which sits just across the street from the site of Thomas' funeral on Saturday and adjacent to one of the poorest streets in the city.

Boarded-up windows are now the rule along streets of upscale bars and art galleries, the result of three nights of rioting since the Thomas' shooting. Just two blocks away are burned-out buildings, trash-strewn alleys and rotting cars.

``I feel it is important for businessmen to put on the face that everything is fine,'' said David Smith, a black owner of a designer-furniture art gallery. ``But I hate to open (my business) back up if there's a flare up.''

Festering Social Problems

The litany of this neighborhood's woes is familiar in the United States, where the poorest neighborhoods in the centers of major cities often are predominately black and many whites have fled to the suburbs. Since the race riots of the 1960s there have been sporadic eruptions of rage in American inner cities, a sharp reminder of festering social problems.

Photos

Reuters Photo


In the worst such rioting, 51 people were killed in Los Angeles after the acquittal in 1992 of four white policemen after the videotaped beating of Rodney King, a black motorist.

No lives have been lost yet in the Cincinnati riots, which spread to other predominantly black neighborhoods outside Over-the-Rhine. About 43 percent of the city's population of 330,000 is black, up from 38 percent a decade ago. The Over-the-Rhine neighborhood is 83 percent black.

The average income in Cincinnati is $14,420 a year per person, but in Over-the Rhine it is just $5,359, and 48 percent of its residents are on public assistance, according to a recent study by the University of Cincinnati.

Cincinnati is home to major corporations including Kroger Co., Procter & Gamble and Chiquita Brands International Inc., and the unemployment rate for the greater Cincinnati area has averaged just 3.8 percent over the last five years.

But among blacks in Over-the-Rhine the jobless rate is closer to 30 percent, according to the study.

RACIAL PROFILING?

With so many young black men unemployed and on the streets, and a heavy police presence in the community, some residents said there was sure to be an eruption sooner or later.

Residents say they have been relegated to second-class citizens by a city trying to push them out by turning neighborhoods into unaffordable new condominiums, and that police presence in black areas is too high.

``From all the people that have died, all the African-American males, the subconscious message being sent is if you come in contact with the police, its not going to be a good experience,'' said Ronald Smith, a 43-year-old black resident.

Allegations of ``racial profiling'' or targeting of blacks are not just a problem for Cincinnati but a national issue that has prompted Attorney General John Ashcroft (news - web sites) to call for an end to the practice. But police said all the attention on the deaths of 15 black men in Cincinnati in the last six years is distorting the facts.

``We do not create these dangerous situations, folks; we simply react to them,'' said Keith Fangman, the Cincinnati police union president. ``We're not some band of rogue Nazis hunting down and killing black men.''

Still, as the black community in Over-the-Rhine mourned another of its young men on Saturday, local residents questioned why Thomas died. Police wanted Thomas was for a series of misdemeanors, not major crimes, Smith said.

``There's no way he should be dead.''




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Panayote Elias Dimitras
Spokesperson
Greek Helsinki Monitor
e-mail: panayote@greekhelsinki.gr

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