A Tale of Two Cities

Everyone has seen the old Fritz Lang movie Metropolis.
But is this what has happened in America today?
Have most of our racial issues now been converted to class issues - even within each race itself?

I often read where one group of Blacks feel as though they are above the effects of racism because of their acquired wealth, status or social position.
But have they forgotten the lesson of Skip Gates?

I currently live in a neighborhood of custom homes and manicured lawns.
My neighborhood is 99.99% Black (One man married an Asian woman as his second wife).
The "poor" people in my neighborhood work at the local refineries with spouses that do the same (Each earning $100k+ yr.).
Everyone else is a business owner or a professional.

But across town, in the neighborhoods of my rental houses, the life of Blacks is vastly different.
This area is every stereotype of Blacks multiplied by ten.
If you think NOLA was bad - this area is much worse.
Sharpshooter homes are still common and decay is everywhere.
Even with the vast amounts spent on social programs - this area makes Detroit seem like Martha's Vineyard.

My neighborhood is over forty years old and has remained desirable even while maintaining it's Blackness.
My neighborhood was never White.
In fact, many whites assumed that the homes were given to the Blacks by some government program.
Many whites couldn't believe that Blacks in this area could afford homes that are better than much of the city.

But what are the differences between the two areas of this small town?
My neighborhood has few fences.
The older neighbors feel free to pick and can fruit from a neighbor's trees. (As long as the neighbor receives some of the preserves.).
My neighbors know each other and their families.
My neighbors usually have both parents in the home.
When a neighbor is working on a project at their home, my neighbors rarely fail to assist.
Being the only single guy on the block, I receive plates of food most days and most meals of every day.
My neighbors still feel no shame when correcting a neighbors child.
After hurricanes, we organize clean up and repair crews and check to ensure the safety of each neighbor's family and property.
My neighbors still enjoy conversations on other neighbors' porches. (The best meeting spot is in a neighbor's juke joint (really a small brick guest house that was built to prevent a man from cooking hog cracklin's in his wife's $85k kitchen))
Some mornings turn into "gun shows" where the men gather to see what skunk, rabbit, snake, armadillo or opossum some neighbor had been shooting at earlier. (Really, everyone is making sure no one is shooting at someone who may have been attempting to rob a home. These mornings, everyone ends up explaining that it was just some vermin and we end up showing off our newest weapons.)
In short - my neighbors are still neighborly.

But the hood in which my rentals are is very different.
Fences, dogs and guns are used to intimidate anyone who approaches a (usually rented) home.
People hide behind iron bars as night approaches.
Few people share - most charge for every little instance of assistance.
Most children are raised by grandmothers or single mothers who can barely take care of themselves.
Most adults fear the bad ass little kids who roam the streets at night.
The local hangout is the car wash or corner store, but these are usually frequented by dealers, prostitutes, beggars or bangers.
Gunshots are often heard and ignored as being somebody else's business.
Most consider their neighbors to be their biggest adversaries.

Both neighborhoods are Black.
Both neighborhoods are near high paying places of employment.
Both neighborhood's kids attend the same schools.
But why are the visible results so different?