Linden is the Ghetto

Most of the housing in Collegetown is less than spectacular. In fact, I would even go so far as saying that all of the houses are little shithole matchboxes. I even overheard the maintenance men outside of my house joke to the landlord, calling him "Slum lord Bauer*" (even he found his hilarious). Aside from sub-par living conditions with cracking paint, crappy sidewalks and poor heating true of nearly all Collegetown houses, houses on Linden Avenue is the epitome of shittiness. A simple walk down this street and anyone can note its deprived aesthetics: the houses are virtually on top of eachother, bearing torn screens and rust marked exteriors. However, Linden's problems far exceed the individual plight of students living there. A few weeks ago, a girl (who I happen to be friends with) was mugged walking down the road at night. Later in the month a man wandered into our house and into my roommates room to sit on her bed and watch her sleep. A mere four days later some guy was standing on the fire escape of another girl's house, watching her change her clothes.

Another collegetown creeper? Maybe. So when all of this started happening my roommates and I curiously looked up information on our fellow "neighbors." Interestingly, a sex offender lives on Linden. And there are several low-income, government subsidized houses. None of this information is disclosed by the University, who should take it upon themselves to make sure all of its students are safe. Once all of these new details came to light, I was less than shocked when the policeman (who was over doing a picture lineup in my living room with my roommate) tells us they are looking for another man who got into a girl's car when it was stuck, saying he would help her if he gave her a ride. He then proceeded to tell her it was Mardi Gras and he had yet to see any "titties" and followed this commment by asking her if she had ever seen anyone who was well endowed. Obviously, she told him to get the fuck out of her car.

My point is this: Where the hell are the university officials with information or "support" (since they have it for so many other things on campus) for those living off-campus. When locking your door doesn't seem to do the trick, I am shocked by the fact that Cornell prohibits the posession of pepper spray/ mase on campus. Yeah, I don't live on campus, but when I am walking home from the library at night to my off campus house on ghetto ass Linden I damn well better be carrying it.

*Names have been changed to protect the writer from eviction