The Christian Science Monitor

Block by block, a community activist builds a better Chicago

In the weeks before Christmas, volunteers descended on Chicago’s South Side to decorate Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. Block by block, they strung lights, hung wreaths, and unspooled yards of ribbon. They festooned houses, trimmed fences, and wrapped light poles in garland. At Washington Park, boys clambered up a crab-apple tree to hang ornaments from its branches. A man on a stepladder looped solar-powered lights over plastic cups stuck into a chain-link fence to read “Respect Life.”

Decorating MLK Drive was Jahmal Cole’s idea. Mr. Cole is an author, motivational speaker, community activist, and founder of My Block My Hood My City, an organization devoted to finding small but meaningful ways to make life better in the poor and middle-class African-American neighborhoods of the South Side. When local block clubs asked for help putting up Christmas decorations, Cole figured he could decorate the whole drive.

“I thought, I’m going to do

Chicago’s block clubs‘Jahmal is opening that door’Other groups with community initiatives

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Christian Science Monitor

The Christian Science Monitor3 min read
Lithium Is Key To Green Technology. Where Will The US Source It?
As America moves from fossil fuels to renewable energy, it must increase its supplies of lithium, copper, nickel, rare earths, and cobalt. These minerals are key components in electric cars, solar panels, wind turbines, and other green technologies.
The Christian Science Monitor4 min readPolitical Ideologies
Young Poles Led A Political Revolution. Now They Need To Learn Patience.
Life in Poland is finally moving in the right direction, says Łukasz Dryżałowski. The Warsaw-based engineer-turned-filmmaker helped rally friends and strategize how and where to vote six months ago, in an election that saw 69% of Poles under 30 turn
The Christian Science Monitor6 min read
Behind The Verse: Six Monitor Poets Share Why They Write Poetry
One of the joys of poetry is that a verse can be whatever the reader needs it to be in that moment. But the birth of a poem can be just as personal for the poet. The Monitor reached out to six contributing poets on why they write, what inspires them,

Related Books & Audiobooks