Creative Response

Dear Florence Scala,

I would like to start off by congratulating you on all the efforts and changes that you put into helping change and shape the city of Chicago. I believe, like yourself, that community is one of the most important aspects of a large city such as Chicago. Places in Chicago such as libraries, recreational centers, universities, parks, schools, and other public areas unite the population regardless of race, culture, religion, and etc. The work that Jessie Binford, Eri Hulbert, yourself, and others did to try and keep Hull House from being closed down was a testament to those who need hope to keep fighting in the city. Establishments like Hull House provide for an exchange of knowledge and culture that can cause a group of people to become a community. I think that community is important because we cannot live our lives in isolation and disagreement, but must put aside our differences in order to make greater equality and friendship. As you put it, " I feel that people have to be prepared always for imperfections in everyone, and we have to feel equal, really, to everyone."

Another issue I saw that you dealt with was the political system of Chicago pushing against your efforts to save the neighborhood. I don't know, but sometimes it feels like the citizens that actually make up our great city have no real power. I feel that people such as Mayor Richard Daley and his son Richard Jr. are almost on another planet and rule as tyrants. I feel like high ranking businessmen and lobbyists control all the candidates that our votes go to. Sometimes the hope for real change seems so distant and almost like a dream. However, people like yourself show me hope by standing up against the machine. I thought it was amazing how you petitioned and went in front of the board of directors of Hull House to present your case. The board didn't care what you had to say, but the leaders in your community made their voices heard. While change may seem as a dream, we need to look at it as one step at a time. Florence, you planted the seeds of change so that later generations may continue the struggle against the system. While I know the political system in Chicago has its problems, I pray to God that in the long run it all works out for the greater good of its people.