Redefine the Local

Ah suburbia… Everyone thinks they know what it is. Depicted in so many 90’s movies, suburbia has become common-place, just ordinary people living mundane lives. No one wants to analyze it. The suburbs are not glamorous; neighborhood shopping centers are in no way exciting. So then why are the suburbs important?

And to this I say what ever happened to the plight of the individual middle-class worker? Miami’s extremes are in the spotlight. No one thinks of Kendall and Cutler Ridge and Perrine when they think of Miami. They think of leisure and crime, of South Beach and Liberty City and Coral Gables and Overtown and Bayside and the Metro and Cubans and Hialeah. But the middle-class working force-- made up of overlap from Ninjman’s three groups: mobiles, locals, and exiles—is very important to the Miami community. Just think about it… where does all the traffic come from in the mornings on your way to school: Kendall, Perrine, Miramar some from the Gables. How can all these people who go to work everyday and contribute so much to small businesses and private practices as well as education be neglected in an analysis of the city?

Nijman defines the local as one whose family has been in Miami for several generations. Well I think it’s time to redefine the local as one who does not plan on leaving Miami in the near future. This definition now encompasses many exiles and sons, daughters, and grandchildren of exiles as well as Nijman’s idea of the local. This new definition would recognize the hundreds of teachers and thousands of students living and going to school away from the city. The suburbs have created communities of people that revolve around church, community centers, schools, strip malls, and the arts. These people are invested in Miami; they have steady jobs and their lives depend on its economic success and overall well-being.

It is, therefore, not only thoughtless to ignore such an important aspect of Miami, but it is also insulting and degrading to those who do so much for the city.