Sunday, October 29, 2006
Final Post
The Subway as a Workplace and Home
The subway is a culture all its own. As soon as one steps down into the subway station, everything changes. Different social rules suddenly apply and there is a definite change in atmosphere. It is a dark and often dirty place. Many of us utilize the subway because we need transportation and the subway is the cheapest and fastest form of this necessity. There are others, though, who see the subway as an opportunity: to work, and maybe to live. Currently, there are around 34,000 people living in shelters in New York City. An estimated 3,843 homeless individuals are living outside of shelters, on the street, in parks, and in the subway (http://www.nyc.gov/dhs). Major causes for homelessness include unemployment, loss of housing, health issues, breakdown of the family unit, mental illness, and substance abuse. This essay will examine the subway as it functions as both a living space and a workplace.
Many of us living in New York City wake up in the morning in our comfortable beds. We get ready for the day; eat breakfast at our kitchen table. But for those who choose to live underground, these conveniences are often not available. For whatever reason, New York, along with all major cities, is home to a large homeless population. Many choose to live their lives in shelters, while a relative few choose a life underground. There are different kinds of subway living. One of which takes place in active subway stations. At night, many homeless individuals move off the streets, where they exist during the day and move to the subway platforms, largely deserted at night. Here, they may find some kind of peace and quiet. Police pose the largest threat in this situation, forcing them to move, likely to another platform or to some other public space such as a park or an ATM vestibule. This kind of subway living is temporary, but it is not the only way.
While some homeless people live in the subway by moving from platform to platform in the night, others choose a more permanent manner of subway life. Often referred to as mole people, these individuals set up communities within the abandoned subway stations. Below the surface, they exist in makeshift societies. Sometimes led by a central figure, these communities may be made up of hundreds of people. A few of these communities have some forms of light and leaky pipes that serve as running water. Many of the mole people stay down in the dark for weeks at a time. They have most things that they need. Some feed off rats, while others surface in search of food. There have been many documentations of this phenomenon, some more accurate than others. Marc Singer’s documentary “Dark Days” was filmed by mole people in their own community in the Freedom Tunnel, shown here as it exists today.
Singer lived among the mole people prior to choosing to make “Dark Days” Jennifer Toth’s book, The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City, presents similar findings, though much of what she writes has been refuted. The mole people contain an air of mystery which is perhaps what has made them a spectacle for pop culture. The subway station and its tunnels contain a sense of the unknown. Pairing with knowledge of real mole people and societies, an overall vibe of the subway is emitted.
The subway houses all types of people. Some of them hold college degrees, others once maintained high-paying occupations, while still others worked for minimum wage. Now, many turn to the subway as a means of work. While many of the subway’s performers have contracts with the city, most of the homeless performers do not have permits. They work by playing musical instruments, often homemade and interesting. Some dance for those waiting for their trains. Ultimately, most people do not make enough money to get them off the streets, so this kind of work is generally helpful in finding the day’s food. Another form of work is the classic: begging. These destitute souls roam the platforms, cup in hand. Or, if they’re ambitious, they will ride the trains, soliciting help and pity from the fellow riders. Most people try their best to avoid these situations, and if they are confronted, many will give away their change so as to be agreeable.
The subway can also serve as a place of fun for many who live and work there. Excluding performance, which is mainly motivated by money, a lot of the homeless fill the subway with art for fun. The walls are lined with graffitti, murals, and other popular forms of public art, though the vast majority of the public does not get to see this art. Though for the most part, the lives of the homeless are not fun-filled, they do utilize their space as canvas.
My purpose for this essay is to argue the subway as a more complex public space as it is generally thought to be. Though it is fairly accessible, certain areas such as the mole villages are exclusive, as they emit a valid sense of danger to intruding tourists. In recent years, an effort to clean up the subways has lessened the homeless presence. Police harrassement plays a large role in the attempt to maintain the subway as semi-public space. Though payment is required to enter, there are obviously ways around this. The subway offers free housing to those who will accept it, in all its grime and glory! It serves as a cultural center, with foreign musicians displaying their native sounds, as well as a place for many to work, legally and illegally. Keeping this in mind, the subway can be considered a mixed-use space.
The subway is a culture all its own. As soon as one steps down into the subway station, everything changes. Different social rules suddenly apply and there is a definite change in atmosphere. It is a dark and often dirty place. Many of us utilize the subway because we need transportation and the subway is the cheapest and fastest form of this necessity. There are others, though, who see the subway as an opportunity: to work, and maybe to live. Currently, there are around 34,000 people living in shelters in New York City. An estimated 3,843 homeless individuals are living outside of shelters, on the street, in parks, and in the subway (http://www.nyc.gov/dhs). Major causes for homelessness include unemployment, loss of housing, health issues, breakdown of the family unit, mental illness, and substance abuse. This essay will examine the subway as it functions as both a living space and a workplace.
Many of us living in New York City wake up in the morning in our comfortable beds. We get ready for the day; eat breakfast at our kitchen table. But for those who choose to live underground, these conveniences are often not available. For whatever reason, New York, along with all major cities, is home to a large homeless population. Many choose to live their lives in shelters, while a relative few choose a life underground. There are different kinds of subway living. One of which takes place in active subway stations. At night, many homeless individuals move off the streets, where they exist during the day and move to the subway platforms, largely deserted at night. Here, they may find some kind of peace and quiet. Police pose the largest threat in this situation, forcing them to move, likely to another platform or to some other public space such as a park or an ATM vestibule. This kind of subway living is temporary, but it is not the only way.
While some homeless people live in the subway by moving from platform to platform in the night, others choose a more permanent manner of subway life. Often referred to as mole people, these individuals set up communities within the abandoned subway stations. Below the surface, they exist in makeshift societies. Sometimes led by a central figure, these communities may be made up of hundreds of people. A few of these communities have some forms of light and leaky pipes that serve as running water. Many of the mole people stay down in the dark for weeks at a time. They have most things that they need. Some feed off rats, while others surface in search of food. There have been many documentations of this phenomenon, some more accurate than others. Marc Singer’s documentary “Dark Days” was filmed by mole people in their own community in the Freedom Tunnel, shown here as it exists today.
Singer lived among the mole people prior to choosing to make “Dark Days” Jennifer Toth’s book, The Mole People: Life in the Tunnels Beneath New York City, presents similar findings, though much of what she writes has been refuted. The mole people contain an air of mystery which is perhaps what has made them a spectacle for pop culture. The subway station and its tunnels contain a sense of the unknown. Pairing with knowledge of real mole people and societies, an overall vibe of the subway is emitted.The subway houses all types of people. Some of them hold college degrees, others once maintained high-paying occupations, while still others worked for minimum wage. Now, many turn to the subway as a means of work. While many of the subway’s performers have contracts with the city, most of the homeless performers do not have permits. They work by playing musical instruments, often homemade and interesting. Some dance for those waiting for their trains. Ultimately, most people do not make enough money to get them off the streets, so this kind of work is generally helpful in finding the day’s food. Another form of work is the classic: begging. These destitute souls roam the platforms, cup in hand. Or, if they’re ambitious, they will ride the trains, soliciting help and pity from the fellow riders. Most people try their best to avoid these situations, and if they are confronted, many will give away their change so as to be agreeable.
The subway can also serve as a place of fun for many who live and work there. Excluding performance, which is mainly motivated by money, a lot of the homeless fill the subway with art for fun. The walls are lined with graffitti, murals, and other popular forms of public art, though the vast majority of the public does not get to see this art. Though for the most part, the lives of the homeless are not fun-filled, they do utilize their space as canvas.
My purpose for this essay is to argue the subway as a more complex public space as it is generally thought to be. Though it is fairly accessible, certain areas such as the mole villages are exclusive, as they emit a valid sense of danger to intruding tourists. In recent years, an effort to clean up the subways has lessened the homeless presence. Police harrassement plays a large role in the attempt to maintain the subway as semi-public space. Though payment is required to enter, there are obviously ways around this. The subway offers free housing to those who will accept it, in all its grime and glory! It serves as a cultural center, with foreign musicians displaying their native sounds, as well as a place for many to work, legally and illegally. Keeping this in mind, the subway can be considered a mixed-use space.
# posted by Josh @ 6:11 PM 
