New York: the Bronx

Here There Be Dragons Podcast: New Yorkers reflect on the Bronx Welcome to Here There Be Dragons, a podcast about safety and identity in cities. I spoke to seven New York natives from all over the city about their stories and experiences. This is the 5th episode of the series being released weekly on CoLab Radio. In this episode we hear New Yorkers’ reflections on the Bronx. Despite being the most diverse borough in the city, in terms of race and income, for the New Yorkers I spoke with, the Bronx stood out as the most dangerous borough. But as we’ve seen in previous episodes danger is a complicated emotion, ranging from fear of violence to feeling unwelcome. In this episode Bronx natives I spoke with work to navigate their own identities through their borough’s reputation. Their feelings towards the Bronx reflect some of the many ways that navigating our cities force us to confront who we are. This the last of the themed episodes the series finale will be about listener response and wrapping up loose ends. If you have been hesitating to call in, comment, or draw a map I will be taking two weeks off to encourage you to do so. Each person I interviewed for this podcast also drew a map of their childhood and adulthood in the city you can see those at colabradio.mit.edu. If you’ve visited or lived in New York and you want to share your experiences with me, download the base map, use the maps in our gallery as your guide and draw your own experiences of safety and danger in the city. And I’ll post them in the gallery. Send those to Jess Myers at [email protected]. You can also record a comment or question about the episode by calling into 1 888 821-7563 ext. 58258. Some of those might be a part of the final episode in the series. You can now download Here There Be Dragons on iTunes and Stitcher, please comment and rate!