Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: Clothes Lines

[Sharon Villines (sharon]

On Jul 18, 2006, at 8:22 AM, Douglas G. Larson wrote:

> What I find a bit sad is that it sounds like the thinking about
> clothes-lines and dryers was black and white. It was one or the other,
> no give or take or middle ground. I get that perhaps there wasn't space
> for a clothes line but if space could be found, why not provide both?

Because we were a largely "white" group moving into a largely "black" 
community that did not understand the value of clothes dried outdoors 
as a new nature thing but as a poor thing. They had escaped the 
neighborhoods where everyone's laundry was hung out all over the place 
because they had no choice. They were working hard already to escape 
that view of themselves; they didn't need our views on the subject.

Yes, we could have started an education program, etc. but you have to 
choose your battles. That one was one that no one really wanted to take 
on.

Sharon
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Sharon Villines
Takoma Village Cohousing, Washington DC
http://www.takomavillage.org