Exploring The City
The downtown area of the third largest city in the United States is roughly 3 to 4 square miles in size. Known locally as “The Loop”, downtownChicago is a sight to behold. In addition to a skyline that is second to none, this world-class city offers visitors and residents alike with a wide array of events, museums, destinations, foods, cultures, festivals, and things to see and do.
To the teachers and students of Horizon Science Academy Belmont High School, Chicago is home, and the Loop is where the city’s 77 neighborhoods blend into one. This is the part of Chicago that belongs to everyone, where joy in diversity exists, and where the Windy City reveals its greatest cultural and architectural masterpieces.
My Block, My Hood, My City
My Block, My Hood, My City – a nonprofit organization whose mission is to “inspire youth, empower communities, and build a better world one block at a time” – encourages teenagers from diverse backgrounds, who live particularly in the south and west sides of the city, to explore a part of Chicago they may not have previously experienced. In many cases, teens that live within the city limits of Chicago have never visited the downtown area, mostly out of fear, not feeling like they belong, or not having the knowledge or resources to take a trip that is no more than 15 miles away (which includes adequate and sufficient public transportation).
My Block, My Hood, My City opens downtown Chicago to these young and eager students, who come to understand why their hometown is a magnificent place to live. Chaperoned groups are given a small stipend, then are encouraged to explore and to change the narrative of their understanding of Chicago. They become absorbed as members of the greater community who are there to learn, and more importantly, to understand that their role is just as important to the city as it is to those who reside in other communities.
Downtown Day is a successful annual event, and we are proud to know that HSA Belmont High School students make the most of this wonderful opportunity. To see Chicago from the lens of an outsider – despite the ability to see the magnificent structures from the windows of their own homes – limits the prospects of what these students feel they could accomplish. When that block is lifted and they regain confidence, empowerment, and pride in their hometown, they come to realize that they can overpower their unfounded fear. This enables the students to live the change they wish to see in the world, and it develops an even greater understanding of why Chicago is the greatest city in the world – because it belongs to us all!
