There are several distinctive attributes that makes it clear one has entered into the West End: all recreational becomes absent, businesses disappear and the grand, abandoned mansions of Portland are replaced with rows of small shanty-like houses with no end in sight. Iron bars appear almost without fail over the windows of stores, and even in the middle of the day on a Tuesday one sees tens of individuals loitering on the sidewalks, in the streets and around the remnants of businesses that have shut their doors. Boarded up homes, overflowing dumpsters and stray dogs roaming the streets create a sense of low-rumbling chaos and unrest.
An area that is almost 80% African-American, the West End has no sit-down restaurants. It hardly has any fast food establishments, and even the grocery stores are deplorable when compared with others in the city. A feature done by the Courier-Journal in 2007 declared that it was, "easier to buy a Twinkie in the West End than fresh broccoli." Health is poor in the neighborhood, and poverty runs rampant in very visible and tangible ways. Geographically and socially, it is isolated from the mainstream city life: an island unto itself that seems distant to those just a few miles to the East.
Despite local goverment efforts to change public opinion about the West End and Shawnee area as well as improve the overall quality of life, the threat of violence and drug activity keep most Louisvillians from visiting the area or considering it a viable place to move. What's more, there are no destination spots that would attract any sort of outside visitors. In 2007, Shawnee logged a record 11 murders, which was the highest rate in the city. In response to this, Shawnee community members attempted to pass a ban on the sale of alcohol in the area through a local-option clause in order to stymie the outbreaks of crime. However, an epic legal battle has ensued over this and the issue has yet to be resolved.
As with many isolated, crime-prone areas, one of the greatest avenues of social improvement has been through local churches, which have a major social function in Shawnee and the West End in general. Churches serve--many times--as the sole location where homeless or needy men and women can find shelter, a hot meal or a change of clean clothes. One such church in the California nieghborhood has been chronicled for its community commitment. Click Here to Learn More.
Next: Inside the West End