I’m reading a
book right now called Vanishing New York
by Jeremiah Moss. It talks about how Naomi Klein’s “shock doctrine” was applied
to New York City. The shock doctrine is when a disaster (either natural or
man-made) is used to effect large-scale economic transformation. In New York,
this was done through eminent domain. Large swaths of the city (Times Square,
the area around the High Line, Hudson Yards) were declared “blight” and people
were forced to move out of their homes and businesses.
A similar
phenomenon is happening with Summer Streets. That’s the phenomenon of large
swaths of the city being, essentially, sold to large corporations for the
purposes of corporate branding. We already have Citibikes, perhaps the largest
corporate branding effort this city has ever seen. Summer Streets takes this to
another level by closing down a large section of the city, ostensibly so people
can ride bicycles and engage in other activities without the presence of
vehicular traffic but, all along the way, there are booths sponsored by various
companies (Crunch gym, REI sporting goods, etc.) that are there to sell you something.
The other thing
about Summer Streets that gets on my nerves is part of a larger phenomenon
that’s happening in society in general. In today’s world of social media and
reality TV, no one just does anything
anymore. It’s not sufficient to just do anything anymore. One must be seen doing it.
Thus, it’s not
enough for Summer Streets to just have thousands of New Yorkers riding their
bikes down Park Avenue. (I would have no problem with that.) They must be seen riding their bikes down Park Avenue. Therefore,
there are “volunteers” positioned at various points to cheer them on and the
bikers themselves need to “woohoo,” high-five each other and take selfies along
the way. (If a tree falls in a forest and it didn’t take a selfie, did it
really fall?)
My street, in
particular (I won’t divulge its name), has become Ground Zero for every psycho
with a crackpot idea. So, for Summer Streets, I’ve had a rock climbing wall
outside my bedroom window that was so close I could touch it. I also had a
slide that was about two stories tall, and exercises classes conducted in front
of my building complete with those annoying “instructors” (whose screeching I
can’t tolerate even when it takes place inside a gym) and loudspeakers blaring
some godawful “music” so that people in New Jersey can hear that there are
people on my street exercising.
As with eminent
domain, no one in my neighborhood was consulted about whether or not they
actually wanted this on their street. It was just presented as a fait accompli.
One day, several years ago, I woke up and there was a rock climbing wall
outside my bedroom window. (They actually start setting up around 1am, so I get
no sleep the night before, as well.)
I don’t care what
anyone does as long as I don’t hear it.
But in today’s selfie-obsessed world, where people miss entire rock concerts
because they’re too busy filming them, that is no longer possible.
Summer Streets is
the shock doctrine of public recreation. You may not want to participate in it
yourself but, goddamnit, you’re going to watch other people participate and you’re going to like it!