Saturday, April 19, 2008

1 Hillary + 3 Obama = 4 houses, by Julia Wilkinson






I live on the block between 37th and 38th streets on Springarden St. in Philadelphia. Of the four houses with yard signs supporting a politician, 3 supported Obama and one supported Hillary. When I saw a party happening on a porch with an Obama sign in the yard, the crowd began a conversation about politics. One man, Kevin, 30, a warehouse worker from Chester County, actually walked away from his friends because he was so worked up over the discussion. I asked if I could talk to him, and he agreed, but he didn't want to be photogaphed. He explained to me that he lives with his wife, a teacher, in Honeybrook and is a hunter. He also expressed his frustration with politics, and said he thinks it's great Hillary and Obama are running, but does not identify as a democrat or republican. He feels it doesn't matter, and it is all just a bunch of people "washing each other's hands." He made this analogy about politics, "It's like this: someone will say, 'I'll put a roof on your house, I'll take care of that for you. But how about you let me put roofs on all the houses in the town, with no permit?" Kevin said he just wants to live his life, and will not be voting and he returned to the party.
Photos and Text by Julia Wilkinson

No comments: