[Carfreeliving] "Car-free living"

[Emily Drennen]

Tom-

I loved your comments. They got at the heart of what I
am feeling these days ~ why is it so HARD to do this
work? Why does it feel like climbing mountains all of
the time? Where is the sense of hope, creativity, and
joy?  

And Jason, I disagree with your statement:
"We should be a little less sympathetic and more
direct
with progressives who drive. Be blunt but diplomatic."

I don't believe that arguing with people, shaming
their behavior, calling them out into public, or
anything like that will change whether people own cars
or not. (I also don't think it is right to use the
same tactics to get people to walk/lose weight/stop
smoking/etc., but that is a different topic.)

We need to keep doing all of the great work we've been
doing to create REAL options for people so that they
will make a decision to give up their cars. If it
takes someone from my neighborhood (15th and Mission)
one and a half hours to bus it to the beach, and only
takes 15 minutes to drive, what REAL choice have we
given them? (I know, I know. Don't bite my head off.)
My point is that we can't succeed in creating change
just by telling folks that what they are doing is
wrong (or that living car-free is good for public
health or the environment). 

I also want to point out that there are serious class
issues with this whole debate. On the one hand, urging
people who are low-income to live car-free is a bit of
a slapdown since they can't afford a car anyway (and
are forced to use transit, etc.) They are car-free not
out of any "do gooder" ethos, but out of necessity. In
fact, living a "car-free" existence is really only a
debate/issue for people with a certain amount of
privledge ~ that they could afford a car, but decide
not to. 

And lastly, no one can know WHY someone has a car.
Assuming that you do can be hurtful. At the risk of
putting myself out there to be "blunty talked to"
about this issue, I own a car. For many years, I
didn't. We even were members of City CarShare for a
year (we won a BART raffle). However, we decided to
get a car for 2 reasons: we wanted to become foster
parents (yes, I know that there are plenty of parents
who are "car-free"), and because I have physical
disabilities. City CarShare was wonderful, but it was
too expensive for us. I can't bike without discomfort.
Simply put: you can't know these reasons about why I
own a car unless you press me on it.  

Also, please don't assume that every single person in
the City *should* or even *could* give up their cars.
And don't assume that those of us progressives that
own cars are to blame for the city's ills. Am I less
of a good ped/bike/transit advocate because I
occasionally drive? Do the 10-15 hours I have
volunteered on these issues for the past 4+ years
evaporate into the ether because I am one of "them"?

Us/them politics aren't the kind I want to be involved
in. If you've had ***success*** getting people to
change their behavior through "being less sympathetic"
and by "being blunt", carry on. But I suspect you've
alienated a hell of a lot more people from our
ultimate goal than you've converted into a car-free
lifestyle. Prosthelitizing rarely works, and makes
people feel talked down to and "less than".

I assume I will get flamed for my comments, although I
hope not to. (and I beg you not to lecture me about
how one can live "car-free"!).

Best,
Emily 

Emily Drennen 
Executive Director, Walk San Francisco
 
415-431-9255 office/fax 
www.walksf.org
1095 Market Street #502, SF, CA 94103  

Advisory Council Member, Bay Area Air Quality Management District
Citizen's Advisory Committee Member, Metropolitian Transportation Agency
Past Chair, SF Bicycle Advisory Committee


		
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