Hazleton's urban myth

I figure every town has one or more of these urban myths, these rumors, i.e., these hoaxes.

In Wilkes-Barre (as the oft-repeated hoax goes), the story is that there are signs posted at the New York Port Authority advising people that if they come to Wilkes-Barre, PA, they’ll be showered with all that welfare has to offer and too many social services to count.

On the Internet as well as talk radio, this bunkum has been repeated to the point of absurdity. Absurdity, when you consider that it’s never once been substantiated.

Oh, and then there’s the one about the Salvation Army flop house here in Wilkes-Barre. According to those who purport to know in lieu of evidence, the Salvation Army recruits losers by the bus loads to Wilkes-Barre, hence, as the sophistry typically flows, we are therefore overrun by murderous criminals.

This one only resurfaces immediately after a heinous crime happens in Wilkes-Barre, and it is usually accompanied with boisterous demands that the politicians order an attack of some sorts on the Salvation Army. Put another way, only hopeless dimwits typically spout off on this one.

And then we have the following, which was posted in response to something I wrote:

Anonymous said...

hasn't hazelton gotten like this under barletta's time in office?
wasn't it lou's first year or two in office when the latino population of ny was enticed to come to hazelton with low cost housing?

the little secrets no one likes to talk about is with in the first years of lou's time in office he actively brought the problem home.

September 26, 2010 7:27 AM
　
Ah, that one. That one’s funny. That one only comes up when someone dares to suggest that perhaps Lou Barletta is right, that perhaps Hazleton has some real problems as a result of, ahem, as a result of Federally mandated “diversity” by way of a porous border.

When the timing is right, this particular urban myth is a favorite on the Internet and talk radio, but it’s accuracy comes racing into question when you consider that only the anonymous--the phony brave--dare to enter into the record.

So, rather than debate the anonymous nitwits of the world, I thought I’d approach the accused for some enlightenment.

From the email outbox:

Hi, this is Mark Cour from Circumlocution for Dummies, a local blog. Sean and yourself visited our block party here in north Wilkes-Barre back in 2008.

There is this persistent refrain on the Internet and on WILK that either you, or the mayor that preceded you somehow invited or enticed or recruited Hispanics and the like to come and live and work in your city. In other words, the City of Hazleton created it's own problems with illegals and the uptick in crime.

If you respond, I intend to go to print. How would you respond to those sorts of assertions?

By the way, I cannot wait to vote, and I will be voting for you. Remember in November!

Mark Cour

The reply…

Mark,

It's good to hear from you again. Did we miss the block party? If so, where was our invitation?

I'm happy to address this persistent rumor that dates back to the mid-1990s.

Lou did not recruit anyone to live in Hazleton. It's a free country and people can move wherever they choose. We believe people moved to Hazleton because of its cheap housing, the availability of jobs, and the quality of life. Lou has neither recruited nor discouraged anyone legally in this country from coming to Hazleton.

ON BACKGROUND...

When I worked as a reporter for the Standard-Speaker in the late 1990s, we heard these rumors all the time. Nothing was ever confirmed. There were some wild accusations, including some about signs posted in the Miami airport saying "Come to Hazleton!" At the time, I wrote a column in the paper about these rumors, and I offered a $100 cash reward if someone provided me with proof that those signs existed. No one ever came forward to claim the prize.

The simple fact is, I believe, that people of all ethnic backgrounds were drawn here by the availability of jobs. Humboldt Industrial Park, for example, is five miles long. Thousands and thousands of people work there. I think you can make a direct correlation to the growth of Humboldt and other local industrial parks with the population growth in Hazleton.

So that's it. If you do write anything, you can use my official statement above. The background is just so you understand that the rumors are nothing new.

Let me know if you need anything else.

Shawn

Shawn M. Kelly, Communications Coordinator
Lou Barletta for Congress
8 W. Broad St., Suite 1490-M
Hazleton, PA 18201
(o) 570.501.8683 (VOTE)
(f) 570.501.8688
shawn@loubarletta.com
www.loubarletta.com

And there it is…Humboldt!

That industrial park needs a zip code of it’s own. Maybe two. I’ve spent a lot of time down there, and I doubt that many of the people who find it so easy to spout off at the mouth have spent any time in plants that encompass one million square feet, if not more.

If any entity can be indirectly blamed for attracting people or entire peoples to Hazleton and it‘s suburbs, it would be those CAN DO folks for facilitating the development of such a massive industrial park.

This place is so big, it has it’s own exit off of I-81, it’s own Turkey Hill, it’s own Sonic, it’s own Burger King, it’s own Subway, as well as the big diesel capable truck stop.

Thanks, Shawn. Thanks for reaffirming for me what I already knew.

Oh, and, the Thompson Street Block Party came to an abrupt halt after 22 interrupted years.

And I’m still pissed about all of that.

Later