X Urban Music Magazine Preview issue Vol 1 | Page 14

I CAME TO SEE THE JACKSONS
Anthony Alden “I’m goin’ back to Indiana Indiana here I come I’m goin’ back to Indiana, Cause that’s where my baby’s from.” The chorus repeated in my mind. The lyrics looped repeatedly as the mile markers on the freeway passed in slow motion. I was on my way to Chicago and had decided to detour to Gary, Indiana, the birthplace of the Jackson 5. Like a kid going to an amusement park, I was excited with anticipation. “Goin’ Back to Indiana” was a live soundtrack by The Jackson 5 taken from their September 16, 1971 ABC TV special of the same name. The “Goin’ Back to Indiana” television special featured comedians Bill Cosby and Tommy Smothers, singers Bobby Darin and Diana Ross, football players Roosevelt “Rosey” Grier and Ben Davidson, and also basketball stars Bill Russell, Elgin Baylor and Elvin Hayes. It included featured tracks recorded by The Jackson 5 during their January 31st “homecoming” concert in Gary, Indiana (hence, both the show and song title of the 1970’s appeared on their third album). The album went on to sell 2.6 million copies worldwide. I approached my exit off the highway, came to a stop, made a right turn and drove down the street about a quarter of a mile. The landscape on both sides served as a backdrop to the old dilapidated industrial buildings. In the distance, I saw a huge colorful billboard that stood out against the dingy XUMM | Preview Issue 14 gray horizon. The billboard read Casino Royale. I thought to myself, what an odd place to build a casino amidst all of the ruin and decay. I wanted to make a detour and try my luck at Blackjack, but I had come here on a mission: to see the childhood home of The Jackson Five. President Obama to win the state of Indiana. Sounds like a hook up to me. Somebody got paid! I see why MJ invested in Neverland Valley Ranch and not in Gary. Aside from several inconvenient detours, I finally navigated my way around the city’s ruins of decay and pulled up to 2300 Jackson Street. It was by chance the Jackson’s lived on Jackson Street, named after President Andrew Jackson. I got out of the car, walked up to the small ranch house and thought to myself, “how in the hell did Joe and Katherine raise ten kids in this shoebox?” Well, the fanfare was clearly over. It looked like I had missed it by about three years. The makeshift memorial looked like the rest of Gary, Indiana: abandoned and neglected.

This was my first time visiting Gary, Indiana, a city that once thrived with steel mills until their eventual collapse in the mid 1970’s. White flight left the city of Gary 84% African American, with no tax base. In 2005, the murder rate was almost nine times the national average. Interestingly enough, in recent years, the crime rate has significantly dropped. This is most likely due to the criminal majority’s movement westward or the fact that most are doing time. Hey, get this, the city of Gary received 266 million dollars of stimulus money and according to “Federal Recipient Reported Data,” has created a grand total of 327 jobs. That’s $800,000 per job! Also, there is the little known fa ???????????????????()Q????????????????????????????????????????????????????)???????()$??????????????????????????????????????????????????q'?e????????d???????????????????%????????t???????????????????????$????????$??????????%???????????5?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????((