UCStudent wrote:
I've consistently run on the lakeshore path (mostly between Museum Campus and 71st street) for the last five years, many (especially away from Hyde Park area) of the people I see are black and no one has ever given me trouble.
I find the overall tone of this thread somewhat disturbing.
I think your first paragraph is precisely why we're getting so much traffic on this thread. This is highly unusual. As with flying on September 12, 2001, now is probably the safest time to run around North Ave beach.
I highly doubt things will only get worse as the summer wears on, as some posters have said. Last summer there were some hoodlums running around mugging people in Lincoln Park. The cops came out, and that crap ended.
The thing about the beach is that it's completely free--not just ACCESSIBLE TO the public, but entry to the crowded areas, such as near Castaways, is completely unrestricted by any barrier.
The cops will clean this up--by all indications, they've already started doing so.
I personally don't find any of the shouts from random thugheads any more intimidating than running down frat row on a weekend night in any large college campus. Same with getting elbowed.
The city wasn't ready for it to be 90 degrees quite yet, so they didn't have their vice cops out at the beach yet. Usually there are cops crawling the beach, citing people for alcohol violations, disorderly conduct, etc. They'll be back. At least at North Ave.