Suddenly a lot of cars around town drive by with stickers that say ILOVECINCINNATI on them and I wondered where they came from. Today, I found the answer out by asking someone who had one. So, I’m not going to share the answer here (it’s easily found out by asking a few questions) but the conversation that followed sparked some thoughts that are definitely appropriate in this forum.
If you are reading this, you likely care deeply about Cincinnati, and also genuinely believe that with some hard work, dedication, and an updated way of thinking it can be a much better place to live. I, too, am of that thinking, but sadly I would think that we are in the minority, especially when you start to read the comments on other media outlets around town.
So, my question is why? Why is it that many other cities around this country, some of which we aspire to be like and even others, that we don’t have a much greater sense of civic pride than we do? When I stopped and thought about it, it made even less sense. Isn’t Cincinnati mostly made up of people that grew up in the area, and if so shouldn’t it hold true that our civic pride should at least match that exhibited in other cities mentioned on this blog and elsewhere?
I’ve noodled this around all night and have come up with three ideas:
- Our Region Breeds Separation – Between different suburbs, counties, cities, and even states that make up the region we actually only identify ourselves as Cincinnatians by our mailing addresses envelopes and when we are out of town.
- A Unified Stance – While we’re never going to reach a point where every citizen agrees on priorities, we are set up in such a way that our “leaders” fight amongst each other more than they work together. One could argue that competition is good, but to me, a unified stance is better.
- Lack of That Signature “Thing” – Be it an industry that our city was founded on, a specific food that is actually eaten outside our region, or something similar. We don’t all have that one positive thing we can each identify with, and just as importantly, the nation identifies us with.
I put this out there less for my voice to be heard but more to spark conversation. So what have I missed and why is it that you have the pride you do in Cincinnati?