/WCW-Blog-Bloggers/Authors/Pmcintosh Sat, 03 May 2025 09:25:22 -0400 Joomla! - Open Source Content Management en-gb /WCW-Blog-Women-Change-Worlds/The-gated-community-of-the-heart /WCW-Blog-Women-Change-Worlds/The-gated-community-of-the-heart A gated community can be more than a real estate development. Last year, I visited an ailing friend who lives in a gated community on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina. I waited at a guardhouse while my white host, on the other side of the gate, was asked on the phone whether I should be let in. Waiting, I felt guilty until proven innocent, with a tinge of "Am I an imposter? Do I belong inside the gate?â€‌ But once allowed in, I could drive around without feeling wary as I looked for my friend's house. I didn't need to prove again that I "belonged." I am white, and elderly, and to the young white guards, I probably looked harmless. I was given a pass--temporary permission to belong. Trayvon Martin was killed by George Zimmerman because he was a dark, unwelcome element from outside that Zimmerman felt did not belong within...

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