This Is Doable

Mar. 4, 2026

Humpday Haiku

They will come for you.

Unite in community.

Stronger together.

Actor Irma P. Hall dispensed words of wisdom at the family dinner table in a 1997 movie, Soul Food. She explained that rather than one finger pointing and blaming, bring the fingers together in a fist and use that power to strike a mighty blow against an adversary. Her charge to her family was to be the fist.

A few days ago the neighbors in my community came together to strike a mighty blow, defeating another incursion by some outsiders who want to impose their will on us. We live in an area that has been given an historical landmark designation by the city. There are beautiful century old homes built by people who made great contributions to Cleveland. There are also great amenities in the area which make it a sweet spot.

Some families have lived here for generations. New families with young children are moving in as well. There is great pride here. In the 1960’s this area was home to various professionals and business owners. Attorneys, doctors, dentists, ministers and entrepreneurs whose businesses have been passed down to the next generation. Talented, creative, public servants and service providers living purpose-filled lives.

Inevitably people age and may have to move out of their large homes, or they die and no one in the family is available to take ownership. This great neighborhood is located in the city and has had to deal with a variation of gentrification that is more like commodification. People who do not live in the area, or even the city are purchasing homes in a section close to a nearby the university. They make a few cosmetic changes to their property and cram several students in as renters. Others have established Airbnb sites. The overcrowding and the Airbnb enterprises are both illegal. I’ll come back to those.

What brought us neighbors together to fight – again – was another attempt to change the zoning from the local historical landmark designation to something that fit the interloper’s plans. They always have plans for us. They were trying to disregard our identity, dismiss our history and ignore our presence. On a national level, imagine an outsider trying to alter the look and feeling of New Orleans’ French Quarter. They threw down the gauntlet.

There is power in knowing who you are. There is strength in being interconnected with others who operate at the same level of consciousness. Working together, using our skills, talents and resources we created our strategy with a laser focused goal. In our planning, we recognized that we were the ones who would save our neighborhood. We couldn’t depend on our local legislator. It would be our voices and our actions that would impress upon the Board of Zoning Appeals officials to deny the application to change the local historical landmark designation.

Gathering signatures for a petition to deny the zoning change was fruitful on many levels. Door knocking to explain to residents the threat at hand was a great way of having conversations after isolating over the winter. Making new acquaintances and bonding over shared interests in a maintaining the identity which brought folks to this community heightened our resolve to present a winning case. Apprising the senior citizens of what was happening brought more fire. Still up for a good fight, they said, “Make sure you tell… and be sure to get …… to sign.”

The hearing room was crowded on the day the case was heard. The hybrid setup allowed many others to join online and speak as well. Close to 30 people had something to say. The interloper hired an attorney. We spoke for ourselves. We spoke of our history, of past attempts by the university encroaching on our area, of previous interlopers with deep pockets that wanted to redefine what our neighborhood should be, and the need to adhere to existing ordinances. New neighbors explained why they chose to raise their children here and how a loss of the historical designation opens the door to a convoluted mangling of a vision. We spoke of the adverse impact the interloper’s plans and actions are having.

Months of meetings, hot debates and accusations had fueled our energy. We struck that mighty blow and won. After more than four hours of both sides making their cases, we won. We’ve never forgotten who we are. The people at City Hall already know because we have been in front of that zoning Board before.

There’s something empowering about fighting for what’s right. The boldness of a group interconnected by a higher commitment to the community in their neighborhood is hard to constrain. (The illegal entrepreneurs are now in my crosshairs.)

I write this to anyone feeling like they are overwhelmed by external forces. Your calm is disturbed and your routine is upended. In this environment with so many things keeping us off center, but always remember who you are.

Three thoughts about striking the mighty blow:

• See the challenge. Consider all angles to make sure you create a comprehensive strategy.

• Find your community. Connect with the people around you and come together with your assets. Feel your energy build.

• Speak with courageous energy believing you will overcome. Feed that energy by having more conversations with more people about your goal. Your testimony influences people to make wise choices.

You will have to fight for your peace, but you can reclaim it.