Cool Cleveland Commentary
Are We Forced to Leave?

In just over twenty years, I’ve only had to make small, often insignificant decisions. I’ve lived in Ohio all my life, and while most people go to college out of state or at least out of town, I chose to go to school ten minutes down the road. Now I’m three months away from graduation and I’m faced with some of the biggest decisions of my life.

Since I decided to stay close to home, I haven’t been away from my family for more than a month at a time. I’ve grown up Catholic, and religion has been a big part of my family for as long as I can remember. My parents married a few years out of high school, and they have been rooted in Lorain their whole lives. My father’s parents have also lived in Lorain for over sixty-years. Beginning the day I was born, my grandparents have been there for me as much as my real parents have. Because my parents worked early hours, my sister and I spent weeknights at their house so we could get a ride to school every morning. In a sense I was raised with two families: my grandparents, who have consistently been there for me and my real parents, who have provided me with every opportunity I’ve needed to succeed. My sister and I became extremely close to our grandparents and were certainly close with our parents.

The problem with the strong family ties is that I don’t see myself staying in Ohio, let alone Lorain, after graduation. This is a problem many college age people face, but I feel that while they may go through this process in stages, I’m forced to make it in a matter of months.

In the first year of college there is separation anxiety that goes along with any parting. Parents realize their child will go on to make a name for themselves, but also assume that the child will return on breaks or even after graduation. The child realizes they are still dependent on their parents for several reasons, mostly monetary, but a strong feeling of attachment remains. Over the next few years, the anxiety subsides as the parents get accustomed to the child being away, and the child relishes in the newfound independence. This independence encroaches on the feelings of attachment and provides a new motivation for their future. The student’s goals become less altruistic and more geared towards personal success. Often, these goals cannot be satisfied by the status quo of their pre-college life because many hometowns across the nation are deeply rooted in a cycle of poverty or political inaction. This situation has caused thousands of talented students to leave home in order to pursue their new goals. In my case it’s difficult to think about life without my family being only a few streets away. Of course I could stay in Ohio and avoid the separation, but over the past two years I’ve realized Ohio is not the bustling business center of the United States. Areas that were once lively neighborhoods active with steel industries have now been deemed the “rust belt”. How can anyone expect people to stay in areas that are referred to as garbage? The idea of leaving my home town for personal gain seems like an insult to the community and also contributes to a problem affecting some of nation’s other blue-collar towns. For decades people who were able to move out of Lorain got up and left, while the people who could not afford to get out were forced to remain. Since the steel mills shut down and many Ford assembly plants closed their doors, there has been a steady decrease in population and increase in poverty levels. Even at Oberlin College, a school full of out of state students, people are aware of the decreasing job market. Granted, there still are many blue-collar/low level jobs around the area, but the white-collar/high level jobs just aren’t available. The lack of high paying jobs forces many intelligent college graduates to get up and leave their hometowns for greener pastures. The cycle continues as graduates move on to big cities like New York, Los Angeles, or Chicago, leaving the greater Cleveland area with its suffering school districts and mostly unproductive politicians. The struggle has been going on for years and is highlighted by the city’s determination to build a $283 million football stadium instead of putting the money into education. The current system does not make sense and is forcing hundreds of talented individuals to move away every year. Despite knowing about this problem and having a close knit family and many friends, I still find it difficult to find quality reasons to stay close to home. The opportunities in different parts of the nation are superior in my mind; I don’t think anything will develop to change my opinion. The city of Lorain and its sister city Cleveland are full of hardworking individuals who deserve better school systems and public facilities. But until changes are made and policies put in place, northeast Ohio will continue to lose their hometown sons and daughters to bigger and brighter futures outside the region.

From Cool Cleveland reader Chad Kutting chad.kuttingAToberlin.edu (:divend:)