Revere 3513

Blue Line coming into Revere Beach station.

The most accessible beach in the Boston area is in the suburb of Revere. In the 70's Revere was a fairly poor, predominantly Italian, suburb, with a beach area that was fairly run-down. Though I've lived near an ocean for most of my life and usually spend some time walking on the shore, I didn't visit Revere very much because it didn't feel particularly safe. In the 70's Boston felt like a very segregated city, not only by race but even by ethnic group among whites. There were neighborhoods (enclaves) that were predominantly 3rd and 4th generation Italians, similar Irish enclaves, similar English enclaves, and Black and Puerto Rican neighborhoods -- gays, students, and other recent arrivals tended to live in the relatively mixed areas near the various universities or downtown Boston. What surprised me most was the strength of the ethnic divisions, and that people who didn't "belong" typically didn't go into the neighborhoods that had strong ethnic identity because one sensed that one was invading someone's territory. Revere definitely felt that way in the 70's -- though not at all on this most recent trip.

Makes most sense if viewed as part of Coming Out/Northeast set