I hail from a small city along the Mississippi that’s worked hard to restore its downtown architecture for both cultural and economic reasons. For a time the new mall on the outside of town threatened Main Street, but Main Street never quite went under and in the last decade or so has seen a renaissance. Like other Main Streets all over the nation, it offers another image of democracy.
“Main Street” conjures up democracy—American democracy in particular—perhaps even more powerfully than Thomas Jefferson’s yeoman farmer or even the most participatory unions.
For starters, Main Street stands in sharp contrast to “Wall Street,” the natural habitat of robber barons, tycoons, investment bankers, and wheeler dealers. Main Street is a place of face to face transactions where human relationships matter, not an arena in which numbers and paper are king.
Relationships matter on Main Street because it is close by. Even for those who have to travel to get there, the trip is rarely a long one. This also means that Main Street is familiar and one’s experiences there won’t be threatening. Yes, there is “difference” among those one meets and what one sees on Main Street, but it’s the kind of difference that one can grasp and therefor enjoy—even look forward to. Most important of all, in terms of democracy, the differences one encounters on Main Street are not so large as to challenge the most fundamental democratic premise of all: equality.
The flags that fly on Main Streets all across the country as we celebrate the birth of American independence this weekend are good reminders to enjoy this interactive and reinforcing mix of familiarity, difference and felt equality along with the fireworks.
