Interview With An Elder From South Phoenix
By Coryn Anderson
Ms. Trujillo, a woman who was raised in South Phoenix, was nice enough to share her views about South Phoenix and the revitalization that it faces. My brief interview with Ms. Trujillo was very interesting and informative. I was able to learn about her, her family, and her opinion on the changes in South Phoenix over the years.
Ms. Trujillo believes that the older generations are more likely to stay in South Phoenix but the younger crowd usually moves out. She believes the reason behind this is that the older people are comfortable where they are and they consider this area their home. When we asked her what she has noticed the most about the changes in her area she replied that the traffic buildup over the last ten years has increased drastically. Although we were only able to interview her for a short time it was interesting to see her reactions to the questions that we asked her about her neighborhood. Ms.Trujillo seemed almost indifferent when she spoke of the new homes being built in the area and how the new residents will only make the traffic worse. She went on to comment on the fact that there are not enough stores and how she is forced to drive out of the area if she wants a selection. She also said that the local Fry's and Safeway don't have a lot of competition so the stores are able to charge more for their products. Ms. Trujillo is one of the residents who was in favor of a super Wal Mart and was upset that the "new" residents fought so hard to keep it from being built. The only major store in South Phoenix is K-Mart. Ms. Trujllo believes that the theft is high at K-Mart and is worried that K-Mart isn't making enough money to survive. Ms. Trujillo and other locals are afraid that K-Mart will eventually be forced out of business. She predicts that with all of the homes being built that shops, grocery stores, and movie theaters will have to be built sooner or later. Until those amenities are built, she is forced to drive to Tempe to do most of her shopping. In this respect, Ms. Trujillo believes that Tempe gets "all of her money". She said that she doesn't mind driving to Tempe because it isn't that far from South Phoenix. In fact, one of the things she likes about South Phoenix is how close it is to downtown Phoenix, Sky Harbor Airport, and Arizona Mills Mall.
I believe that my interview with Ms. Trujillo gave me a different perspective of the situation in South Phoenix. I think that I should conduct more interviews with people from South Phoenix so that I can get a better understanding of how revitalization affects the people in this community.