A friend posted a link to this fascinating blog about my current home, Durham, NC, which included this post about a late-1950s/early-1960s newspaper article (click on image for larger view):
The strange but rather wonderful photo caption is what captured my attention:
IT’S A DURHAM CUSTOM – Pedestrian crossing of busy downtown streets without guidance from traffic lights as the group above is doing on Main Street is a common practice which makes Durham unique among big North Carolina cities. The agility of local pedestrians recently caused City Council members to pay informal tribute to their ability to traverse streets with few accidents. As a matter of fact, some contend Jaywalking in the middle of the block is safer than crossing with the light at a corner where automobile drivers customarily ignore pedestrian rights-of-way.
Durhamites, apparently, are agile pedestrians, skilled at maneuvering tactically in urban space, but not quite so willing to follow rules (traffic lights produce misbehavior). A perfect illustration of de Certeau’s concept of pedestrian speech acts” (97) — see post.
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