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September 15, 2005
Richmond: It Sucks Less
You can't separate the house from the neighborhood, or the neighborhood from the city...
A few years back, someone had the great idea that it would make some kind of difference if Richmond had a catchy slogan to call our own. They came up with the saccharin "Richmond: Easy to Love", probably spending boodles of $$$ in the process. Apparently no one on the committee (it had to be a committee) had ever been to New York or New Orleans or Barcelona.
Anyway, now, years later, there is some movement for a new and better slogan. As a native of the region, as someone that has lived in more interesting, lively, and progressive cities, and as someone that still keeps coming back, I thought that I might offer a few reality-based suggestions.
I've tried to come up with a few nice lines, but it is difficult capturing the essence of the city in one concise phrase. The decorative flags along Broad Street are too small for "Richmond: Who needs urban retail anyway?" or "Richmond: Full of weird prostitutes"... Finally, with a nod to Chip, a turn of phrase that really does sum up the best of this city came to mind. As an accurate and appealing description of the city, "Richmond: It sucks less"*, can not be beat.
*Does not apply to western Henrico and most of Chesterfield County.
Posted by john m at September 15, 2005 4:09 PM
Comments
Too Much! I'll vote for "Richmond: It sucks less"
City slogans have about as much meaning as Corporate Mission Statements, which is very little.
Our "committee" came up with "Eureka: A Victorian Sea Port". At the same time the city leaders are advocating destruction of old houses (Victorians) in favor of in-fill, low-income housing. Maybe we should change it to "Eureka: A Low-Income Sea Port". It’s so romantic!
Posted by: Greg at September 15, 2005 6:25 PM
In 1981, the slogan unveiled for the city of Cleveland was “New York’s the Big Apple, but Cleveland’s a Plum.” Prunes anyone?
Last summer our Cleveland magazine decided to ask 5 advertising firms to come up with a new slogan for our poor town.
I think the winner should be the campaign explaining that the weather is so bad, employees will be more productive..."It's a beautiful day to do business in Cleveland."
We couldn't afford to pay any advertising firms to put the word out, anyway.
Posted by: kim at September 15, 2005 6:36 PM
These are great! LOL!!!
Jackson's is 'Birthplace of the Republican Party'. Gag, hack, barf....
Posted by: Patricia W. at September 16, 2005 6:27 AM
Mine was "Richmond, You are already here, so you might as well stay."
Posted by: meredith at September 16, 2005 10:44 AM
Hee hee, that's great! Let's see, Eutaw's should be
"Eutaw: We're not racist anymore, I swear"
Posted by: Kristin at September 16, 2005 11:00 AM
Richnmond: Confederate Funland.
Posted by: tommy b at September 16, 2005 12:24 PM
How about: Richmond: You'll Come For the Shootings, You'll Stay for The Desolate Feeling of Mediocrity
Posted by: at September 16, 2005 2:51 PM
This was Phil's:
"Less than two hours from interesting real cities."
Posted by: meredith at September 16, 2005 3:30 PM
M - Y'all live in the county now; I'm not sure that you're allowed to vote...
Posted by: john at September 16, 2005 3:51 PM
lol, the Richmond here (outside of Vancouver, BC) is a sprawling nightmare of badness (on a floodplain no less) and recently changed their slogan to "Richmond, Better in EVERY Way" with 'every' bolded. It's hilarious to those of us who know how sucky Richmond is. Perhaps all Richmonds should unite and be Better in EVERY Way?
Posted by: LisaB at September 17, 2005 12:43 PM
The Big Sleazy.
Posted by: BillC at September 19, 2005 10:55 AM
I've seen an old t-shirt that says "Welcome to Richmond - All of the danger, none of the fun"
Posted by: jc at September 20, 2005 2:58 PM
Church Hillians:
I write as a Richmond lifer, possessing a loving/loathing relationship with the city of my nativity (Richmond Memorial, 1962).
Some historical perspective. Back in the day, Richmond's official "slogan" was Sic Itur Ad Astra, which-- I know, I know, is Dead White Guy Latin -- but unpacked for those who've not yet -- it's "Such is the way we reach the stars [immortality]," which is out of the Aeneids of Virgil, Book 9, where in Apollo congratulates the heroism of a young warrior, "Macte nova virtute, sic itur ad astra." -- or -- --"Blessings on your young courage, boy; that's the way to the stars."
So, OK, it's Dead White Guy and celebrates war. But hear me out. We could work with this.
What if you had an ad campaign. Martin could do this up right. "Richmond, this is the way to the stars," and you pose Richmond's artists, musicians, architects, writers of fiction, poets and newspaper columns, humorists, planners, visionaries, even some politicians and real grass roots neighborhood civic leaders , too -- though not all the usual suspects.
Get some interesting Philip Glass-esque music. Shoot them in the Science Museum of Vir-ginia planetarium. Light it and angle it arty. Ask them what they see -- optimistically, even ideally-- in Richmond's future.
And ask them what they like about now. And how can Richmond reach immortality and join the sorority of great cities? What has the city overcome in her past and what must she achieve in her future?
Do the 10,30,60 second spots, maybe a dozen of them, run them as PSAs on cable. "Richmond: The Way To The Stars." And you base the entire campaign around these.
Greg says city slogans don't matter much, but if you could big media buy in, put it on buses, billboards, and really make it a rallying point, I think it would make an impression.
And sure beats the hell out of the intellectual content of Easy To Love. And its not snarky, either, or generic. --Otherwise, there's also "Per ardua ad astra" (Through struggles to the stars) that kind of sums up where we're at now, don't it?
HEK
Posted by: Harry at September 22, 2005 9:53 PM
Hey murden, your memory is shot.
I CAME UP WITH THAT SLOGAN!!!
Posted by: clay at October 9, 2005 1:39 AM
Clay,
Are you sure? like, really sure? I ask because I'm fairly certain that a) It was Chip, and, b) You were drunk.
I will admit the small but distinct chance that I am wrong, as I may have been drunk, too.
Posted by: john at October 9, 2005 10:49 AM
No, I am quite certain it was me that uttered it as it has been my mantra for the past six months. "Yes I will move my family back to THAT PLACE, not because I love it so much, but because..etc.etc." However you and Chip came up with the sloganry angle for it. So I reckon it was collaborative. Ps- I was only partly drunk at that point in that shortly afterwards I executed a fairly lucid dis in Randy's music choice of Lynard Skynard. 'Member?
Posted by: clay at October 10, 2005 1:09 AM
I have lived here for 8 years and we call this "The city of the do nothings." No matter what you need or want, there is a 90% chance that you will be told that nothing can be done to help you. Any realm of the city services here thrives on doing as little as they can as much as possible. That is why this place is like the land of the living dead and is rotting at the core.
Posted by: Rhonda at November 15, 2005 11:38 PM
This article got picked up as an example of a blogger with a forum broadcasting a negative message. That feels wrong to me, like a cursory and weak read that misrepresents what we are doing here.
Obviously we love the city, that is why we live in it. We live in what had been an abandoned house. One of us teaches at the public school a few blocks away. The other of us works for an architect that is active in restoration work. We feel like we are on the ground, contributing directly to the future of this city.
I still stand by the borrowed "It sucks less". Richmond is not NY, DC, San Francisco, LA, Chicago, Boston, etc. In a bad way, there is much that we don't have. If we were any bigger, though, we'd have more sucky big city issues.
Posted by: john at November 29, 2005 9:02 AM
...which is why people are always moving back!
Posted by: clay at November 29, 2005 11:41 PM
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