A Community Centre in Toronto - Essay Example

Rather than the centralization that some pessimists had predicted, the new communication - the world wide web, email, fax - machine, mobile phones and pagers, satellite - TV, cable, and a whole range of office electronics, including photocopiers, answering machines, word processors and varied electronic networks will lead to decentralized communication. (Benjamin D. Singer, n. d.) In the field of banking, physical interaction, once the hallmark of any bank, has been relegated to the background.

The emphasis is on the use of electronic messages for money transfers and the use of automated teller machines for cash deposits and withdrawals. Stock exchanges and other such institutions, which entail a vast flow of funds, are being replaced by electronic entities, like web pages that simulate bank counters or stock exchange counters. The German words Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft denote community and society respectively; Gemeinschaft encompasses an increase in cohesion between members of a community and requires a greater deal of shared values and beliefs amongst them.

In a community, greater emphasis is placed on the community than on the individual. In direct contrast to this, we have the concept of Gesellschaft wherein the self-interest of the individual is paramount. A community, by its very nature, decreases individualism, envisages constant monitoring of its constituents and engenders homogenization. Some examples of online communities are chat rooms, bulletin boards, etc. The internet has been instrumental in bringing about increased civic participation in various communities.

The evolution of organized media adversely affects the natural or traditional structure of the community. In general, this process entails the loss of distinctiveness of social organizations and the consequent breakdown of systems. The final outcome of this process is the irrevocable endangering of human relations. Human relations are the foundation on which the system in its totality is dependent. The major risks faced by members of online communities are that the very anonymity leads to all kinds of crimes.

It is very easy for a criminal to become part of a newsgroup or chat room and then acquire information about the various members of the group. Further, the lack of barriers bred by the internet leads to a breakdown of conventional etiquette and basic civility. Communications seek to rebuild communities. However, we do not believe that a return to villages or small towns in America is necessary. What is needed, rather, is the strengthening of the bonds that tie people to one another, enabling them to overcome isolation and alienation.

Above all, it is necessary to reestablish in communities the moral voice that leads people to encourage one another more virtuously than they would otherwise. (Amitai Etzioni, 1995). Laura J Miller in her book Shopping for Community emphasizes the importance of bookstores as places where community gatherings rather than places where mere book sales take place. The concept of community as usually understood is at once nurturing and stultifying; which promises to reduce alienation by means of providing the individual with a sense of belonging and social support. Moreover, this concept also envisages the imposition of rigid moralism by implementing socially approved repression.

Any community has a particular personality that reflects its geography, history and the individualities of its residents; this characteristic of a physical community is conspicuous by its absence in an online community. The role of the book store has expanded to include acting as a cultural centre, a place for socializing and a community resource. The independent bookshop promises to preserve local interests, distinctiveness and personal relations, thus effectively becoming a symbol of Gemeinschaft.

Setting up such a physical community has its drawbacks also. Infrastructure like furniture, rooms, electricity, public conveniences and conformity to legal requirements as specified by the various Governmental Agencies will have to be taken care of. Communication by its very nature in such a set-up will be quite slow compared to an online community.

My ambition is to at least partially resuscitate human relationships, which are moving towards extinction. I propose to achieve this objective by setting up a physical community centre. This task requires rooms with sufficient space, furniture and fixtures, public address systems, a library of books, etc. It is my belief that your kind patronage will make this vision of mine a reality. Taking all these factors into consideration I have decided to form a physical community.