Off the Books

Marlene Matteson and other residents of Chicago's historic Southside black community gathered at Maquis Park Prayer and Revival Center to discuss the impact of Big Cat's death on their neighborhood.

Big Cat was a local gang leader who brought violence and instability to the area, but also provided support to the community through donations and protection.

With Big Cat gone, there would be internecine battles among local gangs to fill the power vacuum, leading to increased violence and uncertainty.

The community leaders in attendance, including a pastor, hair salon owner, handyman, and social service center director, all relied on Big Cat's gang for financial gain, political power, or to carry out their own work effectively.

Big Cat provided Marlene's block club with funds for kids' parties, gave James Arleander a near monopoly on local off-the-books car repair, and let Ola turn her salon into a thriving nightclub.

The shadow economy in Maquis Park was complex and interconnected, with various actors relying on each other to survive. Off-the-books exchanges ranged from day care and domestic work to pimping and prostitution.

The community leaders were aware of the chaos that would follow Big Cat's death, but were reluctant to discuss the financial implications openly due to their own involvement in the outlaw economy.

Everyone in the room, including Dr. J. T. Watkins and Pastor Jeremiah Wilkins, had benefited materially from Big Cat's presence and would need to find new sources of philanthropy now that his donations had ceased.

The demands of the ghetto required an economy that was vastly different from the mainstream economy, with various actors relying on each other to keep the streets tolerable and the goods and services flowing.

The shadow economy in Maquis Park was dangerous but essential for survival, bringing together an assortment of actors who may otherwise have had little reason or interest in exchanging or communicating with one another.

Eunice's block has two women, Marlene and Eunice, who work in schools and earn under-the-table income performing odd jobs, such as food preparation, cleaning, and running errands, averaging $50 per week for 10-15 hours of work.

They have worked in their respective schools for three years, increasing their work from five days per month to fifteen days on average.

They also do additional jobs like washing cars for school employees, and selling soul food lunches.

Marlene and Eunice have established monopolies over such opportunities at their respective schools, preventing others from getting hired without consulting them.

Oceana, a thirty-three-year-old mother of six, earns less than $200 per month through various informal jobs, such as garbage collection, selling drugs, and baking cakes.

Women who engage in illicit income-generating activities can face different levels of personal danger. While women selling drugs or engaging in stolen car rackets face more jail time and physical abuse, women who hide their income from the government may still have recourse to the law.

The personal dangers experienced by women in the illicit sectors can affect their own outlooks, perceptions of security, and relationship to their families.

The lines between different kinds of underground economic activity can blur for poor families, as they struggle to keep their household income from various sources separate.

The residents of Maquis Park have varying opinions on the illegality of certain behaviors, such as narcotics use, gun possession, and prostitution.

Elijah Anderson believes that today's inner cities are inhabited by two distinct groups, those who attend church, participate in social institutions like schools and labor markets, and accept the laws and ethical codes of conduct of mainstream society, and those who do not.

The first group is oriented toward "decent" values, while the second group is less concerned with adhering to mainstream values and norms.

The text emphasizes the importance of understanding the decision making of residents of inner cities in the context of their overall strategies for managing their households and keeping their communities habitable.

Big Cat, a local gang leader in Maquis Park, was losing money due to the declining crack cocaine trade by the late 1990s.

In response, he "diversified" his business ventures by extorting various illegal businesses and persons, including sex workers, pimps, gypsy cab drivers, homeless individuals, and gun traders.

Big Cat transformed Homans Park into an underground economic bazaar, providing a relatively secure space for underground entrepreneurs to conduct their businesses and warding off competitors in exchange for protection fees.

He aimed to replicate this economic regulation model in other local public areas to increase gang revenues and establish himself as a more prominent figure in Maquis Park.

Big Cat's need to work with residents and local organizations was pressing due to his ambitions to rise to a more influential position in the community and his reliance on residents' tolerance and purchasing power.

Bird, a resident on the 1700 block of South Maryland Avenue, recalled Big Cat's attempts to extort profits from local card players and gun traders in Homans Park.

Big Cat's Homans Park initiative was about more than just increasing gang revenues; it was the start of his personal upward-mobility path and a way to help people make money and feed their families while controlling the area.

Marlene, another longtime resident, viewed the gang less as an enemy and more as a part of the neighborhood fabric, which created challenges for residents when the organization's activities began to change.

The residents of Maquis Park were familiar with an entrepreneurial street gang centered around a lucrative crack cocaine operation, but Big Cat's new business ventures came as a surprise and required new forms of negotiation and interaction.