The purpose of Jessie Davis

Jessie Davis has not always been that secure and the history of one tragic event in that area made the difference. The park was named after a nine year-old boy who got shot because two local gangs wanted to prove their dominance. This event devastated a lot of people because no parent should have to bury their child.

The park was built to establish a sense of protection and freedom of fear for the local community.  But the park’s main duty is to insinuate hope for the youth and give them an outlet from their daily influence of hood activity that surrounds them. That is why the park has become so essential to the community over the years of the parks progression.

When I went to Jessie Davis I recognized the effects of the community’s desire of prosperity and how they have intertwined that desire into the park. Jessie Davis Park has accomplished its purpose by making the location more appealing and welcoming to the community. Also the park has become an outlet for both the youth and elderly to clear their minds and to have some fun.

Since the park has recreated its locations image; now the community treats each other like family. The violence that once hindered children, teenagers, and adults from enjoying life outside of hood activity has come to halt.

On each of my voyages around Jessie Davis I have realized that the park has a cultural significance to the local community and those who want to be part of the community.  There are athletic programs set up to get kids out of the rough environment during the school year and the summer. The programs they offer during the school year are: pavilion, basketball, football and cheer leading.  Each of these activities is used as tools to gather up the community to support the future generation.

When the summer finally comes back around then the Boys and Girl Club will be back in operation. The Boys and Girls Club is a program that gets teenagers in the local community a summer job. The program is designed to help teenagers gain there conscious on leadership with the youth of the community. As well as being a positive alternative for teenagers to make money and not get involved with any hood activity.

Jessie Davis even gets there gym rented out every Sunday for bingo. The seniors of the community annually get together to enjoy themselves there.  This gives the elderly something to look forward to so they can get out of their houses and mingle among themselves.

During the summer the pool is mainly an asset for the kids of the community. The pool ranges from three feet deep to five feet deep. There are also tables with tents above them for guardians to sit and watch their kids. The park makes it mandatory that there is some form of parental supervision by having park security in the pool area along with a lifeguard. The pool is where a lot of kids go play and meet new friends. 

Jessie Davis Park re-defines the perception of what some may call the “hood.”

     
Jessie Davis Park is a well-known park in Douglasville even though it is not located in one of the prominent areas.  This park has a basketball gym and football field; where the majority of local youth participate in recreational athletics.  There are also three basketball courts located outside of the gym along with a pool, swing set, and playground. Also there are two areas of the park where you can congregate with friends and family to have a picnic or simply sit and converse.                                                                                                               

I discovered all of this information on Monday, March 10, 2014. I sat at one of the tables under the gazebo that was closer to the basketball courts and playgrounds. While I observed the activity of the park; a vibrant calmness was in the air. Children were running around the playgrounds and swinging on the swing sets, teenagers and grown men were playing basketball on each of the courts, small families were walking along the paved trail together along with other individuals who jogged. On the basketball courts games were intense but there was no sense of hostility coming from anyone; just laughter and jokes if someone got exposed during a play as far as getting scored on or crossed. Some teenagers who did not participate in playing basketball sat on the benches beside the court. On the playground the children were playing on the monkey bars, sliding down the slides, and playing endless games of tag. On the paved trail there were some single mothers pushing their babies in strollers, men and women were jogging or walking, and some couples were walking with their kids whom seem to be filled with joy. This experience allowed me to fully understand why a lot of people enjoy going to Jessie Davis despite it’s location.

 This park is another realm compared to what is behind it.  There are a lot of drug dealers and x-cons that live near the park, and some of them even go to the park to escape from the typical hood temptations that may get them into trouble. The cultural significance is self-explanatory because this park is used as an instrument of “escape” for everyone that lives around it. The parks extravagance emphasizes the value to the people that live directly behind it, because the park does not reflect its location’s image at all. The park is well respected by people that do not live in the area as well because of how beautiful it is. The fact that Jessie Davis attracts people that do not reside near the  park;  to come to the rough side of town  demonstrates the ironic perception it gives.  Jessie Davis is more appealing and enjoyable for people who like to play basketball  because you have the option to play inside and outside.  Unlike the other parks that Douglasville has to offer , Jessie Davis caters to the youth and the setting of the park shows that despite it’s location.            

Basketball outside at Jessie Davis

Jessie Davis is one of Douglasville's most popular parks to play basketball outside because there are three separate full courts. The first court has one seven foot goal and one nine foot goal with double rims on both of them. Both the court in the middle and on the end has ten foot goals with double rims as well.

The atmosphere on the courts all differ when you are out there playing.

 On March seventh around 3:30 p.m. I decided to play basketball on each of the courts to see what it was like to play basketball there. On this particular day a lot of the locals were out enjoying the weather at the park. On the small court I met some kids that lived near the park, and they were very energetic, and seemed to be having the time of their life while I was playing a game of twenty-one with them.  When I played on the court in the middle of the three courts; I noticed that it is primarily occupied by high school students. The level of aggressiveness increased from my opponents during our game of two on two. Although they were younger than me I still had to play them as if they were my age because they were both taller than me and arrogant as well.  After I finished that intense game I walked to the court at the end of all three.

This particular court was where all the desire to win and aggression grew tremendously with every game played.  This court was primarily occupied by grown men and teenagers that were really aggressive. Only games of five on five are played on that court. There were people sitting on the bleachers beside the court waiting for their turn. Once I realized this I wanted to play and measure my abilities and aggression with who ever won.  So in order to do that I had to call next;  you call next by telling someone that is on the court playing already that you want to play the next game.  After I waited for a while, my turn to play finally came and I got to pick four other people to be on my team.  When the game got started the level of intensity was great and it was felt from everyone. Every time someone got scored on or crossed reactions from the people who were watching could be heard such as their laughter and jokes.  Although no one would laugh or joke on the court, whoever got exposed would always try to make it a point to get whoever made them look bad back by attempting to cross them or scoring on them.  After that thrilling game was over I was exhausted.

The fact that Jessie Davis brings the luxury of having outside courts to Douglasville justifies  the reason why it gained its popularity. Compared to other parks in Douglasville that are located on the safer side of town such as Hunter Park, Deerlick Park, and Mont Carmel Park; Jessie Davis Park is the only one that caters to the game of basketball by providing both a basketball gym and three outside courts.

There is also a park security car the circulates the park to assure everyone’s safety and  park security is obligated to call the police if there is any suspension of criminal activity at the park. This procedure is emphasized a lot because the location of the park, but despite that the park still manages to attract people that do not live in the area.