A native of Edisto Island, South Carolina, Sandhi Smalls Santini is a New York City-based writer and performing artist. She received her B.A. in Journalism and Theatre Arts from Howard University, Washington, DC, where she was features staff-writer for THE HILLTOP, the university newspaper. Subsequent studies were obtained in Human Rights from Columbia University Graduate School of Arts & Sciences, NYC; and The Playwriting Program at Woodie King Jr.'s New Federal Theatre, NYC. She is a member of SAGAFTRA; The League of Professional Theatre Women, NYC; and The Society For The Preservation of Theatrical History, NYC. The author of two books, "EDISTO ISLAND: Seaside Stories From A Geechee Gal" and "Poetry and Prose On A Platter", she is copy editor and features writer for ROUTES MAGAZINE: A Guide To African American Culture.
Sandhi, hang in there. A change is gonna come.
Having been born and raised in NYC, I can’t imagine it being empty, though I do recall faint memories of some of those New York streets being empty in the wee small hours of the morning – just as the sun is rising. I remember the air smelling so good then. Anyway, this article reminds me of a movie I saw once called A THOUSANDS CLOWNS, staring Jason Robards. The first five minutes of the film shows empty NYC streets, then Robards tells a kid, “In a moment you are going to see a horrible thing. People going to work.” Suddenly the street are full of thousands of people marching to work to the sound of a marching band. It’s hilarious. It also takes all the romance out of crowded NYC streets. Anyway, the author may be surprised to learn that many New Yorkers may keep teleworking and never return to that rush-hour march.