The Auburn Gresham neighborhood has a documented history spanning back to the nineteenth century, when Dutch and Germans first farmed the swampy land.
In 1872, thirty-five years after Chicago’s incorporation as a city, the Auburn neighborhood was officially plotted around 76th and Wallace Avenue. What is now known as Gresham was a post-Civil War settlement called “The Grove.” Both areas were annexed into Chicago by1890.
Since then, Auburn Gresham has transformed multiple times and developed a reputation of producing notable figures (such as baseball player Kirby Puckett, comedian Marsha Warfield, and policymaker Minyon Moore). Like some other communities on the South Side, it has gained a reputation for crime; in the last couple of decades, this has accelerated disinvestment and contributed to some of its degradation.
Nonetheless this community is experiencing a renaissance, and amidst it all is The Black On Black Love Community Garden. This resplendent site is the handiwork of many green thumbs in Auburn Gresham, but most especially South Side transplant Valerie Goodloe, a documentarian, community advocate, and educator.
About 10 years ago, Valerie relocated with her husband from California to Chicago. (An earlier film produced by Goodloe, Gang Girl, was released in 2011, and drew on her daughter’s life in Los Angeles.) In her new home, she began to document the impact of gang activity in Chicago, focusing on behaviors that have earned Chicago a name inextricably intertwined with loss and suffering—Chiraq. Love Is Not Enough, Valerie’s 2023 community-focused docuseries, takes the audience on a journey through Auburn Gresham and other South Side neighborhoods that are weathering and fraying. The films also explore potential routes to prevention, restoration and healing.
Valerie’s lens on worlds of pain, trauma, and recovery also turned hyperlocal, eventually trained on her very block. She and her partner had observed a decaying, garbage-strewn lot across the street from their home. It was on 86th and Carpenter, and one of several eyesores in the community. The couple wanted to beautify the area, and to create a space for residents to congregate, relax, and experience joy. They saw the Black on Black Love Community Garden as an antidote to the dark clouds of anger and despair lingering over the neighborhood for many years.
Now, when events are hosted at the garden, food and resources are provided to the people who come to share in a celebration of “Black Love.” Why is this so important? Because it counters the Black on Black crime narrative that floods our media continuously.
In September 2026, the Garden hosted a Senior/Teen Takeover, welcoming multiple generations of community members to enjoy music, poetry, dance and dialogue. The hope was to bridge gaps of communication and understanding, in person and in real time, and to build stronger, healthier relationships within the community. At the Takeover, hope was embodied in the Soul Train line, where residents showed their fancy moves. It was also in the group circle, where people talked about poignant and meaningful summer memories.
Hope also materialized in the form of Mahogany, better known as Mysfit, who gave a stellar hiphop performance. It was present in the tradition of the elder griot, Mama Kemba; she made spoken word offerings, rich in African-American historical knowledge. Community violence intervention organizations also showed up in support of the Senior/Teen Takeover event.
Senior community members reflect on their favorite childhood summertime memories in Chicago, IL on Saturday, September 5th, 2026 at the Black on Black Love Community Garden BLock Party. Community members young and old gathered in a circle to reflect on different and shared childhood memories. Photo by Ally Almore. 
Elder community members dance in a soul train line alongside younger community members in Chicago, IL on Saturday, September 5th, 2026 at the Black on Black Love Community Garden Block Party. The event aimed to have a Senior/Teen Takeover with different activations and activities. Photo by Ally Almore.
In Valerie’s words, love may not be enough, but it is essential for progress and joy. In the name of love, residents of Auburn Gresham are deeply grateful for this transplant from the West Coast who dared to sow the seeds of umoja (unity) in her new home. She arrived as a stranger, but is now a respected matriarch, gardener, and peacemaker.
Black on Black Love Community Garden, 8616 S Carpenter St. windoworganization.org
Orion Meadows is a 2024 National Spoken Word Award winner and The 2024 Carruthers Center for Inner City Studies Slam Champion from Chicago. He uses his poetry to generate awareness about poverty, mass incarceration and violence that has become prevalent and normalized in our society.