Why the Lighrail?

It was probably Colson Whitehead who solidified our interest in producing a project concentrating on lightrails. His book The Colossus of New York, filled with multitudes of people and perspectives, allowed us to consider the possibilities of documenting our own region in a similar fashion.

But even before Whitehead's book, Richard Wright's 12 Million Black Voices, Tim O'Brien’s “The Things They Carried,” and Tyehimba Jess's leadbelly, to name a few, had piqued our interest in producing collective narratives.

The lightrail here in southern Illinois seemed like an important focal point--­a mobile focal point in fact­--for us to produce our own project.

As a complement to the creative compositions on Mondays and Tuesdays, we'll use Wednesdays to address issues in straight-forward prose backed by research concerning the significance of the lightrail connecting people in small towns in Illinois to St. Louis, as well as the history and evolving meanings of the lightrail in the region. We hope that exploring these political and social dimensions will further enrich our understanding of this form of public transportation in southern Illinois.

In short, the lightrail takes us to various physical spaces, but we can use the lightrail as a gateway to other destinations as well.