NEW HAVEN, CONN. AND CHICAGO The image was almost too painful:
aging blues singer Jimmie Lee Robinson walking to the middle of
Maxwell Street to sing "Maxwell Street Blues" as demolition
crews tore down a block of buildings that once framed one of the
most vibrant places of cultural creativity in America. In the
1940s and '50s, Maxwell Street and its bustling market became,
with the arrival of waves of African-American migrants from the
South, the birthplace of the urban electric blues; a place where
Muddy Waters, Robert Nighthawk, Little Walter, Hound Dog Taylor,
and many other musicians got started, and turned an African-
American musical form into a foundation stone of modern popular
music. Over the past three months, crews have demolished the
heart of the Maxwell Street district, paving the way for
commercial development. In a time when Americans are embracing
the vibrancy of our great cities, celebrating the contributions
of all groups to American culture, and preserving our physical
past as never before,