Dirty Lewiston
Dirty Lewiston: the video
Lewiston, Maine is an ugly city and a scrappy one with a reputation that grows wilder the farther away you go. Ask random folks in Annapolis or Marblehead if they’ve heard of this place and two out of three will cringe and back away. Lewiston. That’s where all the nasty stuff happens, right? Like race wars and baby killings and the random rapes of school teachers.
I keep those misconceptions going as much as I can. I’m a crime reporter, after all, and the more vicious my beat looks, the cooler I appear.
The following video, which contains some rough language if you happen to be tuning in from a church, attempts to portray the city as a downtrodden place of vice and violence. What’s ironic is that the people narrating seem like the very type who inhabit the downtown and make it the tuck and roll kind of place it is. They scorn Lewiston and yet, hell! They’d fit right in there at Bartlett and Walnut. Watch as they try to pick a fight with a random dude on Pine Street, menace a kid over on Spruce, scream their hatred for the city from the car windows into winter white L-Town.
The tune is kind of catchy, though. Anything with Dirt in the title is bound to be good.
September 20th, 2008 at 1:47 am
With Lewiston being my native city, I watched the video with a critical eye. The author is narrow minded and focused his attention on the worst parts of town and the most downtrodden persons around. It is no wonder that Lewiston is considered the drug capital of Maine. It seems as though there is a sense of justifyable pride in the author signing “Dirty Lew”. Working where I do, I see the downtrodden addicts and alcoholics who are trying to work there way out of abject poverty and homelessness. The video has no value.
The author should take another approach and videotape the tens of thousands of people from Lewiston who attend Catholic, Babptist and Lutheran services every Sunday. This would negate his current video. Finally, Lewiston is a piece of cake compared to the ghettos I’ve been in particularly in New York City (Bed Sty baby and others). In short, the author’s video does a disservice to the honest people of Lewiston and has absolutely no redeeming value.
September 20th, 2008 at 8:24 am
Don, I agree with you, I also watched the video and have to say I thought that it was not a fair picture of lewiston and its sole purpose was to be negative. I think if you are going to take the time to do something like that show all aspects of something, dont just focus on the bad. Oh and the song….I am out looking for the single cd for that song right now…….NOT.
September 20th, 2008 at 7:37 pm
Wow. This was pretty depressing. I know that there are nicer places in Lewiston. Guess this guy just wanted to focus on the worst of it. And the worst of it, is depressing.
September 20th, 2008 at 9:42 pm
Don’t have much to say about a video made by a coupla crack heads tryin’ to talk trash about the hometown that they do nothing to help improve, so I’ll comment on somethin’ more positive. DIRT. I’m readin’ it now. So far so good. My gut tells me you’ve got a winner on your hands. No smoke blowin’ either – I read at least 2, usually 3 books a week, & also write fiction. Good Luck – I’ll follow up soon.
September 21st, 2008 at 10:32 am
Well, I liked it. It was meant to be negative and portray one side. The song was great and the imagery was spot on. They meant to show the seedy side of Lewiston and it worked. It was meant tongue-in-cheek and should be taken as such.
September 22nd, 2008 at 4:23 pm
Flamer –
As if you dedicated a blog to the antics of Tom Gurney. I couldn’t even watch the video once I knew who had taped it. I understand your position and your affection for the seedy image of downtown Lewiston. But, don’t support the behavior of a bunch of pot-smoking idiots that make the rest of us look bad. Some people actually try to do the right thing, try to support their community and try to make it a better place. And then you have morons like this who can’t listen to enough Sublime while they get high…. Disgusting.
JLJ
September 23rd, 2008 at 10:34 am
I’m in So CA visiting my kids and grandkids. I liked the video. If the volume was off, I see nothing wrong with it, just a couple guys driving around. If that’s the worst thing you can show about lewiston – what are you complaining about? Have you ever been anywhere else?
April 30th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
it dident look that bad compared to what i have seen.come on over to lowell mass…
August 25th, 2010 at 12:48 am
okay let me comment here,