No, not New Yorkers with children never jaywalk. Even when the street is carless, they stand at the crosswalk, straining their ears for any sign of wheels. When the walking man appears, they grab their children’s hands and say, “Okay! Ready?” in a voice full of saccharine sunshine. Are they really worried that if they jaywalked, they’d lead their kids to fatality? Or are they instilling good street-crossing habits?
I find this atrocious. Jaywalking is a passion of mine. The thrill of running across the street, of breaking the law! How could a person deny children this pleasure?
And where does the jaywalking ban for children put me? If I dart across like a felon, it probably ruins the parents’ gig. But I can’t live my life in kiddie-rules jail!
