I nemojte me napadati zato sto vas briga za to, jer aj dont giv a fak, meeen 
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'Little Bosnia': Effort underway to win recognition for Bosnian immigrants' contributions to Bevo Mill
By Eun-Kyung Kim
Of the Post-Dispatch
06/01/2004
Bosnian immigrants have steadily reclaimed the Bevo Mill neighborhood of south St. Louis for the past decade or so, moving into homes few would touch, opening businesses in abandoned storefronts and generally stemming an erosion that had overtaken the area.
Now a grass-roots movement is afoot to recognize their contributions. It would be a subtle gesture. Perhaps a lamppost sign here or there. Or a banner along the Gravois viaduct. Maybe even a street sign beneath one on Delor.
The effort would thank the Bosnians for their part in revitalizing the area and, hopefully, curb their steady flight into the suburbs.
"We want to encourage the Bosnian people to remain in the city. They're a very positive force," said the Rev. Tom Wyrsch, who heads the Southside Bosnian Services Collaborative, a network of service providers spearheading the effort.
Wyrsch and others are quick to emphasize they simply want to recognize the ethnic presence of an area already referred to as "Little Bosnia" or "Little Sarajevo," and they are not trying to snuff out the community's well-known moniker.
"It's the Bevo neighborhood, even the Bosnians will call it that. So we're not talking about any kind of change in the designation," said Wyrsch, pastor of the area's Resurrection of Our Lord Parish. "It's going to be done with a realization that it's still the Bevo neighborhood. This is not a reassignment of the name or anything, just an additional recognition."
In Los Angeles, Boston, New York and other cities with large ethnic enclaves, residents began to celebrate such neighborhoods in the 1970s, said Jan Lin, a sociology professor at Occidental College in Los Angeles and author of "Reconstructing Chinatown: Ethnic Enclave, Global Change."
"In many cities, it was connected with the bicentennial celebrations. That's when the tide began to swing in terms of city attitudes," he said. Before then, places like a Chinatown or a Little Italy - often major tourist attractions for cities today - were perceived "suspiciously by most Americans as clannish, insular places."
That's still how some Bevo residents view the area's burgeoning Bosnian population and the changes it has brought to the once-predominantly German neighborhood. They claim the Bosnians refuse to assimilate, patronize only other Bosnians, treat American customers differently and refuse to learn English.
Just how many Bosnians live in the area depends on who is asked. The 2000 Census reported just fewer than 5,000, but community and refugee experts say that is a gross understatement for a region that rivals Chicago as the city with the most Bosnian residents in North America. Most estimates range from 35,000 to 60,000.
Members of the Bosnian Collaborative, a majority of whom are not Bosnian, have talked about putting up banners similar to the turquoise ones already hanging from lampposts and decorated with a windmill and "BEVO." Just what would go on the banner hasn't been determined, although some have suggested the word "welcome" in Bosnian. A funding source for the signs also is uncertain, although area businesses might be tapped for contributions.
"This is the first real ethnic neighborhood that we've had in St. Louis for a long time, except for the Hill, and I always thought it could become a place for people from out of town to visit, like Greektown in Detroit and some of the other cities celebrating and capitalizing on their own ethnic neighborhoods," said Ron Klutho, a Bosnian Collaborative member who has worked with Bosnian refugees.
"At some point, it would be nice if this could be looked at with a measure of pride from the city," he said. "We used to have a Hill day, which for many years was a big Italian celebration. Maybe at some point we'll have a Bosnian festival."
Not if some residents and business owners have their way.
Jerrie Bruno, owner of Bevo Antiques and Collectibles, says the Bosnian businesses in the area have hurt her business.
"Everything up and down Gravois is becoming either a restaurant, a bar or a bakery. It's not helping my business at all because we don't have the walk traffic anymore," she said, explaining that only Bosnians frequent area eateries. "I've gone into a couple of restaurants; we don't get the service that the Bosnians do. They do treat us differently, and I don't understand what they're saying anyway."
But Jennifer Bess, president of the Gravois Business Association, said the Bosnian contributions have continued "a long tradition of positive European influence to this area." About 45 Bosnian-owned or -operated businesses are in the area, and she credits them with helping to revitalize Bevo Mill, a working-class neighborhood that got its name partly from a 60-foot windmill that houses a restaurant by the same name.
Bess said her organization supports the Bosnian Collaborative's effort to publicize the Bosnian contributions to the area.
"They clearly demonstrated their desire to invest in and improve the neighborhood by purchasing and rehabbing properties in a tasteful and attractive manner," she said. "The people of the Bevo area are fortunate that the Bosnian immigrants have become integral and contributing members of our communities."
Beriz Nukic, owner of the newest Gravois business, Berix Coffee and Deli, smiled when he heard about the effort.
"Good idea. Very nice for this area," said Nukic, who also owns Berix Coffee Co. on Morganford. He disagreed with the notion that Americans are not welcome in his store. Sure, most of his customers are Bosnians, he said, but he also sees many Bulgarians, Albanians and Poles, as well as Americans.
"I know 90 percent of all customers. I know what they eat - small sausage, big sausage," he said.
Just a few doors down at the Internet Cafe, Halida Catic delivered a cup of espresso to some customers slouched in one of the business's deep-cushioned couches.
Catic, 25, welcomes the idea of publicizing Bosnian contributions.
"I think it's great because it would acknowledge that the community has improved since the Bosnians arrived," said Catic, who has lived in the United States since 1993 but in St. Louis since 1999.
Like Wyrsch, Catic said she doesn't want to rename Bevo Mill.
"No, no, no, it's just an addition," she insisted. "Bevo Mill has its traditions and I think with this, it would bring out Bevo Mill even more."
Lin, the sociology professor, said the backing of city officials often can lend a legitimacy to ethnic enclaves.
Alderman Stephen Gregali, whose 14th Ward includes parts of the Bevo Mill area, said he will provide such support.
"I don't see why we wouldn't add something to the banners to identify the area. I have no problem with doing it," he said. "For the Bosnian community, it kind of helps them identify an area where they feel safe, so to speak. It's a place that they're welcome."
Gregali said he often hears complaints from people about special tax breaks given only to Bosnian business owners. He said tax abatement programs are available to everyone, but rarely do non-Bosnians in the area take advantage of them. If they do, they often complain about how much work is involved, he said.
"There's nothing special given to the Bosnians. Everybody's treated the same," he said. "At least, they're treated the same by the city. They may not be by the people who live in the neighborhood. There are some folks who put their nose up to them, unfortunately. I think they tend to forget where they come from. I believe most people who live in this neighborhood, their parents or grandparents came from the old country."