Yes, it's irrational. There are rough neighborhoods in any large city, but they're not the sort of area you go touristing in. The shootings that occur there are largely people with existing grudges against each other.
You are far more likely to die in a car accident driving through.
> There are rough neighborhoods in any large city, but they're not the sort of area you go touristing in
I think this is underselling the issue a bit. I lived in Hyde Park and heard shootings on a monthly basis, had a friend shot in an attempted robbery, and in general had a visceral sense of ongoing gun violence around me that I've never had in NYC, SF, Dallas, Austin, Seattle, or any other major American city where I've spent a lot of time.
Sure, Hyde Park is a bit of an anomaly in terms of being both highly violent and having things worth touristing for, but 'any large city has neighborhoods like that' doesn't ring true for me.
> Sure, Hyde Park is a bit of an anomaly in terms of being both highly violent and having things worth touristing for, but 'any large city has neighborhoods like that' doesn't ring true for me.
I live near a ~100k person city and a local legislator (from a very rural district) claimed they wouldn't go into the area without an armored car, to much mockery. My wife, at the meantime, was doing visiting nursing in the same neighborhoods. The worst interaction she had out on the streets was a family laughing (justifiably) at her parallel parking.
> My wife, at the meantime, was doing visiting nursing in the same neighborhoods
This is how they got to me.
I was working in a hospital in a 'meh' business area surrounded by a high-crime predominantly black neighborhoods. Sure you are generally fine at the hospital, or during day in the surrounding business district, but then you have to drive past that. The population we served noticed when I got a flat tire, because I was the only white face around at ~3am when my shift ended, and they moved in on their prey.
And that's how it works out. The tourist might be ok. The locals have to drive through bad areas sooner or later to work, get something they need, and when their vehicle fails they strike.
I've lived in Hyde Park and Woodlawn for over 20 years and have never heard a gun shot. I've also never had a friend injured in a violent crime in Hyde Park. I don't feel like there is ongoing gun violence happening around me, and I _have_ felt that way in other places I've been.
Everyones lived experience is different and perception of risk is deeply personal. But statistically if Hyde Park is too dangerous for you then no place in Chicago is safe enough.
I commented on those statistics here[1], but to summarize, three entire states, not cities within those states, the states themselves, have more violent crime than Chicago.
You are far more likely to die in a car accident driving through.