Parks and trails are/were non commercial meeting spaces.
City recreational parks in America used to have water fountains and cool stuff like climbable sculptures for kids and decommissioned Korean War era fighter jets in sand pits. That all went away with the helicopter parents.
I think a culture which views suing for everything as legitimate and the very peculiar and frankly weird specificity which enabled it to - the existence of punitive damages and them going to the other party - has a lot more to do with it than helicopter parenting.
I always find it surprising that American lament the death of shared spaces - because that’s what public spaces are - when it’s pretty obvious that they don’t actually want to spend time with each other. I mean two comments under this one you will find a commenter explaining that the situation is to be blamed on the other half of America they dislike. Well, that’s not very conductive to an environment where public spaces thrive.
Yes, fear of being sued was the ultimate death of all that stuff, but, to be fair, helicopter parenting is a manifestation of what is the same fear (e.g. "What if someone calls CPS?"). You are ultimately talking about the same thing.
> when it’s pretty obvious that they don’t actually want to spend time with each other.
Which too no doubt stems from the very same fear again. Hard to want to spend time with other people when you have to continually look over your shoulder. Most people show love, compassion, and kindness, but there is always that one person who is ready to go atomic at the drop of a hat that ruins it for everyone else.
It seems in many places that are free or cheap, there are many more types of people that show up and it sometimes gets weird.
This has led to less women and children going to open spaces, which leads to less men in my observations.
This varies greatly depending on the exact neighborhood, and it may not be obvious if you spend most time in a wealthier or more homogeneous part of a city/town. Although they are not immune, it strongly depends on the forces allowed to keep the others away.
They definitely didn't all go away. My kids still play on a tank in the middle of the playground nearby.
And I can't imagine any parks around me without water fountains.
Where are these places where playgrounds don't have climbable structures and parks don't have water fountains? Maybe you should vote differently or move.
I want you to complete that thought. Stay with it. Explain exactly how the helicopter parents are responsible for removing the things you liked in American city recreational parks.
City recreational parks in America used to have water fountains and cool stuff like climbable sculptures for kids and decommissioned Korean War era fighter jets in sand pits. That all went away with the helicopter parents.