Every fall I find myself rewatching “Gilmore Girls” — my annual tradition to celebrate a new academic year. Stars Hollow, the small Connecticut town where the show takes place, reflects an omnipresent sense of community: town hall meetings, breakfast at Luke’s, warmly-lit festivals and Miss Patty’s dance classes. The show perfectly captures that everyone-knows-everyone small town vibe, with all the characters united by their involvement with communal life. The ever-growing obsession with “Gilmore Girls” makes one thing clear: we need to revive American communities.
In the real world, it’s hard to find a community as genuine as Stars Hollow. In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General released a report which revealed the decline of social networks in the increasingly isolated American public. Loneliness in young adults increased every year between 1976 and 2019, and only 16% of American adults reported feeling very attached to their community in 2018. These trends contribute to an array of issues, from the youth mental health crisis to political polarization, and they show no signs of slowing down. Americans are lonelier than ever, and the report names the disappearance of social infrastructure as one of the main causes.
Social infrastructure refers to the resources and policies that help citizens facilitate relationships and expand their social networks. Third places — social settings outside of home (the first place) and work (the second place), such as community parks, outdoor markets and even coffee shops — are necessary components of social infrastructure. In “Gilmore Girls,” the abundance of third places allows for a connected, communal life, offering vital moments of spontaneity and togetherness. However, despite their promising role, accessible third places are disappearing from American communities. Civic engagement groups and hobby-centered organizations, some of the most crucial third places, have seen exceptionally steep declines, each losing about 30% of their locations between 2008 and 2015. Many remaining third places have also been commodified by private businesses, further discouraging social interaction.
Americans shouldn’t have to live vicariously through fictional characters just to experience the benefits of a centralized and supportive community. In order to fully address issues such as the mental health crisis and political division, we must reestablish the social infrastructure that we’ve lost — starting with our physical environment.
To achieve a Stars Hollow-like community, city planners don’t have to look much further than college campuses for inspiration. The University uses its resources to foster a sense of belonging among the student body by investing in clubs, events, resource fairs, study spaces and recreational facilities, all centralized and accessible. There is an opportunity for these common spaces to be transplanted into American neighborhoods, which might encourage citizens to become active contributors in their community.
The public must demand people-centered urban planning. Developers are already building walkable, sociable communities for young adults. Culdesac, a private land developer, aims to construct car-free, walkable communities throughout the nation. But we can’t rely exclusively on these companies to develop equitably — the practical approach lies in our local government. The first step is political involvement: look at legislation, discuss necessary changes with your representatives and inform others in your community. Citizens, especially young adults, must also take advantage of the social spaces that they do have. Attend local book clubs, town council meetings and community events. The only way to expand social resources is by proving the value of the ones that already exist.
The individualized goals of land-developers and businesses fail to address the true needs of an ideal community. But the green-lawns and crowded sidewalks of Stars Hollow are not so implausible. They should be an active priority for American voters. The novelty of the Rory Gilmore experience doesn’t have to be so novel — we just have to be willing to fight for it.
CJ Lair ’28 can be reached at craig_lair@brown.edu. Please send responses to this column to letters@browndailyherald.com and other opinions to opinions@browndailyherald.com.
