Malinda S. Hudson, PhD
April 19, 2021
As we approach another summer season with increased visitors, we will also see an increase in those who decide to make Delaware beaches their new home haven. Delaware beckons those seeking sea, sun and sand to come, stay, and if you’re really smitten, make a home here. We should also establish that those seeking to transplant be prepared to learn about and blend into the local culture, not come with plans to transform it to look like where they’ve moved from. This will take more than the errant weekend or two-week vacation.
Delaware natives certainly understand the draw and are mixed when it comes to transplants, more welcoming of those who seek to meld into the local culture. The problem arises when newcomers want to change the culture, to cleanse it for their aesthetic purposes and don’t respect the history of the area. Case in point, the menhaden net reel. The reel was referred to as an eyesore with complaints received to move it from its current resting place for this reason. The question that should be asked of those logging complaints is if they have taken any time to learn what the reel is or how it came to be. Here’s where the history lesson begins.