Editorial: What students should think of the Rust Belt’s romance

Joining a long line of publications saying “Pittsburgh is it,” Vogue told the world Thursday about how Ace Hotel — a hyper-hipster boutique hotel chain — fell for our city.

The writer and Pittsburgh transplant, Stephen Heyman, spoke to Matthew Ciccone, a developer who helped bring the hotel to East Liberty. In the next few years, Ciccone said a new generation of 18-year-olds will choose to study in Pittsburgh, like him, “instead of moving to Chicago to start a band, be a writer, start a business.”

“The more that happens, the more interesting Pittsburgh will be,” Ciccone said.

But haven’t we always been interesting? And beautiful enough, without a white buttercream icing, a la Vogue or Ace Hotel?

We’ve all experienced the reluctance and inability of relatives to understand Pittsburgh’s appeal. To naysayers, Pittsburgh is just a steel town with harsh winters, devoid of culture or eloquence. They told us to go some place nicer, like Penn State.

But we didn’t listen to them — before hot, highbrow hotels and Vogue-worthy amenities. We bought big winter jackets, and we chose Pittsburgh. We’ve experienced the issues and relished in the quirks that our city has to offer at every stage. They taught us invaluable lessons. But we have something to offer Pittsburgh in return.

We are students in a transitioning city shared by “Stillers” natives and bearded coffee shop squatters.

We participate in dialogues about gentrification, refugees and growing class and racial divides. Outside of the classroom, we learn something new every time a protest passes us on the street, every time we spot a #BlackHomesMatter sign, every time a startup moves in, fails and someone comes back to try again.

According to USA Today, Pittsburgh only began to take on this transitioning era recently. USA Today hones in on East Liberty’s “metropolitan chic” remodeling, which, after its failed urban renewal plan in the ’60s, is only just beginning to undergo this “monumental” redevelopment effort.

We know that the city is getting younger. According to the 2011 Census, there was a 17.2 percent increase in people ages 20 to 24 between 2000 and 2010. Pittsburgh has found its way onto students’ radars not because it’s necessarily sleek and new, but because of the benefits of graduating in a city with growing pains instead of a valley with murky happiness.

But we don’t value that opportunity enough. It’s harder to Instagram.

There are issues in Pittsburgh, yes. But our city’s flaws and imperfections should be our impetus to grow and change.

That means exploring areas of Pittsburgh that are rumored as dilapidated or dangerous or exploring past the tidy and new SouthSide Works. It means understanding the many protests in our city and valuing them. It means sticking around after you toss up your mortarboard and responsibly investing in our city.

Ace Hotel isn’t a problem. It’s a nice hotel with tasteful Teenie Harris art and locally sourced meals and amenities. The problem is painting a perfect, happy picture in the still-hanging smog. We’ve made list after list for everything from most livable city to the most romantic, but these awards overlook the areas that have lagged behind and that are still in need of our help. We have said it before and we will continue to say it: “For whom is Pittsburgh the most livable city.”

Maybe we can’t blame the articles too much ­— as Heyman said, we aren’t magazine editors here ­— but we can disagree.

So use your free bus pass, go out and do something about it.

Being a student in a transitioning city is an experience many others don’t even know they’re missing. Through East Liberty housing protests, you’ve seen the importance of political involvement. Through Lawrenceville’s boutique businesses, you’ve seen the importance of chasing a crazy dream. Though it all, you’ve learned lessons that no one can teach in a classroom.

Now go help the city. Ask Pittsburgh what Pittsburgh needs. You owe it that much.