Keep the headphones on and deal.

mrsconn23

Dear Prudence,

I’m a gentrifier. I moved to my current neighborhood in my small city when rent increases pushed me out of my former apartment. Rent is going up by as much as 29 percent in my area, while I fought and bled for a 10 percent raise this year, and I know lots of people are struggling. I love where I live, and try to be respectful—talking to my neighbors, getting involved in local events, not telling other people how to live. I’m stuck on one thing though: My neighbors in the building next door are a group of early 20s men who work nights and recreationally do bodywork and mechanical work at incredible volume on their cars in the middle of the street during the day. I work days from home, so mostly I just wear headphones, and I’m lucky it’s not at night. My first instinct is to gently talk to them, but given how much catcalling they do, as a woman in my 20s I’m not comfortable. Race is present here—they’re Hispanic and I’m white, along with class and income. I would love a quiet hour in the afternoon—any tips?

—Rev Honk Honk

MyNameIsNot

File this in the pile of coming into a neighborhood and telling people how to live.

Leave it alone. 

climbingsingle

Absolutely leave it alone. 

banana468

Absolutely leave it alone.  

levioosa

Bruh, it’s the middle of the day, not 1 am. Get some better noise canceling headphones and leave it alone. 

short+sassy

I'd be more upset about the cat-calling and the reminder it is that some men still think it's fine to demean women.

If the noise is just from the work they are doing, I get it, but that's too bad.  I lump that under it sucks to have a construction project near your house, but construction needs to get done.  However, I suspect some of the noise is loud music and it sounds like they're also blocking access to the road.  If so, those are both rude, AH things to do.  But I never fail to be astounded at how rude and disruptive people can be and don't realize it or care when it is pointed out.

I agree with you all she shouldn't say anything, but possibly for different reasons.  I doubt they give a shit about her opinion anyway since she's a mere woman, no matter how nicely she asks them.  And they might make the noise worse, just because some people are jerks like that.  Especially a group of young men who have already proven themselves to be dicks with the cat-calling.  

But I find her eye rolling also.  She's someone I would picture going over with a taco plate peace offering and speaking in stilted, bad Spanish.  Never mind she has no idea if they speak Spanish or what country their ancestors immigrated from.

My ex-boyfriend was Hispanic.  He had so many weird experiences where he would speak to a clerk in un-accented, fluent English.  And they replied back to him in Spanish.  At least he was fluent in Spanish also but, wtf?