RSSAKA Poor People Get the F**k Out!
Gen·tri·fi·ca·tion:
The buying and renovation of houses and stores in deteriorated urban neighborhoods by upper or middle-income families or individuals, thus improving property values but often displacing low-income families and small businesses.
If you live in the city, the hood, or even the burbs most likely you’ve experienced the phenomenon called gentrification. This process, once called urban renewal, is highly controversial and is happening in almost every major city in the United States.
A slumping real estate market and skyrocketing foreclosure rates are forcing families in the inner city into vulnerable living situations and out of their homes. Urban planners and developers see this as an opportunity to transform these inner city ghettos by transplanting condos, loft style apartments and wealthy, upper-class tenants.
Many aspects of gentrification appear desirable: the reduction of crime, new investments in buildings and infrastructure, and not to mention the increased economic activity in these neighborhoods. The thing about it is, these desirable characteristics are enjoyed and glorified by the new arrivals, while the old residents, who put their blood sweat and tears into these neighborhoods, find themselves socially and economically marginalized.
Often times these wealthy, usually white, newcomers are congratulated for “rehabbing” so-called poor neighborhoods. Some people even believe that replacing minority renters with wealthier tenants, and skyrocketing rents so that residents can’t afford their homes anymore and move out move is a form of social justice.
Though there is no clear-cut definition of gentrification, one thing that’s for sure is it will have a lasting impact on the makeup of our country. The gentrification today will spawn changes in the demographics, land use, culture and character of America.
Tell me what you think! I’m a native of Los Angeles and I see examples of gentrification everyday. How do you imagine that today’s “renewal” will affect us 10, 20 years from now? Is it to our benefit, or to our demise? What can we do to stop it, or should we attempt to stop it at all?
17 Comments, Comment or Ping
The R
agreed
[Reply]
Hustla 718
A lot of the yuppies or gentrification promoters feel they are “saving” the poor.
Not the case.
Kicking the poor out of their homes is not the same as saving them.
Lets be realistic. there is a lot of crime in low income areas but it’s not the biggest problem in these communities. It’s just a fact of life. An end result. Crime occures everywhere, only it’s much more common in these areas.
When you are lower income, you will take a roof over head any day before being displaced. No matter how high the crime rate or how ugly the neighborhood. Your number one priority is survival. Food, Shelter, Clothing, Water.
I do not like gentrification due to it’s effect on all low income people. Shifting people out of their homes and making everyday life more difficult. Gentrification leads to higher rents, buildings bought out, and even arson. The effects this has on an already troubled population does not help at all. It actually makes things worse.
Being this forum is overwelmingly White, middle income, and far from the effects of gentrification the poll is going as expected with “pro gentrification” in the lead.
[Reply]
The Beautiful Mind
It sounds like it could be a good thing regarding crime and gang activity. Just don’t let them tell you that you owe it all to them. Hold your head above the crowd and they won’t bring you down.
[Reply]
Michele
basically… .I went to a community board meeting and the lady said…when a bunch of people with high incomes move into the neighborhood, all the little community programs get cut because the area no longer qualifies for grants.
[Reply]
Malia
Gentrification benefits no one except the land developers/property managers who aim to make a lot of money off of the upscale “yuppies” that you speak of Mr. Hustla. The poor (regardless of gender, age, color) are irrelevant. It’s all about “destroying” a community and building EXPENSIVE lofts/condo’s that are fit for a particular “social status” which is RACISM/DISCRIMINATION DUH!!! You don’t have to have a degree in Astro-Physics to understand this basic concept. Many people “falsely” get the impression that “projects/ghettos” are the only ones being torn down. This is far from the truth as regular old buildings with low income tenants NOT section 8 and food stamps only but people making $8-12 hr (yes that’s very low income) being forced out. You can include your Caucasian waiters, waitresses, hosts, customer service, bank tellers, barista’s and counter clerks in the mix. I’ve seen it happen over and over again. The young Harvard Grad with the MBA is moving in…….sorry!!!!!
[Reply]
LoverOfPeace
I agree most of your points Malia. However, I must say that most poor people in the U.S. are not “Caucasians living in poverty/rural America”. It’s actualy a lot more complex than that. No one racial/ethnic group make up more than half the poor in the U.S. at this point, though caucasians are the largest single group by far. The majority of poor whites also DO NOT even live in rural areas! The biggest number live in working/lower middle class/poor suburbs at this point.
[Reply]
TIA TIA BO BIA
Well, the suburbs as a whole are pretty diverse now, most are no longer lily white but I guise some still are. A lot are still mainly white. But although there are large disparities, non white is NOT the same as poor-!!
Also, more than half the metropolitan poor now live in the suburbs ALREADY!
[Reply]
TROUBLMan
What trips me out about gentrification is that many of these land grabs are initiated more than 20 years in advance. What does that say? It says, there are larger forces controlling the movement of whole populations of people.
If you look at America’s history of development, you’ll realize that it’s damn near a science. These larger forces understand how things like drugs and crime create new markets for their businesses.
For all the people being pushed out of the city into these new “suburbs” aware of these tactics. Its only amount of time until it’s profitable for them to these forces to try to come and confiscate.
[Reply]
Felicia
Exactly as they say gentrification is linked to reductions in crime rates!!!! Yeah right!
[Reply]
Q.
i honestly don’t see anything that we can do to stop it.. i’ve seen it in Chicago and now NYC.. they pretty much own Harlem now, and slowly but surely BK is changing.. when they come, there’s nothing we can do to stop it.. i’m strong with my opinion, because so much happens on the local gov’t levels.. Congressman/woman, aldermen/women, etc can save and then sell to their friends and those who provide money to their campaigns.. they’ll sell to developers who will then sell to their friends.. building high rises that we can’t afford..
i really don’t see a change happening any time soon.. now with the foreclosures, lending institutions being bankrupt, CEOs being fired due to the housing crisis, etc, banks are not going to be helping minorities as much unless they have big bank accounts.. they need to go w/ what they feel is a sure thing, or else they’ll lose their jobs..
i’m just sayin’..
[Reply]
"a mom"
I’s like someone said this interest only loan thing, was planned now people are losing their homes in the suburbs and everywhere some because the didn’t understand the fine print. Other because they thought they could get rich quick. Don’t they know?
In my day it was called urban renewal, and yes it destroys families and communities. So I think that the interest only loans was also a part of urban renewal, and yes the Urban planners will benefit from this. They knew what was going to happen before it happened. Right now in San Francisco. It is Urban renewal all over again
[Reply]
DeathmustB-ez
You know what makes the shit even more messed up for minorities. They hand out vouchers in the projects and the hoods that the developers are taking over, for the natives of these neighborhoods to be in what they call a more desirable living environment. For example, they will offer you a certain dollar amount to move you and your family away from where you’ve been for the past 10 years of your life. Then they move you to an area that is a development that’s even further out than the suburbs. Yes these nice homes are affordable and a lot better looking then the homes in which these people have previously occupied. But the problem is these new homes are being filled with the same people who have previously in the projects. What’s the difference? The difference is that they can push the minorities and lower income people out further away from the prime real estate and keep it for themselves. How long then would it take for these new populated areas to become what the projects and poor neighborhoods had turned into? Who knows? And really it doesn’t matter, the government and these new developers are making money, and at the same time getting rid of the people who the desire not to be there. If you want to get more into it, I personally think that they put the minorities so far out so they can have the elusion of a better life, but all actuality I think they are being put there to be forgotten and out of the way. Think about it, “If you populate an area, with minorities from different hoods, gangs, and cultures” And if they all share one common thing “Poverty” There is going to be some problems… Oh well it’s better for the people who run and dictate our country. It gives them an easier job to get rid of us… Cause eventually we will get rid of each other. It’s Fu***d up!
[Reply]
Elevation
A question to the writer? Are you from the hood???
[Reply]
Jo
I see it in every aspect of city development, its like wildfire!
[Reply]
troublsome
Elevation: Not 100% sure if this question is geared toward me TROUBLSOME, or to Deathmust b ez who wrote the comment above yours. But to answer it, If it was asked to me: yes I am
[Reply]
Elevation
O.. Ok, yeah I was asking U Troublesome. The reason why I asked is because 1. You wrote it and 2. If you are from the hood you know that the problem is not the Gentrification, it is the lack of knowledge of how to manipulate and benefit from Gentrification. I express it that way because the greater good is not what the thing is called that is happening to the hood, its knowing the VALUE of the hood. When we educate that more we will eventually (and hopefully) find the people from the hood doing the Gentrification because they understand its worth.
[Reply]
TROUBLsome
I agree with you Elevation. I wrote the post with no bias, knowing my views and standpoints, but put everything out there just simply cause I wanted to stir up some TROUBL. I know personally how people feel about the subject of gentrifiaction, and wanted to leave my thoughts open ended, so that people can pour out their feelings about it with no remorse. Your absolutely right, the hood is very valuable, we just have to get our people to open their eyes and see that.
[Reply]
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