On Thursday, I got to meet one of the best intellectuals of urban sociology, Sharon Zukin. Ms. Zukin a Sociology Professor at CUNY Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center gave a lecture on her latest book Naked City at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY. She talked about how New York City specifically faced a social-economic evolution in the last 20 years, growing drastically in the last 5 years. Many of these neighborhoods that were once home to working class people and citizens are now are filled with young artistic crowd. Many who are in the media and white collar industry. This drastic change is known as “Gentrification,” a process that involves raising rents, foods and taxes in underclass working communities. While the working classes are being pushed out of a community they once called home, the wealthier classes are taken over. I am in the process of reading her book which has really gained my attention because many ignore the fact that while this may be a good side to this. But there’s also a bad side to it as well. Many people being forced out of their home neighborhoods because they can’t keep up with drastic social-economic change in their neighborhoods. This process is desperately being consumed all over the city, mostly in communities near and in the business/real estate capital of the world – Manhattan. This is a side source that I’m working on for my global politics term paper “The effects of Deindustrialization and Outsourcing.” I’m going to go in-depth with the modern social effects of societies that were swamped by the effects of wealthy class individuals. I’m very glad to be working on this issue because it’s a developing effect taken place rapidly here in NYC. And Professor Zukin goes beyond the picture in an in-depth first person analysis on this issue. She is also resides here in NYC. It was a great experience to meet her and to see her input on this relatively new developing global and local issue.
I live in Williamsburg which many would say has been "gentrified" yet there are still many "local" people living in the area. It has led to more shops, restaurants and bars which leads to more jobs whilst the houses have gone up in value so locals have more valuable assets and the growing commuinity has also brought more services like child care centres, health providers and family facilities. Whether people like it or not gentrification will happen where young educated people are financially pushed out of one area and need to find another.
ReplyDeleteHi chansulin, thank you for replying to my post. Williamsburg is actually very close to me. I grew up and hung out around there. The locals in Northern Brooklyn are rapidly moving out of the area because they can’t keep up with social-economic change. The diminishment of manufacturing jobs and the blue collar industry is at an all-time low. Williamsburg, Greenpoint, Bushwich aren’t really "family" oriented neighborhoods nowadays. They are more of a cultural fancy, younger crowd demeanor. High end bars and restaurants replace the once small family owned shops. The working class community no longer exists in area and you can see all the abandon factories and ports on the northside. I don’t see many "jobs" being created as you state, the only jobs i may argue that is increasing is in restaurants and bars. However we wouldn’t know how these workers are treated, waged, and if the bussiness is working on the books. I don’t understand how can people can take the fact that they are being exploited and are paying three grand a month for a little apartment. "Hipsters" as some may call themselves are usually college students here studying in NYC or are people in the music, theater or art industry. Many migrate from the west coast and the middle states. I think we can all agree is that gentrification is a process to diminishment of the underclass and working class people from a destined community.
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