In Race, Class, and Politics in the Cappuccino City by Derek S. Hyra, he depicts the very apparent divide between the old residents and new residents on Shaw/U Street. This historically black community has seen a dramatic shift in its population. Gentrification has resulted in an influx of new white residents that have transformed the community of Shaw/U Street. In my question, I asked how the dramatic change in the population influenced the accessibility of residents, old and new, have to economic and social mobility. Currently, there is clear racial and socioeconomic divide between residents. The influx of new white, middle and upper-class residents began to redevelop the neighborhood that intruded on the original residents; ultimately, furthering the divide between residents. Additionally, how the present divide between residents influence the way in which residents interact with one another? Acknowledging the harm that gentrification has on a neighborhood such as displacing residents and removing their political power, are there any instances where gentrification can be seen in a positive light? For example, transforming a previously known drug heavy and poverty-stricken neighborhood to a trendy, hip, affluent neighborhood. Is this change good? Can there be other positive outcomes of gentrification?
During class, I think that many challenging aspects to integrating the old residents with new residents arose. One being that when the population shifts, the interest of the community also changes. Since the interest of the Shaw/U Street community is changing, residents must learn how to live and interact with one another. This is difficult when the old residents’ voices become unheard. Now, the community is marginalizing the minority voice in order to redevelop the area to continue attracting new residents. The dynamic between residents in the Shaw/U Street is complex because the influx of new white residents were attracted to the neighborhood to live a lifestyle that Hyra refers to as “living the wire”. However, they are attempting to change and renovate the culture of the neighborhood, directly impacting the community that first attracted them to the neighborhood. The class discussion made me think about the ways in which groups of people can be unaware of the impacts of their actions. Is there a way to move and integrate new residents into a community smoothly?
Hyra also discusses black branding to be when a community or environment express and institutionalize parts of Black identity (75). This tactic contributed to the redevelopment of Shaw/U Street by attracting outsiders with Black focus points in the neighborhood which accelerated growth in the economy. In class, we discussed the idea of an “underground economy” that people were forced migrate towards once the influx of new cliental entered the neighborhood. Similar to the shift in culture, I think that another challenge that comes along with a changing neighborhood is the displacement of jobs and housing. This “underground economy” consisted of individual or groups that were out of jobs once the influx of white residents moved to the neighborhood. They did not value or invest in the same businesses; thus, these providers needed to move their goods to where the demand was larger. How does this transition to an underground economy impact the social capital of the provider?
Putting gentrification in a positive light is very intriguing. However, I believe that even if transforming a drug-heavy and poverty-stricken neighborhood is viewed as urban renewal and redevelopment, there or are various caveats that have the potential to cause negative effects for individual stakeholders or “locals”. For example, if an individual has certain connections to place in a gentrified neighborhood, he/she may feel betrayed by a drastic change. That being said, all gentrification has the potential for cultural dispersion, a changing social structure, and increased or decreased economic opportunities. I think that change will always be composed of pros and cons, and altering economic and social processes will always be tied to urban gentrification.
Mya I think in your blog you ask a really phenomenal question that is in same ways a cornerstone of this class. In the second paragraph you ask, “are there any instances where gentrification can be seen in a positive light? For example, transforming a previously known drug heavy and poverty-stricken neighborhood to a trendy, hip, affluent neighborhood. Is this change good? Can there be other positive outcomes of gentrification?”. I think that gentrification has positive aspects but calling it overall beneficial can be difficult. One example of a positive outcome of gentrification is increased home values. Home values increasing obviously benefits old residents because it increases their wealth. However, this increased wealth comes at a cost because as home values rise so do property taxes and living expenses. We know that has the eventual effect of forcing out the old residents as they can no longer afford to live there. This creates the interesting distinction of gentrification because the area is improved but the residents are forced out. And I therefore think that this distinction answers your question. If you think improving the area is more important, then yes gentrification can be good. But, if you think the lives of the residents are more significant, then it seems difficult for it to be positive.
Popular conceptualization on gentrification in the United States has predominantly focused on affluent white professionals infiltrating inner cities and displacing existing communities of color. Our conversation about gentrification left me wondering, can Black people be gentrifiers and bring about the same polarizing effects on neighborhoods as their white counterparts? Our conversation about gentrification and the creative class informed my understanding of the invisible population of Blacks within the creative class contribute to the gentrification of urban neighborhoods, thus the racial dynamics of gentrification are more complicated than white young professionals displacing black residents. I especially think about Black recent college graduates who move into cities like New York City and displace other populations of color. Though Black people can be gentrifiers on a micro level, I do not believe Blacks are not a gentrifying force because institutional policies that created the racial wealth divide.