ARI GREEN, CALIFORNIA STATE UNIVERSITY, SACRAMENTO
Proposal Type
Structured Conversation
Seeking
- Seeking Additional Presenters
- Seeking Specific Expertise
- Seeking General Feedback and Interest
Related Topics
- Place
- Public Engagement
- Social Justice
Abstract
When U.S. cities become so run down, the first response is to revitalize and redevelop. With development comes an influx of “gentry” that ushers in a new class – a white middle-class. The losers of this process are displaced and they are usually lower-class black people. The winners are developers, investors and the actual City. This cycle is a crucial part of black experience here in America. One that affects black life and the creation of black communities in American cities. Case studies such as the 2015 Testbed of Redlining Archives of California Exclusionary Space and the 2015 Urban Displacement Project led by UC Berkeley were established to capture and analyze how redevelopment affects black communities.
Description
My goal for this proposal is to collaborate with public historians and scholars with an interest in and/or experience with black urban history, gentrification and displacement. As we explore the theme Threads of Change, I am interested in creating a dialogue that focuses on how cities are to remain vibrant without displacement and urban sprawl. How do we define black urban history, gentrification and displacement? At what point does economic development become gentrification? What is the role of local policies?
If you have a direct offer of assistance, sensitive criticism, or wish to pass along someone’s contact information confidentially, please get in contact directly: Ari Green, [email protected]
All feedback and offers of assistance should be submitted by July 1, 2019. If you have general ideas or feedback to share, please feel free to use the comments feature below.
Ari, this is an important and excellent topic to delve into at NCPH. In Louisville, we have an excellent interactive redlining map that was created by Joshua Poe, an activist urban planner. http://www.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=a73ce5ba85ce4c3f80d365ab1ff89010
The map made quite a splash here in Louisville and nationwide. Perhaps he would be a good person to reach out to? Additionally, it would be great to have someone from an allied profession on the panel of public historians.
Hi Rebecca,
Thank you for posting the link to this project and suggesting that I take look into it. This project will be a great source for me! And I would love to get in contact Joshua Poe. Thank you for the feedback, it is appreciated!
Ari, Here at Chicago Public Library’s Special Collections, we’ve recently opened the Chicago Department of Urban Renewal Records which document urban renewal projects around the city from the 1950s through the 1980s, primarily through photographs. (Finding aid here: https://www.chipublib.org/fa-chicago-department-of-urban-renewal-records/). I’d be interested to discuss with you whether this collection or collections like this (or the people who process and/or use them for research) could contribute to your panel.
Hi Johanna,
Thank you so much for this!! I am interested in this project and I’d love to chat with you more about the collection(s) and the people who processed it. Please contact me at [email protected]. Thank you!
Hi Ari!
Your topic proposal is amazing. I’m not sure if this is something you’d be interested in exploring with your session, but I thought I’d share this info in case it’s helpful.
I organized a panel a few years ago that brought together a grassroots preservationist and local RCO leader. The former focused on identifying Black historic sites in the city, then advocating for their commemoration and conservation. The latter organized monthly community meetings for longtime residents to meet with new developers – ask questions, set out expectations, and approve plans.
We were interested in exploring how public history interests (such as built heritage) and practices (such as preservation) could possibly act as a bulwark against gentrification. Our discussion questions are below, in case they’d be useful to you as you flesh out your proposal.
• Does a sense of local history help with issues of community advocacy and planning? How and why?
• How do working-class communities of color initiate preservation efforts within their neighborhoods? How can practitioners support them in their work?
• Does historic preservation inhibit or encourage gentrification? How and why?
• How can preservation efforts provide opportunities for community-driven development, including job creation, affordable housing, and home-grown economic entrepreneurship?
Hi GVGK,
Thank you so much for your well-thought out feedback and even suggesting questions (these are very good questions by the way) to help with the proposal. I would have loved to hear the conversation at your panel and to hear everyone’s thoughts.
Ari,
I am interested in participating as a contributor to your panel. I work as a historic preservation consultant and have a background in urban planning. The latter two questions posed by GVGK are ones I’ve been thinking about in great deal lately. I’m particularly concerned with displacement as a byproduct of urban renewal and similar policies. Resources like the Chicago Department of Urban Renewal Records are educational archival materials that would prove to invaluable in your pursuit, especially if Chicago was used a case study.
Feedback: I’d suggest finding a way to compare and contrast how gentrification has been perpetuated in various cities. If you are looking into the negative impacts of historic preservation, for example, a panel of folks who understand the cause and effects of gentrification in a specific city could offer unique outlooks on how and why displacement has become a hindrance on social equity and how to combat it. If you find this useful, I’d be willing to be involved in such a discussion and can speak specifically about how private development has devastated low-income African American communities in Cincinnati, Ohio from past (urban renewal) to present (gentrification).
Hi Deqah,
I would LOVE to have you. Please email me at [email protected] to discuss in more detail!
Thank you!
Ari, the Port Covington project in Baltimore, MD (https://data.baltimoresun.com/news/port-covington/) offers insight into your question about the intersection of local (city/county/state) and federal policies. Beyond the journalism coverage, I would hope that there are social activists or public historians involved that would be interested in collaborating with you?
Hi Adrienne,
Thank you so much for another source (and a city to use as an example) and your suggestion on including social activists as a part of the panel. Your input is greatly appreciated!
Hi Ari, this is a great session for the conference. I appreciate these resources that everyone is sharing. Are you aware of another NCPH proposal that’s addressing similar issues? If it’s a good match, you may want to reach out to Danielle Shelton:
“Transient Tapestries: Unraveling the Stories of Displaced Communities in Tennessee”
DANIELLE SHELTON, MIDDLE TENNESSEE STATE UNIVERSITY
https://ncph.org/phc/2020-annual-meeting-topic-proposals/transient-tapestries-unraveling-the-stories-of-displaced-communities-in-tennessee/
Jane Addams Hull-House Museum also focuses on this issue on Chicago’s West Side. It does not sound like you will have any challenges finding co-panelists, but if you do, let me know.
This may be a bit off-topic, Elizabeth Catte recently asked if historic preservation was really disaster capitalism? How it takes advantage of slow-moving catastrophes like urban renewal, disinvestment instead of rapid disasters like war, hurricanes, earthquakes, to promote “redevelopment” leading to displacement. To that end, how does historic preservation aid and abet gentrification and the dissolution of minority communities?
DC was recently identified as a “city with the highest intensity of gentrification in the nation,” from 2000-2013, https://www.washingtonpost.com/transportation/2019/03/19/study-dc-has-had-highest-intensity-gentrification-any-us-city/?utm_term=.8a409240df70. Multiple stories point to the pressures of that gentrification on remaining communities–using Howard University as a dog park, neighbors calling the police on local music tradition that was in place before their arrival to the area, etc. A rich example of a city (Chocolate City) undergoing rapid gentrification that might be worth looking into.
Hi Ari,
This is a great proposal. Have you considered soliciting connections to folks working on gentrification in Atlanta? Some ideas: David Rotenstein has worked on gentrification in Decatur, Georgia–http://blog.historian4hire.net/about/. The Atlanta Studies group is made up of scholars and public historians at Emory, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, and at other organizations within the city. If you send an inquiry to the organization’s email someone should be able to point you to best person/people to offer local perspective: https://www.atlantastudies.org.
Julia Brock
Hi Ari,
This is a great proposal. Have you considered soliciting connections to folks working on gentrification in Atlanta? Some ideas: David Rotenstein has worked on gentrification in Decatur, Georgia–http://blog.historian4hire.net/about/. The Atlanta Studies group is made up of scholars and public historians at Emory, Georgia State, Georgia Tech, and at other organizations within the city. If you send an inquiry to the organization’s email someone should be able to point you to best person/people to offer local perspective: https://www.atlantastudies.org.
Julia Brock