Columbia U., Race, Class and the Gentrification of Harlem

[nyker07]

Blacks had how many years to make Harlem nice? Harlem went to absolute trash. Now it is getting much nicer and the blacks are mad LOL. If they really loved Harlem that much they wouldn't have treated it like a big dumpster. I am in Harlem all the time and there are lots of white people now. It's actually really nice in some parts. Now the blacks know how whites felt when they ran us out of Brooklyn and the Bronx.

[trapecista0313]

As a woman of color with money and good credit, I might be denied access to certain communities because I am not White or cannot "pass" as White. However, anyone can move into disfranchised communities, "revitalize" and ultimately push minority groups out (the reversal of White Flight. This is happening everywhere and it is strategically planned out. It's ingrained in the history and fabric of this nation. Racism is alive and well.

[AlizeCiz]

@trapecista0313 By Law any new housing complex or development has to have a certain percentage allocated to public housing, so no all minorities won't be pushed out of harlem.

[MOCHAMILAN]

Same SHIT that is happening in D.C.

[scientific1982]

Should have invested in their own area when it was cheap.

[AlizeCiz]

Fuck African Americans they talk shit about us Dominicans when we came here too fuck you you stole Harlem from the jews & italians anyway. wash heights bitch.

[quasimoto270]

@AlizeCiz UP YOURS, YOU FUCKING SPIC!

[yukiomishima246]

"No other choices?" Why not New Hampshire? Pennsylvania? Houses and rents are cheap in rural Maine.

I think I get it: It is because you think that the GOVERNMENT should pay for everything.

But a question remains: How does your wonderful government get its money? I bet you cannot answer that one!

[yukiomishima246]

"Allowed" to live in an environment of drugs and garbage? "Allowed?"  People choose to take drugs and throw garbage all over. People take drugs and throw garbage on the streets because of "racism?" I am missing a logical link here; will someone please explain this?

[Chekkogrnteam]

Oh my, whites. How terrible.

Fucking racists.

[Lieu3C4]

Much as this begins with what seems like taking the whinge on tour, and evokes bohemian indifference in a slow traffic blur drift, it shifts to what must be a significant critique of an out of date law which allows the rich to blight the poor more than the fourth governor of New South Wales.

[Moionfire]

Thank you so much "real news" for covering the displacement of black people from not just NYC but other cities.

[Wisdom521]

OMG What has happened??? So sad.

[JamboCordoba]

This is insightful and informative and points toward some important social concerns but the narration is inept, distracting, and lacking in any emotional nuance.

[Blac13]

Upper Manhattan.

Don't you mean Harlem.

No, Upper Manhattan.

That's Harlem.

Not anymore.

[Reido2828]

You know what I hear stories of blacks being cleaned out of Southern California by hispanics to. Another victory for the great capitalism and the liberals of America. We are all equal right? Why would any race have to be driven out of neighborhoods?

[ZingZee123456789]

Wow, RealNews....GREAT reporting! Best video yet.

[blacksncommercials]

Great report!!!

[TripleSpeak]

Excellent report.

I lived in San Francisco when gay men began buying up the Fillmore for cheap & kicking out the black residents. Within a couple of years the only blacks left in the neighborhood were those living in the projects. The gentrification of every neighborhood that was in any way close to downtown or the civic center in SF was complete 15-20 yrs ago...except for Asians, of course. Now SF is like the Disney version, completely boring & predictable. Yuppie Mickey & Minnie in SF.

[tarossi400]

@TripleSpeak Did they kick them out or buy them out?

[TripleSpeak]

@tarossi400 I don't think you understand what "gentrification" means, at least as it happens in major cities. Most of the original inhabitants are renting. Rich folk come in & buy up the properties cheap. Rents go up. Original inhabitants are forced to move.

[TripleSpeak]

@tarossi400 Actually, I could add that in some cases they WERE physically ousted. When apartment buildings changed ownership, the old tenants could be evicted & were.

[HyrbidHermit]

I just don't think there's any hope for blacks at all. It seems that blacks have always been screwed over in this world and always will be. The second blacks move into a nice neighborhood and try to build their wealth, whites pull away and take all the resources away. It'll be the same story 50 years from now.

[tarossi400]

@HyrbidHermit So, are you suggesting blacks can't build any wealth of their own? They have to get it from whites?

[HyrbidHermit]

@tarossi400 Yes. It's not that it's impossible for blacks to build their own wealth; it's just that they(blacks) don't ever seem to deliver on their talk about self-empowerment. Since the end of slavery blacks have talked about many of the same issues they talk about now. Even 100 years ago, a handful of black elites have been pretty successful but it seems impossible for things to drastically improve for more than just a handful of blacks. I see no signs of collective growth for this group.

[tarossi400]

@HyrbidHermit First honest answer I've heard in this thread.

[choobie12]

Income targeted housing is socialism though. The government is not suppose to use collected information to do anything in a targetted manner, especially not what information, statistics and common sense leads to.

[jsJavaScript]

Gentrification has started with the troglodyte, and always fallowed by a market correction and a Starbucks..

[blackiron60]

When rich people move in, a neighborhood becomes inhabitable for most people. It's annexation.

[blackiron60]

@blackiron60 I mean "uninhabitable for most people" my god I hate typos.

[MattyUl0]

Lies. How could a distinguished University and Bank employee who wears a suit do a crime?

[solarisgalrocks]

she's right, though. But the problem is not only restricted to african americans' and Harlem, but to the entire middle class in the US. It's part of a much bigger picture

[solarisgalrocks]

that's incorrect information about Columbia U spanning between 125th and 133rd street. Actually, the university expands all the way up to 215th street in Inwood.

[tarossi400]

This womans argument boils down to: Why didn't the government give us stuff we didn't earn?

She wants to know why money isn't invested in slums? Because too many of the people that live there don't take care of their neighborhoods or even their living spaces. Who in there right mind would invest money in something that is so likely to torn apart and turned into a shit hole?

[yourmajezty]

@tarossi400 another racist you are. lol. give it up.

[tarossi400]

@yourmajezty Charges of racism, how leftists attempt to avoid admitting they have no reality based argument.

[yourmajezty]

@tarossi400 im not a leftist. good try. but again. youre a white supremacist. and my opinion wont change. bye bye

[nadoop]

@tarossi400 You're ignorant and proud, eh? Get a life, some critical thinking skills, and an education. You need it.

[tarossi400]

@nadoop Haha, all I've heard so far is name calling. Tell me how my argument is wrong...if you can manage.

[nadoop]

@tarossi400 I have absolutely no problem engaging in a critical debate with you, but before I can do that, you must first acquire some critical thinking skills, which is a prerequisite for effective debate. Instead you spew racist garbage that can't be backed up even if your miserable life depended upon it.

[tarossi400]

@nadoop There was nothing racist in my comment. That's just how your twisted mind views it.

Again with only name calling. You have nothing of value to say, so you just accuse me of being too dimwitted to engage in order to excuse your lack of an argument. Is it difficult to maintain that sort of delusional mental gymnastics? It must be.

[OurFadedGarden]

Let the rich have the whole of Manhattan island. We poor and working class can then gather in mass to trap them there and slowly starve them. What comes around goes around.

[Tippersnore]

Please tell Howard Stern!

[ChangoSun]

For the people saying its not about color but money you should understand that there was ample time for the people of Harlem to be given an opportunity to succeed. It was never an option as long as the pop if Harlem was Black and Brown. Its not about who can live in Harlem its about who can control Harlem. The people that lived on the land for so long were never given the opportunity to own businesses or develop the area in their own way.

[depro9]

Decentralized Racism: where whites pay more than blacks to live in predominantly white areas. Today, many whites are willing, and are able, to pay a premium to live in a predominantly white neighborhood. Equivalent housing in white areas commands a higher rent. By bidding up the price of housing, many white neighborhoods effectively shut out blacks, because blacks are unwilling, or unable, to pay the premium to buy entry into these expensive neighborhoods.

[KillerWhaleSFl]

Another victim of predatory capitalism. Race has nothing to do with it. These guys only see one color. GREEN

[TheCORE87]

@KillerWhaleSFl

EXACTLY

Finally at least someone understands.

[Moionfire]

@KillerWhaleSFl No, this has to do with racism AND money.

[educution]

Bloomberg is a nazi prick, he thrives on fucking poor people over.

[IrradiateTheNWO]

Bill Clinton helped advance the image and price structure of Harlem RE when he decided to set up offices there..IMO.

[MetaCraken]

Can this guy stop fucking shouting?

[proteanview]

When more affluent folks move in, businesses that cater to them show up. Businesses won't show up when there is too much, as she says, drugs and poverty - no matter the color of skin. Affluent blacks are just as welcome to buy/rent in Harlem as any others now. Poor whites have been "priced out" of Manhattan for Jews. Poor whites are going to be priced out of Harlem, just like poor blacks, if affluent folks (of any race) keep moving there.

[tmprogram]

fuck yuppies!

[fight2Bfree]

"ethnic cleansing" has to do with ethnicity. Getting priced out of a neighborhood is not 'ethnic". It is simple economic reality. Just because one is of any particular ethnic background does not preclude them from owning real estate in this neighborhood. If you got the money to buy, you will be welcome with open arms. This aint 1960s baltimore..

[nadoop]

The Emergency Financial Control Board, which consists of a bunch of bankers, dictates the city's economic and housing policies. It's like a a shadow government established in the 1970s.

[juliaisafilmbuff123]

@nadoop Do they work with the landlords by chance?

[nadoop]

@juliaisafilmbuff123 The Financial Control Board and the NY Federal Reserve are interconnected. The landlords have nothing to do the the policies implemented in NYC housing - they merely kick out the residents as long as they are not legally forbidden to do so, renovate their properties and make make their profits. I can't really blame them. The FCB is responsible for the city's drastic budget cuts, and it's only the beginning. They control NY's government like the bankers control Obama.

[VampyrMentality]

There should no Racism what so ever in the world everyone should be able to get along no matter what color their skin,whatever Nationality and whatever Religion.

[DavidAKZ]

Reminds me of The Sopranos on HBO

[killbit1234]

By don't wanting white peaple in Harlem that proves the racism im U.S.A. by blacks

[2020peter]

@killbit1234 does it really need saying that the woman in the video isn't saying blacks don't want whites in Harlem. She is saying they don't want blacks priced out of Harlem.

[brianestoll]

@2020peter its unfortunate but it's how it works in this country.. i couldnt afford a place there either and i'm white so whats the point.. if you're a rich black person you're welcome too.. it's not color its money

[nadoop]

@brianestoll Yep, that's exactly what it is. A good amount of whites who looked and continue to look to live in Harlem did so because they were priced out downtown. At the same time, many whites still can't afford Harlem, but a lot of well off blacks who otherwise would not have lived there due to its historical reputation, have made the neighborhood their home. I'm not saying there isn't a racial component, but overall it's about socioeconomic status.

[garethmdawson]

@2020peter Poor whites have the same problem, but I see no one saying anything.

[qualityrkc]

@2020peter she did ask the question, why do things improve when the white people move in? Im geussing she would not like to hear the truth. Bc white people are productive.

[nadoop]

But the truth is race, in my opinion, has less to do with it then CLASS. I say this because the gentrification of Harlem and the rest of uptown is merely the continuation of a neoliberal real estate revolution that started during the Koch administration in early 1980s, which started with the lower tip of Manhattan, and continued up north.

[CitizenofDystopia]

@nadoop A black man has about the same chances of getting a job as a white man with a felony conviction. Race has a lot to do with everything.

[nadoop]

@CitizenofDystopia I've never said race has nothing to do with employment prospects, or other issues for the matter. I said the issue with Harlem is more about class than race, and anyone who analyzes it will see that. If Harlem was majority poor and working white, it would have still been a target for gentrification. In fact, as a real estate agent, I noticed countless well off blacks and a good amount of Asians and Hispanics buying up property in Harlem.

[subatomicparticlephy]

WOW!!! Great piece!!

[nadoop]

Finally someone covered this issue! I was a real estate agent in Harlem after working downtown for a few years. I was shocked when I arrived in Harlem only to witness that at least a third of my prospective clients were long time Harlem residents who were priced out of Harlem, many of whom were forced into city shelters. It came to the point where I literally quit real estate and made the decision to pursue a graduate degree in Sociology, and I've conducted substantial research on this issue.