This Buzzfeed video features Kai, a local native of the Mission District in San Francisco, California, who speaks about the change in his neighborhood as a result of a wave of gentrification. Although this video does focus heavily on the idea of displacement and native residents being priced out, what I liked about this video was the discussion of space, and who has a right to it. The end of this video specifically references a video taken earlier that features Kai.
This video entitled “Mission Playground is Not For Sale”, shows the conflict between native residents and gentrifiers over a public, local soccer field that was “rented out” for an hour. Outraged by the idea of “booking” a field that for his whole life was always open to the public, Kai confronts the gentrifiers, standing his ground in his right (and the children’s right) to enjoy their field.
This reminded me of Filip Stabrowski’s idea of “everyday displacement”. Although residents were forced out of their neighborhood, those who did stay felt a disconnect with their community as a result of the battles over space. The conflict over who could play in the soccer field was just an example how “place is security, space is freedom”.
