Based solely on the introduction, I’m not sure that the assessment that Moses “damaged” New York City is a fair one. To displace thousands of New Yorkers and, moreover, those already marginalized in society, the poor and the minorities, is wrong. To kill off complete neighborhoods to facilitate migration to the suburbs designed for the wealthy and elite is wrong. However, in many ways it is Robert Moses who laid the groundwork, quite literally, for the cultural and global capitol of the world that New York represents. Lincoln Center, the United Nations, and the miles and miles of highways, parkways, and expressways that lead to the buzzing metropolis are only a handful of his achievements. As an icon, Moses’ reconstruction of New York City proved an asset. However, as a residence, Moses’ construction irreversibly damaged the city by pushing the poor to the fringes and intensifying class divide. New York in its multidimensionality will interpret Moses’ building record on the city in multiple ways, but the irony is that New York’s multidimensionality is a product of Moses’ building record.
