This couplet of readings offered an analytical breakdown of the way city neighborhoods respond to the social, political, and economic fluctuations of city life.  Angotti’s well structured essay creates a layout very accurately named “From Dislocation to Resistance” in which he accounts for the struggle of those with little power or control over their living situations to combat the top-down approaches of the government’s plans for city renewed, replacement, or development.  In a relentless quest for control over their own land, citizens have to endure the real estate abandonment, gentrification, CDCs and their constant in-tension simultaneous investment in social missions and their roles as local landlords.

All in all, these articles are very disturbing.  Throughout the traced historical movements and moments that have spurred big changes in the structure of independent neighborhoods (but the underfunded and slum ones as a collective), a simple trend emerges; there is not enough power in the inhabitants of these neighborhoods to speak out for their own sakes, their own futures and homes.  They don’t have the power to fight off the floods of the choices made for them by those who have the money to substantiate their dominance.  It was inspiring to read about the 82 families that fought eviction for a decade against the church who owned their buildings and their desire to build a community facility.  Citizens are willing to do what it takes to get control.  Despite the jump in efforts with the establishment of community boards, locals still didn’t have much authority, although I do believe it is a great start in getting a dialogue open about the changes to a neighborhood, influenced and debated by those who live in it and thus to whom it really only makes sense to leave the decision up to.

While reading this article about the Emblem of Revolt and Reform, I can’t help but wonder if city planners, although it is a debatable technique, look at the patterns and circumstances of the past to influence the strategies for the future.  After MLK was assassinated, City Hall was reformed to open up more neighborhood consultations; 1970 was “the year of the neighborhood.”  With all the hostility and anger towards the law enforcement and their racial profiling currently brewing (extrapolated from that neighborhood discrimination), is there any chance for similar actions to be taken, for those neighborhoods to get a chance to voice their concerns in hope for change?