Our fear of the unknown, and how it’s killing us

In Idov’s “Clash of the Bearded Ones,” Kurutz’s “Caught in the Hipster Trap” and Harris’s “Brooklyn’s Williamsburg becomes new front line of the gentrification battle”, all three authors introduce a frightening potential; the potential of change, and the unknown. In Williamsburg, there is a Duane Reade that is becoming the center of much contention for the hipster inhabitants of the town. Kurutz is dismayed with the hipster culture infiltrating every style, and Idov notes that the Hasidic Jews are unhappy with the bearded bikers creating a bike lane. All three of these articles, although expressing different views and issues, all create the argument that change in cities is inevitable, but is often welcomed with unhappiness by current inhabitants.

“Gentrification by anyone is at best a mixed blessing for the working class and immigrants whose neighborhood it was” This well-spoken comment by Joshua Freeman in Harris’ article captures the truth that gentrification is something of a complex issue. Far from the duality presented by those who passionately argue for one side above another, the argument that gentrification is something of a paradox is not inaccurate. Of course, society is dictated by customs and ours is dictated by capitalism. Starbucks and Duane Reade have every right to build where they desire. Under what possible explanation could we feasibly condemn and abhor these companies, granting special restrictions purely for their successes? Yet, it is undeniable that there is a great loss where gentrification is concerned. It is not ignorable that the potential for great businesses, great connections, and great sense of community can be lost by the eternal advances of the forerunners of business. Is this sense of loss not cause for great alarm? Is it not understandable to even become spiteful over the loss over many years of happiness in one’s own home? However, it is easy to get caught in the issues emotionally and not see the broader picture. For example in Idov’s article, it is evident that the Hasids and Satmars continue to hate one another despite not necessarily being so different in the long run. Is it fair to say that because another group adheres to a different set of standards, has a different set of hobbies, that we may take them to be different, even lesser than we? To what end does this endless cycle of hate and fury truly serve? Does our community become more ‘safe’ through teaching our children that different is wrong and to be inherently distrustful of others purely because they prefer to bike rather than walk? Further, in the case of Isaac Abraham, just because one careless bicyclist knocked down his wife, can it be totally and accurately extrapolated that all bikers are as careless as that one? We are all humans, and in the case of the Hasids and Satmars, does their community not bind them together? Are they not living in the same place under the same conditions, largely for the same reasons?

In Kurutz’s article, he complains that what once was his easy, comfortable style, is now regarded as “hipster.” He states that, “hipsterification is a fast-moving, all-encompassing beast that goes far beyond urban fashion.” He claims that the hipster infiltration is seeping into all aspects of life including technology and past-times. Is this not another case of extrapolation gone awry? Is this not another archetype that we as humans arrange and construct as a safety blanket for ourselves to feel comfortable, as though we have a powerful defense against the scary unknown? Do we fear change and the uncharted future so greatly as to suffer ourselves for it? Do we fear these things so greatly as to make others, and even our children suffer for it?

All three articles all center around the issue of change. Although Harris’s article stated: “Cities and neighborhoods change all the time. You can’t freeze them,” many of the subjects in the articles are dismayed with the changes occurring in their towns. Change is inevitable, but not always welcome; a fact that is proven throughout these three articles. Although we stereotype and typecast, the truth is that all of these issues are more interrelated than we realize. By fearing the unknown, we fear our communities and ourselves. Imagine how fulfilling our lives could be if we could learn to rely and depend upon one another in times of need and otherwise. Imagine the perspective our children would have if we could simply be the bigger people and lay down our hate in favor of peace. Imagine how much suffering and hatred and spite we could avoid if we could learn to accept change, and rather than mourn the loss of the past, look ahead to the future and new possibilities! This concept may be more difficult to adapt than to theorize, but perhaps it is the next step in order to find our own happiness. Perhaps our task is not to bend and break our environment into becoming something that suits us. Perhaps our task is to find ways to appreciate the changes, whether those changes are our neighbors, our stores, or even our homes. If we could simply learn to find happiness in all things, would we not find succeed in our pursuit of happiness? There is only one way to find out.