Professor Prabal De, CCNY 2014
Patrick Loi
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Posts by Patrick Loi
Our Connection to History
010 years
After living on campus for so long, I feel like many of us do overlook the historical significance of living in Harlem. Sure, now we often hear rumors about certain neighborhoods to avoid, but it wasn’t always like this. We first started at the Schomberg Center, which we learned was one of the first research libraries dedicated to African descent culture and contained one of the largest archives of African American works. However, one of the more overwhelming facts was hearing that when Langston Hughes first came to NYC, his prime destination visits were to this library and the YMCA down the street. It’s astounding to think that we are visiting the places that so many significant historical figures contributed to. As we stood outside and marveled over the rustic architecture, perhaps Langston Hughes and countless others were feeling the same?
Another memorable location we visited was the construction site of the former Lafayette Theater, which was the first theater to desegregate. I just couldn’t believe how all these areas with such historical and cultural significance could be torn down. That eliminates the connection we have to the great figures who contributed and fought so hard to establish that significance. So many of the former popular nightclubs and ballrooms and social centers have all been closed and all that remains are the skeletal remnants that people pass by without realizing all the stories that have happened right there in front of them. I appreciate our opportunity to walk and get a glimpse of some of these stories even though there wasn’t much to see at first glance.
It feels rather sad to see how, as Rick put it, Harlem has passed its heyday. It’s very hard to find that same spirit of a flourishing, cultural community. It’s such a shame that Harlem now brings up a negative connotation rather than the memories of a thriving birthplace for African American culture.
Happiness in Unlikely Places
010 years
I was pleasantly surprised after we visited the Eyes on Bangladesh exhibit. At first glance, most of the photographs have a dreary tone, with many depicting scenes of poverty, depression and social injustice. However, I also found a source of hope and inspiration among many of the photographs. For example, the series with the matriarch sitting together with the house servant may look dehumanizing and pitiful for the servant. But looking across the spectrum of photographs, we can see a progression, as the attitudes and treatments of the servants could be modernizing over time. Additionally, the series in which all the Bengali reenacted their dream scenarios was also striking, as it presents an idealistic and optimistic outlook towards how life could be better. Many of those people share many of the same dreams as we do, despite all of our living differences.
However, the series that captivated me the most was Belonging, particularly this picture. 
That just stood out immediately to me, especially since the rest of the series about Dhaka seemed to capture the poverty of the community, this picture captures all the unadulterated joy and optimism of the people. On a further glance, the series holds an interesting blend of melancholy and exuberance. Even though the conditions look bad at first, people can always find happiness in the most unlikely of places. Other pictures in the series, such as the one with the huge religious celebration figure shows that these communities could be perfect birthplaces of culture and persistence.
Economic Disparity Stops Here
110 years
Since many of us are first generation children born in the United States from foreign born parents, we’d heard countless stories about how they initially believed that New York is the city of equal opportunities for prosperity and happiness. As much as we’d like to believe that this is the truth for many immigrant families, it isn’t. One glance at the census data and Salvo’s presentation, the economic disparity between different neighborhoods in the same city is undeniable. There’s also a massive correlation between the areas in which different ethnic immigrants congregate and the poorest neighborhoods, with minimal increase in economic prosperity within the past few decades. Many immigrants who came prefer to stay in neighborhoods with similar ethnicities and they can’t really afford housing anywhere more affordable. Thus, it feels like many of these neighborhoods are stuck in a vicious cycle in which poverty perpetuates itself.
I agree with Allen’s post below, about how that notion of New York City as a melting pot is incorrect. It’s not a nice, homogenous mixture, but clumps scattered all around. For example, check out this fascinating interactive link from the New Yorker, which shows the median household income in the city based on each subway stop. http://www.newyorker.com/sandbox/business/subway.html
It’s just baffling to see how on the 1 line, how annual median income can range from over $200,000 near Chambers Street to about $25,000 near City College. That’s almost 8 times difference between two locations in Manhattan that aren’t even THAT far apart (only roughly half an hour on train). How could a city that’s so well known for being the land of opportunities have this much economic disparity?
I agree with Alina, I’m also a bit skeptical on the census data since there are many undocumented cases. Although it is the closest we have to accurate representation, I hear many stories from my parents about immigrants who don’t really report their information or documentation, as in they might work and get paid in just a few dollars a day. The data could be affected in this way, and the situation could be better or worse than it seems.
However, I’m curious to see how the census can change in 10-20 years, when the children of many foreign born New Yorkers are grown and get their college degrees, as we are right now. Possibly we’d be able to bring the prosperity to our ethnic neighborhoods and realize the vision we had about New York, that even though it might not seem like the land of opportunities at first, eventually all the hard work and dedication the foreign born New Yorkers will pay off.
