Billingham, Chase M. “THE BROADENING CONCEPTION OF GENTRIFICATION: RECENT DEVELOPMENTS AND AVENUES FOR FUTURE INQUIRY IN THE SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF URBAN CHANGE.” Michigan Sociological Review 29 (2015): 75-102.JSTOR. Web. 23 Apr. 2017.

 

This article by Chase M. Billingham calls out the academic field of thought for being hesitant to address new views of gentrification due to semantic reasons. It then presents these new views step by step as five critical dimensions that should be delved into more readily in the large scale academic discussion. These dimensions include taking a closer look at: the geography of affected areas, the specific character of the sites, the life-course of families with small children with regards to where they decide to settle, the incorporation of new institutions into communities beyond those directly affiliated with housing, and political ramifications beyond those caused by displacement. Billingham takes a critical view of gentrification focusing on its negative aspects and views it as a product of disparity and social inequality rather than positive economic progress as it is sometimes viewed. This article will be useful as a field map to what issues we should be looking into with regards to the gentrification going on in Flatbush, Brooklyn and other neighborhoods in New York. The stance of the article seems to be in line with that of the views of communities such as Flatbush who wish to oppose gentrification. It also provides a discussion on more geographic factors which we have not analyzed in as much depth as as factors mentioned.

 

“Community Spotlight: Equality 4 Flatbush (E4F).” Radix Media Printing Publishing RSS. Radix Media, 2015. Web. 24 Apr. 2017.

 

In this article Radix Media interviews Katie Hydell, the organizer of Equality for Flatbush. Equality for Flatbush (E4F) is an organization from Flatbush, Brooklyn uniting people of color though a multinational grassroots lencse to oppose police brutality in New York City, as well as fighting gentrification and advocating for affordable housing. Hydell talks about E4F’s “Before It’s Gone” campaign which plans on establishing no eviction zones, promoting anti-gentrification stories on social media, and providing legal advising to prevent families from losing their homes.

During the interview she comments on her opinion of various elected officials, including Donald Trump who she describes as a “landlord”, noting the sentiment her organization feels against landlords. During the last part of the interview she shares her various ways of promotion through emails, flyers, events and social media. This interview will be helpful in our research because it shows that the community is vocal about the issues facing them and is full of spirited resistance. This helps to illuminate the notion of community, unity, and identity that is challenged by gentrification and helps to contextualize the total atmosphere of the situation.

 

Huggins, Winston. “Caribbean Cultural Aesthetics: A New York Experience.” Caribbean Quarterly 42.4 (1996): 11-18. JSTOR. Web. 24 Apr. 2017.

 

In this article, Winston Huggins describes the both the aesthetics of the physical stroll through a typical Caribbean neighborhood as well as the aesthetics of Caribbean artwork. He uses imagery to paint the image of loud colorful streets with storefronts playing music through loudspeakers and describes a myriad of cultural dishes. This includes bakeries with various breads from across the different islands, restaurants with traditional dishes such as jerked chicken, cod fish, and beef patties and Ital food. He notes that Caribbeans make up a large section of service jobs but thus are not a super affluent community. He then goes on to assess the aesthetics prevalent in the artwork of Caribbean immigrants in New York. He keens in on the deviation from classical European art that saturates most of the conventional art seen. He talks about the necessity to differentiate themselves and highlight their international heritage, while noting the complex emotions towards colonial ties. He also goes on to talk about the pro Jamaican art movement with strong national imagery and references to roots. This is relevant to our research because one aspect of gentrification is a changing aesthetic to the neighborhood. Additionally, art is often associated with gentrification so naturally there will be a conflict of aesthetics between the new and the indigenous artwork. This will help us to focus on scenes in the neighborhood as well as themes in artwork to pay attention to when we study the neighborhoods.

 

Logan, John R., Wenquan Zhang, and Richard D. Alba. “Immigrant Enclaves and Ethnic Communities in New York and Los Angeles.” American Sociological Review 67.2 (2002): 299. JSTOR. Web. 20 Apr. 2017.

 

This article by John R. Logan  addresses the nature of immigrant communities in large United States cities with a particular focus on immigrant enclaves in New York and Los Angeles. He describes immigrant enclaves as stepping stone communities that house poor individuals and ease them into spatial assimilation with the larger community. He notes that wealthier members often branch out and leave these new communities opening up space for another poor member looking for affordable housing. Logan looks into the movement patterns of people, briefly looking at the statistical mathematics as well as developing maps of both Chinese immigrant clusters in Los Angeles, and more importantly for our focus, Afro-Caribbeans in New York City. This article is useful in providing general background information for immigrant communities, trends, patterns and history. It also serves as an example of numbers based analysis and data for a quantitative outlook on immigrant communities.

 

The Spatial Politics of Gentrification in North Brooklyn | Brian Martinez |

TEDxColbyCollege. Perf. Brian Martinez. The Spatial Politics of Gentrification in North

Brooklyn | Brian Martinez | TEDxColbyCollege. TEDx Talks, 19 Mar. 2015. Web. 20 Apr.

2017.

 

Brian Martinez is a sophomore at Colby College and a former Brooklyn resident who spoke out about the state of the gentrification in his neighborhood. He provides anecdotal accounts of encounters he has had with the encroaching “hipsters”, “yuppies” and “artists”. He voices his concerns about the rising costs of living expenses and weighs the changes caused by gentrification in a pro versus con fashion. He addresses the influx of new public artwork as well as a reduction in crime rates compared to the previous decade. On the other hand he feels that the cultural identity of the neighborhood is often disrespected and, additionally, newcomers often do not integrate which is leading to less unity in the community. He maintains credibility by avoiding simply demonizing all newcomers and gives examples of friendships he’s made. He then addresses gentrification more generally and plays a video account taking place in a California neighbor showing a confrontation between one year residents and multi-generation residents. He zeros in on the specific language of the newcomers to highlight how their words indicate a lack of sensitivity or compromise with the indigenous population. This video will aid in my research by providing perspective of someone who lived through the gentrification process. This speech will be useful for framing the issue of gentrification in a personal way rather than purely looking at numbers or academic rhetoric.