Comments on: Giving Away the Projects

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 15:44:03 +0000

I think most of us here agree, Antonio…though that assumes that non-whites actually do get more free education opportunities — I don’t see it. In fact, they sometimes get the shit end, for example, my partner was the top honor student in his school, but so that they could give that award to a white kid, they gave him top Hispanic honor. Which you really can’t blame anyone for looking at as a gimme award, when the reality is it was not at all.

By: Antonio

Antonio — Sat, 04 Aug 2007 15:21:58 +0000

I am so sick of hearing some White people complaining about minorities getting a free education. Back in 1994 when I was attending college if you made more than $4,000 dollars you didn’t qualify for Pell and/or TAP. In order to qualify for those grants you had to be scraping the bottom of the gutter before you get help. I had to borrow money to go to school. And does your friend forget or even care that for years and years minorities were excluded from well paying jobs not because they weren’t qualified but because of racisim? Many of us have had to make due with whatever crumbs fell from the table. You’re friend should stop complaining and be thankful that she hasn’t had the same hardships many minorities have encountered.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Wed, 30 May 2007 22:20:20 +0000

Hey Veronica — you said you think workers will not get paid more if housing costs increase and that they will be pushed out by professionals — will said professionals also be cleaning toilets and wrapping sandwiches? A bit of a hole there in your argument, but maybe you accidentally left the solution out.

As for “commodifying housing” — housing is a commodity. It’s a product created by businesspeople to satisfy the demands of consumers.

As for the rest of your questions concerning the poor — I have no idea how one makes the jump from observing criticism of the way in which the poor are “helped” to demanding that the critic become an activist for the poor. Wow. Even if I did have the desire or extra time, I’m certain it would not be in a manner with which you’d agree.

The projects are eyesores (to say the least) mainly because they are physically hideous, built not according to the demands of the customers who might live in them, like market-rate housing, but to the specifications of the elite classes who hoped the wave of the future would be a tiny percentage of the population deciding what’s best for the rest and then ordering us to obey. They are filthy slums because with few exceptions the only people who live there are the bottom of the barrel of tenants, ineligible for the absolute worst, most far-flung craphole market-rate apartment for one reason or another, and that’s why they have to clamor for the government to house them.

A plea to end the projects and to end housing subsidies is not in any way meant to be antagonistic. New York is the filet mignon of housing — I don’t go stomping into Tavern on the Green demanding filet for the price of a diner hamburger. I absolutely can’t wrap my brain around the New York entitlement mentality — it’s my right to live in any neighborhood I want no matter how popular and nice, and regardless of trifling details like how much money I make! A person has got to be a bit juvenile to refuse to so much as move to a farther-out suburb or a different city, likely with more opportunities, just because he *wants* to live in NY. It’s the adult equivalent of a toddler’s temper tantrum.

Sorry if *I* came across too strongly. :)

By: veronica

veronica — Wed, 30 May 2007 21:06:56 +0000

well i’m not saying your a racist, but i think your thoughts are somewhat idealistic. i agree that people will not pay more for so-called “un-skilled labor” just because the cost of housing goes up. people will be pushed out, that is the whole problem with gentrification. housing is so bad as it is that people who are considered “professionals”, who have degrees, cannot afford the average rent. so what happens? they find someplace cheaper, ie. places like bushwick. gentrification doesn’t have to be a bad word if the newcomers work with the people who are already there.

what also makes gentrification seem bad is that when the middle class folk move in (ie. mainly white people, i’m sorry to say) neighborhoods that were trashed and run down start to get attention. why? because it’s all about money and the system has a history of racism and as a result, the disenfranchised, who where also people of darker colored skin, of the past were never really enfranchised and they had kids who are disenfranchised today.

as for the claim that white people are disadvantaged by all the help that “minorities” get from the government, i’m hardpressed to believe that. ever driven through skid row in downtown LA? has it ever occured to you that the majority of people on the street are mainly african-americans? that the majority of the people in jails are african-american or hispanic? why is that?

instead of trying to further commodify housing by ridding of all public support, why not be an activist for the poor? why not find out why public housing projects are such an eye sore? why not find out why the people who live in the projects lead such miserable lives? there are other solutions to the problem and not all of them are so antagonistic.

anyhow, sorry if i come across to strongly! :)

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Thu, 24 May 2007 16:17:09 +0000

Bump for the update.

By: Armstrong

Armstrong — Wed, 23 May 2007 13:37:57 +0000

Indeed. Under a bit of pressure here so some things that would normally roll off my back are not, just for today anyway. Cheers.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Wed, 23 May 2007 03:02:54 +0000

Oh here we go. I’m a ranting racist. Pretty much all you have to say to dismiss anything I say without finding it necessary to respond. It’s an old trick but it won’t stick here, because I haven’t said anything racist, and I have not ranted. I DID truly intend to stick to mostly curiosities and fluff, here’s my problem:

if I post about real estate — gentrification
new places opening in the hood? — gentrification
architecture and fixing stuff up — gentrification
if I post about history — whitewashing Latinos out of Bushwick’s history
if I post about my own garden full of trash — racism

The post that provoked the psycho was about CONDOS. Really what it seems this is about is that you disagree with me, so I’m the antagonist for not posting only about art and what I ate at Northeast Kingdom. Something tells me that if I were calling for a bigger pool of Section 8 vouchers, I wouldn’t hear anything from you about “ranting.” But I think people should take initiative in their own lives, so I’m an anti-poor, racist ranting jerkass white gentrifier. I make organic bread out of the blood of black babies, which I buy from the government who is in cahoots with all us evil white people.

The above is a rant. Not my blog posts up to now.

Anyway, I agree with you on the blog — I’d like this to be a big source of neighborhood info and fun facts and nice pictures and good food and cool events. I’m warming up and slowly figuring out my direction and style. I’d also love to not be the only schmuck here blathering about my one little corner of this big hood, so if you want to maybe fill a niche here, please pitch me something.

Let’s just take a chill before this place ends up like Curbed.

By: Armstrong

Armstrong — Tue, 22 May 2007 23:14:34 +0000

“Winners” are those that succeed in the capitalistic system (making money, owning real-estate, etc) either through birth or ability. The “losers” in capitalism are those that can’t or won’t due to birth, dis-ability, inability etc. And what I’m saying is that in an equitable society that is diverse and interesting, I’d rather not shuttle no small percentage of the population off somewhere else so I can live in a gated community. I left the suburbs in order to not live in that environment.
Actually, what I’ll further say is this (and I’m in the middle of finals and stressed, I’ll admit): I was quite excited to initially come across this blog. How cool would it be to know what is going on in my hood in terms of food, art, culture, architecture, history, etc.? Yet it is a bit alienating when every other post/article of yours reads like an anti-poor at best/racist at worst, rant. Is it possible that you’d be open to requests to stick to lighter fare and lay off your political views?
You might find you’d be attracting fewer psychos bawling you out on here – like that dude a couple weeks ago; not to mention it would simply be a more pleasant place overall.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Tue, 22 May 2007 14:08:01 +0000

Back on topic — mixed-income developments are a pipe dream. Mixed-income *neighborhoods* are possible and already exist all over the world. Overly-strict zoning hampers this phenomenon, however. You can’t complain about architecture/density context AND the lack of affordable housing. Not without sounding ridiculous.

By: Jeremy

Jeremy — Tue, 22 May 2007 14:04:18 +0000

Armstrong — you’re right, many may be forced to move to the suburbs. To commute like, uh, everyone else does. However, you’re wrong about cars — “poor” people looove their cars and here in Bushwick, many families even have two. And they are NICE. Anyway, you don’t need a car to get to work from the burbs — it just makes it easier.

As for your winners and losers comment — it *belongs* on a paper for school. Seriously, could you explain what the definitions of “winner” and “loser” are in this context, and explain why the presence of the former requires the latter? This should prolly be taken to the forum…