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Introduction
As the population of the United States continues to rise and more people move to the countrys cities, the need for additional housing grows. As a result, gentrification has become a more common phenomenon. Gentrification refers to the process of transforming areas to meet the wants and desires of the middle classes (Green 46). The houses and residences in the communities are being razed to make room for the new housing complexes, and the people who live there are being forced to flee. Following the gentrification process, many previous inhabitants find themselves homeless or displaced because they cannot afford to purchase properties in other communities. Gentrification in combination with racial and ethnic segregation has the effect of dividing and splintering low-income communities thus leading to their poor life styles as compared to other groups within the US society.
Discussion
Gentrification in the United States is an updated version of redlining. Redlining is a term used to describe the practice of banks drawing lines on neighborhood maps to indicate areas where they would not lend money to African Americans (Aguilar 230). Housing discrimination is not a thing of the past, and it is not something that can be ignored. Additionally, when businesses do not open in a certain neighborhood that Green (12) suggest, they do not appear to be promising. People in low-income areas should not have to travel long distances just to shop at certain stores (Green 38). These businesses only move into their neighborhoods as the area begins to gentrify, further complicating the situation for the residents.
Gentrification has a major flaw of only caring about the middle class, not the low-income families they are displacing and leaving without a home. Families who are forcibly evicted usually end up in cramped quarters (Tehrani et al. 3683). The American Dream is supposed to give individuals the opportunity to build their own wealth, but now they have been placed in a system that makes it nearly impossible for them to save or even survive (Aguilar 246). Multiple people have come to the United States to better their lives for their families, but rent increases have made it more difficult for them to do so.
Throughout the majority of the 20th century, efforts were made to integrate African Americans into the general population. However, several regulations were created that made it impossible for blacks to reside in the affluent areas while whites could (Hwang 563). According to the 1960 civil right movement the rights and freedoms of the black population need to be fully realized in a society. Housing policies, on the other hand, continued to divide white and black neighborhoods. As a result of these tactics, the government was able to maintain the racial segregation that existed throughout the civil repression era.
Gentrification, by its inherent nature, reinforces racial segregation by benefiting whites and oppressing blacks. The goal of gentrification is to improve the housing situation in a community. Because of this, the procedure focuses on the poorest neighborhoods, which are mainly inhabited by blacks (Tehrani et al. 3683). Black groups have been compelled to live in the most disadvantaged areas of most major American cities due to historical circumstances. For the most part, the countrys wealth has been passed down through generations (Green 16). As a result, upper-class areas house those who come from affluent families, while lower-class neighborhoods house those who come from disadvantaged households. As a result of slavery and racial segregation, the black population is confined to the citys poorest areas. Racially segregated communities in the late 19th century and early to mid-20th century severely limited the capacity of black people to build wealth. Due to discriminatory legislation, African-Americans were unable to get well-paying positions or promotions (Richardson 93). As a result, black communities were unable to acquire the riches that white people had access to.
Slavery, on the other hand, has had a major role in keeping black people in low-income areas until now. A century and a half after it was abolished, the effects of slavery are still felt in the United States. Slavery enslaved African-Americans and other people of color to serve as slave labor for white people. In the eyes of the law, these slaves were only entitled to the property that their white owners gave them. Meanwhile, the white aristocracy continued to enrich itself at the cost of the black population. In legal terms, their masters were entitled to all of their possessions (Aguilar 246). For years, African slaves suffered in silence, with little or no recompense. A large number of slaves were forced to labor in low-paying factory occupations when the industrial revolution began. The whites, on the other hand, had gained money from enslavement that allowed them to invest in companies that enhanced their wealth even more (Green 56). Black communities continue to be affected by this tendency. Affluence is passed down from generation to generation, while poverty is not. There is hence a dearth of mobility for black individuals in wealthy communities.
Other social, political, and economic reasons have a role in tearing apart African American communities, in addition to historical ones. There is a disparity in access to resources between the wealthy and the impoverished areas. There are few medical facilities and schools in the poorer areas of most major metropolises (Aguilar 247). However, due to the high population density, these social amenities are used by many more people than they can accommodate. The teacher-to-student ratio is horrendous in ghetto schools, and the teachers themselves make pitiful wages for the labor they do. There are less resources available for the schools therefore making it difficult for learners to acquire the best knowledge. The libraries are understaffed and lab equipment is either missing or broken, which means that many students are forced to share books. This is in stark contrast to the resources available to students who attend schools in more affluent areas of the city or town.
That the government prefers to give high-quality educational services to pupils in more affluent communities is therefore a rationale that cannot be accepted. In consequence of these regulations, people from disadvantaged black neighborhoods are unable to rise the social ladder. People can climb the social ladder with the help of education, which is a critical instrument (Hwang 543). The capacity to better ones living circumstances is something that education provides for its students. As a result, it is impossible for the poor to compete for employment in the market with people in higher economic situations if they are given poorer quality education services (Green 26). Children from disadvantaged middle-class families are more likely to succeed in life than children from low-income families raised in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. As a result, the government guarantees that the black population remains impoverished, while the white population continues to get richer, by keeping the poor people in the poor areas.
There have also been various detrimental repercussions on the disadvantaged neighborhoods due to urban zoning regulations that are discriminatory. Poor communities are home to urban dumping grounds and sewage systems. For that reason, the communities in question continue to lose their visual appeal (Hwang 572). It is common practice to dump garbage collected from affluent and middle-class communities in low-income areas. As a result, the value of real estate in these locations drops (Annunziata et al. 67). Residents health and the environment are at risk due to dumping sites and open sewers. While they create the least amount of rubbish, communities bear the brunt of environmental pollutions harmful effects, such as tainted drinking water.
Cholera and typhoid are also prevalent in the ghettos because of this pollution. Residents of low-income areas are also at risk of developing respiratory illnesses like asthma and TB. These dangers are exacerbated by the high levels of air pollution in the poorer areas. The establishment of factories in low-income areas contributes to this type of air pollution. Toxic gases are emitted into the atmosphere by these factories, posing a danger to the local populations health and safety (Aguilar 247). Those consequences are the result of urban zoning rules that place industries, sewer lines, and dumps near poor districts that are mostly populated by black populations.
The incidence of crime in disadvantaged neighborhoods in the United States is exacerbated by segregation and gentrification, as well. Despite having only 5% of the worlds population, the United States is home to 25% of the worlds inmates (Richardson 103). The vast majority of those detained are of African ancestry. The majority of these people are victims of the ongoing war on drugs. The war on drugs has resulted in a slew of legislation from the US government. The mass prison system is a direct result of these laws. Most of these regulations, it should be noted, are predominantly implemented in black communities (Green 46). Even if white individuals have an equal chance of using or having drugs as black people, research has found that police patrols and drug operations are more common in black areas. The large number of black prisoners in American jails is a direct result of police segregation of black people.
According to a study military personnel have been found to use excessive force against African Americans than whites, according to study. As a case in point, San Francisco police shot and killed Alejandro Nieto because they mistook his electric rifle, an important equipment for his profession, for a pistol. Blacks are more likely to conduct violent crimes than whites, according to the police. In consequence, there has ever-since existed poor understanding between black people and the police. Fear of being labeled snitches, disregarded by the police, or abused by the police prevents African American victims of crime from contacting the police (Richardson 73). Criminals are empowered to commit more crimes and to use more aggressive methods when more crimes go undetected in low-income areas. Because of this, homicides are more common in low-income areas than in higher-income ones. In addition, the police are more likely to respond to allegations of crime in wealthier communities than in less affluent areas. The polices use of racial profiling in African American areas increases the chance of criminal activity. Police violence against black Americans frequently leads to the dissolution of family units and communities.
Conclusion and Recommendations
In conclusion, despite the fact that gentrification is meant to enhance the living circumstances and living standards in blighted areas, it has the opposite effect. When impoverished people are forced out of their homes, new models are built in their place. As a result, the poor are displaced or become homeless since they cannot afford these dwellings. On the other side, urban zoning and policing tactics can also lead to the disintegration of urban neighborhoods. Disposal sites, manufacturing, and sewage systems are all situated near low-income communities in urban planning. Residents health is jeopardized because of this. As a result, dangerous diseases including cholera, typhoid, asthma, and TB are more common in low-income areas than in higher-income areas of the city.
In order to keep residents from disadvantaged communities from moving to middle or upper class neighborhoods, the federal government makes a concerted effort. As a case in point, the government gives different amenities to the two areas. Teachers in disadvantaged regions are overworked and underpaid because of the lack of educational facilities. The citizens of underprivileged areas are denied the skills they need to improve their lives and progress up the socioeconomic ladder to the middle and higher classes because of poor education.
So many families will benefit in the long term if the government can find a way to retain inexpensive housing while also improving it. Families in this situation are forced to prioritize which expenses to pay first while still needing to spend the majority of their income on housing. In addition, it is absurd to see how this all revolves around race, since the establishment wants to keep us divided and keep people of color in the lower class.
Works Cited
Aguilar, Erika. Home Loans Harder to Get for Blacks and Latinos in California. California: The California Report (2019) pp.246-47.
Annunziata, Sandra, et al. Segregation, social mix and gentrification. Companion to Urban Regional Studies (2019).
Green, Matthew. How Government Redlining Maps Pushed Segregation in California Cities. KQED News (2018).
Hwang, Jackelyn. Gentrification without segregation? Race, immigration, and renewal in a diversifying city. City & Community 19.3 (2020): 538-572.
Richardson, Jason, Bruce Mitchell, and Juan Franco. Shifting Neighborhoods: Gentrification and Cultural Displacement in American Cities. (2019).
Tehrani, Shadi O., Shuling J. Wu, and Jennifer D. Roberts. The color of health: residential segregation, light rail transit developments, and gentrification in the United States. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 16.19 (2019): 3683.
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