It was summertime in Harlem, New York 2007, I was just a small 7-year-old boy who observed everything but was blissfully unaware of the changes going on around me. During that time if you were just trying to get to where you were going you may have missed the magic, but then you had those who were a part of it. It’s hard to truly digest the beauty of the block when you’re using your feet, but in my dad’s Toyota Camry, it felt like I could glide through the blocks and never miss a beat.
“Close the windows so no water gets in” my father would say, I remember always wanting to join the kids playing in the water that was gushing from the cracked fire hydrant, maybe another day I’d tell myself. As we drove through Lennox Ave, I could smell the barbecue and the fried catfish, I could also see the man trying to sell cold waters in between the car lanes. Depending on the time of day I’d hear anything from Jazz, Hip-Hop, or R&B blasting through the streets. Black and brown faces were everywhere, on the streets, in the businesses, and if you’ve been to the Schomburg library even in the books.
Mr. Martin my barber would say “They’re buying up all the brownstones” I’ve heard many of the folks from the older generation mention how the neighborhood’s changing but at this age, I don’t understand and can’t tell the difference.
Five years passed and now the world seemed a lot bigger, my friends and I like most 12-year-olds at this time are now completely mesmerized by portable gaming systems and a small rectangular slab called the iPhone 5, technology is on the rise! I’m still not fully aware of what’s going on in Harlem besides, now my Beats headphones cancel out the noise so I can’t hear the blocks like I used to. As an easily distracted preteen, I can sort of feel the pulse of Harlem changing but I still can’t put a finger on what’s happening to the block. The adults are talking about rising rents, and you can see familiar businesses being replaced by coffee shops and chain restaurants. The faces are changing, and I can still remember the news saying that new businesses mean more jobs so everything will be alright. Right?
Fast forward and 2013 abruptly would be my last year as a New York resident. In 2013, my family decided to trade the crowded streets of New York City for the scenic beauty of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Initially resistant to the change I was later convinced that it marked the beginning of a new chapter for us. While New York holds a special place in my heart, Chattanooga was now our new home. Over the years, I’d return to New York occasionally during the summer to visit family and friends, these trips usually lasted a week or two. The frequency in which I was able to visit dropped drastically around 2017. The increasing distance (both physical and emotional) played a role in this. In 2020, the global pandemic interrupted all travel plans, including a much-anticipated visit to New York. It wasn’t until 2022 that I was finally able to return to New York.
I’ve heard rumbling of gentrification in Harlem all my life. Still, over the years it became more frequent in news articles, through contact with old friends, and even in social media posts about the changes taking place in several New York areas, but it wasn’t until I returned that the concept truly hit home.
Stepping back onto the streets of Harlem in 2022, now 22 years old, became an unearthly experience. While a few landmarks remained unchanged, barely enough for me to remember where I was going, a closer look revealed subtle decay. A once vibrant corner was now a bike stand and Yoga studio. The faces on these blocks had changed too. Gone were the familiar greetings from Mr. Peters blasting his jazz music in front of his stoop or Mrs. Hernandez selling Icy cups for a dollar. Instead, hurrying strangers walked by, earbuds in, their eyes glued to their phones. I remember it feeling like I was downtown instead of Harlem. The vibrant energy I remembered, the laughter spilling from open windows, the music pulsating from corner stores – it was all muted, replaced by what seemed to be soulless. I even walked past a “Save Harlem” flyer on a lamp pole which struck a nerve and reinforced my feeling of loss. This wasn’t just a natural passage of time; it was something more profound, a shift in the very soul of the neighborhood. Harlem is just another victim of the larger trend- gentrification.
Neighborhoods across New York City, from Bedford-Stuyvesant to the Lower East Side, and even parts of Bushwick were experiencing similar transformations. Luxury developments replaced familiar landmarks, trendy cafés popping up we’re local businesses once we’re, and the demographic make-up of these neighborhoods was shifting. Although parts of Harlem seemed still well preserved and culturally potent, I remember thinking that it was only a matter of time before what felt like a virus spread even further throughout Harlem. Gentrification is often painted as a superficial redesign, an update for a tired, poor, and violent neighborhood, but having a connection to the residents and people tied to the community made it feel like gentrification was a way to dispose of the people who were viewed as disposable.
It wasn’t just a matter of the changing buildings or storefronts the larger issue was the termination of the community. Instead of building up and improving Harlem, it was being replaced in a remorseless way. People with no attachment to the community can’t see the generations of people and memories woven into the fabric of the streets. The average person is unlikely to see how gentrification is forcing people to abandon and erase, their history and their roots. To me, it seemed like the gentrification of Harlem was replacing vibrant diversity with uniformity. People I grew up around were unable to live in places that they were born and raised in, places that their families are in, and more importantly, places that hold their whole history and identity.
My experience in Harlem is not a unique one. Countless neighborhoods across the US face similar challenges and even though revitalization is essential it should never come at the expense of displacement and cultural erasure. Although there is much work to be done seeing the changes in Harlem, ignited a fire within me to be a part of the conversation and raise awareness of the issue. As I approach graduation from the University of Chattanooga Tennessee, I ask myself what is next? I am not opposed to moving back to New York as it is often on my mind, but whether I do, or don’t, I will remain an advocate for change, and continue the conversation about gentrification as well as its impact on the people.
- What happened to the Block? – by Jayden Coleman - April 6, 2024
Great Article