Systemic Racism connected to the lives of AKOG Mentors

Cotton Club: a famous club in Harlem that thrived during the Harlem Renaissance

Harlem, New York City is historically, politically, and culturally a black neighborhood whose residents constantly suffer the unjust, racialized ramifications of gentrification. In Harlem, and all around New York City, invisibilized people of color in low-income neighborhoods are being pushed out, due to the rise of gentrification. In West Harlem where I grew up, I have noticed how quickly gentrification has risen in recent years, though this racialized process is rooted in histories of segregation and redlining. Land as a space to live in “and the human relationship with it,” is a crucial way in which our society understands “the governance of how land is used; and the control of specific pieces of property,” (Holmes (2016), 4, 5). We recognize that this ownership is indicative of power, and in gentrified spaces in Harlem, that power is being taken from those who previously governed the land. After slavery was “abolished”, many African-Americans fled to large cities such as New York, Detroit, and Chicago to escape harsher Jim Crow segregation laws in the south. In New York City, Harlem became a sanctuary for blackness through art, music, language, and other forms of culture thus creating the Harlem Renaissance era. However, though black Harlem was thriving, “even then, residents understood that the black hold on Harlem was tenuous” due to the increasing presence of white people moving in for cheaper housing and inviting cultural life (Adams, 2016). As time went on, this continued to result in pushing out “longtime and a significant number of low-income residents who are consequently priced out of their neighborhoods in exchange for new residents” (Wharton, 2008). The term gentrification was coined years after the Harlem Renaissance, yet this “process of displacement” has been happening forever, as low-income minority people are no longer able to afford to live in their own communities (Wharton, 2008). Land that was once primarily claimed and cultivated by blackness, is being overrun and disrupted by whiteness, wealth, and capitalism. Harlem is experiencing “an influx of tourists, developers and stroller-pushing young families, described in the media as “urban pioneers,”’ which problematically conflates the invasion of wealthy citizens with “discovering” land (Adams, 2016). In reality, from the perspective of the original residents, “Harlem is being remade, upgraded and transformed, just for them, for wealthier white people” in every aspect of the neighborhood (Adams, 2016). The profit that new residents are able to bring to the community is protected, rather than the historically black culture that is embedded within the area. Furthermore, this issue is exacerbated by Harlem’s closeness to colleges such as Colombia University, Barnard College, and the Manhattan School of Music. These institutions have existed for years and thus this is not a new phenomenon, however, “the process of college students becoming professionals...is a common present form of gentrification” throughout the United States (Jackson, Forest, Sengupta, 2008). College students will often live in affordable areas, return as wealthier adults, and consequently a “demographic transition and subsequent gentrification” will take place; and with changing demographics, the neighborhood changes too (Jackson, Forest, Sengupta, 2008). Their existence in Harlem contributes to the gentrification that is already taking place to displace the black community. Evidently, gentrification is a “process [that] breeds exclusivity, marginalization and supposed revitalization for affluent urban newcomers,” as not only are people pushed out of their homes, but also the culture and establishments of the area are disrupted for the benefit of the gentrifiers (Wharton, 2008). The Harlem community still undergoes these sometimes subtle, yet influential, changes in the interest of accommodating the needs of wealthy, white young people. Former Mayor Bill Deblasio had a significant hand in perpetuating gentrification in the city. The city government “has pushed for private development and identified unprotected, landmark-quality buildings as targets. He and the City Council have effectively swept aside contextual zoning limits, which curb development that might change the very essence of a neighborhood, in Harlem and Inwood, farther north. At best, his plan [seemed] to be to develop at all speed and costs, optimistic that the tax revenues and good graces of the real estate barons allow for a few affordable apartments to be stuffed in later,” (Adams, 2016). Affordable housing is essential to the community of low-income folks, primarily people of color, to be able to survive in this increasingly expensive city. This transformation is deemed productive, enhancing, and valuable by unjust standards that violate the relationship the black community has with their land. Adams, M. H. (2016). “The End of Black Harlem”. The New York Times. Hall, D. (2013). Introduction. In “Land”, 1-22. Cambridge, UK: Polity Press. Wharton, J. L. (2008, June). “Gentrification: The New Colonialism in the Modern Era”. In Forum on Public Policy: A Journal of the Oxford Round Table. Forum on Public Policy.

The KKK in Exeter, New Hampshire

This site is Exeter, New Hampshire, whose GPS coordinates are 42.9814° N and 70.9478° W. This southern New Hampshire town, unbeknownst to many of its citizens, has been home to a significant number of Ku Klux Klan members in the last century. Robert Azzi, a citizen of Exeter himself, tells the story of the Halloween of 1990 or 1991 when his children were trick-or-treating in town. It seemed like a normal Halloween; that is, until they approached one house and “were greeted by a man” named Tom Herman “in white KKK robes and a hood who offered them candy” (Azzi). Too many residents of Exeter, like Azzi until that night, are unaware of the town’s previous and contemporary connection to the KKK. While this connection is surprising to some, it should not be, as this issue is not unique to the town alone: “New Hampshire had publicly harbored thousands of KKK members into the 1920s - and then Herman as recently as 1991” (Azzi). Just as New Hampshire’s connection to the KKK is not isolated to the town of Exeter, the racism in the town and the state do not solely lie in that connection: the racism is systemic. New Hampshire is the 4th whitest state in the country (World Population Review). The town of Exeter is 92.2% white (Data USA). Alongside these demographics, the systemic racism here can be seen in the example of the large private high school, Phillips Exeter Academy. The school is 58.3% white, which makes the school much less white than the town of Exeter and the neighboring public high school; however, the school is still a Predominantly white institution (PWI) (Niche). Recently, there has been an increase in reports of racism and religious discrimination against students: “Students of varying races and religions have come forth and talked of people reportedly driving by them and shouting racial epithets, insults, taunts, swears, or even so far as to throw cigarettes near them” (Azzi). Aside from the already difficult experience of being students of Color at a PWI, these students have had to face harassment from townspeople while walking to class. Some have had to face the intersection of racism and religion-based harassment. While the KKK may be less present in Exeter today than it once was, the racism here has remained.

Image: Images: 08-28-1990: “Exeter Police Lt. Joseph Bernstien, left, Sgt. Russell Charleston, Board of Selectmen Chairman Paul Binette and Town Manager George Olson discuss Saturday’s appearance of five Ku Klux Klan members on the stage at Swasey Parkway (staff photos/Matt Palmer) (Exeter Historical Society) Works Cited

Azzi, R. (2020, June 19). Azzi: Systemic racism in NH: The view from Exeter. Foster's Daily Democrat. World Population Review. (2022).

Whitest States 2022. Whitest states 2022. Data USA. (n.d.). Data USA: Exeter, NH. Data USA.

Niche. (2020, April 14). Niche: Students at Phillips Exeter Academy. Niche. Rimkunas, B. (2015, September 26).

That time the Klan turned up at Exeter's Race Unity Day. Exeter Historical Society. Barndollar, H. (2020, June 13).

Seacoast has a long history with the Ku Klux Klan. Seacoastonline.com.

Redlining in Arlington, Massachusets

​​Arlington today is extremely white with non-Hispanic whites making up about 80% of the population, and blacks/African Americans are only 3% of the population. Whereas in Boston, non-Hispanic whites make up about 50% of the population, and Black/African Americans are about 25% of the population. These disparities can be traced back to redlining, where “In 1933, the federal Homeowners’ Loan Corporation (HOLC) was established to refinance Depression-era homes in danger of foreclosure.” (Boston magazine) They red-lined Boston and the Surrounding areas by ranking them in terms of how risky they would be to refinance…homes in danger of foreclosure” (Boston magazine). Many of the houses still standing in Arlington are old Victorian homes. However, we also have houses that were built in the 1920s, like mine, that would have been fairly new during the period of foreclosures and redlining. Many of the zoning descriptions still remain today. For example, housing on Mass Ave is still very desirable and expensive for the same reasons described on the redlined map code from the late 1930s. https://www.wgbh.org/news/local-news/2019/11/12/how-a-long-ago-map-created-racial-boundaries-that-still-define-boston https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining/#loc=9/42.426/-72.633 https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining/#loc=14/42.431/-71.185&city=arlington-ma&area=B1 https://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2020/12/08/boston-segregation/ https://dsl.richmond.edu/panorama/redlining/#loc=13/42.448/-71.281&city=lexington-ma https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/arlingtontownmiddlesexcountymassachusetts/VET605219 https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/bostoncitymassachusetts

 https://equitable-arlington.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/arlington-holc-map.png 

Redlining in Evanston, Illinois

The name of the site is Evanston, Illinois. Evanston is located at the GPS coordinates: 42° 02' 28.10" N, -87° 41' 24.22" W. It is situated along Lake Michigan on the North Shore in Cook County, Illinois. One of Evanston’s most major landmarks is Northwestern University. Northwestern University was actually founded in 1855 before the city itself in 1863. While it remains 13 miles to Downtown Chicago, Evanston, Illinois remains separate from Chicago and continues to grow and thrive as an independent city. It is home to many cultural outlets like a flourishing business economy and recreation activities like a public lakefront. As of the most recent 2020 census data, Evanston’s current population is 78,110. Its racial demographic consists of 46,133 White alone, 12,542 Black or African American alone, 523 American Indian and Alaska Native alone, 7,751 Asian alone, 43 Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander alone, and 3,482 some other race alone. The population of two or more races is 7,636. This site represents systemic racism because there is “evidence and factual information related to historic and contemporary instances where the City of Evanston [has] facilitated, participated, stood neutral, [and] enacted acts of segregative and discriminatory practices in all aspects of engagement with the Evanston Black community,” focusing on the years 1900-1960 and the present (Robinson & Thompson, 2020). There have been several lawsuits that have been filed that embody the systemic racism in Evanston, Illinois. Multiple lawsuits have been brought against the owners of Evanston theaters (Evanston Theater and New Evanston Theater) by Black Evanston residents (Hellen Garnett and two unnamed residents). They were denied equal theater access, including discriminatory seating and the use of a separate entrance. A Black Northwestern University student William Yancy Bell Jr. filed a suit against Northwestern University because his civil rights were violated when he was refused entrance to Evanston bathing beach operated by Northwestern University. Another Black visiting student Robbie Shields (from Chicago) sued Northwestern University for barring her from a university dormitory because of her race. The Evanston NAACP filed a lawsuit against District 65 School Board “seeking to reopen the Foster-King Lab School,” as there was racial bias in closing the school and the “decision to close Foster-King Lab was a “powerful” plan to discriminate against black students by bussing them away from their neighborhood school to schools in white neighborhoods” (Robinson & Thompson, 2020). However, the main focus of this description is Evanston’s long history of redlining to maintain a segregated town. Redlining is the act of refusing resources, such as loans, to residents in areas deemed unsafe and therefore unworthy of financial investment. Redlining was used in Evanston to prevent the movement of Black citizens into predominantly white areas. The consequence was a highly segregated city, with 84% of Evanston’s Black population living within one triangular section of land. A variety of methods were used to enforce this segregation. Banks would refuse mortgage loans to Black families looking to purchase homes in “white areas.” Realtors and builders would also completely refuse to sell homes to Black families if they were outside what was deemed the appropriate area. White homeowners would even take it upon themselves to collectively purchase homes in their neighborhoods that were about to be bought or already purchased by Black homeowners. These combined efforts all contributed to the extreme redlining in Evanston, the effects of which are still evident today. In addition to redlining, Evanston also had an official zoning ordinance, passed in 1921 that helped promote segregation. While this piece of legislation did not explicitly mention race, it was effectively used by city authorities to maintain separate racial zones. A vast majority of Black Evanston residents at the time lived in the Fifth Ward. This area was open to industrial and commercial use, meaning that the houses built there likely neighbored factories and industrial plants. Black homeowners were also discouraged to live anywhere but the Fifth Ward. Out of the 1,252 homes owned by Black citizens, 1,010 were located in the Fifth Ward. These homes were often more expensive and of poorer quality than the homes sold to white residents. Some Black homeowners had no electricity, no sewage, and no running water. As late as 1940, it was documented that some Black households continue to struggle with these issues. In the 1940s, city officials in Evanston decided that the zoning ordinance and the practice of redlining weren’t effectively segregating their community. They began the process of housing demolition, which they implemented to remove Black residents from majority-white areas. In 1941 alone, fifteen Black-owned residences were destroyed and the families displaced. They had no choice but to leave town or move into the already overcrowded Fifth Ward. Many times, this housing demolition was justified because it was argued that these were substandard residencies in low socio-economic areas whose very existence harmed the greater community. Never mind that the state of these homes was the product of years of intentional and targeted discriminatory housing policies. The demolition commission is filled with thinly veiled classism, which makes sense considering that many minorities at the time were also of low socio-economic status. About the growing Black community in Evanston, one official stated, “A too large proportion in this group would soon mean poorer schools, streets and municipal services” (Robinson & Thompson, 43). Black residents in Evanston at this time simultaneously suffered the consequences of both racism and classism. Northwestern University also took part in displacing Black homeowners. They demolished houses near campus to build more dormitories. This resulted in the removal of 70 households, 33% of which were Black (which is a disproportionately high amount). Unlike the displaced white families who simply moved to a new area of town, the displaced Black families found themselves with no place to go. The racist housing policies made it near impossible for them to find a new home within Evanston, so many ended up leaving the city altogether. However, today, Evanston is taking steps to amend the damage done in the past. In 2020, they became the first city to approve a reparations program for Black citizens whose ancestors faced racial discrimination, especially when it came to housing. As racial inequality and socio-economic inequality often come hand in hand, many Black residents of Evanston today are still feeling the economic effects of the racial discrimination that occurred decades ago. This is why reparations programs such as the one in Evanston are so important. The effects of systematic racism are felt for generations, and because of this, it’s only fair that the current generation is paid what they are due.

Above is a picture of the triangular district Black residents mainly lived in 1940. Citations: https://www.cityofevanston.org/home/showpublisheddocument?id=59759 https://data.census.gov/cedsci/table?g=1600000US1724582&tid=DECENNIALPL2020.P1&hidePreview=true https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evanston,_Illinois https://www.cityofevanston.org/home

Critical Race Theory in New Hamphire

In June of 2021, a “divisive concepts” bill was signed in New Hampshire prohibiting the teaching of certain concepts related to sex and race in-state contacts, grants, and training programs effective January of 2022. The term “divisive concepts” is summarized as including any form of race or sex-stereotyping or any forms of race or sex scapegoating. In practice, the bill limits the teaching of any concepts fundamental to Critical Race Theory. Written in the bill (HB 544), two specific restricted topics include teaching that “An individual, by virtue of his or her race or sex, bears responsibility for actions committed in the past by other members of the same race or sex” or that “meritocracy or traits such as a hard work ethic are racist or sexist, or were created by a particular race to oppress another race.” This means that any assigning of fault, blame, or bias to a race or sex, or members of a race or sex, cannot be taught in state sanctioned spaces. Additionally, history that promotes this thinking will be left out of schools and The effects of this bill spans across the state, impacting both teachers and students. Teachers found in violation of the bill will be brought before the NH State Board of Education for disciplinary proceedings and face the potential loss of their educator’s credentials. The bill’s language is an intrusion into local education matters, where school boards set their district’s curriculums. Additionally, teachers who share facts with their students focused on racial or ethnic disparities risk losing their jobs. Students feel the effects of the bill as well, lacking the ability to discuss racial history in depth. This bill extremely limits the way that racial history and identities will be talked about in schools. This bill has a large impact on us, as we grew up in New Hampshire and both attended public school in the state. Additionally, we are both going into education as teachers, and it is scary to think about how we may risk losing our jobs if we want to teach our students the truth.

http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/legislation/2021/HB0544.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2021/07/02/critical-race-theory-sununu-reaction/

Seneca Village

 _{Black Americans founded Seneca village in 1825, and its community became a predominantly African American and Irish community. Slavery was in NY until 1827 and continued until 1841 with slaveowners out of state bringing their slaves to NY. NYC racism removed many opportunities for housing and essential resources for living, and the land provided refuge to African Americans to live autonomously, without feeling controlled. Seneca village became a tight-knit community and is quoted as an “enclave” away from harassment and “a stabilizing and empowering force in uncertain times.” (The central Park conservancy) Records show that there were three churches, a school, and two cemeteries. There is also evidence of past gardens and raised livestock, and thanks to its location, it was known for residents to fish in the Hudson River. In 1821, NY state required African American men to pay $250 in property and hold residence for three years in order to vote. Seneca village was a place where African Americans could buy land, and out of the 100 black New yorker's eligible to vote, 10 were residents of Seneca Village. In the early 1850s, to make the first central public park in Manhattan, the New York State Legislature enacted a law designating the 775 acres of Seneca Village for the construction of Central Park. The destruction of Seneca Village ended the prosperous community built to provide refuge and resources to those oppressed and alienated in society. The government displaced roughly 1600 habitants, and by 1857, the community as a whole was removed. The government used its want for a massive public park, now named Central Park, to wipe out an entire thriving community, named Seneca Village, and all of the resources they've created for themselves. A complete tragedy for the residents, the state and other NYC citizens called for the Park’s “greater good.” Seneca Village was purposefully removed from popular memory until the late 20th century, when many artifacts were found.}  

https://www.centralparknyc.org/articles/seneca-village https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-americas/us-art-19c/xf20f462f:us-19c-arch-sculp/v/seneca-village-the-lost-history-of-african-americans-in-new-york