20 Ways
1. Smile
and say hi to your neighbors when you see them, even if they seem scary or
don’t say hi back. Sometimes it takes time to build a rapport and gain the
trust of the community. And it's important to remember that in many
communities, saying hi is seen as a sign of respect, and not saying hi is a
sign of disrespect.
2. Recognize
all the people outside of your door as your neighbors, even if they look
different from you and live under different circumstances. This includes
single mothers with three jobs and migrant workers who might not speak any
English, as well as the homeless people who sleep in the park, the drug dealers
who sell outside the liquor store, and the prostitutes walking nearby
streets. Treating all of these folks with respect and dignity from the
beginning will give you later leverage to talk to them about changing
their behavior and getting out of the life.
3. Change
the way you perceive neighbors by changing the language you use to
describe them. Think about the motivations for their actions. Instead of
“that illegal immigrant standing on the corner all day” think “my neighbor
(insert name here), who happens to be undocumented, stood out in the sun all
day waiting for the chance to work so that he could send some money back to his
family." See if that doesn’t change your opinion of him.
4. Really think before you call the
police. Ask yourself, 'Is this something that can be fixed by a simple
conversation? Did a violent crime just happen?' If so, then of course you
should call the police! But your neighbor playing their music too loud is not a
police issue. Remember many communities have experienced, and still experience,
real trauma at the hands of the police. While you may think a person has
nothing to fear if they didn’t do anything wrong, an African American may be
holding Oscar Grant, Trayvon Martin and Michael Dunn in their mind. A simple
interaction with the police can trigger the collective PTSD from which the
entire community may suffer.
5. Pay your taxes with the knowledge
that your newly introduced tax base will contribute to neigborhood improvements
and increased social programs. Lobby your elected officials to make sure their
budgetary decisions prioritize these issues. Vote for progressive tax reforms.
Many people take the fact that a neighborhood is rundown as an example of
how taxes are not worth paying, instead of recognizing that the lack of a
significant tax base is what is keeping substantial changes from coming to
those neighborhoods.
6. Remember low-income communities and
communities of color may be suffering from hundreds of years of
historic trauma, and this trauma is very fresh in the minds of most people of
color.
7. Recognize
most of the perpetrators of crime have also been the victims of a system you
have most likely benefitted from disproportionately.
8. See
all of your new communities' problems as opportunities for growth, creative
problem solving and entrepreneurship. Refuse to complain about a problem unless
you are willing to play an active, communal part in the solution.
9. Donate
and/or volunteer at local organizations that build solidarity and add capacity
to low-income communities of color.
10. Shop
local and small. Go to the dive bars, hole in the wall restaurants and small
mom and pop shops as often as the upscale restaurants, swanky bars, and
boutiques.
11. If you are opening up a business,
make sure your prices are within reach for the majority of people in the
neighborhood you operate.
12. Hire
locals, low-income folks, people of color and people from a variety of
backgrounds. Take a chance on someone with low experience, but high potential.
Hire someone who has been formerly incarcerated. Train some folks. Forgive them
for not understanding the ins-and-outs of the workplace as quickly as you would
like. If it doesn’t work out, clearly explain to them why and suggest some job
training organizations that could help them develop the skills they need for
the next job.
13. Recognize your new home has a
very unique and vibrant history and culture, and you were attracted to this
location because of the energy that is already here. You should be here to add
to that history and culture, not to erase it. Remember, while it's a good
start to support hole in the wall restaurants, you don’t gain culture simply by
eating a burrito. You gain culture by engaging in a real and meaningful manner
with the person who makes the burrito.
14. If
you can, give to crowd-funded campaigns that support local projects. Encourage
low-income folks to launch their own crowd-funded campaigns to help them go to
college, get their car fixed so they can drive to work, buy a suit they can
wear to an interview, or get a computer so they can pay attention to all that
is going on in the community. Invest in your neighbors’ well being. A
neighborhood where everyone’s needs are met is a safe neighborhood.
15. Identify
your privileges. We all have them. Having a privilege is not necessarily the
problem—it’s what you do with that privilege that counts. As an Afro-Latina
woman, I am not who you would traditionally consider "privileged."
However, I do have some privileges in this society over people who have darker
skin, less education, a less respected job or less money. When I am in
situations when these things act in my favor, I use my privilege to enrich
myself and the people around me. I mentor people. I try to find jobs and
internships for people of color. I teach people how to navigate city services.
I know whatever success I gain, I didn’t gain it on my own. I have a
responsibility to the community that has facilitated my success to be a
resource and asset to those people still trying to make it.
16.
If you create a neighborhood organization, make sure the racial and
socioeconomic diversity of the group is reflective of the neighborhood.
Actively recruit members who have differing perspectives. Find translators that
can help facilitate the recruitment and retention of non-English speakers. If
there is another organization working in the neighborhood, ask them what they
are doing and how you can help, not the other way around.
17. If
you plan any major projects in the neighborhood, make sure you do active
outreach, and seek the opinions of all your neighbors. Put in the extra effort
to build a consensus and make sure your project is in line with the existing
community's goals.
18. Engage
with the government and advocate on behalf of policies that benefit all the
residents of your city, both those born and raised there and recent
transplants. Support affordable housing, education funding, re-entry services,
job training and placement programs.
19.
Learn all that you can about the culture and history of your new home. Don't
assume that just because positive changes haven't come to the community, that
the community doesn't want change. They do. They just lack the financial means,
political savvy and/or free time it takes to make it happen. Asking your
neighbors what's been done before and what they want to see now can lead to
neighborhood improvements that are inclusive of all perspectives—and your
neighbors will be happy to finally get the help they need to make the
improvements they've likely been dreaming of for years.
20. Fall
in love with your new community, both for what it is and what it could be. Give
your new neighbors the benefit of the doubt. Ask them how they'd like to be
treated. Don't be afraid. Be nice to each other. Build community and
understanding.
2 comments:
On the subject of gentrification, this is one of the best articles I've seen:
http://vanishingnewyork.blogspot.com/2014/03/on-spike-lee-hyper-gentrification.html
I don't entirely agree with it, but it DOES make a distinction between "my" kind of '70s gentrification and the hyper-gentrification going on now.
Wow, Bob -- thanks for this. A really profound understanding of the situation. Calls to mind Naomi Klein's citation of "savage capitalism." It's a steroidal, T-2 version of that thing you already don't like...
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