In 2003, over 400 families from the Arthur Capper's housing project in South East Washington DC were forced from their homes as part of a massive nation-wide redevelopment program. Although they lived only a stone's throw from Capitol Hill, a world famous symbol of democracy, their voices were silenced when it came to making key decisions about the development of their neighborhood. Chocolate City explores the rapid gentrification of Washington, D.C. through the eyes of a group of local women who are fighting to return to their neighborhood. Although living in the shadows of power, their story celebrates the strength of communities and the capacity of art to inspire change.
Time: Doors Open @ 5 p.m. Film – Starts @ 6 p.m. (Main feature preceeded by Richard Wright Film Student Shorts)
Location: Student Center, Ballroom (4200 Connecticut Ave. NW)
Gentrification refers to the process that occurs when a professional and managerial population moves into a neighborhood, frequently run-down, that has primarily been inhabited by people of a lower socioeconomic class. The newcomers then rehabilitate and improve their new properties, driving up housing costs and displacing the earlier residents. Although gentrification has occurred in many cities, it has generally been confined to a small number of neighborhoods in each of them and encompasses only a small part of their housing stock.
Gentrification often occurs in stages. Initially, many new arrivals are attracted by the relatively low housing prices in these sections of the city, as well as by the demographic diversity, historical character, or architectural quality of an area. Over time, as housing units are renovated and their prices increase, later arrivals in these neighborhoods are likely to be more affluent than the earlier “pioneers” and are often attracted to the area largely as an investment. Some neighborhoods become almost completely gentrified, and the existing population becomes displaced by newcomers. Other neighborhoods begin the gentrification process but retain much of their earlier population as gentrification slows or comes to an early halt.
Those who have studied gentrification have offered several explanations for its occurrence in the 1970s and 1980s. One focus has been the characteristics of gentrifiers, especially those in the early years of a neighborhood’s gentrification. They were likely to remain unmarried and childless longer than the norm; therefore, they were not as interested in a relatively homogeneous suburban environment and more willing to live in diverse urban neighborhoods. Compatible with this interpretation is one that interprets gentrification primarily as a “market” phenomenon. As housing prices decrease in these neighborhoods, potential residents see an economic bargain. The decision to move can also bring gentrifiers nearer their places of employment because these neighborhoods are often close to central business districts or other job centers.
Other analyses have emphasized the role of institutions in creating conditions under which gentrification can occur. For example, banking institutions often contributed to the decline of these neighborhoods by redlining them and making loans difficult to obtain for either rehabilitation or purchase. Now these financial institutions saw a chance to profit and “greenlined” these areas, making capital more readily available. Other institutions whose policies contributed to decline and then gentrification included the real estate industry and national and local governments.
Although there are benefits to gentrification, such as improving the housing stock within a city and perhaps enhancing a city’s tax base, there are also costs. The most significant has been the involuntary displacement of many residents. Displacement has primarily acted upon renters whose buildings were purchased by gentrifiers who turned them back into single-family homes, or whose buildings were bought by investors who converted them into condominiums or increased rents significantly. Some homeowners also faced dislodging as property taxes on their houses increased to reflect higher values. In many communities, there have been conflicts over whether to provide some kind of protection to those subject to displacement. Examples of policies advocated by those concerned about displacement are guaranteeing tenure for certain classes of renters, such as the elderly, and placing restrictions on condominium conversions.
Kerstein, Robert. "Gentrification." Encyclopedia of Urban America: The Cities and Suburbs, edited by Neil L. Shumsky, ABC-CLIO, 1st edition, 1998.
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