Much of the behavior atissue here concerns the very presence of (primarily black) people in the public view,congregating openly for leisure or without apparent purpose
This concern presents the aforementioned idea that classism is attributed to race in American society. Stigmas surrounding the black community may stem from their oppression on a socio-economic scale.
I should not have to not want to go outside because...there’s a bunch of other people out thereloitering, hanging out and doing whatever. Next thing you know, there’s garbage all around andthat’s not being taken care of
This argument presents the idea of a slippery slope, that one issue inevitably leads to another, more pressing matter. However, I believe this contributes the reputation of the city of Atlanta as mentioned above; the mere presence of homelessness alludes to issues of poverty, addiction, and crime in the city, and contributes to the negative perspective of the city maintained by many visitors and outsiders.
Indeed, much of the ‘trouble’ across sites,but especially in Westhaven Park and Oakwood Shores, was seen by many respondentsto originate from remaining public housing complexes located nearby, or from visitors torelocated public housing residents in the mixed-income developments
The efforts of positive integration mandate an intermingling of races and classes, although this statement poses the idea that isolation might better allow for the progression of lower-class individuals and families. In fact, the idea of relocation to public housing mandates the removal of these groups from their current locale.
What ‘counts’ as disorder, and what behaviors arereasonably open to monitoring and control?
Recent actions by local police reveal that city monitoring and control often discriminates against the poor and homeless. A recent law allowed for cops to disperse loiterers in areas such as parking garages, to contribute to the feeling of safety in the city. Suits have been filed against the city, claiming that such legislation targets homeless individuals who seek refuge in these spaces.
expressions of incivility (loitering, panhandling, harassment, public drinking)are often seen to indicate more fundamental problems with safety and crime,
Many of my annotated bibliography articles addressed the presence of homelessness in the city, and its contribution to Atlanta's reputation for crime and danger. Unlike other cities, downtown Atlanta is not bustling with locals at night. Visitors and tourists are then confronted by the presence of homelessness and poverty in the city, which is associated with crime. Many of the articles I have studied propose solutions that deal with the expansion of shelters and resources available to the homeless and poverty-stricken, to keep these individuals off the streets and decrease their proximity to the reputation of the city. This essay proposes similar solutions through the process of positive gentrification.
hese include access to themore diverse social networks of higher-income neighbors (‘weak ties’ or ‘bridging’social capital) that can connect them to information and opportunity as well as increasedresponsiveness of political and market actors that can lead to greater access
This is an issue addressed in many of my annotated bibliographies, as poverty becomes cyclical and seemingly inescapable for so many Americans. Lower-class individuals do not have the resources necessary to procure better employment and living conditions; this is evident in our discussion on the expansion of Marta in class, and the importance of cheaper public transportation to lower classes.
In the United States, these tensions are further complicated byracial dynamics
This idea supports the argument made in our perspectives course that race and class are closely tied. As discussed through our study of the graphic novel Blacksad, prejudice in many places abroad is derived from class. In the United States, we have masked class with discrimination targeted at race.
The strategy of reclaiming public housing complexes for mixed-income developmentis essentially an effort at ‘positive gentrification’
As detailed in the Atlanta Business article, this is a course of action that will be utilized by the city of Atlanta once the Peachtree-Pine shelter is closed. In order to support the individuals and families displaced by its closure, the city is negotiating the purchase of low-income housing options nearby.
econcentration effortsare geared towards either dispersing poor people to less-poor communities or attractinghigher-income residents to low-income neighborhoods.
This descriptions of efforts by cities to diminish poverty is the same as gentrification, which has both positive and negative impacts on lower-income individuals and families. As presented by Max in class, the introduction of Krog Street Market to a certain community increased the cost of living in that neighborhood, driving out this populace.
The Atlanta Business article by Dave Williams details city plans to close the Peachtree-Pine homeless shelter, and convert the space to a police and fire facility. City officials met to vote on the action, but the council was delayed by complaints and protests from members of the community. The article catalogues continued efforts of the city to terminate the shelter’s operation, accused of “‘warehousing’ the homeless.” The shelter has in turn accused Atlanta officials to maintain agenda of negative gentrification. Ultimately, the city continues with its plans to transition the shelter, while seeking low-housing opportunities for individuals and families displaced by its closure.
The author presents an objective chronicle of the council meeting, and the members’ idiosyncratic perspectives on the shelter. However, I have read numerous articles on the closure of the shelter, and most are devoted to the perspectives of Anita Beaty and other members of the Metro Atlanta Task Force for the Homeless. This Atlanta Business article does not consider the concerns and arguments of this group, or the effects of the closure on the homeless population. The perspectives presented are mostly biased to positively portray the city and its council members, although the article deals with a controversial issue in Atlanta.