I loved writing this blog. Gentrification, segregation, and the Seattle black community have proven to be very layered subjects that I have enjoyed researching.
Writing the blog paralled my move to the Central District (CD). While I was discovering my neighborhood on foot, by bike, and by neighbor, I was also learning about the major issues that have and are shaping the Central District. This was both informative and troubling. It was informative as I have truly enjoyed gathering knowledge about where I am residing, but also guilt-inducing as part of me felt that I was contributing to gentrification as a white woman.
In class, we spent a good deal of time reading and discussing institutional racism. Housing is a major arena where this occurs. Racist housing rules initially shaped the CD and now, rising real estate prices and unequal access to mortgages and other financial resources strengthen gentrification in the CD and segregation in other areas.
I know my role in this schema is to be a white ally. After writing this blog, I am better informed about what is happening in the CD and thus, have knowledge and power to share with other white people. This influence could be particularly influential to those I know living in the CD. I know that this is the next step in the process of the blog - to breathe life into the issue and initiate activism in my own social circle.
To ameliorate this issue on a grander scale, several key things need to be accomplished:
1. Accesible and affordable housing in the CD. As long as real estate prices rise and there is a lack of affordable housing in the neighborhood, segregation and gentrification will perpetuate.
2. Fair housing. The City needs to enforce fair housing ordinance which prohibits unfair housing practices in the rental, sale, or financing of housing because of a person's protected class.
3. Preservation of historical black places. Historical churches, buildings, and cultural centers should be protected to keep intact the African American cultural legacy in the CD.
It is our belief that instituting the above recommendations will preserve the CD as a neighborhood that is both historically and presently African American.
