Class Divide, a documentary film from Producer Daphne Pinkerton and director Marc Levin talks about the effects of gentrification in the Manhattan neighborhood of Chelsea. Class Divide takes a look into the lives of both students and residents from both the rich and the poor as well as their views on each other and what they see happening with gentrification. Over the years, New York has experienced spiraling economic growth that has led to its residents struggling to afford a living. More than 15 percent of residents in low-income areas are experiencing the effects of advanced gentrification (Shedd, 2015). Households are experiencing displacement, and they have been forced to leave. Families are finding it difficult to resettle once displaced as they have few choices since the majority of the suburbs have already experienced gentrification, and they are exclusionary towards low-income earners. During the production of Class Divide, more than one-third of low-income residents lived in low-income neighborhoods that were at the risk of experiencing gentrification.
Gentrification has led to the displacement of low income and Latino families in the Chelsea area in New York. Rezoning of public spaces in New York is supposed to benefit the whole city and the communities, but the problem with gentrification is that it displaces people from low-income families (Zuk et al., 2017). This has led to an increase in the gap between the rich and poor, as well as the increase in the social class of both the privileged and the underprivileged. The class divide has led to the students and children feeling isolated in terms of education, healthcare, and the social amenities that are available to them.
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Researchers and investors have argued that gentrification increases economic mobility and that it also creates employment opportunities in the affected communities. This is contrary to the views portrayed in Class Divide as urban development has led to a clear representation between the "haves" and the "have nots" as people from low-income communities have been denied the opportunities to work in this establishments that can help in poverty alleviation. Employment opportunities that have been left for the African-Americans and the Latino are low-wage and hourly service positions that have led them to struggle in order to stay afloat in their gentrified neighborhoods (Shedd, 2015). When people live in poor neighborhoods, they have poor schools with poor teachers (Zuk et al., 2017). When you study in a poor school, you get poor education, which means you can only work in a poor-paying job, which will enable you to live in a poor neighborhood
Even though not clearly discussed in the film. There is a relationship between gentrification and mental health issues such as depression and increased cases of elevated anxiety. Other conditions include diabetes, heart diseases, and cancer that are as a result of gentrification among low-income residents in Chelsea. The ever-increasing gap between the rich and poor makes people question their role and purpose in life (Lareau, 2002). Neighborhoods play a vital role in the life of a child, and the children who are raised in a neighborhood with more opportunities end up with better economic and mental health prospects than those that didn't.
Gentrification in low-income communities results in poverty, housing insecurities, and sometimes homelessness. Residents in gentrified neighborhoods feel financially pressured as they are not able to compete in the residential markets as well as the availability of social amenities, and this may result in depression (Lareau, 2002). Even though the documentary failed to discuss how gentrification can be combated or provide a context that can be used to spark change, there is a need for both the federal government and researchers to find a balance on how gentrification can benefit everyone.
References
Lareau, Annette. (2002). Invisible Inequality: Social Class and Childrearing in Black Families and White Families. American Sociological Review . 67 (5): 747-776.
Shedd, Carla. (2015). Unequal Cities: Race, Schools, and Perceptions of Injustice . New York, NY: Russel Sage Foundation. Chapter 1.
Zuk, M., Bierbaum, A., Chapple, K., Gorska, K., & Loukaitou-Sideris, A. (2017). Gentrification, Displacement, and the Role of Public Investment. Journal of Planning Literature , 33 (1), 31-44. https://doi.org/10.1177/0885412217716439
