Gentrification, Racism and the Democratic Electoral Coalition

Mar 19, 2019

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in Economic development, Politics, Race and Race Relations

today: “D.C. has the highest ‘intensity’ of gentrification of any U.S. city, study says. More than 20,000 African American residents were displaced from low-income neighborhoods from 2000 to 2013, researchers say.”

Forbes magazine, circa June 2018: “Washington DC is being sued for gentrification. The 82-page class action lawsuit, filed by Aristotle Theresa, brought grievances against the city for its alleged discriminatory policies favoring creatives and millennials at the expense of the city’s historically African American, low-income residents.”

Reminder

: Washington, D.C., also is one of the most liberal and Democratic jurisdictions in the country. In the 2016 presidential election, 91% of the population voted for Hillary Clinton.

Question: How long can the electoral alliance between creatives/millennials and African-Americans persist?

Creative class

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6 responses to “Gentrification, Racism and the Democratic Electoral Coalition”

Andrew Roesell

March 19, 2019

Dear Jim,

With ever shriller demagoguery, plenty of sinecures, subsidies, and other “palm greasing,” and a dose of “internal dissent dousing,” the coalition continues.

Sincerely,

Andrew

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J. Abbate

March 19, 2019

Jim,

As long as the Republican party is held hostage by a president who has clearly rewarded the wealthy with tax breaks with little offered to the struggling working class, who ignores the reality of domestic white terrorism and focuses on an “emergency” imagined at our border targeting immigrants of color, and operates by fashioning fake reality to counter actual science and facts, the coalition continues. The President has managed to inspire a new coalition of racists, white supremacists, and Neo-Confederates, which also functions to drive minorities, creatives, and many millennials to the Dems out of fear and frustration.

Thank you for the discussion.

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1. Steve Haner
  
  March 19, 2019
  
  A fair dose of truth in the first two comments!
  
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2. TooManyTaxes
  
  March 20, 2019
  
  “uses on an “emergency” imagined at our border targeting immigrants of color” A totally dishonest statement!
  
  The United States, like every other nation in the world, has immigration laws. To enter the United States on a permanent basis, one needs permission from the Government. Even to make a claim as refugee, one needs permission from the Government. And to get permission in either case, one must satisfy the requirements of the law.
  
  Lots of people regularly satisfy the requirements of law and are admitted either as a lawful immigrant or as a lawful refugee. But many don’t and can’t. Just being poor does not permit one to be a refugee. Many people overstay their visa, which does not permit permanent residency. Just escaping a bad life in another country does not allow one to overstay one’s visa. Many people just sneak over the border. Both of these actions are illegal in the United States and in most every other nation in the world. The laws apply irrespective of gender, race, ethic background, nationality, sexual preference, eating preferences, etc., etc., etc. A lot of people in the United States do not have a legal right to remain here. Race has nothing to do with it.
  
  There are a lot of people in the United States who don’t want the laws enforced. A lot of Republicans want to hire people not authorized to work here because they can pay less than market compensation and push many of the costs of supporting these workers and their families to taxpayers. A lot of Democrats want to bring dependent people here to keep people with college degrees working for the government employed taking care of these people and their families as well as attract more Democratic voters. It would be fitting punishment for all these people, R & D alike, to suffer the bubonic plague. These people want laws enforced that protect their lives and property but want immigration laws ignored. Justify that as a principle of law.
  
  A lot of people will not have the intellectual honesty to address the argument as to whether the United States should follow its laws but wave the racism card as a substitute.
  
  Of course, allowing people to ignore laws they don’t like invites every other person to ignore other laws they don’t like too. For example, why can’t gun store owners just ignore the gun background check laws? Why can’t people marry more than one person at the same time? Why can’t people burn down abortion clinics?
  
  Why don’t you just come out and state that you believe people can pick out the laws they want followed and the ones they want to ignore, here the immigration laws? Let’s have a free for all. But in nation without the rule of law, every person becomes law unto themselves and might makes right.
  
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NorrhsideDude

March 19, 2019

Cities demanding increased taxes to pay for increasd services but eliminating those who can and are willing to pay those taxes. Absolutely incredible- there are now standards that no one can live up to.

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LarrytheG

March 20, 2019

re: ” Question: How long can the electoral alliance between creatives/millennials and African-Americans persist?”

Well, Ever since the Dems were said to be the original Jim Crow racists, Conservatives and the GOP have had unlimited opportunity to make their case with blacks especially with the likes of Thomas Sowell and other Pols recruitment attempts – “What the HELL do you have to lose?

Some rationality with respect to the liberal/conservative/white/black aspect of “gentrification” can be found by looking back at a case called Kelo which became the rallying cry of Conservatives against the “leftist” Government “letting” private developers “take” people’s property for their own economic gain:

https://www.theitem.com/uploads/original/20180420-184021-AP18094652088835_78690.jpg

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