Gentrification

From reading "Austin, Texas: The East Austin Neighborhood," "The Empty Stairs," and "PBS Flag Wars: Gentrification," I found three interesting points about gentrification. The minorities in Austin are so easily manipulated by the rich and racial majorities. Before the current issue of gentrification, the minorities were forced into East Austin in the first place. I wasn't surprised that they had the power over the utilities offered, but I was surprised that they could manage to force the minorities' churches' relocation. Since the families who were forced into East Austin didn't relocate, the East Austin communities remain occupied by predominantly minorities Despite forcing the minorities into East Austin in the first place, the  minorities are once again being forced out of East Austin now. Also, The PBS article referred to the communities facing gentrification as "victim[s] of its own success." By thinking of gentrification in this way, it really puts the oppression into perspective. As the community simply worked to decrease the crime rate and other ways to beautify and improve itself, the community is also bringing on its own demise of rising property values and higher property taxes. To become more of a unified community is also to demolish that community. It's no wonder that there are many communities in East Austin which are wary of non-residents who try to help them improve their neighborhood.  Despite the attempts to solve the negative consequences of gentrification, the government, residents, and corporations are still struggling to find a reasonable balance for everyone involved to benefit. There are many affordable housing projects and other acts created for the sake of the residents facing gentrification, yet there also are still many issues regarding gentrification. From reading "Johannesburg in photos: On the block of Gentrification," I understand that the problem of gentrification is not a unique problem to the United States; gentrification is prevalent internationally. I think one of the photos that I found the most peculiar is the one showing two young boys with BB guns as a man takes a photo of them. The caption explains that "security is high in the area and people feel comfortable flashing their phones and cameras despite the area being in town, often being considered dangerous." This aspect of Johannesburg's gentrification is much different from the gentrification in Austin. In Austin, the residents facing gentrification resent the Austin police for ignoring the community. It seems that in Johannesburg, there is high involvement of the police for high security. I didn't expect that the gentrification in Johannesburg to be as distinct as the gentrification in the United States. Another difference lies in how the poverty-stricken communities arrived to the location of their current issue of gentrification. The Austin poverty-stricken communities were forced into East Austin area, whereas the poverty-stricken communities of Johannesburg took over the CBD area after the "white flight." The most important difference lies in the attitude toward the gentrification. Despite their economic differences, the wealthy and the impoverished will interact in Johannesburg unlike in East Austin.