The Point CDC in Hunts Point never disappoints and is not afraid of speaking up for the people and it has done an excellent job once again in this statement released today:
November 6, 2015
Statement Regarding #WhatPianoDistrict from THE POINT CDC
Recent events regarding the proposed redevelopment on the South Bronx waterfront has made news and has justifiably upset members of our communities. This past weekend real estate developers Somerset Partners and The Chetrit Group hosted a celebrity filled “Macabre Suite” party, filled with gross depictions of a dark era in Bronx history passed as art for the delight and entertainment of individuals that are completely disconnected and insensitive to the history and realities of South Bronx residents.
As poor and working class neighborhoods in New York City and other large metropolitan areas around the world experience displacement, this event comes as a huge blow to the morale and psyche of those who live through gentrification as a real and ever-present danger in their daily lives. Public demonstrations like these serve not only to culturally appropriate the lived experience of people who survived the “Bronx Is Burning” era and the decades of urban blight that followed, it also reinforces a colonialist myth that life, art, and culture in The Bronx never existed before the arrival of luxury development that only serve the privileged.
THE POINT CDC stands with our brethren South Bronx communities in repudiating the actions of those involved in creating this event. Our mission, values the history and talents that our community inherently brings to the neighborhood, as we believe that our community has the knowledge and willingness to imagine and achieve the type of neighborhood we want and deserve. THE POINT has stood alongside our neighbors and fellow community organizations as we’ve fought and continue to fight for basic rights such as affordable housing, living wage jobs, cleaner air for us all to breathe, and public access to our waterfront – all things that are of the utmost priority for local residents, rather than the construction of luxury housing developments.
We demand that any economic, housing, and cultural transactions that take place in the South Bronx, leverage existing resources and address the needs of the longtime residents living in our neighborhoods. In the upcoming days and weeks, there will be many opportunities for people concerned with displacement and gentrification in The Bronx to engage in meaningful conversation and to effectively organize accordingly. As those events become available, we will inform you. We hope that you join us in this effort.
#TheBronxisBreathing #WhatPianoDistrict
