South Bronx Battles : Stories of Resistance, Resilience, and Renewal

Community activist Carolyn McLaughlin takes us on a journey of the South Bronx through the eyes of its community members. Facing burned-out neighborhoods of the 1970s, the community fought back. McLaughlin illustrates the spirit of the community in creating a vibrant, diverse culture and its decades-long commitment to develop nonprofit housing and social-services, and to advocate for better education, health care, and a healthier environment. For the South Bronx to remain a safe haven for poor families, maintaining affordable housing is the central—but most challenging—task. __South Bronx Battles__ is the comeback story of a community that was once in crisis but now serves as a beacon for other cities to rebuild, while keeping their neighborhoods affordable. "The South Bronx has been the poorest congressional district in the U.S. for nearly forty years. While boroughs like Queens and Brooklyn have gentrified, the South Bronx is often still seen as a symbol of urban decay. But in fact, its residents--primarily people of color and including many immigrants--have made great progress in improving neighborhoods and creating a vibrant, diverse culture. Community activist Carolyn McLaughlin takes us on a journey through the South Bronx, from its past to its present, through the eyes of its community members. Facing the burned-out neighborhoods of the 1970s and 1980s, the community fought to prevent firehouse and hospital closures and expose redlining. McLaughlin illustrates the spirit of the community and its decades-long commitment to develop nonprofit housing and social-service agencies, and to advocate for better education, health care, and a cleaner environment. And for the South Bronx to remain a safe haven for poor families, McLaughlin asserts that maintaining affordable housing is the central--but most challenging--task. South Bronx Battles is the comeback story of a community that was once in crisis but now serves as a beacon for other cities to forge ahead, rebuild, and keep their neighborhoods affordable"--Provided by publisher Community activist Carolyn McLaughlin takes us on a journey of the South Bronx through the eyes of its community members. Facing burned-out neighborhoods of the 1970s, the community fought back. McLaughlin illustrates the spirit of the community in creating a vibrant, diverse culture and its decades-long commitment to develop nonprofit housing and social-services, and to advocate for better education, health care, and a healthier environment. For the South Bronx to remain a safe haven for poor families, maintaining affordable housing is the central—but most challenging—task.

South Bronx Battles is the comeback story of a community that was once in crisis but now serves as a beacon for other cities to rebuild, while keeping their neighborhoods affordable.
Contents Illustrations Foreword South Bronx Timeline 1. The South Bronx: An Introduction 2. How the South Bronx Became the Poorest Congressional District 3. Why the South Bronx Burned 4. People Fight Back: 1960s and 1970s 5. Progress, but Plagues Descend on the South Bronx: 1980s 6. Not Yet Paradise, but We’ve Come a Long Way: 1990s 7. Many Faces of Success: 2000–2018 8. “The Bronx Was the Last Place”: Reflections on Displacement and Gentrification 9. Lessons Learned Epilogue Acknowledgments Abbreviations Glossary Notes Interviews Bibliography Index