BY STUDENT
I grew in Park Slope, Brooklyn, often considered one of the wealthiest whitest neighborhoods. For me, that was not my reality, yes I lived in a good neighborhood but I have always grown up in a working-class family. Park Slope lacks in creating a space for Latino urban culture but Sunset Park, which is right next door made up for it. At least it used to. How does Sunset Park’s Latino space years ago compare to it now? How has it changed/evolved? I believe that although Sunset Park has undergone changes and will continue to gentrify, it will always be a space for Latinos.
Sunset Park’s history is very interesting; immigrants built it in the 1800s (Agrawal, 2018). It was first home to European immigrants and then later Puerto Ricans, other Latinos joined soon after as well as Chinese immigrants (Agrawal, 2018). With that said this meant Sunset Park was known to have businesses that catered to Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, and Mexicans, as they took up most of the neighborhood’s population. There were many ethnic restaurants and money transferring locales; as a result of Latinos wanting to keep their families maintained (Agrawal, 2018). I go to Sunset Park often because I feel like it brings me a piece of Mexico. Not just because the population is heavily Mexican but the atmosphere is different. Everyone says hi, most of the businesses are family-owned, and everyone speaks Spanish. Today it is being gentrified and seeking a new crowd. I have started to see minimalist coffee shops, juice shops, and organic markets that are too overpriced for much of its current residence. Latinos are being displaced from a place that is as close to home as they can get. When walking the streets of Sunset Park you see many street vendors as well, trying so hard to bring a taste of back home to their current home. According to Tonkiss, in ”The Politics of Space: Social Movements in Public Space” having space is important for politics and power (2005). Having Sunset Park be predominantly Latinx gives them power. It allows the Latinx population to be more expressive in their culture. This can be seen in the murals located all around Sunset Park. The most well-known mural would be “Soldaderas”, which pays tribute to both Mexico and Puerto Rico (Mural is located above). In the mural we see both Frida Kahlo and Julia de Burgos holding hands and armed with both flags in the background. It is a symbol of unity and strength. There are other murals, mostly of famous Latinx figures. These murals are important, they remind us, that we are important, that there is a place for us to express our culture (Perez, 2012). This reminds me of the article on Chicano Park which is known for some of the most famous Latinx murals. In the article, there is a focus on woman empowerment and expressing the idea of gender balance through art, which can be seen in the “Soldaderas” piece because instead of choosing two powerful Latinx men, the artist chooses women (Perez, 2012). Along with murals throughout the year Sunset Park hosts many fairs/festivals, there is one in May in honor of Cinco de Mayo (photo from 2018 celebration).
Agrawal, Nina. “Brooklyn's Sunset Park, Built and Rebuilt by Immigrants, Sees Change Once Again.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, April 20, 2018. https://www.latimes.com/nation/la-na-sunset-park-gentrification-2018-story.html.
DeJesus, Jaime. “Sunset Park Celebrates Mexican Independence, Culture during Rainy Parade.” The Brooklyn Home Reporter, September 12, 2018. https://brooklynreporter.com/2018/09/sunset-park-celebrates-mexican-independence-culture-during-rainy-parade/.
“Mural- Soldaderas: Historic Districts Council's Six to Celebrate.” Historic Districts Councils Six to Celebrate. Accessed September 15, 2019. http://6tocelebrate.org/site/mural-soldaderas/.
Tonkiss, Fran. Space, the City and Social Theory: Social Relations and Urban Forms. Cambridge: Polity, 2005.
Perez, Gail. “Women Hold Up Half of Chicano Park.” San Diego's Original Latino Community Newspaper, July 27, 2012. http://laprensa-sandiego.org/featured/women-hold-up-half-of-chicano-park/.
I think your blog post was well written and it brought up great points. I agree with your point of how these spaces make people more expressive of their culture. Also with the murals as well and how they are important for latinx neighborhoods , this is similar to my neighborhood in Harlem where they also have the same Soldaderas mural.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog post and I think you did a great job touching upon the history of Sunset Park. I also grew up in Brooklyn but in Bed-Stuy, but I wouldn't say that there is a large Mexican community as in Sunset. I always get a sense of pride and joy whenever I see our culture being present in our neighborhoods. I think its needed to remind people that we are still here. That these neighborhoods are our homes, its a community that we have created with love. I've never seen the mural of the Soldaderas but I think it's a great representation for our Latinx communities that are all around NYC. It's very symbolic, showing the unity we have to stick together.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading your post! I liked how you used your own experiences and included your reality of what Sunset Park once was and what it is today. Like you, I have also seen my neighborhood gradually becoming more and more gentrified. I also liked your use of street art and the symbolism behind it. Although Puerto Ricans and Mexicans are drastically different, they're two major Latinx groups that have built this city and are now finding themselves as you said, displaced. Overall, great piece.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really interesting post. I enjoyed how you related your experiences of Latinx struggles for space in urban cultures within your own neighborhood. Prior to reading this I was unaware of the rich, long lasting history of Sunset Park located in Brooklyn, New York. As the urban culture always seems to changing and gentrifying one way or another it is great to see that Latinx culture still stands strong in your neighborhood building a powerful community within itself. The murals shown in your blog post are beautiful and represent the Latinx population with pride.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very informative and well-written post about the history of Sunset Park and how it has shaped the Latinx community in the area. It’s sad to hear about the nature of the Park changing due to gentrification out-competing and displacing local businesses, but I enjoyed the enthusiasm you maintained throughout the whole post because you are confident that Sunset Park will always be a safe space for Latinx people through all the good and bad changes the Park goes through. I think it’s great you highlighted how there is a gendered representation of latinization in the US. The “Soldaderas” mural is a great example of showing unity amongst different Latinx communities in the area, as well as giving women a platform to showcase their strength and contributions to the Latinx community because most times they are left out of the conversation. Are there any staple aspects of Sunset Park that if gentrified would change the image of the Park to the point where it could not cater to the Latinx community anymore?
ReplyDelete^ This is Alana
DeleteGreat post! We have seen the same gentrification pushing Latinos out of their own spaces in many places similar to Sunset Park. When you mentioned the coffee shops, I thought of that video we watched in class where the culture and history of the neighborhood was being used to attract upper-class people to come and “sightsee” while enjoying healthy food. The gentrifiers act as if they are helping the locals and catering to the locals, when they are actually doing the complete opposite. Overall, your blogpost was a very interesting read, but I would love to hear more about how the locals react to all the changes.
ReplyDeleteLove this post!!
ReplyDeleteThis post connect with my personal life in several ways, I live in Inwood, Manhattan, Payson avenue to be exact and yes it is one of the most safe neighbor, but just over 8 streets we found Dyckman, where is a little Dominican republic to me and when I can find people that speak my language, and I can connect with. Sadly, as Sunset park it is getting gentrified.
Do you think in 10-20 years from now, Dyckman or Sunset Park will go back to be fully part of the Latino Urban Spaces?
Similar to the Young Lords and their battles for space,do you think battles for space can occur in the future or will gentrification find its way to accommodate and contribute to these cultures?
ReplyDelete