Sunday, December 31, 2017

Who Does New York Really Belong To Now?

In a former and much younger life, when I had the good fortune to live in New York City (first as a student intern, and then as a civil servant), I think that what I enjoyed about it most, apart from the arts scene, was the feeling back then that the city could feel like home to anyone, regardless of background or income level.  That feeling was, in part, a reflection of the liberal tenor of New York politics.  The predominantly Democratic leadership of the City and State, and even many of its Republican politicians, understood that diversity was the key to making New York both a cultural and economic mecca.

Not so much anymore, I'm afraid.

Twenty years of Republican mayors (yes, Bloomberg was technically an independent) have shifted New York politics very far to the right.  Not quite all the way; the city's progressive constituencies are far too powerful for that.  But far enough that the cityscape is being rapidly remade to suit the needs of the 1%, with very little regard for anyone else.

Almost every day, there are Gotham press stories about some new, faceless glass tower, usually with a highfalutin' name (One Impressive Tower, or something like that), replacing spaces where people from all walks of life lived, worked, and made things a little bit better for everyone around them.  And who lives in the faceless towers?  Very often, no one.  They are little more than tax shelters for overseas investors, looking for gains in the almost always overheated Manhattan real estate market.  And the people who used to live in the spaces occupied by the newer buildings?  Where do they go?  It's doubtful that they go anywhere in the City; almost nothing is affordable.  You can track the progress of the demolition (oh, irony!) by visiting Jeremiah's Vanishing New York, if you can stand the pain of doing so.

It has, in fact, gotten so bad that the city is literally joining in the process of making itself disappear, selling pieces of itself off to private investors in exchange for a few short-term shekels in in coffers.  What happens when it runs out of space to sell?  Who will effectively be in charge of the city then?  Does anybody care?  Is anybody there? (with apologies to the authors of "1776").

I'd like to think that there's enough people to care that something can be done about it.  But, clearly, New Yorkers can no longer look to the Democratic Party for leadership on the issue of New York's livability.  Bill de Blasio is apparently what passes now for a liberal New York Democratic mayor now, but he seems to be little more than a servant of real estate interests.

It's up to you, New Yorkers.  Fight however you can, to save the City for everybody.  Including former residents and current tourists.  Like me.

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