Gentrification according to Merriam-Webster is the:

the process of renewal and rebuilding accompanying the influx of middle-class or affluent people into deteriorating areas that often displaces poorer residents

More simply put, it is when you move the poor people out of a neighborhood and allow people with money to move in.  What is the benefit of this you might ask?  Gentrification is supposed to reduce local property crime, increase property taxes and home values, and lead to businesses moving into the area to service the newer home owners.  All necessary tools to build a city, economy, and increase the value of a plot of land.

Park Slope, a Brooklyn neighborhood in New York City went through a gentrification period from the 1970s and 1980s.  The Great Depression of 1929 left this affluent area for the slums.  The land and homes were later bought and sold to people of the middle class.  This is now the area of Brooklyn next to the Brooklyn Bridge where homes go for around $2.5 million dollars.

But what about the displaced?  If you are not blessed with wealth, and lived where you could afford, what happens to you when you are ousted from your home?  Gentrification pundits rarely address this issue.  It’s a slippery slope and we’d like to know what you think.

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