East Harlem
However, it wasn’t until after World War II (in the 1940s and 1950s) that Puerto Rican migration into New York city soared, and East Harlem became an “Island within the city” or a Puerto Rican cultural enclave (Dávila 6). As this was happening Urban renewal policies drove out Italians and as a result East Harlem became a quasi segregated community (Bell 3, XX). During the 1950’s East Harlem faced a substance abuse problem (which continued through the 70’s). Also, during this time period many gangs arose due to racial clash in the neighborhood; East Harlem soon became known for its “culture of poverty” brought on by violence, drugs, and income scarcity; perhaps the best example of this culture is depicted in the drama West Side Story (Dávila 7, Bell XXX ). The revolutionary spirit of the 60’s reached East Harlem and Latinos and Black stood up to the white democracy to halt urban renewal process (Bell 3). A sense of national pride also surged at this time, with the introduction of several outreach programs to help the community, and through introduction of projects, such as the Museo del Barrio, which preserved the Latino history in East Harlem (Bell 3, XXX). However, this victory was short lived since gentrification began again later in the 90’s and it continues to threaten the livelihood of its residents to this day (Dávila 6).
In more recent decades East Harlem has opened its doors to many more immigrants specially those of Mexican, Salvadorian and Dominican descent. Today over 50 percent of the population of East Harlem is Hispanic and over 30 percent is Black, this is a higher proportion of blacks and Hispanics than New York City overall (NYC 1). Although there have been many outreach programs to help the community, East Harlem still has one of the highest poverty rates and unemployment rates in NYC (7). The culture of poverty that urban scholar Arlene Dávila describes is still quite prevalent. Despite this, East Harlem is “home to key images of “urban” Latino culture” where Puerto Rican influence is evident (Dávila 6) For instance, it has been used as backdrop for ESPN, Jennifer Lopez videos, TV shows, etc. Furthermore, there are many Latino celebrations held here and countless of murals that depict Latino culture.