Gentrification In Boyz N The Hood

In the United States the hopes and dreams of living a comfortable life is desired. Living comfortably for instance owning or renting a home or apartment that just feels like home. This can be a reality but it depends on where one lives. In the United States people can be evicted or bought out of their home. This is in attempts to modernize an area of the community. Evictions and warnings are issued and it is inevitable to move from a place that one has once called home. Gentrification can be described from a quote in the film Boyz N the Hood. In the film the character Furious Styles (1991) states, “Gentrification Is what happens when property value of a certain area is brought down, they bring the property value down. They can buy the land cheaper. Then they move the people out, raise the value and sell it at a profit.” Gentrification can be proposed as a positive for the community but there can be repercussions. Those who are told and even forced to move out are left to struggle. While wealthy tenants move in, former tenants are left to find a place to stay. The issue of gentrification can be viewed differently from a humanitarian and business standpoint. Gentrification is coming into fruition in places nearby. It is important to know who wins and who loses in the process of

modernizing a community.
The American dream to many is to raise a family, earn stable income, and living in a home. People for instance that live in areas like Long Beach, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Brooklyn are experiencing this in their communities. It is difficult to imagine getting evicted or being told to leave. In some instances tenants have no choice. Along with no other choice they have nowhere else to go. There are some documented cases that appear in the media. For instance in a video titled “What It’s Like To Get Kicked Out Of Your Neighborhood” a San Francisco native named Kai revisits the neighborhood he grew up in and how it’s changes. Kai found that there is a missing cultural aspect in community and it has been replaced with luxury condominiums and restaurants. The Mission district in San Francisco has been predominantly Latino but the area lost 1,400 Latino households in the span if 15 years. Also the black community was lost half of its residents due to gentrification. Kai also explains his frustrations about technology companies such as Google and Apple. These companies are making San Francisco there home. Kai explains an argument he had with employees of these companies. The employees stated that they booked the park for them to play soccer. These employees were kicking out local teenagers out of the park. Kai then explains to them that the park is a public space and it cannot be booked, it belongs to the community. He ends the video by stating “The playground is not for sale.” It is interesting that the technology workers were not willing to engage with the community by sharing the field.
With technology companies moving into San Francisco and calling it home residents are struggling financially.

In an area that is known as wealthy can expensive it is difficult to imagine how much it would cost to living there. Quantitative research such as interviews were sought after in finding how it feels to be pushed out of a neighborhood. In a video titled “Making it/ what it costs to live in San Francisco” Valerie Francisco-Menchavez explains the costs of living in San Francisco. Valerie is an assistant professor in San Francisco State University in the Sociology department. Valerie and her husband who is also a professor earn an annual income of $100,000 to $110,000

together.
This is rather well in today’s economy but she reveals that this is low income in San Francisco. She reveals that rent for a one bedroom apartment she pays $2,400 a month. What adds on to the expenses is raising or maintaining a family. Valerie has two young girls and expenses consist of food daycare and gasoline. Valerie is torn because she grew up in San Francisco. She wants to remain in her city but she finds difficulty in maintaining hopes of staying. She has faced the reality of eventually leaving in hopes of buying a home. In San Francisco home and property value is very high. San Francisco homes are worth millions and a realistic home purchase would have to be outside of the city.
In a video titled “Streets by VICE: San Francisco (Market St.)” Market Street is known as a place of social movements such as gay rights. Currently Technology companies are moving in. These companies are welcomed due to how much money they generate. This makes it apparent that high rent costs are bound to appear. When rent spikes tenants are forced to move and can lead to homelessness. The question for the city is now “Is the city turning into a city for the rich?” For instance the Latino community is slowly disappearing in the Mission district of San Francisco. Local businesses are taking notice and notice that younger white people are replacing their usual customers. Not only Latino and Black communities are being pushed but gay neighborhoods as well. This is a drastic reality because the city is a staple for gay rights and leaders such as Harvey Milk. San Francisco has become a tourist attraction. Many who visit go due to modernized businesses and attractions. The city is always changing which explains that gentrification is very much present.
When discussing gentrification it clearly affects tenants and members of the community. There is a difference between ages when gentrification hits neighborhoods. A young child differs to elderly people. A young child would have to move and where there family can afford. This is present in the life of Fidela Villasano. According to an article titled “As gentrification closes in, immigrants in Lincoln Heights find their American dream slipping away” Fidela is 89 years old and is being pushed out of her home after living there for 55 years. Lincoln Heights has been slowly gentrifying and Fidela is now experiencing it first hand. This area is being is a target for investors. Fidela and her family took the offer and were given $20,000 to find another place to stay. They quickly realized that monthly rent is double than what they usually pay. They quickly regretted there decision and this occurs to many that are bought out of their home. The article displays more cases alongside with Fidela’s. For instance a woman named Yang Ya was evicted due to the owner agreeing to modernization of the building. Yang Ya states, “I couldn’t sleep at night. I thought about it all day, every day.” Luckily Yang was able to fight the eviction and just had to pay a rent increase. Investors take advantage of tenant because in the Lincoln Heights there is an immigrant community. This situation occurred to married couple Jose “Pepito” Viramontes Ruiz, 79, and his wife, Maria Elena Bobadilla Aguilar, 84. They lived together in their apartment for 36 years, Bobadilla used a walker, and Viramontes was blind. They signed papers to their home. The papers were to leave there home. They later realized that they were forced to leave. There home was supposed to be renovated but it never was. Those who bought the property sold it for $3.5 million at a $1.5 million profit. Investors took advantage due to their low education and persuasion techniques.
Lastly, one of the world’s most famous cities Los Angeles is no stranger to gentrification.