The 1950’s and 1960’s transported the idea of urban renewal to fruition. The passage of the 1949 Housing Act, The Housing Act of 1954, and The 1956 Federal Aid Highway Act demolished numerous neighborhoods of historical and social value throughout the United States. Jane Jacobs, a woman with no political or neighborhood planning background began fighting against the bulldozer mentality in New York City that sought to construct highways and skyscrapers, which displaced many individuals, particularly minority groups. While the word placemaking was not realized until the late 20th century, Jacobs initiated this movement, gaining support from residents of the city. In this project, I intend to reveal how Jane Jacobs increased support for her movement, as well as the origins of urban renewal. I also intend to understand how this anti-urban renewal movement in New York directly affected African Americans.
A plethora of material exists in reference to Jane Jacobs and urban renewal during this time, although it typically approaches the topic from an economic standpoint. Jane Jacobs wrote a large amount of data on urban renewal, her most popular work being The Death and Life of Great American Cities. This monumental source continues to …show more content…
It details Jacobs life from her beginnings in Scranton to her move to New York and finally to Toronto. Alexiou’s work reads more like a biography, leaving little room for historical context; however, the lengthy background she gives seems to point to the fact that Jacob’s entire life has led her to activism. While Jacobs background is important to her story, my focus is on her activism itself. Keeping Jane Jacobs as a person is integral to her activism because she was not a super hero and looking at her movement objectively is essential to understand the entire
A plethora of material exists in reference to Jane Jacobs and urban renewal during this time, although it typically approaches the topic from an economic standpoint. Jane Jacobs wrote a large amount of data on urban renewal, her most popular work being The Death and Life of Great American Cities. This monumental source continues to …show more content…
It details Jacobs life from her beginnings in Scranton to her move to New York and finally to Toronto. Alexiou’s work reads more like a biography, leaving little room for historical context; however, the lengthy background she gives seems to point to the fact that Jacob’s entire life has led her to activism. While Jacobs background is important to her story, my focus is on her activism itself. Keeping Jane Jacobs as a person is integral to her activism because she was not a super hero and looking at her movement objectively is essential to understand the entire