chapter 13

In chapter 13 Jacobs talks about the bad sides of diversity. As Jacob mentioned in previous chapters and reiterated again at the beginning of this one, diversity is an essential part of a city to be successful; but too much diversity can make a city go downhill. Competition is formed by diversity, but an excess of it can destroy social and economic support between businesses. But as Jacobs states self-destructive diversity is caused by a successful city, and this is logic if we think about it; a city cannot be successful without diversity so there must be diversity in the first place to be destroyed. Also, according to Jacobs insurance companies and offices are the biggest destructor of diversity in cities.

First Paragraph

There can be many factors limiting diversity in a city, such as high economic standards and social problems. This would be the case of the town of Franklin Square. It is a small town with around 24,012 people located in Nassau County, Long Island. Most of the population in this town is Italian or with Italian background causing many, if not all, of its businesses to be part of their culture. We know that a city to be successful needs diversity as Jane Jacobs mentioned in her book The Death and Life of Great American Cities. So in this paper I will discuss how high real estate prices, racism and poor public transportation are the main causes of lack of diversity in Franklin Square.

Thesis Statement

Franklin Square has a lack of diversity because of its high economic standards and social problems.

Points that will support my argument:

• high prices in real estate

• racism
  

How does Long Island Real state compare?
This article talks about how the prices of houses went down last year after 40 years of rising prices. It also mentions that Long Island is one of the wealthiest markets. This article compares Long Island with Queens, Manhattan and Brooklyn, saying that these places have more immigration and apartments which increase the possibilities of ownership. The combination of these factors increases diversity which is scarce in Long Island. It also talks about how a young it would be very difficult for a young family to support a house in Long Island, unless they have two good incomes.

Ellen Yan. "How does Long Island real estate compare? " McClatchy - Tribune Business News 25 January 2008. ABI/INFORM Dateline. ProQuest. 27 Feb. 2008



THE FIGHT for CIVIL RIGHTS: Seeking social justice in the world, and on Long Island
This article talks about the actions taken by black people to be treated equal in Long Island. It gives clear examples and testimonies of people who had suffered from discrimination and racism. It also has stories about people who made the difference trying to end racism. Their main goal is to get the same opportunities in schools, housing, and more participation in the government. Most of the people mentioned in the article are elderly and started their fight for their civil rights since they were young because they could see the treatment that other people received. These are examples of the problems people of color have to affront in this area. According to Denton Watson, a professor American Studies at SUNY Old Westbury, Long island was very segregated and Jim Crow laws were practiced as much as in the South.

Olivia Winslow, Jennifer Barrios. "THE FIGHT for CIVIL RIGHTS: Seeking social justice in the world, and on Long Island. " McClatchy - Tribune Business News. 3 February 2008. ABI/INFORM Dateline. ProQuest. 27 Feb. 2008

Chapter 15

In this chapter Jacobs talks about the problems a slum has to go through to be unslummed. She mentions the mistakes that are made at the time to destroy a slum, and also give examples of successful unslummed cities such as, East Harlem, the North End, or the Back-of-the-Yards in Chicago. According to our present urban renewal laws a slum disappears adding new buildings and inverting money in the city, but in contrast with Jacobs’ ideas, a slum is unslummed increasing diversity and trust in the city. Jacobs talks about all the symptoms of a slum being unslummed such as a decreasing of population, an increasing in popularity and essentially, people willing to stay and live in the city. She also states how dullness, stagnation and racism drive a city to become a slum. One can know a city is becoming a slum when people start to leave the place, or want to, in a very short period of time. This leaves a lot of space which is occupied by immigrants and poor people and makes the place overcrowded. The building starts to deteriorate affecting the appearance of the city. Racism is another factor that affects primarily Negroes and ghettos; people do not pay enough attention to these communities because they consider them a lost case, but they do not realize that they do not like where they live and they are there by necessity.

Questions ????

1. What is your name?

2. Are you from Franklin Square?

3. If not, how long have you been living here?

4. Why did you move? Or why do you keep living here?

5. What are the main problems of this town according to you?

6. Why do you think there is a lack of diversity in this town?

7. If compared with neighbor towns, why do you prefer Franklin Square?

8. What is you background?

9. What is the most common nationality here?

10. How this affects the town?

Before 1950

When you pass by this restaurant located in Hempstead Turnpike and Franklin Avenue, you can smell the typical ingredients of Spanish food. If offers food from South and Central America countries in especially from El Salvador. This avenue has many stores such as real state agencies, restaurants, beauty salons, etc., but this is one if not the only Hispanic restaurant in the area. As I mentioned before, in this area most of the commerce is dominated by Italians, so most of the businesses relate to their culture. As you can see in the picture all of the stores have the same design; they use the same color for their announcements and shades. In this area most of the buildings are very classical and simple. Next to the restaurant there is a shoe repair. This store is one of the oldest in the neighborhood. Every day I pass this restaurant and there are never people inside. This can be because there is not that much Spanish people in the area. The second floor is for rent and it has been like that for several months. Few businesses had been able to keep up in this area because of the rent prices and also because most of them are not frequently concurred by people. Many new businesses appear but they do not last very long. Very few people can be seen walking in this avenue and that is also the reason that many of the businesses are not perceived by neighbors. These building were constructed before 1950 because of their history and also because of their designs. Most of them had been reconstructed to keep the classical appearance of the town.