My experience on IHP thus far has been both challenging and incredible. It is hard to imagine that just two weeks ago, I stood in a room of strangers desperately trying to learn names and faces, and am now off to India with a community of individuals I am excited to call my friends. Beginning in New York was a great way to start the program for several reasons. Most importantly, it allowed the 32 students and four traveling faculty on the program to actively discuss and engage the question of what it means to be a community and what our expectations are for the coming weeks and from each other. Through both organized and organic means, I have had the privilege of getting to know some of the most engaged, articulate, and passionate people I have ever encountered. While things are still new, I am so looking forward to continuing this process, especially in places that will challenge us in unfathomable ways.
In addition to the people, the academic experience thus far has provided me with an entirely new vocabulary for discussing urban environments, inequity, community engagement, and social change. IHP creates a diverse academic experience- one that is comprised of both class time and field work in order to maximize in depth experiential learning. While the entire two weeks have been filled with meaningful learning experiences, three standout as particularly exceptional. One of the first places a few students visited was the Center for Urban Pedagogy (CUP). This organization uses design to demystify complicated systems and processes, like where water in NYC comes from or how affordable housing works, by creating pamphlets, videos, and tool kits for community distribution. Additionally, CUP gears its projects towards answering questions posed by middle school and high school students as part of an effort to empower the youth in communities. I was inspired by this organization because it uses an innovative (and fun) method for spreading knowledge to underrepresented populations. In addition to CUP, we visited several neighborhoods during our time in New York that are located on the periphery of Manhattan, but are still part of the city. It is often forgotten that NYC is comprised of 5 unique, and very diverse, boroughs. In an effort to learn about the impact Hurricane Sandy had on the city, we visited the Rockaways, where we met with two victims, a representative from FEMA, and some individuals from different non-profit organizations who had been there since the day after the storm. The vastly different perspectives fueled a dialogue that provided for one of the most real and meaningful learning experiences I have ever had. Overall, the experience left me feeling that there needs to be a middle ground between federal aid organizations and community workers on the ground. While it is heroic that many of the individuals working on Sandy relief efforts abandoned their lives to commit to this cause, they do not have enough resources to sustain their efforts. Government organizations need to be more willing to communicate and cooperate with individuals within the community who know their needs, rather than blindly pumping money towards relief. However, all things are complicated and multifaceted. I do not know what a solution looks like. All I know is that it is unacceptable that individuals are still living in hotels, using their rewards from FEMA that are theoretically meant for rebuilding their homes on day to day survival.
In addition to the Rockaways, some of us visited the Northwest Bronx. We met with an organization called the NW Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition, which works to educate Bronx residents about their rights in terms of housing. Their current campaign, Chestnut Holdings, focuses on a particular real estate company that is buying buildings and turning off residents' heat. The idea is that starving residents of their services drives them out of their buildings, which can then be redeveloped. This is a phenomenon that I was previously unaware of. As a group, we had the opportunity to go out into the community and speak to some residents residing in these buildings. Our goal was to collect contact information so that our group leader (and NWBCCC community organizer) could assist in the formation of a tenants associations, but what we received was a raw look at clear injustice. Beautiful, vibrant communities of people exist behind the doors of those apartment buildings, and this week, when there were days in New York where it was below ten degrees, these individuals had to find ways to keep their school aged children warm. I had very mixed feelings about this experience. The residents were so welcoming to us, allowing us to walk into their homes and unabashedly willing to tell us their story. It was difficult to feel like I hadn't wronged them by talking to them as part of my own learning experience and leaving after giving them hope that things will be different if they can organize. However, hearing the stories of real people with real struggles was absolutely invaluable.
IHP has already challenged me to think about some really important questions that I have never considered before. For example, is urban development always a good thing? We often associate growth with progress, but to what extent does this compromise the livelihood of the original communities that exist in a neighborhood? Can development occur without displacement? Additionally, does the spirit of capitalism, one of competition based on inequity, come into conflict with the idea that certain necessities are basic rights? For example, does our current system support the idea that clean, affordable housing is something that should be guaranteed or earned? Furthermore, I am deeply conflicted about the balance between money, top down institutions, and community empowerment efforts. There is something fundamentally wrong about silencing the cries for human dignity for the sake of economic development, and though the two don't have to be mutually exclusive, they often are in urban environments and I am unsure of where balance exists. My deepest curiosity, though, is where I fit in to all of this and how I can be the most productive and positive force of change in a way that is deeply considerate of the many dialogues that contribute to the dynamism of urban environments. I hope to have a better understanding of this at the conclusion of this trip.
For now, I am off to India overflowing with excitement! My mind and heart are open to new experiences, to change, and to growth. I am deeply grateful for the support and love that has brought me to this point and am ready to receive this experience with opened arms.
With all the love in the world,
Susie
