Event Title
Revitalization in Philadelphia, 1940-1970: Rebuilding a City but Straining Race Relations
Start Date
5-1-2019 9:00 AM
End Date
5-1-2019 10:15 AM
Disciplines
Public History | United States History | Urban Studies and Planning
Subjects
Urban renewal -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- 1940-1970, Segregation -- Pennsylvania -- Philadelphia -- Influence of urban renewal on, African American neighborhoods, Gentrification
Abstract
This paper examines government and privately sponsored revitalization projects in inner city and Center City Philadelphia from 1940-1970. These projects—including the construction of rail lines connecting Center City to the suburbs, changes to the National Housing Act, and the revitalization of Society Hill—were meant to bring investment back into the city after the economy had declined from de-industrialization. These projects successfully rebuilt the inner city’s economy, however, they ultimately hurt African-American and minority populations and encouraged segregation. The revitalization of Center City over other parts of inner city and the perpetuation of subprime loans displaced many African Americans, lowered home values in already impoverished neighborhoods, and kept African Americans from moving into revitalized neighborhoods.
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Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/28567
Included in
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Revitalization in Philadelphia, 1940-1970: Rebuilding a City but Straining Race Relations
This paper examines government and privately sponsored revitalization projects in inner city and Center City Philadelphia from 1940-1970. These projects—including the construction of rail lines connecting Center City to the suburbs, changes to the National Housing Act, and the revitalization of Society Hill—were meant to bring investment back into the city after the economy had declined from de-industrialization. These projects successfully rebuilt the inner city’s economy, however, they ultimately hurt African-American and minority populations and encouraged segregation. The revitalization of Center City over other parts of inner city and the perpetuation of subprime loans displaced many African Americans, lowered home values in already impoverished neighborhoods, and kept African Americans from moving into revitalized neighborhoods.