Gabe and Buzzworms idea of activism
Throughout Tropic of Orange, Yamashita discusses many themes of stereotypes, identity, and resistance to assimilation. We vividly witness characters resisting assimilation in many ways both in instances and in the long term. Two instances that particularly caught my attention were when Gabe spoke about his contribution to “la raza” and Buzzworm’s gentrification plan.
Both of these instances are examples of reclamation, or resisting assimilation. Gabe speaks of his work at the LA times as contributing to “La Raza”. This is his form of activism. La Raza was a reclaiming of the term “Mexican-American”. It refers to the Mexican American identity being appropriated and this was a way for people who had been labeled “incorrectly” or in a divisive way by mainstream society, to reclaim their “Raza” identity.
I believe that Gabes contribution to the movement is in fact a form of activism, and I see connections drawn between this and Buzzworms gentrification plan.
Buzzworms gentrification plan revolves around the idea that all people deserve clean streets. This idea of cleaning up the streets for the people living there is an idea not commonly seen in gentrification plans. The fruit of their labor will be enjoyed by the people already living there who will also be the ones putting the work in. My first question is; does the beautification of an area mean gentrification follows? Are there examples of neighborhoods where this has not been the case? Do residents of this particular neighborhood begin to engage in the community clean up processes and build resistance to gentrification that way?
Both of these instances in the book are central to reclamation. Connotations of gentrification are not usually associated with helping the people of a community, yet this is Buzzworms primary plan. How do both Gabe and Buzzworms idea of activism relate? Are they both resisting assimilation? Are there any instances in the book where we see these characters assimilate or instances of “code-switching” when it is more convenient for them to associate themselves with something that rejects their identity?
*Gabes contribution to la raza (pg 39)
*Buzzworms gentrification plan (pg 83)
These questions are exactly what we as a class have been grappling with and trying to understand. Can people live in healthy and maybe even beautiful environments and communities without someone coming in and buying them out? The answer should be yes. Halston's grandmother--Our class grandmother lol-- brought up the privilege of greenery. We have grown up around luscious trees, green grass, flowers. The pattern has been that nature and all its glory often comes with space. We have the luxury to live in our own spaces with ample space for lush and greenery, where as in the heart of LA where there is a more crowded living situation, there is hardly any trees. Buzzworm speaks to the foreign concept of "trees." "Said when he was growing up, never noticed trees... bushes, dried up lawns, weeks, asphalt, and concrete... No trees in this city desert." Communities deserve trees and some sort of natural beautification. What is sad is that for the places that have been gradually gentrified-- the first step is fresh greenery. The communities by the LA river are immediately brightened by the structuring of new parks and new gardens. But this new "brightness" attracts the wrong people. I believe that a way to enhance the living environment while maintaining a balanced community can only come from communal engagement. When individual investors or companies are buying up land, the changes happen to fast for the people of that neighborhood to adjust to change or even stand their ground. If individuals engage with one another and work together to create healthy communities, there will be more unified living.
ReplyDeleteIn all of the neighborhoods that we have studied so far we haven't seen an example where the addition of trees and the cleaning of the streets, has been implemented by the people already living in this community. Buzzworm's idea of gentrification is an idea that we have not yet explored in this class. Gentrification is called "gente-fication" by Buzzworm because it comes from within. I believe this idea does relate to Gabriel's idea of contributing to the movement, and he talks about how his contribution to the LA Times is keeping the tradition that Ruben Salazar has started, "Ruben Salazar, the Mexican American reporter who was killed at the Silver Dollar during the so-called 'East L.A. uprising' in the early seventies" Both of their ideas of activism are activism in the sense of resisting assimilation and reclaiming an idea that is usually marginalizing.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the "cleaning up" of a certain area or community, I don't think this necessarily means that gentrification will follow. It shouldn't, at least. This brings me back to our conversation about the LA River and the plans they have to "beautify" it, cleaning it up and adding more activities and attractions. If we're thinking of cleaning up as adding aspects of nature, such as trees and encouraging a more eco-friendly neighborhood, this doesn't mean gentrification has to be an end result. Although, in areas such as Highland Park, I don't see there being as much of an effort towards cleaning up the neighborhood as there is toward opening up trendy new coffee shops and boho-esque stores. In this, I mean cleaning up as literally cleaning up the streets of trash, adding trees (nature), and addressing the prominence of homelessness in LA. As far as community engagement in the clean up process, I'm not sure if residents find themselves wanting to help. We would have to ask them how they feel about it and if their perception is that it will eventually lead to gentrification. If this is indeed their perception, we would need to address that issue first and change the way residents are viewing clean up and gentrification, as two separate things.
ReplyDeleteReflecting on the conversation that we had in class relating to stereotypes and assimilating to make things "easier", I do not see Buzzworm and Gabe fall in that category and are both honest to what they themselves believe without having to assimilate. Gabe is using his platform as his form of activism. By finding ways within his every day work life to bring his issues to the forefront, he is finding a truth of his own rather than being in any category. While he find inspiration from the "La Raza" movement, he is not recreating it. Similarly, Buzzworm is imagining a gentrification plan that is ideal and original. Regarding this gentrification plan, I too wish that by beautifying or gentrifying neighborhoods it can help the community but I do not think that is a current reality. By beautifying an area, in any way (from street art to greenery to pricking up the trash) it attracts people. More often than not, people want to live in nice areas. We have discussed in class that beautifying a neighborhood attracts gentrification in which people in the community are not being benefited. I wonder if people living in certain communities started the neighborhood clean up how that would relate to gentrification? Does that mean they are inviting people to come to their neighborhood? Is it even safe to assume that? I think that the lines drawn between cleaning up and area and gentrifying it are tricky to identify but can create a rich discussion backed up by our studies of different neighborhoods.
ReplyDeleteIn the zine "We Don't Want Your Progress," Julia Rocha speaks with El Commite de la Esperanza, a neighborhood organization in Boyle Heights, about gentrification and the idea of "improvement." Julia prefaces the interview by saying, "gentrification is often framed within the familiar white-savior complex of repairing an area that communities of color could not take care of… this model is dependent on erasing all of the incredible efforts of people within the community to better their own neighborhoods."
ReplyDeleteWhen the government did not address needs, the people of Boyle Heights took it upon themselves to clean up their neighborhood. "We had raised funds, brought paint to paint the streets." But redevelopment of the neighborhood and increase in housing price caused people to move, no longer able to benefit from their own efforts. " That was when people began to feel disillusioned... all that we have been doing: contributing, cleaning… who are we doing it for? I know that we are doing it for us, but leaving the streets prettier just so others can come in and settle here and displace us?” The problem this group and others face is how to continue to fight for their "needs to be met" while at the same time not encouraging this type of development. It almost seems inevitable that the disadvantaged will be taken advantage of... But I think that legislation and community organizing are key in stopping that.
I think that Buzzworm and Gabe's forms of activism relate in the sense that, in response to others boxing them in, treating them as part of mass groups and not as individuals, the two men contradict what is expected of them. Society, influenced by the media's portrayal and narrative, might think of Buzzworm's neighborhood as drugs and gangs, but Buzzworm says no, it's community, it's identity, it's oppression, it's survival, and it's going to be community clean up. Emi points out that Gabriel might have fit under a "Latino" stereotype reminiscent of the mission myth, but no, he's educated, a journalist, likes flamenco "but even that's academic." The ironic part about Gabriel is his own connection to the mission myth with the home he bought in Mexico. At the same time, though, he might just be trying to connect to an identity.
A lot of the book talks about how identity is fluid (such as through all the references to straight lines being bent and time being stopped). Identities intersect, they're based on choice and history and external influence. It seems natural that we separate ourselves: "Of course, with continental drift, the changing crust of Earth's surface had over billions of years come to this, cracked into continents, spread apart by large bodies of water" (Ch. 28). Separation is what causes neglect. People create barriers and exploit other people (which are what Gabe and Buzzworm act against). "Now human civilization covered everything in layers, generations of building upon building upon building the residue, burial sites, and garbage that defined people after people for centuries" (Ch. 28). It's hard for me to say when they act true to their identities and when they are trying to assimilate. But maybe core to their identities is a purpose just to live, a purpose not let garbage define them.
I believe that there is a fine line between the beautification of an area and the gentrification of that area. In looking at when an area is beautified, I think that a couple of patterns happen. First thing that happens is that no new businesses or developers move into the area, the housing community (the people living there) will not change, but the area around them does. Second the people who come into the area are simply making things nicer. They are not driving up the prices in an area and driving out weaker competitors. Third, an area can be beautified without the help of others but when beautifiers are brought in after the job is complete they leave. Besides the look there are no changes to the community. It's tricky though because after the beautification of a neighborhood, often times what follows is a new community of people who are attracted to this area. With this new attraction oftentimes this can spark the beginning of gentrification. I would not say that every time a place is beautified gentrification follows, but oftentimes it does. Areas where I would say this has not been the case would include areas of Compton and east la where areas have been beautified. As some of these locations look a lot nice then they once previously did, I would not say that these areas have a seen a large switch in who lives in the community. And I do think that in parts of these cities that a lot of the citizens engage in efforts to help clean up and beautify the city because they also want to live in a nicer area as well. This self help that these residence do also displays how they do not need the assistance of outside developers to aid them but rather they only need themselves to improve their living conditions.
ReplyDeleteOf course gentrification follows beautification. The neighborhoods that have been gentrified in LA we all infamously "poor" and "rundown" before they became beautified and inevitably gentrified. Gabe wants to reclaim his identity while Buzzworm wants to reclaim the identity of his neighborhood. As a mixed race man, Gabe struggles throughout the book both internally and externally with his identity. Emi pokes fun at his racial ambiguity throughout the novel and it is something clearly taken to heart, not in the best possible way. In the same way, Buzzworm watches how his neighborhood and the neighborhoods around have changed. Buzzworm is one of the characters who has relationships with a diverse demographic of people. Based off of this, I don't think that either of these characters are resisting assimilation; rather, they are valuing their own identity and deciding to share it. This is an area that seems to contradict Buzzworm positive view of gentrification. It seems like gentrification would be stripping a neighborhood of the identity that Buzzworm tries so hard to value and protect.
ReplyDeleteActivism is necessary in these discussions because at times the attitude towards climate change nowadays is comparative to the same pessimistic opinions of how climate change is already going to happen. The attitude towards Gentrification is similar to that of Climate Change in that it seems as though the rising of house prices and the the investment in housing will never stop increasing. It almost seems inevitable that certain neighborhoods will become gentrified and lose their local population. Similarly, many believe climate change is never going to change and that there world will end no matter what. These ideas lead to lack of desire to act and that leads to whatever the undesirable outcome happening quicker due to inaction. I see Buzzworm's idea of gentrification idealistic and almost funny in that he hopes for simply the cleaning of the area without the subsequent dislocation of a race from a certain area. I mean I talked about a very similar idea when looking at the Los Angeles River and Frogtown. If the city's plans pursue any area near the river (Lincoln heights, Cypress Park, and Frogtown), it will definitely lead to people from all over Los Angeles buying near the river.
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ReplyDeleteThe reason gentrification is hard to fight is because even if the “clean up” of a neighborhood is not the result of exterior forces, the beautification of a neighborhood will inevitably lend to more valuable real estate that investors see as an opportunity to take advantage of. If a previously poor neighborhood is improving, that means that cheap property can be bought and turned over for a higher price. Buzzworms efforts are independent of exterior forces, but to say that if he caused improvement in a neighborhood the same forces that he is trying to resist wouldn’t see an opportunity ignores how real estate prices work.
Despite the endpoint of Buzzworm’s politics, I do think they both follow similar modes of resistance. Both Gabe and Buzzworm work to create a common identity around their community. La Raza is an attempt to reclaim the Mexican American identity from the dominant forms of power. It is a form of self affirmation that gives credence to the particularity of Mexican American identity while simultaneously effacing certain differences to expose common experiences. Buzzworm’s work reclaims neighborhood clean up from dominant powers which creates a single cause for people to work behind. Like La Raza, it creates a common experience to resist the powers that be.