Although social scientists have documented urban redevelopment and gentrification extensively, few have addressed their discursive causes and effects. In this paper, I use a critical discourse approach to investigate the success of... more
Although social scientists have documented urban redevelopment and gentrification extensively, few have addressed their discursive causes and effects. In this paper, I use a critical discourse approach to investigate the success of discourse manipulation, the primary mode through which urban elites displace public housing residents and carry out redevelopment in Cabrini Green, an AfricanAmerican public housing community on Chicago's Lower North Side. Using qualitative methodologies, I show that public housing residents recognize the discursive constructions that enable the implementation of redevelopment and contest it in rhetorical ways. To expose their forceful displacement from their homes and community, resident activists reframe public housing redevelopment as a "human rights crisis." As evidenced by these tactics, redeveloping Cabrini Green is inherently a discursive site, a space marked by "cultural production and political struggle" (Conquergood 1992: 97).
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Asian American-serving nonprofits were on the forefront to help immigrant Asian American homeowners during the recession, particularly those with limited English proficiency. Yet, we know little about the experiences of these... more
Asian American-serving nonprofits were on the forefront to help immigrant Asian American homeowners during the recession, particularly those with limited English proficiency. Yet, we know little about the experiences of these organizations, since they are relatively understudied in the nonprofit literature. We triangulated interviews with 14 Asian American- serving nonprofits providing housing counseling services with organizational tax records to advance theory on their roles and impacts. Our findings reveal that although Asian American nonprofits played an important role in serving limited English-speaking clients overlooked by other nonprofits during the recession, they struggled to provide comprehensive assistance and remain solvent. Asian American nonprofits used diverse troubleshooting strategies, including seeking certifications, diversifying funding sources, and creaming. Adopting more holistic funding criteria and encouraging greater collaboration among nonprofits serving immigrants would help Asian American nonprofits become more resilient.
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ABSTRACT Happiness is commonly thought of as an individual characteristic for which each person is solely responsible. However, happiness is also a community characteristic influenced by factors external to the individual. This article... more
ABSTRACT Happiness is commonly thought of as an individual characteristic for which each person is solely responsible. However, happiness is also a community characteristic influenced by factors external to the individual. This article offers an alternative sustainable community development framework that focuses on improved opportunities for happiness. Key components of the framework include happiness visioning, public participation, a happiness profit inventory, and systems planning and sustainability interventions. Lessons learned from applying this framework to a neighborhood in a fast-growing region in the southwestern United States are drawn. Ultimately, happiness offers a universal measure focused on the quality of human life and a community development framework that may translate to a sustainable future. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
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Little is known about how investors purchasing foreclosures during the recent U.S. housing crisis are affecting neighborhood crime. While they may decrease crime by reducing vacancies or bettering neighborhood conditions, they may... more
Little is known about how investors purchasing foreclosures during the recent U.S. housing crisis are affecting neighborhood crime. While they may decrease crime by reducing vacancies or bettering neighborhood conditions, they may increase it by escalating neighborhood turnover. Combining local police department data on calls for service with foreclosure, home sales, and sociodemographic data, this research uses longitudinal modeling to assess the relation between the purchasing of foreclosures by investors and calls for service in neighborhoods in Chandler, Arizona, a Phoenix suburb where investors are renting former foreclosures. Neighborhoods where foreclosures were more often purchased by investors had more calls for service about violent crime the following year.
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Although a rich literature exists on the determinants and effects of concentrated foreclosures, little is known about what drives variation in how long real estate owned (REO) properties take to sell and to whom, particularly in Latino... more
Although a rich literature exists on the determinants and effects of concentrated foreclosures, little is known about what drives variation in how long real estate owned (REO) properties take to sell and to whom, particularly in Latino communities heavily affected by the current foreclosure crisis. This research employs multilevel and event history modeling to assess the factors associated with recent REOs’ likelihood of sale, sale to an investor, and sale to a Spanish-surname household in a sample of majority Latino Southern California neighborhoods. Properties in inner-city and exurban Latino neighborhoods with larger black population shares were less likely to sell and more likely to sell to investors if they did, while those located in lower poverty, largely Latino communities were more likely to sell to Spanish-surname households. These results suggest that the crisis is both exacerbating existing patterns of inequality and segregation while enabling Latinos’ homeownership in potentially socioeconomic mobility-enabling areas.
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Despite the increasing provision of social and financial services by community-based organizations (CBOs), few studies focus on the roles that Asian American—serving CBOs play in helping their economically and culturally diverse... more
Despite the increasing provision of social and financial services by community-based organizations (CBOs), few studies focus on the roles that Asian American—serving CBOs play in helping their economically and culturally diverse communities accumulate wealth. The authors explore this overlooked sector by interviewing key informants in 30 mostly Asian American asset-building organizations nationwide. Participating CBOs respond to the financial needs of
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External investment in neighborhoods can inhibit crime. However, during the housing crisis, many investors were foreclosed upon, triggering large-scale community disinvestment. Yet the impact of this type of disinvestment on crime is... more
External investment in neighborhoods can inhibit crime. However, during the housing crisis, many investors were foreclosed upon, triggering large-scale community disinvestment. Yet the impact of this type of disinvestment on crime is currently unknown. Combining data on crime incidents with foreclosure, home sales, and sociodemographic data, this research assesses whether the foreclosure of properties owned by investors has an effect on crime in neighborhoods in Chandler, Arizona, a suburb in the heavily affected Phoenix region. Neighborhoods with a greater proportion of foreclosures on investors (FOIs) have higher total and property crime rates in the short term. In Hispanic neighborhoods, a greater proportion of FOIs result in lower rates of crime. Results suggest that neighborhood stabilization efforts should consider the role of investors in driving short-term crime rates, and that police and code enforcement strategies might prioritize neighborhoods with a high proportion of investor foreclosures.
What might be described as a double impasse characterizes debate on U.S. housing tenure with advocates fighting for rental or ownership housing on one side and Third Way or mixed-tenure solutions on the other. Breaking this impasse... more
What might be described as a double impasse characterizes debate on U.S. housing tenure with advocates fighting for rental or ownership housing on one side and Third Way or mixed-tenure solutions on the other. Breaking this impasse requires disengaging from conceptions of an idealized form of tenure and instead advocating making virtually all tenures as secure and supported as possible, so that diverse households are able to live in homes that best fit their changing needs over their life cycles. This essay (a) presents data on the variety of tenures in the United States; (b) conveys a new two-dimensional map of tenure according to their degrees of control and potential for wealth-building; and (c) shows how U.S. institutions shape their risks and subsidies. Most U.S. tenures are at least somewhat risky, including those that receive the greatest federal subsidies. A new housing system is needed to secure and support as many tenures as possible.