Bronx Revivalism, not Displacement

This is the thesis of Fordham University professor and historian Mark Naison in his article A Bronx Tale: Development Without Gentrification in the newsletter for the Organization of American Historians.

Dr. Naison is a true Bronx historian, aficionado and lover. He profiles how development and revitalization of the Bronx do not need to displace and alienate the working class people who already live in the Bronx. As Boogiedowner covered yesterday, the Bronx resurgence is kinder and gentler than its Visigothic Brooklyn counterpart (i.e. no machete attacks on hipsters).

While I never had the pleasure of being in one of Dr. Naison's classes while I was at Fordham, I do remember this white guy greeting the entire Freshman class during orientation in the Leornard Theater in September of 1998 and leading us in the hook of the then popular Lord Tariq and Peter Gunz tune, "Cross Bronx Expressway." You know the one with the great sample from Steely Dan. It went a little something like this:

But if it wasn't for the Bronx this rap s**t probably never would be going on so tell me where you from? Uptown baby, uptown baby. We gets down baby, up for the crown baby.

How can you not love this guy, or the Bronx for that matter? And remember every time you listen to rap s**t that if not for the Bronx, it wouldn't be going on.

~ErLu