« The Times’s continued blind spots in its eminent domain coverage | Main | Before you try to reinvent a place, you should be able to equal it. »
July 29, 2007
Friday Reflections: Whaddaya Mean, Brooklyn?
The Written Nerd contemplates where in Brooklyn to put a new bookstore - and in the process considers what "Brooklyn" means...
Brooklynites, both natives and those who moved here from elsewhere, are often incredibly passionate about where they live. It shows up in their willingness to engage with local issues like the Atlantic Yards project. It shows up in fierce, joyfully irrational neighborhood loyalties – how do you think Neighborhoodies got so successful? But it shows up sometimes in a sort of shamed defensiveness about the changes happening in the borough – about the fact that Brooklyn's cultural vitality can sometimes mean development that pushes out those without money to spend. Just look at the Brooklynian boards sometime for a sampling of the names those tech-savvy Brooklynites are calling each other: yuppie, gentrifier, scared white liberal. In a place with so much diversity, where the breath of fresh creative juices often means the potential for commercial exploitation, tensions are bound to exist, along with some jockeying for authenticity. It can be a challenge to navigate that. Call me naïve, but I think generally not being jerks to each other is a good place to start.
Posted by amy at July 29, 2007 11:41 AM