Losing Soul
With ruin comes abandonment, and with abandonment, comes ruin. In GovPilot's article discussing the fall and rise of the South Bronx, writer "alannah" argues that the stereotypical image that is associated with the South Bronx -- of burning buildings, the subsequent rubble, and the poor people who used to inhabit said buildings -- is the, "physical manifestation of improperly applied data, economic depression and the snowballing issue of property blight." She says that as "[droves] of residents left the South Bronx for more suburban areas and [as] property values plummeted ... [r]emaining residents watched their living conditions begin to deteriorate. After all, post-WWII rent control policies provided building owners little incentive to maintain their properties." Furthermore, alannah talks specifically about the mishandling by then-Mayor Lindsay of data regarding the fire departments' budgets and other similarly city-run benefits, that were either downsized, eliminated, or misused in the area.
Also, the property developers and owners were quick to allow their buildings to fall into disarray, as the residents were all low-income, and therefore the upkeep was often more expensive than their return. Red-lining and zoning plans implemented by real estate agencies were also vital players in the fall of the area.
In a New York Time's article published earlier this year, David Gonzalez writes of the, "vibrant musical scene that provided both entertainment and much-needed jobs for hundreds of sidemen [in the South Bronx]."
In New York City: Seeing Through the Ruins, Marshall Berman recalls his time as a freshly-minted teacher in the South Bronx during the 1970s. Describing the youth of the time as the "lost generation," Berman see's the early '70s social scene -- filled with "crazy love [and] deadly drugs" -- as the catalyst for the actions, and neglect, that would lead to the burning of the Bronx. Residents lost respect for their own homes, their neighbors, and their cities, but unlike the then-popular opinion, it was not entirely, if at all, the fault of the locals that their homes were being destroyed and their environment forgotten.
Kamber's interpretation of what caused the South Bronx to "[disgorge] nearly two-thirds of its population as living conditions declined and arson fires raged," was that, "Traditionally ... if you got a good education and a good job you got out of the Bronx." A neighborhood once teeming with talent and cultural diversity, the Melrose area, like so many others before it, has steadily fallen victim to the force that pushes young, talented individuals to leave their homes, believing that "elsewhere" is the only place to find success and fortune.
"You see [students] on the street, [and ask] what’re you guys doing? Nothing. Not going to college. Did a year of community college, dropped out. Smart, smart, good students who could go somewhere, but didn’t get the push." [Emphasis added]