New York City History

1. What has been the experience of black New Yorkers, other people of color, and immigrants to New York City in the 20^th century and the early 21^st century?

New York City (NYC) has a long history of black people and other people of color embodied in its culture. Immigrants from other parts of the world, especially Europe, has also contributed significantly to the rich history of NYC through the contribution of the newcomers to NYC. All these different groups of people have a unique role in the history of New York, which can be referenced from the 20^th century and the early 21^st century. The essay on this question will discuss the different obstacles and difficulties experienced by these groups of people in different periods. It will also discuss how the city has strategized to improve the situation and make the lives of all the people better.

Despite distancing itself from its history, unlike other cities like Boston and Philadelphia, New York remains a significant figure in American history. New York has been home to some of the fierce black activists in American history. It was also the first place where the black troops incorporated in military service first matched during the leadership of Abraham Lincoln. In the 20^th century, NYC was pushing its effort to improve its economic status in the country. There was a need for increased labor in the fast-growing New York companies. Many blacks found jobs in these expanding work bases, especially in the textile industry, where a lot of unskilled and semi-skilled labor was highly needed (Peterson, n. p).

In the job places, the blacks experienced a lot of challenges. They were poorly paid compared to their white counterparts, and also they were overworked and assigned some of the most hazardous tasks. These people had to face all these challenges amidst sharp discrimination that was going on during the time, such as being denied to participate in voting. The condition of the workplaces was made worse by the influx of Europeans who were coming to America, expecting to get better pays and good working conditions (Pastorello, n. p). The Industrial Revolution was at its peak, and the working conditions in Europe were very severe. Some Europeans thought that American companies offered better working conditions than home companies. However, they were in for a rude shock as the conditions in New York companies were no better. The immigrants also faced criticism as they were seen as people who had come to snatch jobs from the New Yorkers (Berrol, n. p). The clothing industry was in need of semi-skilled labor, “Demand for semi-skilled immigrant workers escalated after 1900 with the mass production of women’s dresses, shirtwaists, undergarments, and children’s clothing” (Pastorello, n. p). This means that the immigrants were also paid low wages. Therefore, they also faced some challenges in wages, especially those who had no skills in specific areas.

As time progressed to the late 1900s, things were beginning to change, people in New York had formed labor parties which fought for better pay and good working conditions for all the people (Peterson, n. p). The efforts of people like Martin Luther King Jr. helped to make the life of blacks in New York better as many Americans started to embrace diversity. The immigrants were even in better terms as they got better jobs, especially those from Europe, since they were much educated.

By the early 21^st century, many of the discrimination that was occurring in the early 20^th century had significantly reduced as New Yorkers began to accept the reality of modern society, which is diverse. On the side of African Americans, their lives in NYC became even better as more people became educated. They could now get better jobs in the companies and other organizations. Their pay also was equated to those of the whites in the same category.  These improvements in the state of blacks and immigrants can be attributed to the efforts of New York City administration, which took it as a responsibility to ensure that all New Yorkers lived a good life regardless of their origin or color.

3. What do you think are three of the most significant challenges facing New York City today? Discuss them briefly. What can we learn from our city’s history to help explain those challenges and how to overcome them?

There are many challenges that face New York City today. The significant three challenges include a shortage of affordable housing, big margins in payment inequality, and a high rate of crime in the city. The challenges are currently affecting the city’s function today, but a more in-depth look into the causes of the challenges takes us back to many years ago in the history of NYC, where the foundation of the problem lies. This second part of the essay will briefly describe the three major challenges and in the city and relate them to the city’s history. This will help in proposing a better way to overcome the challenges.

The first challenge is the increased shortage of housing in the city. The city’s population has been going up due to the many economic activities and developments being carried out in the city. The increase in population, which is mostly due to immigration from neighboring cities and other regions of the world, has not been matched by the rise in the number of affordable houses in the city. The effects are mostly felt by middle and low-class New Yorkers who cannot afford the classy dwellings for the rich. The second major challenge is the issue of payment inequalities between the upper 90^th percentile and the lower 10^th percentile, which has continued to increase as more the city becomes more and more developed. The disparity has become so big that the margin between the two percentiles is more than four times larger. Economists in the city have stated that “The same forces that are driving economic growth in big cities are also responsible for inequality. And those forces have accumulated and reinforced each other since 1980 and beyond” (Badger and Quealy, n. p). The last major challenge in the city is the high rate of crime. There have been many cases of criminal activities, both minor and major. Although statistics show that the rate of crime has reduced as compared to the 1980s, it is still high and needs more efforts to reduce it further to a manageable state. The highest percentage of crimes that involve illegal drug use and robbery take place in shady environments of poor people.

All three challenges need to be understood from their historical background in order to solve them. The shortage of housing is most experienced by the poor because they cannot afford better housing. Most of the poor people are African Americans and immigrants from other countries such as Africa and Asia, who cannot find better jobs due to lack of skills (Peterson, n. p). Historically, blacks were denied access to better education for a long time, which made it difficult for them to overcome poverty. The poverty cycle has continued for many generations due to the social injustices they face in the country, making it difficult for them to get good-paying jobs. This has made this community of low-class New Yorkers find it challenging to compete for the shrinking number of houses in the populous city. Therefore, they have to live in the poor sub-urban of the city. The same case applies to the big margins in payment because the poor people in the city, where most African Americans fall, are paid very little for their service. Due to historical injustices, the blacks up to this time have not recovered fully from the lack of quality education experienced many years ago (Peterson, n. p). For this reason, many find themselves in the unskilled labor force where they are paid peanut salaries. Comparing this group to the 90^th percentile, the margin is enormous and continues to enlarge as the skilled technical people such as engineers and physicians’ salaries continuously increase with their high demand in the city. The crime rate in the city, as stated earlier, is greatly witnessed in the poor environs. Most of the people in the New York jails are black young men who have been arrested for drug dealing and robbery. This can be associated with the history of the city where the blacks found it hard to access education and better lives, forcing them to engage in criminal activities for survival.

Having understood the relationship between the challenges and NYC history, it is possible to develop a solution to curb the three major issues. The solution needs to be based on uplifting the lives of the poor people in New York because they are the cause of the problems witnessed in the city. It will involve coming up with strategies that will make everyone in New York equal and give them equal opportunities. Addressing historical injustices such as providing better schooling for the people of color will help significantly in overcoming the challenges facing the city. In conclusion, there will be a need for joint efforts from all people of the city and the authorities to deal with the challenges. Overcoming the challenges will make life better for the millions of New Yorkers.

Work Cited

Pastorello, Karen. A Vital Force: Immigrant Garment Workers and Suffrage. 2018. https://www.gothamcenter.org/blog/a-vital-force-immigrant-garment-workers-and-suffrage?rq=triangle

Badger, Emily, and Kevin, Quealy. Watch 4 Decades of Inequality Drive American Cities Apart. 2019. https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/02/upshot/wealth-poverty-divide-american-cities.html

Peterson, Carla L. Black Gotham: A Family History of African Americans in Nineteenth-Century New York City. Yale University Press, 2011.

Berrol, Selma. “Immigrants: New York City, the 1900s.” Urban Education 4.3 (1969): 220-230.