It was really disheartening to hear how some people are still unaware of the issue of housing segregation. Living in Bedstuy, I have seen firsthand the effects of gentrification. From the increase in property value, the pushing out of minority communities to the increase in bodega prices. It’s so crazy to me that people still get upset and make the comment that race doesn’t need to be brought into everything. But this housing issue highlights that race littery affects everything. Professor Collin’s research is inspiring and I hope more people are informed about this important issue.

I never before realized how housing has such profound social effects. In the Learning Where You Live conversation, I learned about the impacts that housing can have on how our society operates. Professor Susanne Collins shared her research into segregated housing and how institutions can invest in different housing forms. She mentioned that this shift occurred after the financial crisis of 2008, which I just learned about in one of my other classes. In my class, we learned about the psychology of fear and how this contributed to the panic and crash of the stock market. We also considered how stimulus packages helped ease the country out of this downturn. However, Professor Collins’ perspective offered a new view on the aftermath of the crisis, and how it might have been different if the government had bought houses in suburbia, and was therefore able to regulate housing more closely. I enjoyed hearing this perspective, and learning how availability of housing has such a large impact on our society.

I have been learning a lot about in class on success and how successful a child can be and how that can all depend on where a child lives. This talk on housing in the suburbs and the city made me think a lot about my class. Where you live and how you are raised all really affect the success and outcome of a child. If you live in poverty and might not always have access to food, you are not going to focus on school and won’t do very well in class. If you live in a better off neighborhood and not in poverty, you probably have access to good food and can focus on class and do well in it. Listening to this talk helped me learn even more about what I am already learning and discussing in class.

The topics discussed in this webinar are a great continuation of some topics discussed in the last LWYL webinar on climate injustice. It is important to recognize that pollution and housing discrimination are closely linked issues. Minorities are more vulnerable to the effects of climate change in part because of racist housing polices and housing discrimination.

People of color are more likely to live in environments with toxic waste disposal, extreme heat, pollution, etc. Middle class white households are often favored when developing housing in nicer areas that are free from hazardous living conditions. Minorities are then forced to live in areas that are valued lower, which are more likely to have these environmental hazards, such as toxic waste, that can severely affect quality of life and human health. However, even sickness from exposure to these toxins are often not addressed and lead to declining health. Lack of access to good healthcare or the high costs of healthcare effectively prevent communities from leading a decent quality of life, and these problems can persist into future generations. In addition, these areas are less likely to have opportunities for financial growth. Even homeownership cannot bring equity to these communities because their homes are valued lower. Even if minority communities try to move to areas with better housing and infrastructure, they often face backlash from the established white communities in the area. For example, Willow discussed the racist environment facing Asians in the Silicon Valley who are attempting to pursue the “American Dream” and achieve middle class status. Despite higher quality education, housing, and working conditions, they still face rampant racism. This is especially relevant now, with rising anti-Asian violence that has increased since the pandemic. These stories and more show that discriminatory housing practices only exacerbate racism and inequality and adds to the long list of social issues that need to be addressed in this country.

After listening to the speakers discuss a myriad of issues regarding housing and the difficulties implementing effective housing policies, I really think that we need to address these issues more effectively. Failed housing projects should be a lesson, and while I personally don’t really understand a lot about the complex details involving implementing policy, I think that more needs to be done to address both housing and the climate at both the local and national level.

In the past few years, I’ve had several moments of realization centered around where I grew up. I didn’t realize until I came to college how much some people identify with the country, city, or even neighborhood where they grew up; while I jokingly establish that I’m from “upstate NY” in those get-to-know-you conversations, I never built a strong relationship with the area. However, I do now realize that I have a strong identity with the environment in which I grew up. I lived in the suburbs, and while my town was not underfunded by any means, it was also not an affluent area. It wasn’t until I got to college that I realized exactly where we fell on the spectrum and how that affected me in both my personal and academic lives.

I think the comments that the speakers made about the gulf between “bubbles” of poverty and affluence was really important. I don’t think either group truly understands exactly how others grow up until they start talking about it with others and realize the disparities. Additionally, their comments on the ways in which permanently affordable housing could be accomplished really hit home. Growing up and also now as a college student, the cost of living was always a stressful issue. It pains me to think about how many social issues could be fixed, but are left untreated for years because of policy and private businesses looking for financial profit. There should never be situations in which people have to think about whether they should pay for food or heat or suffer medically because of where they were born. At both a local and large scale, I think these are important topics to address, and spreading awareness is a good first step.