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I got a chance to hang out with Immortal Technique some 5 or 6 years ago (very political, well known rapper). That night we all talked a lot about wealth inequ
by ep103 9y ago
I got a chance to hang out with Immortal Technique some 5 or 6 years ago (very political, well known rapper). That night we all talked a lot about wealth inequality, and how it impacts working people int he New York region. He referred to New York City post-Giuliani as the "Disneylandification of New York", as the continuing influx of Wall Street capital and increasing wealth inequality sanitized and built up manhattan and surrounding land at the expense of people nearby. How it changed the relationships between people and local communities, and changed the relationship between police and those communities.
I've always thought that was a really great way to phrase it. Its funny, but also works on a surprisingly large number of levels, rather intuitively.
- mxuribe 9y agoGreat points here! When you stated "post-Giuliani" it reminded me (I had so forgotten!) that it was during latter parts of his administration - and then thereafter - when a bunch of the Disney-ification happened! And, definitely the phrase "Disneylandification of New York" so perfectly captures the sentiment!
- ghaff 9y agoThe Disneylandification is very frequently applied to the Times Square area in particular. But it's complicated. Gentrification and, often, homogenization have their downsides. But 42nd Street, Bryant Park, etc. in the 1970s/80s were really not all that great.
- nstj 9y agothey call it "Mallhattan"! :)