Redlining
Sociologist John McKnight coined the term “redlining” in the 1960s. Patel attributes past and current segregation in Miami based on the following views; The history of discrimination in Miami goes back to the founding of the city in 1896. At this time, the charter was required to designate a colored section of each city in Florida, designated as West of the Flagler railroad tracks and north of the Miami River. This area was named Colored Town and housed many of the railroad workers that brought people to the city and the hotels that began our bustling hospitality industry. The colored town has a rich history, hosting luminaries such as Aretha Franklin, Sam Cooke, Muhammad Ali, and Ella Fitzgerald. In the 1920s, NW 2nd Ave, the street that ran through the heart of colored town, was dubbed “little Broadway” because of the many high profile performances it hosted (Patel, 2019).
Moreover, the coconut Groove is another attribute of Patel’s attribute to segregation, where the blacks helped in the construction of hotels and were part of the charter vote in Miami. It remained the only part where the blacks could live until late in the 1930s. Besides, banks began disenfranchising middle and upper-class families through a property rating system known as redlining. Apart from that, the construction of liberty square where it only hosted the middle-class black families.
The high level of segregation is seen in Miami- Dade county. Looking at the map today, this history of the existence of separation is clear. The whites and Hispanics live South of Miami river, East of Flagler Railroad, and in Hialeah while the Non-whites live West of Flagler Railroad, North of River Miami, and East of Hialeah. As a student, the interest in exploring the area and learn more cannot click the mind because of the worse education system that looks at the race (Phoenix et al. 2019). Before, I used to think this place to be a place of a rainbow of humanity only to realize it is heavily segregated. Lastly, it has come to mind that the boundaries are laid out beautifully, visually, and sometimes starkly with borders of neighborhoods and their racial makeup becoming breathtakingly obvious, which is demoralizing in socializing and learning more on social, political and economic life in Miami.
The future demographics of Miami are likely to grow to a high number due to the migration of foreigners to the county. It is evident, as currently looking at the learning system, the percentage of 95%+ population non-white schools increasing (Alfieri, 2019). Moreover, as per the research, it is estimated that Miami-Dade will continue to grow at a maximum of three million people in 2025.
References
Patel, s. (2019). Miami grid.
Alfieri, A. V. (2019). Black, Poor, and Gone: Civil Rights Law’s Inner-City Crisis. Harv. CR-CLL, Rev., 54, 629.
Phoenix, C., Bell, S. L., & Hollenbeck, J. (2019). Segregation and the Sea: Towards a Critical Understanding of Race and Coastal Blue Space in Greater Miami.