A Collective Divide

Next Gen Student Films

A Collective Divide

A bustling city street with modern buildings, including a curved glass high-rise on the left and colorful mural-covered structures on the right. The street is busy with cars and pedestrians, showcasing a representation of urban life amidst gentrification, with a tall skyscraper visible in the background.

A Collective Divide is a short documentary film created in The Representation Project’s 2021 Youth Media Academy. In a rapidly modernizing New York City, three residents from the boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, and the Bronx discuss their perspectives and experiences of gentrification in their neighborhoods.


CALLS TO ACTION

Questions for discussion following the viewing:

  1. Considering your background and identity, experiences, and knowledge, how would you define gentrification?
  2. What aspects of society create “a community”?
  3. Have you or someone you know been impacted by gentrification? How so?
  4. How do urban policies struggle against or encourage gentrification?
  5. Why is gentrification such a prominent issue in society?

Feeling Inspired? Please consider selecting at least one of the following to bring about positive change in our society.

Calls to Action for A Collective Divide

* Email representatives in your neighborhood and others experiencing gentrification to advocate for passing laws to rent control more buildings, vacancy control, and the overall aim to create affordable housing.

* Connect with neighbors and activists to help protect and expand public areas such as parks, schools, libraries, roads, and community centers currently being privatized.

*  Join a coalition with structures set in place (donors-to-donees) to redistribute wealth towards lower-income POC families who struggle to meet ever-rising rent prices.

#StopGentrification #Advocacy #SystemicRacism #Gentrifiers #Displacement #HousingInjustice #YouthContentCreator #YMA2021