Harlem On My Mind Part 1

*When Smalls had it all.
I wish I'd been there y'all. Mama's face and daddy's grace make a tree of hope standing tall.
Langston , Garvey,and Zora Neale created words about that Uptown feel.
X's Text-Ellington's A Train next
-migration's test created the best.
* The previous writing is from a poem that I wrote shortly after moving back to Harlem from Texas in the late 80's. "When Smalls Had It all " The Smalls that I refer to is the former great nightclub in Harlem called Smalls Paradise. The ending lines of the poem:
"Tenements aren't good remnants of the glory that was.
Now Rats crawl out of Smalls.Shells of men sleep with them.
When Smalls had it all-I wish we'd been there y'all."
Of course now in the 00's , an Ihop restaurant sits in that spot.The building also includes the excellent Thurgood Marshall Academy for Learning and Social Change. Like so many positive changes in Harlem, this came about because of The Abyssinian Development Corporation which is an organization of the historical Abyssinian Baptist Church. I mention this to show how far back from the brink Harlem has come. Thank goodness for all of the active organizations and churches that are trying to empower the folks of Harlem as best as they can in this Uptown of fast changes that have gone from one extreme to another. Those extremes include neighborhood establishments( many long term) going out of business due to high jacked up rents while luxury apartment buildings are being filled up with tenants even before they are finished being built. This mecca for so many who were literally forced to live there during the early parts of the 20th century is being rebuilt, re-imagined, rezoned, remixed, and redistributed to the richer amongst us . For those Harlemites lucky enough to have profited from this boom I say "More power to you" For those pushed out who provided goods and services to a community that for years was disenfranchised and undervalued I say "What a damn shame! " Gentrification is not new to many urban areas. The difference with Harlem is its place in the annals of American History. The stories of so many of the Who's Who of giants of Black began or were developed in Harlem . Langston Hughes, Ralph Ellison, Dubois, Marcus Garvey, Zora Neale Hurston,Billie Holiday, James Baldwin, Duke Ellington, Malcolm X, many Be Bop pioneers ,writers, painters, e.tc all called this slice of the Apple home. The East side of Harlem was fertile ground in the development of Puerto Rican American culture. From the tobacco fields of Virginia to the Hills of Jamaica and all points of African American and Afro Diaspora points between , Harlem was more than a destination; It was an idea known throughout the world. However when I was a little boy in Harlem my world was closer to the one that Claude Brown (Manchild In The Promised Land) and Piri Thomas ( Down These Mean Streets) described in their excellent coming of age in Harlem memoirs. Although my time was twenty years later than theirs, many of the ills that led to it's described decline were in full effect. My mother was relieved and grateful that she could move the family upstate(shortly afterwards to Texas) where junkies,liquor stores, bucket of blood bars, violent schools, abandoned buildings, and visual poverty weren't all part of both the landscape and mind states. My memory didn't involve just the negative though. Wide avenues, music everywhere, block parties, The Apollo, play streets, the mix of West Indian/Southern U.S/ New York accents, and the smells of Soul food also stayed with me as memories of what I knew was the most unique place on the planet. I learned so much about Harlem history while away from it. A woman that I dated a few years back said that I have a Mecca idealized version of Harlem that has nothing to do with it's current state. She could be right. It is very difficult for me not to imagine all its history while strolling Lenox Avenue. I wonder as I wander its streets about the stories of the people who walked them too. I marvel at the architecture of brownstone and limestone houses. I am fascinated by the sights and sounds coming out of it's playgrounds and parks. I take long walks through the heights of Sugar Hill.Broadway and Amsterdam Avenues have become extensions of The Dominican Republic. The bodegas are full of music, light banter in Spanish, and coffee with a kick. 116th street on the west side looks like West Africa consciously deposited some of its people as a new kind of treasure for these shores. My walks allow me to feel that I am walking through both the past and the present. My son was fascinated with the history shown as he and I sat through a film showing of Harlem History during an open house at The Apollo Theater. He told me later that he didn't know that so much had happened at that theater for so many people. The beauty of his revelation is that it wasn't forced fed to him by me.The images spoke for themselves. I highly suggest to anyone reading this that you attend the open houses hosted there by the excellent Billy Mitchell.
What is Harlem for the residents who are coming in droves because of gentrification? Is it simply a good deal that they can't resist? Or will they add to a new kind of history? Is the lack of sustained outrage about people and small businesses being replaced due to the fact that the powers that be and the displaced see it as eminent domain? Are these higher income folks good for the community? Will there presence improve the schools? Are all of these corporate food chains a sign of progress or capitalism at all costs? Most of my favorite Soul Food places are gone. Why didn't we protect places like the historical Record Shack( http://www.observer.com/2008/real-estate/record-shack). Why is The Mart on 125th, a former location of independent vendors still closed? The streets do seem cleaner. Is it because of the new attention being paid to our community? I must admit that some services are better( same question as the prior one). For years, one had to go for blocks just to find a bank;Now they are everywhere in the neighborhood. The food in the supermarkets seems fresher than it was.
I don't want to put it out there that I think that all of the changes in the "new" Harlem are bad. I must admit that I was slightly amazed and amused at the glittery view of Harlem that is shown on a recent show involving a group of self absorbed 20 somethings called "Harlem Heights" on BET . It looked pretty good from the very limited and highly edited version presented to us. Is Harlem becoming a tale of two cities? Are the wealthier amongst us looking down from their brand new sparkling glass towers at the still too many poor or struggling with disdain or indifference? Our Hamlet still leads the city in some of the more negative and challenging statistics also. Is Harlem still a place where the creation of culture is still considered to be one its greatest contributions? Is there trickle down economy at work that will benefit all Harlem residents. Will Harlem as we understand it from the past even exist 20 years from now? Is being a Harlemite a residential thing or a state of mind? I moved back to Harlem 10 years ago after living in midtown for most of the 90's. I was always in Harlem anyway. I wonder as I wander its streets why anyone wouldn't feel the soul?