Between the Lines
by Anthony Asadullah Samad

If Harlem Can Rise, and Detroit Can Rise…,Why Can’t Watts Rise?

Two generations after the greatest social change movement in the history of America, the nation is finally getting around to rebuilding the damage done to the urban cores of America. Urban America, codified language for "central cities where black people live," has suffered the longest abandonment in the 20th Century. Europe, composed of the nation's allies (England and France) and enemies (Germany) and Japan, the nation's arch-enemy whose attack pulled the United States into World War II, were rebuilt within 25 years under a U.S. sponsored (and funded) Marshall Plan. The United States funded $150 billion dollars to rebuild Iraq within the first year of tearing it down. Yet it has taken 35 to 40 years to rebuild America's inner cities torn down by a combination of social and economic neglect and urban revolt during a period when America had clearly lost its mind.

The 1960s bereft with assassinations, racial protest and social radicalism experienced over 150 urban riots. Instead of rebuilding the central cities, white people just left—and white flight has paralyzed the economic growth of urban cities every since. However, over the past five to eight years, urban cities have begun to rise. It's started with the second Harlem renaissance, moved to the city considered the worst urban riot in America’s history (and the biggest instance of white flight), Detroit. But left behind was the first major urban riot, the place considered the “sparkplug” of urban despair, Watts, California. Next year is the 40th Anniversary of the Watts Riots. Though the Watts Riots didn’t start in Watts (I recently researched this after a longtime Watts stakeholder brought it to my attention—it’s true, the City of Los Angeles didn’t want to hurt tourism so they called it the Watts riots instead of the L.A. riots), it was the nation’s first major socio-economic revolt where its participants clearly pointed to their living conditions as the source of their “anger.” Watts represented the new age militancy of the pro-black radical movement that wanted “black power,” a part of the economic and material resources of the community. Black power was beyond social equality. It was taking control of one’s socio-political reality, taking control of the community’s economic reality and framing the community’s cultural reality to reflect the community’s truest interests—it’s people, it’s residents, its economy. Black power never came to Watts. Many attempts were made—even more promises, but still today, Watts looks like the land that time forgot, just as every other major urban city looked. Only Watts has significant standing. It was forgotten in spite of the progress of other areas of the city and surrounding cities.

The nationwide move to re-gentrify urban centers often brought about the removal of the people who had suffered through blight, poverty and other forms of economic subjugation because the values of the properties were attractive to commute-logged whites who wanted back into the city. However, in certain cities, gentrification was not an option. Harlem and its rich cultural tradition is the most prominent example of how community residents and businesspersons benefited from urban reinvestment and redevelopment. Because black people were not going leave Harlem. Detroit, with its third generation “hip hop” mayor, is an 83% black city that whites left behind 30 years ago. It is experiencing one of the greatest urban reinvestment turnabouts in America. Whites are moving back to Detroit, and the black community they left behind 30 years is still there ‘cause they wasn’t goin’ no where. That brings us to Watts, and the proposed “Watts Rising” project that brings an estimated two billion dollars in commercial, residential and economic development to the nation’s most forgotten symbol of the black social disenfranchisement. There are already concerns being expressed about gentrification and removing residents out of Watts. Watts will not be re-gentrified. Downtown L.A. will because its current residents will never be able to afford half-million to one million dollar lofts in the “new Manhattan.” But reinvestment and redevelopment in Harlem and Detroit has proven that it doesn’t have to be that way. The Watts Rising Project is proposing converting folks who have rented in government housing for three generations into homeowners, bring 6,000 to 8,000 jobs to Watts on the condition (in a labor agreement) that employers and builders employ people with felony convictions trying to start their life over be allowed to work in their own community. This is something new and something we should pay close attention. If Harlem can rise, and Detroit can rise, why not Watts? No degree of political division or community obstruction should prevent what we all know the people of Watts deserve—a chance to participate in a 21st Century economy as other urban cities are starting to do.

It’s time the whole city gets behind efforts—not to re-gentrify Watts but—to reinvest and redevelop Watts, starting with the community being able to participate in the development of its own Master Plan, then being able to participate in its rebuilding, and then in the reinvesting. The people of Watts “ain’t goin’ nowhere” nor should they. It’s time, after nearly 40 years, for Watts to rise. It is something we all should watch very closely. We can’t continue to let time pass Watts by. Watts needs to be remembered for something more than a riot that started elsewhere—but got blamed, a sub-city that time forgot—though history never forgot. Watts must rise above its history.

About Anthony Asadullah Samad .

Anthony Asadullah Samad is a national columnist, author and managing director of the Urban Issues Forum. His upcoming book, 50 Years After Brown: The State of Black Equality In America is due out in 2004. He can be reached at www.AnthonySamad.com