Urban renewal picks up where redlining left off
Madison Lathrop was the first project that promised economic progress, but the reality fell far short
Richie Harper first began studying redlining, racial covenants and the failed promises of urban renewal as he was researching the root causes of crime for the Stark County prosecutor's office. He shared the results of his research with the roughly 50 people at Tuesday's (May 16) Courageous Conversations on Race Relations dinner and discussion.
Among those results were links to health and economic disparities that have stretched over generations. And he noted that much of that disparity began with a promise of a better Canton.
Harper's maps showed the Route 30 highway project tore through the thriving Black business district along Cherry Avenue SE, leaving only barren overpasses, open fields and a physically and racially segregated southeast end. But he noted that the first big urban renewal project was the clearing of 56-acres of neighborhoods that came to be called Madison-Lathrop. It was hyped as the key to renewed factory jobs and related economic development with the building of the White Engines plant. Much of the industrial property was occuplied only a few years.
Families in some cases had only a few weeks to move, and the project later came in for heavy criticism in a federal review of its impact on the community.
Harper's presentation was the fourth in the Courageous Conversations on Race Relations monthly discussions of the impact of historically racist decisions have had on the entire Canton community. The next, on June 20, will examine where we go from here.
For more on urban renewal and its impact on Canton, as well as the other Courageous Conversations topics, click on this link and go to the resources section of ccorrohio.org.
Among those results were links to health and economic disparities that have stretched over generations. And he noted that much of that disparity began with a promise of a better Canton.
Harper's maps showed the Route 30 highway project tore through the thriving Black business district along Cherry Avenue SE, leaving only barren overpasses, open fields and a physically and racially segregated southeast end. But he noted that the first big urban renewal project was the clearing of 56-acres of neighborhoods that came to be called Madison-Lathrop. It was hyped as the key to renewed factory jobs and related economic development with the building of the White Engines plant. Much of the industrial property was occuplied only a few years.
Families in some cases had only a few weeks to move, and the project later came in for heavy criticism in a federal review of its impact on the community.
Harper's presentation was the fourth in the Courageous Conversations on Race Relations monthly discussions of the impact of historically racist decisions have had on the entire Canton community. The next, on June 20, will examine where we go from here.
For more on urban renewal and its impact on Canton, as well as the other Courageous Conversations topics, click on this link and go to the resources section of ccorrohio.org.
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The Social Justice Book Groups meets this Tuesday (May 23) in the Guild Hall and via Zoom to talk about the book 'Poverty, by America,' which the New Yorker calls: "urgent and accessible ... it's moral force is a gut punch."
The next work is 'Last Summer on State Street,' the debut novel by Toya Wolfe.
The novel is set in the now-demolished Robert Taylor Homes, the projects where Wolfe was born and raised.
In an interview with New City, she described what some see as the miracle of growing up in the projects with a sense of joy, peace and love.
"If you’re going to be a storyteller you have to care about people. And FeFe (the main character) has a wide-reaching understanding of people. She wants to know what’s beyond State Street. She wants to know why Precious has that look on her face, she wants to understand what it’s like for Stacia to live in a house full of gangsters. She ponders and wonders and processes. I was a processor, too. And an observer. And curious. People who want to get out and tell the stories, they’ve been watching for a long time."
Stephen Curry called the novel "a vivid and honest coming-of-age story. It's about survival and faith going hand in hand."
Copies of the book are available for free at StarkFresh grocery store at 321 Cherry Ave. NE, Canton. The book group meets the fourth Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. in the Guild Hall..”
The next work is 'Last Summer on State Street,' the debut novel by Toya Wolfe.
The novel is set in the now-demolished Robert Taylor Homes, the projects where Wolfe was born and raised.
In an interview with New City, she described what some see as the miracle of growing up in the projects with a sense of joy, peace and love.
"If you’re going to be a storyteller you have to care about people. And FeFe (the main character) has a wide-reaching understanding of people. She wants to know what’s beyond State Street. She wants to know why Precious has that look on her face, she wants to understand what it’s like for Stacia to live in a house full of gangsters. She ponders and wonders and processes. I was a processor, too. And an observer. And curious. People who want to get out and tell the stories, they’ve been watching for a long time."
Stephen Curry called the novel "a vivid and honest coming-of-age story. It's about survival and faith going hand in hand."
Copies of the book are available for free at StarkFresh grocery store at 321 Cherry Ave. NE, Canton. The book group meets the fourth Tuesday of the month at 7 p.m. in the Guild Hall..”
An epic love story and a disrupted American Dream
The next book for the Social Justice Book Group is "An American Marriage," and the next meeting is March 28, 2023.
The novel by Tayari Jones focuses on newlyweds Celestial and Roy, who embody the American Dream and the New South. He's a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined.
"An American Marriage" was a notable book selection by the New York Times, Washington Post and NPR, and an Oprah Book Club selection.
Books and are now available to pick up at StarkFresh at 321 Cherry Ave. NE.
Meetings are the 4th Tuesday at 7 p.m. You can join us in the Guild Hall or via Zoom.
Please call the Church Office for more information on books and Zoom login, 330-455-0286.
The novel by Tayari Jones focuses on newlyweds Celestial and Roy, who embody the American Dream and the New South. He's a young executive, and she is an artist on the brink of an exciting career. But as they settle into the routine of their life together, they are ripped apart by circumstances neither could have imagined.
"An American Marriage" was a notable book selection by the New York Times, Washington Post and NPR, and an Oprah Book Club selection.
Books and are now available to pick up at StarkFresh at 321 Cherry Ave. NE.
Meetings are the 4th Tuesday at 7 p.m. You can join us in the Guild Hall or via Zoom.
Please call the Church Office for more information on books and Zoom login, 330-455-0286.
