Project Wrap Up- Where did the time go?

As the semester comes comes to an end, Shandra and I have put together a scrapbook to give to Mrs. Robeldo to keep. Shandra took pictures of all their properties and I cut an overview of each home with a description. We also created a family tree that listed both their parents, their siblings, their children, grandchildren and great grand child. We included family pictures thanks to Dr. Gilbert, pictures of the neighborhood and school, a brief time line, and put it all in the memory of Mr. Robeldo. The presentation had similar information with an addition of brief overview of the 1920 Austin City Ordinance, and a definition picked by Shandra and I of what gentrification is. After our presentation was over, we took a picture with Henrietta and she thanks us for our work and even invited me over to her house sometime. I couldn't be happier with what this course brought to me and I hope to continue be involved in projects like these in the future and for the rest of my life.

Family Tree

Flyer given to me by Mrs. Robeldo

Mr. and Mrs. Henrietta getting married 50 years ago

Oral History Progress

Reflecting back to the last couple of weeks before the end of the semester, before thanksgiving break Shandra, Alex and I agreed on our parts of the project. I had an interview that I recorded using my iphone with the Robeldo family that I emailed to both Shandra and Alex. However, due to the file being too large to send over through my phone signal, it was not until the following week that I was informed that they did not received it. This caused some delay in our mutual decision to go over the interview to try to really break down the dates, names, and addresses that were left a bit unclear in the first written report of the interview. After Shandra received and confirmed getting the interview, we both came up with a brief summary of the family history and compared notes. Alex volunteered to get the scrapbook and we agreed to get started on creating the book during our following class day. Overall, I remember really enjoying my experience that far with the project. I had never given a formal interview before and actually found it a lot harder then I had imagined. I wanted to give equal time to both Mr. and Mrs. Robeldo but found it a little difficult to redirect the question to one when one of them jumped in with their thoughts about the subject. Naturally I appreciated the enthusiasm  I felt from both of them but found myself unprepared to separate their answers in the word document I had created. If I had the opportunity to do it again, I would have made a clear outline for one person and other one for the other instead of jumbling it all together and trying to clear it up afterwards. I also wished I had better understanding of what kinds of questions to ask. Before I interview them, I researched to types of questions to ask and organized a series of question that I thought followed a locally sequence and allowed for an open ended response. However, I found that these open ended response often lead to information that I would later seek and so at times my questions appeared to be redundant. The experience of interviewing however is far more useful then information I could have gathered through research and feel I've gain some insight on how to better approach interviewees. For me, it was really useful to talk to them in person instead of over the phone or through another source of communication before as cliche as it sounds, it really makes it more personal and rewarding. I was able to enter the home of this family and see how they lived for myself. I got to walk through their neighborhood and had an encounter with the people boarding at a bus stop. I got to see the process of gentrification before our scheduled class trip and it really made the project more real. Gentrification really is happening. As I walked to their house, I remember seeings what appeared to be government housing and noticed the racial demographics, and was literally shocked as I walked a block away and saw young white people coming out of juan in a million.The current integration between the new and the old residents is was very visible.

Gentification - Global

For me personally, before this course I use to think that industrializing an area in another country is a good thing and a step in helping create a more modern civilization. I thought cleaning up an area that is in great poverty came along with the construction of buildings, and in theory would benefit the residents of that area by providing them better living situations. However upon reading the articles over Gentrification in countries outside of the US, I've realized that gentrification has it negative drawbacks in our local areas and also extends globally. With the construction of new homes, apartments and businesses, the residents of these area are also being pushed out. Instead of creating opportunities for these residents they are driving them towards the outskirts of the city where they are left without any of the benefits of these modernized environments and forced to begin all over again only causing a disruption in their lives.  In fact, gentrification actually seems to be even more harmful because instead of the usually slow processes that it takes here, it is done at a more rapid pace literally kicking its residents out. Overall, I think there is some potential goodness that could come for reforming an area into a more successful  neighborhood that thrives as long as it the residents that live there are the ones that are benefiting from this new construction and not outsiders. After thinking about gentrification from a local perspective and a global perspective, I think that many people who are involved with this construction may be unaware of its consequences. As Americans, we may think helping construct better homes for those in foreign countries will directly benefit those people but it fact, we could just be building those developments for people in other countries who may be able and willing to pay to live there, and over the course of a few years, be pushing out its native residents. In gentrifying an area we must be careful to not displace  local residents or native residents in global gentrifying progress.

Gentrification-local

In the short time that I've lived in Austin, I've got to see gentrification happen without even being aware of what it was. When I first moved to riverside a little less then two years ago, it an area with businesses targeted towards a Hispanic population. A lot of taqurias, washaterias, cash loan places, and Spanish super markets. The apartments  in the area appeared to be built several years ago, and aside from student living,  and were all relatively affordable. However, in the last year and half I've noticed new construction and the formation of 3 story apartments that appear to be aiming at luxury living and upgraded commercialize businesses. Out of curiosity and because the new apartments do look beautiful, I went to ask for pricing. A one bedroom apartments was going for over a thousand dollars a month! My first initial response was these people are crazy. NOBODY WOULD PAY THAT MUCH. However, reflecting back now with my knowledge I've obtained from this class, I can see that the people that running these apartments are very much sane because they are aware that nobody would pay that much. Nobody that already lived in that area that is. This is the type of gentrification that I've seen locally. From living in riverside, to driving down Holly, Marlo Heights, and the Mueller development gentrification is happening right under our noses. 

New apartments right of riverside and I35 called "Riverview"

CRAFT MODEL

In the book Beginner's Guide to Community-Based Arts there are 5 stages listed under the CRAFT model.

1) CONTACT

2) RESEARCH

3) ACTION

4) FEEDBACK

5) TEACHING

For the family oral history presentation we will use interview the family. By having the family as a primary source we will gain insights on this family's perspective of the changes Holly street has encountered over the years. I also anticipate what will use library resources to date back to public records containing the community's demographics. We will also compare our historic findings with the current present day structure of Holly that we ourselves will photograph. We plan on doing at least two home visits to the Robles family.

At this current stage of our research we have only experience the first 3 stages of the CRAFT model. But if I had to list three important points within these stages I'd say that the contact needs to done in anticipation for both the family and those who are interviewing. For the research, I'd say that it is necessary to organize your questions thoroughly before going out to seek answers because some of the questions may appear redundant or irrelevant. It is important to have a clear idea of what you are trying to research and have a method for getting those answers. For action, it is important to know that things change, and you have to be able to adapt to unexpected circumstances.

Terms & Colony Park Readings

Gentrification- the shift of lower-income community towards a higher, wealthier area often resulting in a change in demographics.
-To me gentrification has the potential to cause both good and bad. While it can cause it a displacement in minorities, I feel that if done right, it would have some beneficial outcomes. 
-Gentrification is controversial because although it often involves some sort of  improvement in infrastructure  it can be argued that these changes are made by outsiders and do not actually reflect the desires of the members of the community. In order words, outsiders may benefit from gentrification while at the expense of community members.

Low-income housing- A residential area or neighborhood that has a large percentage of residents that are generally economically disadvantage. This often includes residents who are mostly within a minority group, elderly, and have little education. Before the 1990's East Austin was often consider an low-income area.

Colony Park Goals- For the residents in the Colony Park area their main focus is provide residents with a safe recreational center to be able to promote health improvement to their children and community residents. For many years the city of Austin has ignored their efforts and the necessary steps to improve their living environment were not prioritized.  Although the Colony Park has focused on designed the usage of the grant to increase health concerns, I think that ultimately the goal is to fight and stand against the wealthy taking advantage of lower class residents who do not have the agency to put and end to the social injustice and put an effort to protest against social class having such a large effect in political power.


While learning about the communities of East Austin, Holly Street, the Colony Park grant, and the Mueller development, I've learn that there are so many different elements to consider. All though there is definitely similarities between these communities I don't think here is no one solution to all of these communities. Each should be taken as an individual problem and we should seek to provide indivdual solutions that benefit the members of that given community.

Favorite Story - Rhodessa Jones

While reading Beginner's Guide to Community-Based Arts, the story of Rhodessa Jones's experience in visiting a woman's prison really spoke to me. When Rhodessa confessed that she had no idea what to expect on her first day on the job at the prison and began by offering some details on her personal life and what lead her there, it made me feel glad that she used that as a platform to break the tension and create a bridge between herself and these women. In my life I've come to realize that people especially those who feel  vulnerable are hesitant to open themselves to others and even more so to strangers.  This story really emphasized on the importance on humbling yourself. It is through this share emotional expression that a true connection between people can occur. You can't expect others to feel comfortable in opening up to you if you aren't willing to do the same. By sharing her experience Rhodessa was able to bypass this barrier that was had previous divided the prison women and their instructor and placed both of them on an equal ground. Instead of just being another dance instructor,  Rhodessa was able to actually emerge herself into the world of these women and increasing her influence to truly create a an impact.

Hispanic Privilege

After reading the article on white privilege I've come to realize that although Hispanics are often associated with being part of the marginalized groups in the United States, that I too have some privilege attached with my ethnicity. Here is my list.

1) I can identify with hair commercials  

2) I never think about not finding my skin shade in cosmetics. 

3) I know I can also find someone who speaks my language. 

4) Food I enjoy to eat is usually available anywhere I go. 

5) The majority of time, I am not the only Hispanic person in a room/area. 

6) As a female, I can wear "nude" pantyhose without thinking it will look awkward

7) I can go tanning without the people at saloons wondering what I am doing there

8) I get through airport security fast and do not get questioned

Cultural Identity

Above is my charm bracelet. It was given to me when I was 15. In the Hispanic heritage, turning 15 signifies a turning point for a girl's life. In celebration for the transition from being a girl to a young woman, there is traditionally a Quinceanera party. However, since lavish girly dresses aren't necessary my thing, I decided to opt out of the tradition and commemorate my coming of age with a this bracelet and have added charms throughout the years to symbolize major aspects of my life.


I don't come from a large family. In fact, the only people I consider family are my mother and older sister. Because of this lack of close relatives, I haven't been as exposed to my "cultural roots" as say your average Mexican America girl. However, I still strongly identify as a Xhicana, and joined a latin community service sorority with the motto "Latinas Helping Others"- Sigma Lambda Alpha. Below is mask I used during my showcase.

Over the summer I got the opportunity to study abroad in the UK at the University of Oxford. There I took a Shakespeare's class and a medieval course. Traveling is something that I've always dreamed of but unfortunately because of my family background and our lack of financial resources, I never thought I'd step foot outside of the US. Fortunately after some encouraging words,  I took the initiative to break that barrier and received a generous scholarship to make my trip plausible.  As a self proclaimed Xhicana, I value both American culture and Mexican culture. Here is a reminder to myself that I can expand from my horizons and appreciate yet another culture.

In addition to identifying a Latina, I also identify as queer.  The queer community is hands down part of my culture. This is an aspect of my life and I'm on a mission to integrate LGBTQ  oppression with other minority struggles because it is my belief that taking an intersectionality lens is  key to alleviate oppression.

 

 Here is a poem by Adelina Anthony entitled "Tragic Bitches: An Experiment in Queer Xicana &Xicano Performance Poetry". It is very blunt and can be seen as vulgar but I really like it because of just that.  I think there is a distinction between those who identify as Mexican America and Xican@.

Introductions

Hey guys! I'm Jessica, but I go by Jess. My major is psychology and I'm a senior this year. I came into UT as a social work major but then switch to anthropology and then finally settled on psychology. However, after going a few semester without taking any more social work classes, I came to regret my decision to change majors and wished I would have continued as a social work major. Because it's too late in the game to go back to social work, I'm currently just minoring in it. I really enjoyed and see the value in community service. I was raised in a single parent household from a low socioeconomic background. My school system was one of the worse in the country (I'm originally from Compton, California) and I really enjoyed working with kids that attend inner city schools. I currently have about 200 hours at the boys and girls club in south Austin. I've done a few hours elsewhere but the major of hours of community service I've performed have involved children. I enrolled in this class because it seemed like a great opportunity to expand my experiences in other communities. I'm looking forward to this class and promise, the learning method is great!