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Im going to call wikipedia if you guys continue deleting my information. this information is completely biased, racist, and serves a self-interested purpose. I will spend the rest of my life defending this neighborhood and its history, so stop the unneccesary BS!!! |
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'''Bushwick''' is a neighborhood in the northeastern part of the [[New York City]] [[borough (New York City)|borough]] of [[Brooklyn]]. It is bounded by [[East Williamsburg, Brooklyn|East Williamsburg]] to the northwest, [[Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn|Bed-Stuy]] to the southwest, the [[Cemetery of the Evergreens, Brooklyn|Cemetery of the Evergreens]] and other cemeteries to the southeast, and [[Ridgewood, Queens]] to the northeast.<ref name="Citycyclopedia"/> The neighborhood, formerly Brooklyn's 18th Ward, is now part of [[Brooklyn Community Board 4]]. City Councilman [[Diana Reyna]] represents this area. The neighborhood is served by the NYPD's 83rd <ref>[http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/html/precincts/precinct_083.shtml 83rd Precinct], [[NYPD]].</ref> Precinct. |
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[[Image:Knickerbocker south of park.jpg|thumb|right|455px|Knickerbocker Avenue, a main shopping street south of Maria Hernandez park]] |
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==Statistics== |
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===People=== |
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Bushwick's population is 129,980. In 2007, 38.9% of the population was foreign born. Though an ethnic neighborhood, Bushwick's population is relatively homogeneous, scoring a 0.5 on the Furman Center's racial diversity index, making it the City's 35th most diverse neighborhood in 2007. The neighborhood's median household income in was $31,531, making it the 45th highest earning neighborhood in the City. 32% of the population falls under the poverty line, making Bushwick the 7th most impoverished neighborhood in New York City. 40.3% of students in Bushwick read at grade level, making it the 49th most literate neighborhood in the City in 2007. 58.2% of students do math at grade level in Bushwick, 41st best in the City. Bushwick experienced 0.0252 violent crimes per person in 2007, in line with the City's overall rate of 0.0250 violent crimes per person. <ref>[http://furmancenter.org/files/soc2008/New_York_City.pdf] Furman Center State of New York City Report.</ref> |
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===Housing=== |
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Vacant land fills 4.1% of Bushwick, making it the 21st emptiest neighborhood in the City. The median age of the housing stock is 76 years. Over 91% of housing units are within 400 meters of a park, and over 97% of housing units are within 800 meters of a subway. |
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About one-out-of-six rental units is subsidized, and greater than one-out-of-three units is rent regulated. Median rent in 2007 was $795, the 40th highest median rent in the city. 4% of renters live in in severely overcrowded conditions. |
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In 2007, the neighborhood had a 18.7% home ownership rate, though roughly 1 out of 20 owners of a 1-4 unit building received a notice of foreclosure. <ref>[http://furmancenter.org/files/soc2008/Brooklyn.pdf], Furman Center State of Brooklyn Report.</ref> |
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==Transportation== |
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[[Image:Almost bedstuy.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Take the J-Train]] |
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Major subway stops include, [[Jefferson Street (BMT Canarsie Line)|Jefferson Street]], [[DeKalb Avenue (BMT Canarsie Line)|DeKalb Avenue]], [[Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues (BMT Canarsie Line)|Myrtle–Wyckoff Avenues]] and [[Halsey Street (BMT Canarsie Line)|Halsey Street]] on the [[BMT Canarsie Line]] ({{NYCS Canarsie}}), [[Central Avenue (BMT Myrtle Avenue Line)|Central Avenue]] on the [[BMT Myrtle Avenue Line]] ({{NYCS Myrtle}}), and [[Flushing Avenue (BMT Jamaica Line)|Flushing Av]], [[Myrtle Avenue (BMT Jamaica Line)|Myrtle Avenue]], [[Kosciuszko Street (BMT Jamaica Line)|Koscuisko Street]], [[Gates Avenue (BMT Jamaica Line)|Gates Avenue]], and [[Halsey Street (BMT Jamaica Line)|Halsey Street]] on the [[BMT Jamaica Line]] ({{NYCS Jamaica east J}}) and (Z). Bus lines serving Bushwick include the [[B13 (New York City bus)|B15]], [[B26 (New York City bus)|B26]], [[B38 (New York City bus)|B38]], [[B52 (New York City bus)|B52]], [[B54 (New York City bus)|B54]], and [[B60 (New York City bus)|B60]]. The Myrtle Avenue/Wyckoff Avenue bus and subway hub was renovated into a state-of-the-art transportation center in 2007. |
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==Land Use== |
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Bushwick's diverse housing stock includes six family apartment building and two and three familiy converted townhouses. The total land area is two square miles. Conventionally shrugged off as home to low income renters in a primarily immigrant community, Ethnic groups common in the neighborhood consists of Puerto Ricans, Hondurans, Dominicans, Mexicans, Ecuadorians, African Americans, Haitians, Jamaicans, and Afro-Caribbean in the Community. Also, this neighborhood has a smaller number of Chinese, Koreans, Indo-Caribbeans (Guyana and Trinidad), Filipinos, Arabs, and Hipsters.<ref>[[Robert Sullivan|Sullivan, Robert]]. "Psst... Have You Heard About Bushwick?" [[The New York Times]] Published 5 Mar. 2006. Accessed 3 May 2008 [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/05/magazine/305bushwick.1.html?_r=2&oref=slogin&oref=slogin]. </ref> |
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====Parks and Public Space==== |
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'''Bushwick Pool & Park''' is a {{convert|1.29|acre|m2|sing=on}} park located on Flushing and Bushwick avenues. The park which is administered by the [[New York City Department of Parks and Recreation]] has a free public pool (a large pool as well as a children's pool is available), basketball courts, a handball court and a children's playground. According to the NYC Parks Department Website the park was originally owned by the NYC Housing Authority from 1956 until 1983 when it was transferred to the NYC Department of Parks & Recreation |
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'''Bushwick Playground''' is a {{convert|2|acre|m2|sing=on}} Park under the jurisdiction of NYC Department of Parks and is located at Knickerbocker Avenue and Putnam Avenue. Bushwick Playground park features basketball courts, sitting areas and a children's playground. |
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'''Bushwick Green Park''', also known as "Green Central Noll Park" is a {{convert|2.5|acre|m2|sing=on}} park located on Flushing Avenue and Central Avenue. According to the Parks department website, the park is located on the former site of the Rheingold beer brewery. New York City took ownership of the property after the beer company closed due to failure to pay taxes but it wasn't given to the New York City Department of Parks & Recreation until 1997. The park includes a baseball field, sitting areas and a children's playground. |
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'''Ridgewood/Bushwick Youth Center''' is a youth activity center administered by the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation located between Gates Avenue and Palmetto Street. |
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'''Memorial Gore Park''' is a granite monument located in a small {{convert|.066|acre|m2|sing=on}} park at the intersection where Bushwick Avenue, Metropolitan avenue and Maspeth Avenues meet in the Bushwick / Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. It is dedicated to the Bushwick residents who fought and died in the world war. The monument is owned and cared for by the NYC Department of Parks and Recreation. |
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'''Hope Gardens Multi Service Center''' is a building located on Wilson and Linden, it serves as an elderly bingo game building, an after school program for children grades kindergarten to fifth grade, a karate class host, and a summer day camp for the neighborhood children. |
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====Public Housing==== |
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Three [[New York City Housing Authority]] (NYCHA) developments are located in Bushwick.<ref name=NYCHA>[http://www.nyc.gov/html/nycha/html/home/home.shtml NYCHA locations in Bushwick]</ref> They are mainly occupied by low-income families: |
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*Bushwick II CDA (Group E); five three-story buildings. |
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*Hope Gardens; four seven- and fourteen-story buildings. |
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*Palmetto Gardens; one six-story building. |
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==History== |
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{{New Netherland}} |
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===Bushwick Township=== |
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====Four Villages==== |
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In 1638, the [[Dutch West India Company]] secured a deed from the local [[Lenape]] people for the Bushwick area, and [[Peter Stuyvesant]], chartered the area in 1661, naming it "'''Boswijck'''," meaning "little town in the woods" or "Heavy Woods" in 17th Century Dutch<ref name="Citycyclopedia">'''Kenneth T. Jackson: ''The Encyclopedia of New York City''''': The New York Historical Society; Yale University Press; 1995. P. 171.</ref>. [http://www.blockmagazine.com/block_stock_barrel.php] Its area included the modern day communities of Bushwick, [[Williamsburg, Brooklyn|Williamsburg]], and [[Greenpoint, Brooklyn|Greenpoint]]. Bushwick was the last of the original six [[History of Brooklyn|Dutch towns of Brooklyn]] to be established within [[New Netherland]]. |
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The community was settled, though unchartered, on [[February 16]], [[1660]] on a plot of land between the Bushwick and Newtown Creeks<ref name="Citycyclopedia"/> by fourteen [[French people|French]] and [[Huguenot]] settlers, a [[Dutch people|Dutch]] translator named Peter Jan De Witt<ref>[http://www.bklyngenealogyinfo.com/Town/Bushwick/Bushwick2.html History of Bushwick], accessed [[November 19]], [[2006]]</ref>, and Franciscus the Negro, one of the original eleven [[slaves]] brought to New Netherland who had worked his way to freedom.<ref>[http://www.newsday.com/community/guide/lihistory/nyhistoryhs313a,0,5978045.story The Rise of Slavery: New York had the most slaves in the North, and Long Island had almost half of them], ''[[Newsday]]'', accessed [[November 19]], [[2006]]</ref><ref>[http://www.innerexplorations.com/home/black.htm A Black History of Jamaica, New York], accessed [[November 19]], [[2006]]</ref>. The group centered their settlement around a church located near today's Bushwick and Metropolitan Avenues. The major thoroughfare was Woodpoint road, which allowed farmers to bring their goods to the town dock. [http://www.bklyngenealogyinfo.com/Town/Bushwick/Bushwick4.html] This original settlement came to be known as ''Het Dorp'' by the Dutch, and, later, Bushwick Green by the British. The [[England|English]] would take over the six towns three years later and unite the towns under Kings County in 1683. |
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At the turn of the 19th century, Bushwick consisted of four villages, Green Point, Bushwick Shore<ref>[http://www.nycarchitecture.com/GPT/gpthistory.htm Greenpoint History], accessed [[November 19]], [[2006]]</ref>, later to be known as Williamsburg, Bushwick Green, and Bushwick Crossroads, at the spot today's Bushwick Avenue turns southeast at Flushing Avenue.<ref>[http://www.panix.com/~cassidy/stilesv2/v2c9/371.html HISTORY OF BROOKLYN: CHAPTER IX. BUSHWICK AND WILLIAMSBURGH, FROM THE CLOSE OF THE REVOLUTION, UNTIL 1854], accessed [[November 19]], [[2006]]</ref>. |
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====Land annexation==== |
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Bushwick's first major expansion occurred after it annexed The New Lots of Bushwick, a hilly upland originally claimed by the [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] in the first treaties they signed with European [[Colony|colonists]] providing the settlers rights to the lowland on the water. After the second war between the natives and the settlers broke out, the natives fled, leaving the area to be divided among the six towns in Kings County. Bushwick had the prime location to absorb their new tract of land in a contiguous fashion. New Bushwick Lane (Evergreen Ave), a former native American trail, was a key thoroughfare to access this new tract suitable mostly for [[potato]] and [[cabbage]] agriculture. [http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/NYBROOKLYN/200003/0953693543] This area is bound roughly by Flushing Avenue to the north, and Evergreen Cemetery to the south. |
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In the 1850s, the New Lots of Bushwick area began to develop. References to the town of Bowronville, a new neighborhood contained within the area south of Lafayette Ave and Stanhope Street begin to appear dating to the 1850s. [http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/NYKINGS/200008/0967331525] [http://www.brooklyn.net/neighborhoods/obsolete_street_names.html]. |
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====Bushwick Shore and Williamsburgh==== |
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The area known as Bushwick Shore was so called for about 140 years. Bushwick residents called Bushwick Shore "the Strand," another term for "beach" [http://www.freedict.com/onldict/onldict.php]. Bushwick Creek, in the north, and Cripplebush, a region of thick, [[bog]]gy [[shrubland]] extending from Wallabout Creek to [[Newtown Creek]], in the south and east, cut Bushwick Shore from the other villages in Bushwick. [[Farmers]] and [[Gardening|gardeners]] from the other Bushwick villages sent their goods to Bushwick Shore to be ferried to New York City for sale via a [[Farmers' market|market]] at present day Grand St. Bushwick Shore's favorable location close to New York City lead to the creation of several farming developments. Originally a {{convert|13|acre|m2|adj=on}} development within Bushwick Shore, Williamsburgh rapidly expanded during the first half of the nineteenth century and eventually seceded from Bushwick to form its own independent city. [http://www.bklyngenealogyinfo.com/Town/Wmsburgh.html] |
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====Early Industry==== |
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[[Image:Bushwicklirr.JPG|thumb|Bushwick Branch of LIRR still carries some freight]] |
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When Bushwick was founded, it was primarily an area for farming food and tobacco. As Brooklyn and New York City grew, factories that manufactured sugar, oil, and chemicals were built. The inventor [[Peter Cooper]] built a [[glue]] manufacturing plant, his first factory, in Bushwick. Immigrants from [[western Europe]] joined the original Dutch settlers. The Bushwick Chemical Works, at Metropolitan Avenue and [[Grand Street (Brooklyn)|Grand Street]] on the English Kills channel, was another early industry among the lime, plaster, and brick works, coal yards, and other factories which developed along English Kills, which was dredged and made an important commercial waterway. [http://www.nyc.gov/html/lpc/downloads/pdf/reports/berlenbach.pdf]. In October, 1867, the American Institute awarded The Bushwick Chemical Works the first premium for commercial acids of greatest purity and strength [http://www.panix.com/~cassidy/stilesv3/v3part4/588.html]. The Bushwick Glass Company, later to be known as Brookfield glass company established itself in 1869, when a local brewer sold it to James Brookfield [http://www.myinsulators.com/glassfactories/brookfield.html]. The Bushwick Glass Company made a variety both bottle and jars. Around the same time, in 1868, the [[Long Island Rail Road]] built the [[Bushwick Branch]] from its hub in [[Jamaica, Queens|Jamaica]] via [[Maspeth]] to Bushwick Terminal at the intersection of Montrose and Bushwick Avenues [http://www.industrialnewyork.com/rail/2003515bushwick/index.shtml], allowing easy movement of passengers, raw materials, and finished goods. |
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In the 1840s and 1850s, a majority of the immigrants were [[German American|German]], which became the dominant population. Bushwick established a considerable [[brewery]] industry, including "Brewer's Row": 14 breweries operating in a 14 block area by 1890.<ref>[http://www.ci.nyc.ny.us/html/hpd/html/about/bushwickwalkingtour.shtml Walking Tours: Bushwick], accessed [[December 24]], [[2006]]</ref> Thus, Bushwick was dubbed the "beer capital of the Northeast." The last Bushwick brewery closed its doors in 1976. <ref>The Bushwick Pilsners: |
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A Look at Hoppier Days by Ben Jankowski Republished from BrewingTechniques' January/February 1994. http://brewingtechniques.com/library/backissues/issue2.1/jankowski.html</ref> |
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As late as 1883, Bushwick maintained open farming land east of Flushing Avenue.<ref>[http://archiver.rootsweb.com/th/read/NYBROOKLYN/200003/0953693543 NYBROOKLYNL Archives: March 2000], accessed [[December 24]], [[2006]]</ref>. In fact, a synergy developed between the brewers and the farmers during this period, as the dairy farmers collected spent grain and hops for cow feed. The dairy farmers sold the milk, and other dairy products, to consumers in Brooklyn. Both industries supported blacksmiths, wheelwrights, and feed stores along Flushing Avenue.<ref>[http://www.nyfoodmuseum.org/bkbeer.htm New York Food Museum: Beer], accessed [[December 24]], [[2006]]</ref> |
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===Streetcar Suburb=== |
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[[Image:Lower bushwick ave.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Brownstones and Mansions on Bushwick Ave, near Suydam St.]]The first elevated railway in Brooklyn, known as the [[Lexington Avenue Elevated]], opened in 1885. Its eastern terminus was at the edge of Bushwick, at [[Gates Avenue (BMT Jamaica Line)|Gates Avenue and Broadway]].[http://www.nycsubway.org/articles/earlyrapidtransitinbrooklyn.html] This line was extended southeastward into [[East New York, Brooklyn|East New York]] shortly thereafter. By the end of 1889, the [[BMT Jamaica Line|Broadway Elevated]] and the [[BMT Myrtle Avenue Line|Myrtle Avenue Elevated]] were completed, enabling easier access to [[Downtown Brooklyn]] and [[Manhattan]] and the rapid residential development of Bushwick from farmland. |
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With the success of the brewery industry and the presence of the Els, another wave of European immigrants settled in the neighborhood. Also, parts of Bushwick became affluent. Brewery owners and doctors commissioned mansions along Bushwick and Irving Avenues at the turn of the 20th century. New York mayor [[John Francis Hylan]] kept a townhouse on Bushwick Avenue during this period.<ref>[http://www.forgottenny.com/STREET%20SCENES/bushwick/bushwick.html Dr. Cook's Mansion and Other Bushwick Mansions], accessed [[December 24]], [[2006]]</ref>. Bushwick homes were designed in the Italianate, Neo Greco, Romanesque Revival, and Queen Anne styles by well known architects. Bushwick was a center of culture with several Vaudeville era playhouses, including the Amphion Theatre, the nation's first theatre with electric lighting.<ref>[http://www.rbscc.org/default.asp?menu1_Id=5 The Bushwick Renaissance Initiative], accessed [[December 24]], [[2006]]</ref> The wealth of the neighborhood peaked between [[World War I]] and [[World War II]], even when events such as [[Prohibition]] and [[the Great Depression]] were taking place. After the WWI, the German enclave was steadily replaced by a significant proportion of [[Italian American]]. By 1950 Bushwick was one of Brooklyn's largest Italian American neighborhoods, although some German Americans remained.<sup>[http://www.nyc.gov/html/hpd/html/about/bushwickwalkingtour.shtml]</sup> |
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==Decline== |
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===1950s, 1960s, and 1970s: White Flight and Economic Depression=== |
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Beginning in the mid 1950s and particularly in the 1960s, poor working class [[African American]] and [[Puerto Rican American|Puerto Rican]] migrants began to move into Bushwick.<sup>[http://www.upfromflames.com/uff_path/uff_path_demographic_changes.html]</sup> Small apartment buildings were built to accommodate the incoming residents. The change in [[demographics]] coincided with changes in the local economy. At the same time, locally rising energy costs, advances in transportation, and the invention of the steel can encouraged beer companies to move out of New York City. As the breweries closed, the neighborhood deteriorated along with much of [[Brooklyn]] and [[New York City]]. [[Racial discrimination]] stopped most investment as it changed from a mostly white community to an African-American and Hispanic community. Discussions of [[urban renewal]] took place in the 1960s, but never materialized. In 1960 Bushwick was 70% white; by 1977 it was over 70% Black and Puerto Rican (Goodman 180). The U.S. Census records that it went from almost 90% white in 1960 to less than 40% in 1970.<sup>[http://www.upfromflames.com/uff_path/uff_path_demographic_changes.html]</sup> A contributor to this drastic change was the Lindsay administration's policy of raising rent for welfare recipients, which encouraged Bushwick landlords to fill vacant units with such tenants, since they now brought higher rents than ordinary tenants would pay on the open market. By the mid-seventies, half of Bushwick’s residents were on public assistance. <ref>[http://www.city-journal.org/2008/18_2_bushwick.html The Death and Life of Bushwick</ref> Another contributor to the drastic change was the practice of blockbusting which encouraged speculators to buy homes from Bushwick residents for an average of $8,000 apiece and then sell them to poor blacks and Puerto Ricans at the unaffordable average price of $20,000 per home, using fraudulent appraisals and a Great Society federal mortgage program that insured home loans to low-income buyers. Many defaulted, abandoning their homes and massively depressing local property values. |
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According to the ''New York Times'', "In a five-year period in the late 1960s and early 70's, the Bushwick neighborhood of Brooklyn was transformed from a neatly maintained community of wood houses into what often approached a no man's land of abandoned buildings, empty lots, drugs and arson."<sup>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A0DE2DF1530F931A35751C0A960948260]</sup> One out of every 8 buildings was damaged or destroyed by fire every year from 1969 to 1977 (Goodman 122). |
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===Blackout: Riots and Looting=== |
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On the night of [[July 13]], [[1977]], [[New York City blackout of 1977|a major blackout]] occurred in New York City. [[Arson]], [[looting]], and [[vandalism]] followed in low income neighborhoods across the city. Bushwick, however, saw some of the most devastating damages and losses. While local owners in the predominantly Puerto Rican Knickerbocker Avenue and Graham Avenue shopping districts were able to defend their stores with force, suburban owners with stores on the Broadway shopping district saw their shops looted and burned. Twenty-seven stores, some of which were of [[mixed use]], along Broadway had burned (Goodman 104). Looters (and residents who bought from looters) saw the blackout as an opportunity to get what they otherwise could not afford. Fires spread to many residential buildings as well. After the riots were over and the fires were put out, residents saw "some streets that looked like [[Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn|Brooklyn Heights]], and others that looked like [[Dresden]] in 1945" (Goodman 181): unsafe dwellings and empty lots among surviving buildings. Broadway business space had a 43% Vacancy rate in the wake of the riots. [http://www.rbscc.org/default.asp?menu1_Id=5] |
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===1980s and 1990s: Blight and Poverty=== |
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Bushwick was left with a lack of both retail stores and housing. After the blackout, residents who could afford to leave abandoned the area. But new immigrants were coming into the area during the late 1960s and early 1970s, many of whom were from Puerto Rico, and more recently the [[Dominican Republic]]. However, apartment renovation and new construction did not keep pace with the demolition of unsafe buildings, forcing overcrowded conditions at first. As buildings came down, the vacant lots made parts of the neighborhood look and feel desolate, and more residents left. The neighborhood was a hotbed of poverty and crime through the 1980s. During this period, the Knickerbocker Ave shopping district was nicknamed "The Well" for its seemingly unending supply of drugs.<ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F0CE3D81630F932A15752C1A965958260 NEIGHBORHOOD REPORT: BUSHWICK UPDATE; Rough Sailing in Wake of Drug Crackdown]</ref> In the 1990s it remained a poor and relatively dangerous area, with 77 murders, 80 rapes, and 2,242 robberies in 1990.<ref name=83rd>[http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/downloads/pdf/crime_statistics/cs083pct.pdf 83rd Precinct CompStat Report]</ref> |
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===2000s: A Tale of Two Bushwicks=== |
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{{POV-section|date=July 2008}} |
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[[Image:Zukkies Bushwick jeh.JPG|thumb|Bicycle shop on Bushwick Avenue]] |
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[[Image:Off knickerbocker.jpg|thumb|right|Jefferson Street scene]] |
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[[File:PS 123 Bushwick jeh.JPG|thumb|Public School 123, Irving Avenue]] |
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In the 2000s, in the wake of lower crime rates citywide and a shortage of cheap housing in "hip" neighborhoods such as [[Williamsburg, Brooklyn|Williamsburg]], Greenpoint, and [[Gowanus]], an influx of young professionals and artists moved into converted warehouse lofts, brownstones, limestone-brick townhouses and other renovated buildings. And, while murders and car thefts are higher in the 83rd precinct now than they were to start the decade<ref name=83rd/>, property values are increasing. Bushwick's 83d Precinct has a similar crime rate to neighboring Williamsburg's 90th Precinct. <ref>[http://www.nyc.gov/html/nypd/pdf/chfdept/cs090pct.pdf 90th Precinct CompStat Report Covering the Week of 1/08/2007 Through 1/14/2007]</ref> Residents of the former artists colony in Gowanus are already making plans for moving to Bushwick.<ref>[http://www.curbed.com/archives/2005/11/28/brooklyns_very_own_banlieu_riots_optional.php Brooklyn's Very Own Banlieu (Riots Optional)], dated [[November 28]], [[2005]]</ref> Nightlife for hipsters remains sparse, and, outside a few places on Wyckoff Avenue by Jefferson Street, they need to commute to Williamsburg, [[Greenpoint]], Manhattan for their own brand of excitement. [http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/11/realestate/11livi.html?pagewanted=2&ei=5070&en=4880ae356bd5] [http://gothamist.com/2008/01/07/when_looking_fo.php] |
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Many social problems associated with poverty from crime to drug addiction have plagued the area for some time. Despite crime declines versus their peaks during the crack and heroin epidemics violent crime continues to be a serious problem in the community. <ref name=83rd/> Bushwick has significantly higher drop out rates and incidents of violence in its schools.<ref>[http://www.gothamgazette.com/article/fea/20060320/202/1792 NYC Dropout Rates]</ref> Students must pass through metal detectors and swipe ID cards to enter the buildings, reminiscent of a prison environment which many feel encourages bad behavior. Other problems in local schools include low test scores and high truancy rates. Drug addiction is also a serious problem in the community. Due to the lucrative drug trade in the area many addicted reside in the community. Peer pressure among children who come from broken homes contributes to the high rate of usage. Many households in the area are headed by a single mother which contributes to the high poverty rate.<ref name="Brooklyn Social Concerns">[http://aspe.hhs.gov/HSP/prison2home02/Cadora.htm Brooklyn Social Concerns]</ref> Many of these single mothers had their children at a very young age and unfortunately could not provide for them.<ref name="Brooklyn Social Concerns"/> Many of the families living in Bushwick have been in poverty for generations. The incarceration rate in the area is also very high.<ref name="Brooklyn Social Concerns"/> Many if not most males in the community have been arrested at some point in their lives. <ref name="Brooklyn Social Concerns"/> This has a direct correlation to aggressive policing tactics including "sweeps" due to the area's high crime rate. Bushwick is home to a significant number of inmates currently held in New York state prison and jail facilities. In more recent years homelessness has become an ever worsening problem in Bushwick due to rising rents and a shortage of affordable housing. Many families have had to double or triple up to a single apartment. Others have relocated to either other low income neighborhoods or have left the city. Finally those not able to leave must stay in homeless shelters or out on the streets. Living cost, especially housing, has only risen in recent years. |
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==Community organizing in Bushwick== |
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{{Unreferenced section|date=October 2008}} |
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Bushwick also has a strong history of community organizing, most notably with the organization [[Make The Road New York]]. Make the Road New York was founded in 1997 in a Bushwick church basement by local residents to address the potentially devastating effects of welfare reform on America's poor and immigrant communities. While initially focusing on organizing immigrant welfare recipients, they soon expanded their focus to organizing to combat systemic economic and political marginalization of Bushwick residents. They have been largely successful, with victories including helping workers organize several union shops on Knickerbocker Ave. and getting translation services into hospitals. |
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==In literature== |
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Bushwick is the subject of the poem "Bushwick Bohemia" by the poet [[Emanuel Xavier]]. |
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==East Williamsburg== |
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'''[[East Williamsburg, Brooklyn|East Williamsburg]]''' is a neighborhood that borders to the northwest of Bushwick. Prior to the late 1990s, residents rarely called their neighborhood East Williamsburg. Residents east of Graham Avenue or Bushwick Avenue preferred the better known name of Bushwick. This association is still strong today, as both Bushwick and East Williamsburg are concurrent casual names for the area. Yet both neighborhoods are served by different community boards and police precincts, but same election districts and ZIP codes, and the [[New York City Department of City Planning]] recognizes East Williamsburg as a separate neighborhood. Real estate agents often call Bushwick East Williamsburg in order to capitalize on the popularity of Williamsburg. |
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==Notable residents== |
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{{unreferenced-section|date=April 2009}} |
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Notable current and former residents of Bushwick include: |
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* [[Eddie Murphy]], comedian, actor<ref>http://www.biography.com/search/article.do?id=9418676</ref> |
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* [[Tod A.|Tod "Tod A." Ashley]], musician |
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* [[Ryan J. Davis]], theater director and liberal activist |
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* [[D-Stroy]], [[Arsonists (rap group)]] |
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* [[Jackie Gleason]], actor |
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* [[Rick Gonzalez]], actor |
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* [[John Hylan|John Francis Hylan]], [[Mayor of New York City]] |
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* [[Julius La Rosa]], singer |
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* Henry Matyjewicz, artist and spokesperson for [[Poster Boy (street artist)]] collective |
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* [[Kenneth McMillan]], actor |
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* [[Harry Nilsson]], singer/songwriter |
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* [[Jeannie Ortega]], singer |
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* [[Rosie Perez]], actress |
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* [[Vincent Schiavelli]], actor/writer |
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* [[Connie Stevens]], actress |
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* [[Tony Touch]], rapper and DJ |
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* [[Rachel Trachtenburg]], singer, musician and actress |
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* [[Mae West]], actress |
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* [[Dondre Whitfield]], actor |
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* [[Emanuel Xavier]], poet/actor |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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* Goodman, James, ''Blackout''. North Point Press. New York, NY 2003 ISBN 0865476586 |
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* Jackson, Kenneth T. and John B. Manbeck, ''The Neighborhoods of Brooklyn,'' 2nd ed. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2004, 4448. ISBN 0300103107 |
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* {{cite web|author=Robert Sullivan |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2006/03/05/magazine/305bushwick.1.html?ei=5070&en=3fe2d8336ab2041c&ex=1155182400&pagewanted=all |title=Psst... Have You Heard About Bushwick? |date=2006-03-05 |dateformat=mdy |accessdate=August 8 2006}} |
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* {{cite web|author=Christine Lagorio |url=http://www.villagevoice.com/nyclife/0550,lagorio,70798,15.html |title=CloseUp on Bushwick, Brooklyn |date=2005-12-07 |dateformat=mdy |accessdate=August 8 2006}} |
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* {{cite web|author=Jeff Vandam |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/11/realestate/11livi.html?ex=1155441600&en=4880ae356bd5d439&ei=5070 |title=BargainHunting? Stay on the LTrain a Little Longer | date 2006611 | accessdate= August 11, 2006 | dateformat=mdy}} |
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==External links== |
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{{commons cat|Bushwick, Brooklyn}} |
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* [http://www.citynoise.org/article/646 "My House in Bushwick"] ...community safety discussion |
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* [http://city-journal.org/2008/18_2_bushwick.html The Death and Life of Bushwick, ''City Journal,'' Spring 2008] |
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* [http://www.brownstoner.com/brownstoner/archives/bushwick/ Brownstoner: Bushwick] |
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* http://www.time.com/time/photoessays/2007/boogie_bushwick |
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* [http://www.rbscc.org/default.asp?menu1_Id=5 The Bushwick Renaissance Initiative] |
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* [http://bushwiki.info Bushwiki] |
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* [http://www.maketheroad.org Make The Road By Walking] Community Center and Organizing Project. |
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* [http://www.artsinbushwick.org/ Nonprofit Organization for Bushwick Artists and Community] |
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* [http://www.rbscc.org Ridgewood Bushwick Seniors Citizens Council] |
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* [http://bushwickbk.com/ BushwickBK.com] |
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== See also == |
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* [[Opportunities for a Better Tomorrow (OBT)]] |
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{{Brooklyn}} |
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{{coord|40|41|39|N|73|55|07|W|display=title}} |
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[[Category:Neighborhoods in Brooklyn]] |
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[[Category:1661 establishments]] |
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[[Category:United States communities with Hispanic majority populations]] |
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[[pl:Bushwick]] |
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Revision as of 16:20, 12 May 2009
Im going to call wikipedia if you guys continue deleting my information. this information is completely biased, racist, and serves a self-interested purpose. I will spend the rest of my life defending this neighborhood and its history, so stop the unneccesary BS!!!