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Good Neighbors: Gentrifying Diversity in Boston's South End
Does gentrification destroy diversity? Or does it thrive on it? Boston’s South End, a legendary working-class neighborhood with the largest Victorian brick row house district in the United States and a celebrated reputation for diversity, has become in recent years a flashpoint for the problems of gentrification. It has born witness to the kind of rapid transformation leading to pitched battles over the class and race politics throughout the country and indeed the contemporary world.
This subtle study of a storied urban neighborhood reveals the way that upper-middle-class newcomers have positioned themselves as champions of diversity, and how their mobilization around this key concept has reordered class divisions rather than abolished them.
This subtle study of a storied urban neighborhood reveals the way that upper-middle-class newcomers have positioned themselves as champions of diversity, and how their mobilization around this key concept has reordered class divisions rather than abolished them.
288 pages, Hardcover
First published March 17, 2015
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July 22, 2018
"The mobilizations that we have seen take hold in the South End do not seek purely and simply to displace populations, but, more subtly, to structure their presence." (p. 260)
This is a fascinating book looking at the gentrification of the South End, and very specifically how the neighborhood "valorizes diversity," yet puts controls and limits on how diversity and minority populations interact with the more wealthy gentrifiers. The book is careful to show, in most cases, there is no malevolence on behalf of the gentrifiers, but their actions place limits on those of lesser means to interact within public spaces and "public processes" with City Hall tend to only represent the priorities of the white property owners.
A very good work of sociology. I'll be chewing on what I read here for a long time to come, and as a gentrifier myself, I will try to apply the lessons I've learned here to my own neighborhood.
This is a fascinating book looking at the gentrification of the South End, and very specifically how the neighborhood "valorizes diversity," yet puts controls and limits on how diversity and minority populations interact with the more wealthy gentrifiers. The book is careful to show, in most cases, there is no malevolence on behalf of the gentrifiers, but their actions place limits on those of lesser means to interact within public spaces and "public processes" with City Hall tend to only represent the priorities of the white property owners.
A very good work of sociology. I'll be chewing on what I read here for a long time to come, and as a gentrifier myself, I will try to apply the lessons I've learned here to my own neighborhood.
July 20, 2020
This fascinating work of sociology (and, I’d argue, either social history or historical sociology, depending on definitional boundaries I don’t fully grasp) examines the transformation of Boston’s South End from a “skid row” slum in the mid-twentieth century to the yuppie conspicuous-consumption domicile it has become today. More than that, French sociologist Sylvie Tissot looks at the formation not just of gentrified space, but of the gentrifying class- the upper-middle class that created the contemporary South End. Taking issue with monochromatic depictions of the bourgeoisie in chronicles of urban gentrification, she seeks to create a more nuanced picture, though not so nuanced she can’t make judgments, as is all too often the case when “nuance” gets invoked.
The beginnings of the gentrification process in the 1960s saw a gestalt of factors come together to create a unique situation. The Boston Redevelopment Authority, famously smash-happy and fresh off of destroying the old West End utterly, started taking a second look at its approach. Urbanist critics like Jane Jacobs had begun singing the praises of mixed-use and mixed-class urbanism. The radical movements of the period inspired tenants unions and other groups to fight draconian “redevelopment” plans. So South End, despite its slum reputation, was spared the West End treatment.
But underneath all of this was a more class-driven dynamic, where younger, largely white, professionals with money started seeing potential in the South End. Its Victorians could be converted to single family homes or condos in a way the “high modernist” apartment blocks the BRA might have built could not. “Pioneers” began moving in, self-consciously trying to both live an urban lifestyle and manage the urban experience according to their own lights. The metaphor of rehabbing old Victorian houses extended to “rehabbing” the neighborhood at large. This entailed the new homeowners coming together (sometimes in alliance with older slum landlords) to both fight new housing developments (in the name of “historical preservation”) and police the habits of the older, less moneyed and white residents, often on their way out of the neighborhood.
An urban experience with lots of different kinds of people was always (notionally) valued by the settlers of the South End, but “diversity” became a buzzword in the nineteen-nineties as the neighborhood was transforming beyond all recognition. Tissot tries a high-wire act of both acknowledging the hypocrisy of the yuppies and hipsters of the South End, with their obvious fear of black and poor people, with the kernel of truth of their investment of diversity. They’re not just lying when they say they want diversity. It’s that “diversity,” conceptually, has always been a bourgeois concept that meant an order of things managed from above to produce a pleasing effect, not a genuine pluralism or even a laissez-faire policy towards who lives where.
Hence the ironic parade Tissot runs by the reader of old South End ways being twisted around into new ones for a new population. The pioneers of South End gentrification deplored the frequent drunkenness of the inhabitants and the sheer amount of bars and liquor stores, and deployed considerable political muscle at City Hall to get many of them shut down… but the social life of the contemporary South End runs on alcohol, just higher-priced and in chi-chi bistros instead of working-class bars. The new South End swapped out the diversity of people from all over — black, Puerto Rican, Chinese, and numerous European immigrant groups — for an equal diversity of ethnic restaurants, most of which the remaining non-gentrifying residents, shunted into public housing around the edges of the neighborhood, can’t afford. Instead of gay cruising spots there are gay families. Most poignant to me (and, I think, to Tissot) are the dogs. The prevalence of dogs and their shit was a common complaint for early South End gentrifiers. Now, dog-ownership is a major part of South End yuppie identity, gay and straight, often a substitute for the children they don’t have or delay. In the name of the dogs, South Enders fiercely control public park space, clearing out people (predictably, mostly the poor and people of color) so their dogs can roam. The dogs are something Tissot, coming from France where they’re less sentimental about them, is clearly put off by in a kind of amusing way.
All told, this is a very worthy addition to the history of the present. Gentrification narratives tend to be either all too moralistic (those damn hipsters!!) or mechanistically economics-driven, and Tissot gracefully avoids both. She tries to do in contemporary miniature what E.P. Thompson did with the English working class- show how a class, in this case upper-middle-class gentrifiers, came to an awareness of themselves through collective action, and she succeeds markedly. *****
The beginnings of the gentrification process in the 1960s saw a gestalt of factors come together to create a unique situation. The Boston Redevelopment Authority, famously smash-happy and fresh off of destroying the old West End utterly, started taking a second look at its approach. Urbanist critics like Jane Jacobs had begun singing the praises of mixed-use and mixed-class urbanism. The radical movements of the period inspired tenants unions and other groups to fight draconian “redevelopment” plans. So South End, despite its slum reputation, was spared the West End treatment.
But underneath all of this was a more class-driven dynamic, where younger, largely white, professionals with money started seeing potential in the South End. Its Victorians could be converted to single family homes or condos in a way the “high modernist” apartment blocks the BRA might have built could not. “Pioneers” began moving in, self-consciously trying to both live an urban lifestyle and manage the urban experience according to their own lights. The metaphor of rehabbing old Victorian houses extended to “rehabbing” the neighborhood at large. This entailed the new homeowners coming together (sometimes in alliance with older slum landlords) to both fight new housing developments (in the name of “historical preservation”) and police the habits of the older, less moneyed and white residents, often on their way out of the neighborhood.
An urban experience with lots of different kinds of people was always (notionally) valued by the settlers of the South End, but “diversity” became a buzzword in the nineteen-nineties as the neighborhood was transforming beyond all recognition. Tissot tries a high-wire act of both acknowledging the hypocrisy of the yuppies and hipsters of the South End, with their obvious fear of black and poor people, with the kernel of truth of their investment of diversity. They’re not just lying when they say they want diversity. It’s that “diversity,” conceptually, has always been a bourgeois concept that meant an order of things managed from above to produce a pleasing effect, not a genuine pluralism or even a laissez-faire policy towards who lives where.
Hence the ironic parade Tissot runs by the reader of old South End ways being twisted around into new ones for a new population. The pioneers of South End gentrification deplored the frequent drunkenness of the inhabitants and the sheer amount of bars and liquor stores, and deployed considerable political muscle at City Hall to get many of them shut down… but the social life of the contemporary South End runs on alcohol, just higher-priced and in chi-chi bistros instead of working-class bars. The new South End swapped out the diversity of people from all over — black, Puerto Rican, Chinese, and numerous European immigrant groups — for an equal diversity of ethnic restaurants, most of which the remaining non-gentrifying residents, shunted into public housing around the edges of the neighborhood, can’t afford. Instead of gay cruising spots there are gay families. Most poignant to me (and, I think, to Tissot) are the dogs. The prevalence of dogs and their shit was a common complaint for early South End gentrifiers. Now, dog-ownership is a major part of South End yuppie identity, gay and straight, often a substitute for the children they don’t have or delay. In the name of the dogs, South Enders fiercely control public park space, clearing out people (predictably, mostly the poor and people of color) so their dogs can roam. The dogs are something Tissot, coming from France where they’re less sentimental about them, is clearly put off by in a kind of amusing way.
All told, this is a very worthy addition to the history of the present. Gentrification narratives tend to be either all too moralistic (those damn hipsters!!) or mechanistically economics-driven, and Tissot gracefully avoids both. She tries to do in contemporary miniature what E.P. Thompson did with the English working class- show how a class, in this case upper-middle-class gentrifiers, came to an awareness of themselves through collective action, and she succeeds markedly. *****
February 9, 2025
Nonsensical blabbering about how dog parks are the the cause of gentrification and you should feel bad about living somewhere nice.
Terrible. Genuinely the worst book I have ever read.
Terrible. Genuinely the worst book I have ever read.
May 28, 2015
Good Neighbors was a very hard book to read. It was painful to read about the uprooting of working class, poor and ethnic communities who became unable to afford the skyrocketing rents and escalating real estate prices caused by gentrification in Boston's Sound End. The strength of Good Neighbors lies in Tissot's ability to show us how gentrification is not just an economic process but a social one too; a process where the wealthy transforms these neighborhoods in their own image with elite values through neighborhood and condo associations and ties to policymakers in City Hall. Although many of the wealthy elite speak about the importance of diversity, in reality, the working class is no longer welcome, is formally marginalized and economically shut out. The process is almost 100% complete except that there is a large, very well-know homeless shelter that has a lease through 2068. An article was published in the Boston Globe several weeks ago that described how the staff of the shelter were distributing cookies and hired a security guard for their new neighbors to calm their fears about living so close to the homeless. An energetic discussion ensued in the Boston Globe comments section about why the shelter felt the need, and if it was right, to kowtow to the new residents fears. Good Neighbors then is a timely, essential work that highlights who suffers and what we have lost in our urban communities. Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to review this book for an honest opinion.
September 4, 2016
A through examination of the minutia and tiny nuances of gentrification. The book is a solid read for anyone that identifies themselves as an urbanist and serves as a potential eye opener to the "whys" and "hows" certain "trendy" (for a lack of a better term) neighborhoods end up as they are today. Ideally the book should at least ignite some sense of self-awareness for those that currently live in urban areas.
The style however is very academic, so it can be a slog to get through for some. But at the same time one can tell it is very well researched and not prone to "soapboxing"
The style however is very academic, so it can be a slog to get through for some. But at the same time one can tell it is very well researched and not prone to "soapboxing"
July 22, 2018
Want to read Spike Lee's 'We Been Here!'
"The enthusiasm for diversity ultimately translates into a form of power that operates on a particular combination of inclusion and exclusion. As such, it contrasts with the systemic efforts since the beginning of the twentieth century to deny black people access to residential suburbs, as well as with the establishment of hyper-ghettos after World War II." (p. 6)
"On top of the combination of economic wealth, home ownership and moral esteem that these subjects already enjoy, is there an obligation to offer, additionally, the satisfaction of having been "understood," or even endorsed, by an academic authority? The exchange between myself and the inhabitants of the South End came to feel even more unequal as I became aware of the way these residents used my presence to secure symbolic rewards." (p. 24)
"...how have the upper classes transformed themselves as they sought to transform the city?" (p. 36)
"Visiting Boston in 1965, Martin Luther King highlighted the parallels between the Northern situation and that in the South. He pointed to the housing question, in particular, the barriers to black people moving into white or mixed neighborhoods or getting mortgages, discriminatory practices in the workplace, as well as segregation in the school and university system." (p. 42)
More than simply a matter of political correctness, this "social correctness" promoted by certain linguistic and behavioral norms seeks to regulate social relations." (p.126)
"She actively supported Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential elections and does not hesitate to call herself a liberal or even a bit of a radical." (p. 131)
"...the link between the rise of historic preservation and the rising status of older, run-down neighborhoods is not unique to Boston. We see the same movement, accompanied by the stigmatization of the architecture of large housing projects, in other cities in New England and in Europe." (p.145)
"The mobilizations that we have seen take hold in the South End do not seek purely and simply to displace populations, but, more subtly, to structure their presence." (p. 260)
"The enthusiasm for diversity ultimately translates into a form of power that operates on a particular combination of inclusion and exclusion. As such, it contrasts with the systemic efforts since the beginning of the twentieth century to deny black people access to residential suburbs, as well as with the establishment of hyper-ghettos after World War II." (p. 6)
"On top of the combination of economic wealth, home ownership and moral esteem that these subjects already enjoy, is there an obligation to offer, additionally, the satisfaction of having been "understood," or even endorsed, by an academic authority? The exchange between myself and the inhabitants of the South End came to feel even more unequal as I became aware of the way these residents used my presence to secure symbolic rewards." (p. 24)
"...how have the upper classes transformed themselves as they sought to transform the city?" (p. 36)
"Visiting Boston in 1965, Martin Luther King highlighted the parallels between the Northern situation and that in the South. He pointed to the housing question, in particular, the barriers to black people moving into white or mixed neighborhoods or getting mortgages, discriminatory practices in the workplace, as well as segregation in the school and university system." (p. 42)
More than simply a matter of political correctness, this "social correctness" promoted by certain linguistic and behavioral norms seeks to regulate social relations." (p.126)
"She actively supported Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential elections and does not hesitate to call herself a liberal or even a bit of a radical." (p. 131)
"...the link between the rise of historic preservation and the rising status of older, run-down neighborhoods is not unique to Boston. We see the same movement, accompanied by the stigmatization of the architecture of large housing projects, in other cities in New England and in Europe." (p.145)
"The mobilizations that we have seen take hold in the South End do not seek purely and simply to displace populations, but, more subtly, to structure their presence." (p. 260)
April 27, 2020
Tissot seeks to identify some of the more nuanced factors that contribute to gentrification, and the actual motives of gentrifiers. She paints a really interesting picture of the ‘progressive bourgeoise’. Her her contention that diversity is managed such that coexistence in the upper class social order is tolerated so any ‘other’ that seeks to reconstitute power divisions is either coopted or seen as causing trouble / not being a good / tolerant neighbour, is spot on. This diversity is really a form of social control and surveillance, just non-confrontational.
The role of philanthropy and home-owner based associations is possibly unique to the US but a lot of her analysis applies across the world. The swapping of ‘bad’ alcohol consumption and working class sociability in parks is replaced by ‘good’ consumption of local wines and carefully controlled block parties. The court cases against low-income housing that seek to use environmental or heritage grounds as a euphemism for prejudice, that is no longer openly expressed. The replacement of cheap eateries with expensive ones that re-make pork, donuts and foreign food into morally respectable cuisine.
Fundamentally, Tissot locates the success of gentrifiers in the local mobilisation by the newcomers, compared with the declining civic activity of the working class residents. This success leads to higher property prices, and eventually commercial interests take note, providing a self-perpetuating cycle.
I enjoyed the self-reflective parts of this book, where Tissot discusses her qualms about having written a book that the people she got to know in the South End wouldn’t like, and I do wonder what they would have to say - how could they reconcile these observations that make explicit their prejudices and their control with their narrative of diversity and cooperation?
Overall, an excellent read whether you are interested in Boston specifically or not.
The role of philanthropy and home-owner based associations is possibly unique to the US but a lot of her analysis applies across the world. The swapping of ‘bad’ alcohol consumption and working class sociability in parks is replaced by ‘good’ consumption of local wines and carefully controlled block parties. The court cases against low-income housing that seek to use environmental or heritage grounds as a euphemism for prejudice, that is no longer openly expressed. The replacement of cheap eateries with expensive ones that re-make pork, donuts and foreign food into morally respectable cuisine.
Fundamentally, Tissot locates the success of gentrifiers in the local mobilisation by the newcomers, compared with the declining civic activity of the working class residents. This success leads to higher property prices, and eventually commercial interests take note, providing a self-perpetuating cycle.
I enjoyed the self-reflective parts of this book, where Tissot discusses her qualms about having written a book that the people she got to know in the South End wouldn’t like, and I do wonder what they would have to say - how could they reconcile these observations that make explicit their prejudices and their control with their narrative of diversity and cooperation?
Overall, an excellent read whether you are interested in Boston specifically or not.
August 23, 2017
Really fascinating sociological study of how a gentrifying class constructs itself in working class neighborhoods. Tissot goes out of her way to identify specific characteristics of the "pioneers" of gentrified neighborhoods and how they differentiate themselves from the richest of the rich that reside in historically upper class neighborhoods and suburbs. Definitely provides a unique perspective that goes beyond the purely economic motives for urban "renewal".
April 3, 2018
Good Neighbors is an examination of gentrification and its impact on an urban neighborhood with Boston's South End used as the focal point of the book.
Tissot does an excellent job of getting to the heart of the issue and covering a lot of bases in less than 300 pages.
Definitely worth reading for those interested in the subject.
Tissot does an excellent job of getting to the heart of the issue and covering a lot of bases in less than 300 pages.
Definitely worth reading for those interested in the subject.
August 22, 2022
This was hard to get through and I don’t feel it was even worth my time. Some interesting observations on a gentrified neighborhood, but very drawn out. More so about the changes to the neighborhood itself and the norms established than about the larger policies at large that enabled gentrification to occur. I wanted more from this book.
June 25, 2025
I'm not sure why I can't really think of a rating for this. I think my brain is cooked from summer school.
This book was quite interesting and provides a new perspective on gentrification. I think some of the writing issues I had reading this are due to the translation. Don't want to write too much bc of the assignments I have to do on this.
This book was quite interesting and provides a new perspective on gentrification. I think some of the writing issues I had reading this are due to the translation. Don't want to write too much bc of the assignments I have to do on this.
November 25, 2018
Diversity is extolled
But managed and controlled.
But managed and controlled.
January 19, 2024
The second to last chapter on restaurants was great. Overall, repetitive and unusually focused on dog ownership as socio economic barometer of a gentrified neighborhood.
December 13, 2024
been reading chapters for my research paper and realized I've (i think) read the whole thing now so. im counting it. sylvie is fire I like her writing
February 25, 2017
This book left me asking more questions than I started with which is a sign of a good book. I found Good Neighbors slow going at first, it's a sociological study and refers back to what I presume are well known social scientists and sociology theories which I have no background knowledge of
However I still enjoyed this book, it was heavy on my pet themes. Obviously urban planning and gentrification but also the use of public space and power and how important cultural capital is in regenerating neighbourhoods. The idea that upper middle classes gentrify an area not just economically but by setting norms of behaviour and culture resonated, for example shutting down working class pubs on the premise that drinking promotes undesirable behaviours only to open up high end drinking establishments for themselves. It made me think about the extent to which working class communities are pushed out and priced out of public life and the resulting loss of community.
I left the book thinking about how regeneration can work for the working class. Sylvie Tissot mentions that participatory planning has become a sort of coalition between the state and better off groups to create neighbourhoods in their image. How do we change this?
All in all thought provoking read. Thanks Syvie Tissot!
However I still enjoyed this book, it was heavy on my pet themes. Obviously urban planning and gentrification but also the use of public space and power and how important cultural capital is in regenerating neighbourhoods. The idea that upper middle classes gentrify an area not just economically but by setting norms of behaviour and culture resonated, for example shutting down working class pubs on the premise that drinking promotes undesirable behaviours only to open up high end drinking establishments for themselves. It made me think about the extent to which working class communities are pushed out and priced out of public life and the resulting loss of community.
I left the book thinking about how regeneration can work for the working class. Sylvie Tissot mentions that participatory planning has become a sort of coalition between the state and better off groups to create neighbourhoods in their image. How do we change this?
All in all thought provoking read. Thanks Syvie Tissot!
January 4, 2023
(i never copied over my review) in addition to a sociological exploration of the neighborhood as it stands today, tissot does a great job describing the historical experience of the south end. while a lot of concepts weren’t new to me, the author explains them well. i think the heart of the book and research really comes down to using “diversity” as a buzzword for why the neighborhood is so great while controlling and limiting minority populations. for a book about gentrification, i was surprised when it didn’t lead into the economic impact but i appreciated it. instead, the focus of the book was on social changes caused by neighborhood associations formed by upper class individuals. chapter 5 was my favorite, as it explored the relationship between class and public space. if you’re able to check out the book -but don’t want to read the whole thing- i would start here.
January 1, 2017
Interesting analysis of the process of gentrification, made even more readable by the acidity with which this french communist writes about her upper middle class subjects. Dog parks, fancy restaurants, historical societies and neighborhood associations- all institutions of power that manage space in such a way that their is token diversity of faces, but no real diversity in ideology or who wields real power.
April 9, 2016
This was an interesting book because it looked at "liberal" or "progressive" gentrifiers rather than stereotypically conservative "big money" interests. It was very strong on discussing how diversity functions as both a smokescreen and a policing mechanism in Boston's South End. Many of the observed behaviors happen in other gentrifying neighborhoods as well.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews