Gabriella’s Reviews > Black in Place: The Spatial Aesthetics of Race in a Post-Chocolate City > Status Update

“‘Unseeing’...is an appraisal of what aspects of blackness the state, private developers, business owners, tourists, and residents want to keep, use, and fold into the narrative of H Street as a destination. Therefore, what is ‘seen’ are exceptional, iconic representations of black life—nostalgic, ‘more authentic, successful expression[s] of blackness,’ but not Monday in black life.”

"The cooperation of official and commercial histories exposes how neoliberal logics imbue historical knowledge formation...[this formation] allows for diversity to operate as a benign, sanitized version of racial difference...[this lets the corridor] remake itself as a cultural, tourist, and investment destination and reflects a desire to tell a positive story rather than engage in critical examination of the past."

"Emphasis on diversity replaces social justice issues with the notion that a successful commercial corridor will be universally beneficial despite the fact that the largely poorer, Black residents will no longer be able to afford not only housing but also the retail options along the corridor. A consequence of a diverse space is often the disinviting of Black residents."

“Thematically, consumption and containment are important to consider when thinking about the meaning of blackness in Washington, D.C. The consumption of goods and spatial containment are interrelated with blackness because of the ways that Black residents were encouraged to consume at high levels while being specially contained within impoverished areas due to segregation.”