Harlem Renaissance?

I take a stroll/drive through my hometown, Harlem, whenever I go up to see Moms. I consider it a privilege to call Harlem my hometown, considering the lush, rich history that comes from there. I've walked the same streets that Detroit Red/Malcolm Little/Malcolm X/El Hajj Malik el Shabazz, Muhammad Ali, Martin Luther King, Jr., Billie Holiday, Joe Louis, & countless other dignitaries have walked, & I consider it a thrill to know that. I look up at the buildings, some which have been allowed to fall into disrepair, & can virtually feel the history & spirits emanating from these edifices. Harlem streets are literally paved with gold, based upon the rich culture & history. I remember walking out of a furniture store with Moms, & spotting Gil Scott-Heron, & feeling like I was in the presence of a god! The power that radiated from that brutha was almost tangible! That's the way I feel about Harlem.
  Unfortunately, for different reasons, real estate developers have love for Harlem, too. Property that had once been considered unpalatable, are now en vogue. Old tenements are being gutted & stripped & renamed "brownstones". Old mom & pop stores, that have been a staple of the neighborhood, have been replaced with glitzy, high-profile, high-priced franchise retail outlets, bringing the downtown crowd uptown. I remember having a debate with a few of my Polo Grounds bruthas, around the early-mid 1990's, when the Rucker basketball tournament (known as the Entertainer's Basketball Classic) was the hottest ticket in Harlem during the Summer. Celebs, & pro athletes, as well as "ghetto fabulous" high-rolling celebrities all made their way to the tiny bandbox court to see, & be seen. The debate started over a huge bus, with some advertising for the latest Busta Rhymes album ("Yo, the Busta Bus is comin'!") sliding through, to be followed by two tour buses, of equal size. It was brought up that people were coming to see the world-famous Rucker Tournament. I countered with, "Nope...those people are here to do some shopping.". When I clarified my statement, the debate began, valid points defended, & respected. My stance, firm, I stated that the neighborhood was going to change complexion within 10 years. Almost 20 years later, my words are starting to ring true, as gentrification slowly weaves it's tendrils further & further uptown. Politicians, who's purpose when being voted into their offices, were to be vanguards for the neighborhood, failed miserably. Instead of fighting for improvements for the residents, they've sold their souls to the Adversary, for some gentrification payoffs. Why have they chosen to betray Harlem this way? The Almighty Dollar, that's why. She's the whore who never runs out of clients, but WILL run out on a client, once the objective is achieved.
   While the complexion of Harlem starts to change, buildings stripped, & history & culture whitewashed & Starbucked, the one thing that gentrification canNOT remove, is the history, & memories.
As long as one lives, if you've actually LIVED in Harlem, you'll ALWAYS have Harlem IN you.

Harlem Strong, family.
#harlem4life