On Wednesday, the City Council voted to approve Columbia’s expansion, 35 to 5 with 6 abstentions and 5 absences. Click below to read coverage from various publications. The New York Sun article focuses on the possibility of an eminent domain battle in the works.
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Movement for Justice in El Barrio
December 30, 2007
Movement for Justice in El Barrio
East Harlem Community Denounces City
Council’s Approval of Columbia University’s Expansion
Plan
December 28th– The residents of East Harlem, although not directly affected by Columbia University’s plan to
expand in West Harlem, have taken an active stand against the institutions planned action and denounce the New York city council representatives for voting
in favor of profit-driven interests and against the communities they are supposed to be representing. For nearly fifty years Columbia University has played the
role of gentrifier and enemy to the low-income communities of upper-east side Manhattan. Columbia’s role in gentrification is an even more pressing
threat now that the city council has approved the university’s 18 acre expansion plan. Plan 197-c would
bulldoze affordable housing, small
businesses, and over 1,000 jobs from 125th to 134 street in West Harlem. Not only would exclusively- accessible buildings be built, but many would pose a direct health threat to surrounding residential communities, due to the construction of
bio-safety level 3 labs that deal with highly toxic agents, such as SARS and the
Avian Flu.
Efforts to challenge Columbia’s unjust and
irresponsible actions have been endless, among them and the most recent was a student-lead hunger strike against gentrification, specifically the
university’s expansion plan. Challenges and
alternatives to Columbia’s expansion plan continue to be ignored by the institution itself and by city
council members. East Harlem’s own city council member, Melissa Mark Viverito,
voted in favor of the expansion plan; despite both the East Harlem and West Harlem community’s opposition. On
behalf of community residents of El Barrio, Movement for Justice in El Barrio member, Ramon Ricardo, sent a message of solidarity from East Harlem to West Harlem:
“Sisters and Brothers, we want you to know that our alleged representative, Melissa Mark Viverito, who voted in favor of the Columbia expansion plan- her vote is not representative of the East Harlem
community. If Viverito represented El Barrio then she would have voted against the project”. Regarding the council members politics, Movement for
Justice in El Barrio member, Oscar Dominguez, states “she is like all other politicians, those who work for
the rich and vote in favor of policies that help this capitalist system displace families from their homes.”
Needless to say, the residents of East Harlem and Movement for Justice in El Barrio, also fighting against gentrification, endlessly support the West Harlem struggle; the struggle of poor people of color and historically marginalized communities against displacement.
another anonymous
December 22, 2007
He’s holding out for a better deal, ‘cuz he think’s he’s got Columbia by the b*lls.
Ya know, some noble people… they donate things to educational institutions for the good of society. Just sayin’.
And spare us the race card, PLEASE.
anon
December 21, 2007
#6, So anti CU protestors should be chanting ‘rich white guys have rights too’
AroundHarlem.com
December 21, 2007
#4 and #5, it does not make things OK because Nick Sparyregen is a millionaire white guy.
Property owners have rights regardless of race.
Just sayin
December 20, 2007
Number 3- You do realize that the guy facing eminent domain, Nick Sprayregen, is a millionaire white guy, right?
krik
December 20, 2007
“They’re first and foremost private land owners. Accept that fact. The bottom line fact is a private entity, with the aid of the Government, is going to uproot property owners.”
I imagine this is predicated on the idea that life is fair. It’s not. Accept that fact. The last “private land owner” holdout, Nick Sprayregen, is a millionaire and he’s hardly going to suffer. In fact, he’s going to make out great.
Anonymous
December 20, 2007
“Harlem is getting lots of stuff out of this expansion and a few storage owners should not get in the way of that.”
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Yours is an attempt to diminish and soften with your speech. They’re first and foremost private land owners. Accept that fact. The bottom line fact is a private entity, with the aid of the Government, is going to uproot property owners. The principles taking place are consistent with how Blacks have historically been exploited.
Then you say, “it’s too late”…? It’s never too light to uphold rights of Americans. Is it too late to give repirations to Jews who were slave labor to Germans? How about Blacks who were slave labor?
It’s never “too late” to affirm rights, even if it means to affirm the right to keep the land that you legally own & pay taxes on for your use to do everything or nothing with at all.
Supporting private entities to take land from priavte parties with the aid and arm of the Government is outrageous, it happened to Black all over the coastal Carolinas (to develop tourism/golf courses), Texas, and Oklahoma (oil). “Use” is not the issue.
The principles here are 100% consistent with how Native Americans, Blacks, all sorts of people have been oppressed. Specifically, a “Private Entity with the Aid of the Government Forces another Private Party to give up their land”.
Speech addressing characterization of past, current, or future use is nothing but pure obfuscation of the central & principle issues.
This is what the power, usually the “White” power does to make itself feel good about it’s taking of land from land owners. Speak to aspects away from the central and principle issue to take the eye of the ball.
Anonymous
December 20, 2007
Glad to see the City Council approval went through. It is too late to ask Columbia to consider a satellite campus. They have not used eminent domain yet, and most of the properties they bought in a legit way.
I agree eminent domain should not be abused but in this case it certainly has yet to be invoked and if it does it is used to benefit the community greatly. Harlem is getting lots of stuff out of this expansion and a few storage owners should not get in the way of that.
Very exciting and can’t wait for the project to begin.
As a lifelong resident, I welcome the healthy and progressive change.
Anonymous
December 20, 2007
“Columbia University representatives have said they aim to reach a negotiated settlement with the remaining landowners, but have made it clear they would invoke the state’s power of eminent domain to condemn the property if no agreement is reached.”
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CU is a private entity, if a private land owner does not want to sell their property, that’s called “tough luck”, is it not?
CU expects entitlement of adjacent expansion. Meanwhile hundreds of colleges & universities have the same exact goals and issues and consequently develop off site extension campuses a few or several miles away from the main campus. Why can’t CU do what hundreds of others just like them do?
The issue is not past, current, or future “use”. That’s the smoke, that’s taking your eye off the ball. The issue is the rights of private business to force a private land owner to surrender their property to the private business.