For my map, I am exploring the 2010 race demographics of Durham, North Carolina and the redlining done in the United States. With this map I can conclude that many of the hazardous/less desirable areas happen to be where most Black people (blue) are located in Durham in 2010. It is also apparent that where most of the white population (red) is not hazardous or may be declining slightly.
One of my biggest drawbacks from this map is that we cannot see how population has changed over time. An area that may have been predominantly one race may have changed overtime, especially when thinking of the gentrification happening in Durham. In some parts there seems to be less desirable areas that are predominantly white, is interesting to ask the question whether the race demographics have changed over time. I think that this could be strengthened by adding layers of the map that show different times maybe we could see what the race demographic was like in the 1960s or something similar. This could answer a big question that map viewers may have.
This map answers the historical question of has redlining disproportionately affected Black populations. I think this answers the question as yes. Redlining has historically been debated and many ask the question if this disproportionate affected the Black population of Durham, and from the map it describes that very well.
African American have been disproportionately affected by redlining. The map above shows us that redlining in Durham has mostly affected the Black community. However, this map does not explore change over time. Whoever is occupying certain areas in Durham may or may not be there now. There are some slightly declining areas that are predominantly white, but they also could be a poorer area or a gentrified area. This map overall supports the argument that African American's are largely impacted by redlining.
I think that studying these HOLC maps in relation to maps that show gentrification of urban areas would be such an interesting project. It is mind boggling to consider that nearly 100 years after these HOLC maps were made, gentrification projects are taking advantage of "low value" areas. I definitely shared your limitation of a lack of change over time which I think could have helped the analysis portion of this weekly project.
ReplyDeleteYou are a mind reader; your question about how the race demographics changed over time mirrors my response to your findings and thoughts about limitations. Adding chronological layers will be valuable and interesting--I want to learn how to accomplish this ArcGIS trick, too!
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