South Bronx Rising
The Rise, Fall, and Resurrection of an American City
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Third Edition
For many Americans, COVID was a revelation, exposing shocking racial and economic injustices all too familiar to residents of the South Bronx. This update, chronicling the past two decades of struggle and defiant hope, provides an essential addition to a seminal work. Jonnes again builds her story around the formidable, unbeatable, savvy citizens of the Bronx and their deep love for the place they saved and rebuilt. This is not a simple story of resurrection and accomplishment, nor one of despair and deprivation. Rather, Jonnes’s work grapples with the complexity and difficulty of building a just society inside an unjust one.---Eileen Markey, Assistant Professor of Journalism at Lehman College of the City University of New York. A proud Bronxite since the 1990s, she has reported on social movements and public policy for close to 30 years.
In this third edition of South Bronx Rising, Jill Jonnes continues to acknowledge the indomitable spirit that defines what it means to be a Bronxite by exploring the borough’s rapid gentrification and the COVID-19 pandemic that claimed the lives of more than 5,000 Bronx residents. This timely update on how we got here tells the story of the unsung heroes, the Bronx residents and activists who continue to defend and protect this corner of New York City and the world they call home.---Ed García Conde, Founder and Editor of Welcome2TheBronx
Jill Jonnes gives flesh and bone to ‘gentrification.’ Instead of abstract theory, she offers real people and real communities that profoundly illuminate what happens when money begins rolling into a neighborhood. This is an indispensable street-level narrative.---DW Gibson, author of The Edge Becomes the Center: An Oral History of Gentrification in the 21st Century
Jill Jonnes holds an M.S. from Columbia Journalism School and a Ph.D. in American History from Johns Hopkins University. She is the author of Empires of Light: Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and the Race to Electrify the World; Conquering Gotham: Building Penn Station and Its Tunnels; and Urban Forests: A Natural History of Trees and People in the American Cityscape.
Nilka Martell (Foreword By)
Nilka Martell is a parks advocate, writer, and the founder of Loving The Bronx.
Preface to the Third Edition | ix
Foreword by Nilka Martell | xv
Introduction: Do Not Give Way to Evil | 3
1. “It Is a Veritable Paradise,” 1639–1900 | 11
2. The First Boom, 1900–1922 | 27
3. Boss Flynn, 1922 | 41
4. “The Bronx Is a Great City,” 1923–1929 | 51
5. “Hard Hit by the Depression,” 1929–1932 | 65
6. The New Deal Years, 1933–1939 | 78
7. War Fever, 1939–1945 | 85
8. The Diaspora after the War, 1946–1953 | 91
9. “There Was No Standing Still,” 1952–1953 | 105
10. “Moses Thinks He’s God,” 1954–1959 | 117
11. The New Boss, 1959–1963 | 127
12. “Horse Was the New Thing,” 1960 | 137
13. The New “Other Half,” 1962–1966 | 144
14. The Pondiac’s Last Hurrah, 1961–1967 | 153
15. The Puerto Rican and the Priest, 1962–1967 | 164
16. Mau-mauing the City, 1967 | 175
17. Who Will Be Caudillo?, 1968–1969 | 182
18. “The Whole Place Was Caving In,” 1969–1970 | 199
19. Interlude: Sweet Days on Charlotte Street, 1925–1951 | 205
20. Charlotte Street: It Was Not a “Good” Neighborhood, 1951–1961 | 219
21. Charlotte Street: “What a Madhouse It Was,” 1961–1968 | 225
22. Charlotte Street: The Fires, 1969–1973 | 231
23. Charlotte Street: The Gangs, 1970–1975 | 236
24. Charlotte Street: The Collapse, 1973–1975 | 249
25. The Grand Concourse, 1965–1969 | 268
26. The Hotel and the Concourse, 1969–1976 | 281
27. Roosevelt Gardens, 1974–1975 | 288
28. The Grass Roots, 1974–1977 | 300
29. The President’s Magic Visit, 1977–1978 | 311
30. Disenchantment, 1979–1980 | 324
31. Charlotte Street and National Politics, 1980 | 333
32. “The Next Part of the South Bronx,” 1972–1978 | 345
33. “We’re Still Here,” 1978–1982 | 363
34. White Picket Fences, 1984 | 376
35. “South Bronx Rising,” 1985–2002 | 389
36. Still the Poorest Urban Congressional
District in America, 2003–Mid-March 2020 | 441
Covid Afterword | 515
Acknowledgments for the Third Edition | 547
Notes | 551
Bibliography | 569
Third Edition Bibliography | 579
Index | 581
