Gentrification in Urban Renewal and the Marginalization of Low Income Communities

Abstrak

This article examines gentrification as an urban renewal process that can marginalize low income residents through rising land values, shifting neighborhood norms, and changing recognition within local social life. It develops a normative account of how redevelopment narratives legitimize selective belonging by linking respectability to consumption patterns and aesthetic order. The discussion argues that displacement often unfolds gradually, as households face accumulating costs, shrinking access to affordable services, and heightened administrative exposure. Even when residents remain in place, symbolic rebranding can erode attachment, weaken community solidarity, and reduce voice in neighborhood decision making. The paper highlights how public space regulation and intensified surveillance may redefine ordinary practices as disorder, producing exclusion without explicit removal. It also considers how tenure status shapes vulnerability, as renters confront insecurity while low income owners experience coercive market pressure and reputational strain. The central claim is that renewal becomes unjust when it converts homes into investment assets and treats long standing communities as obstacles to value creation. The article closes by outlining principles for equitable urban change grounded in affordability, procedural fairness, and social recognition.