The Ruptures of Urbanization
When asked to picture a city, most people would say it is where the people are always busy, hustling and bustling — it is a city that never sleeps.
This image we have of a city is what we often fixate on since; it has resources left and right, a well built and nurtured neighbourhood central to people within a select group in society who are affluent and belong to a small percentage of the city. The city is well-funded compared to what we call impoverished neighbourhoods across the metropolitan for it is the heart of the metro where most of the transactions happen. Despite the core being the busiest and gains traction to tourists, that shape the social and economic aspect. The city is overflowing with resources left and right, but there is a constant need to renovate and keep up to date with new forms of gigs and gimmicks.
Core or downtown areas of the city are more likely to receive massive funds than impoverished areas across the metropolitan, where marginalized and less advantageous clusters of people live. A journal, Learning for and from the city: the role of education in urban social cohesion talks, mentions how education plays a significant role in your socio-political status, which are concepts that hold power to enforce social, economic and cultural structures. Moreover, having the luxury to receive an education is valuable in our society, but we need to see different factors that influence or hinders someone from reaching their goals. Socio-economic status is one factor that influences someone to achieve higher education that society perceives to elevate your standing in the social hierarchy; however, people who belong in the impoverished parts of the city lack the resources and means to achieve high education.
With that in mind, we have to remember that most people who belong in high-need communities are from marginalized groups that have little to no choice be in impoverished areas. Since the city forces people to move to suburban areas when there were no longer opportunities for, manufacturing jobs that supported these families moved to Asia and Latin American countries where production and labour costs are low. Manufacturing jobs were their means of living it, was the only thing that does not require higher education achievement since most occupation that emerged with urbanization requires a higher education. With that, they have to put themselves under the gig economy that focuses more on service jobs that belong on the low paying side, which is not enough as means for living that they need to juggle multiple jobs.
An apparent division in our society that we try and break is the spatial placement of minorities across the metropolitan. With that, institutions for education receive funds or new resources to give the children access to better education. However, there is a [colosal] gap between kids from affluent neighbourhoods and those in high-need communities, which Andrea Gordon, an education reporter, wrote a piece on the Toronto Star: New report highlights gaps between province’s poorest and most affluent schools, conveys a message how some schools have the luxury to raise or [receive] funds for musical instruments, special programs at school and to improve school grounds, while other schools do not have that kind of luxury. Also, Sean Meagher states that investments in low-income communities are worth it and provides a head start for those kids and providing enrichment to compensate for some of the challenges.
The city made promises to improve impoverished communities; however, there is a lack of action taken to help improve the social mobility of the people who need it the most. We see that society and the people are changing in the 21st century, and fosters individualistic progress that constrains mobility growth. Thomas Hirschl wrote a review: Reviewed Work: The Success Paradox: Why We Need a Holistic Theory of Social Mobility by Graeme Atherton, talks about the failure of seeing the reality of modern society and how success revolves around capitalism, which prevents communities from growth and creating an equitable space for its people.
“Cities have the capability of providing something for everybody, only because, and only when, they are created by everybody.”-Jane Jacobs
