From Tenements to Towers: Redlining, Resilience, and the Burning of the Bronx

From the overcrowded and unsafe tenements of the Lower East Side to the intentional burning of homes in the South Bronx during the 1970s and gentrification today, decent and affordable rental housing has been a critical issue in New York City for over a century. Skyrocketing rents and limited vacancies have made it increasingly difficult for many New Yorkers to remain in their communities. 

Join Sarah Seidman, Puffin Foundation Curator of Social Activism, in conversation with Bench Ansfield, author of Born in Flames: The Business of Arson and the Remaking of the American City, and Ritti Singh, Communications Director of the NYS Tenant Bloc and Housing Justice For All for a dynamic discussion about challenges and mobilizations around housing past and present—and how we can build a future rooted in affordability and equity for all New Yorkers. This conversation complements a new section of ongoing exhibition Activist New York on housing access and rent strikes in the early 20th century. 

Born in Flames: The Business of Arson and the Remaking of the American City will be available for purchase at the event, and author Bench Ansfield will be available to sign copies.   

This program is supported, in part, by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.