The Intersection of Race and Space in Urban Environments Confronting Development: The Black Church and Harlem's Gentrification
Department of Anthropology, University of North Texas
How they used Delve
A Master of Science candidate in applied anthropology at the University of North Texas used Delve to code 490 pages of Harlem field notes and interview transcripts, running recursive descriptive and in vivo coding into a macro-to-micro code hierarchy for a client-facing study of the Black church and gentrification.
“Field notes from participant observation and transcripts from the semi-structured Interviews were coded online using Delve software to identify key themes. This was a recursive process of descriptive and in vivo coding resulting in 490 pages of coded content. The resulting macro codes included, but were not limited to, Blackness, body language, communal relationship, demographics, displacement, education, feelings, formality, goals, Harlem, honored objects, honored people, honored places, inclusion, informality, interpersonal interactions, interracial interactions, messaging, music, neglected people, neglected places, offerings, participation, power, prayer, rituals, scripts, and technology. Each of these macro codes cascaded into more detailed micro codes providing the granularity needed to address the research objectives.”
- Field
- Applied and urban anthropology; the Black church, race and space in gentrifying Harlem
- Data
- Field notes from participant observation across multiple sites, dates and durations, plus semi-structured interview transcripts with Harlem church members and residents, producing 490 pages of coded content; fieldwork ran during the COVID-19 period
- Approach
- Applied anthropology using participant observation and semi-structured interviews, coded recursively with descriptive and in vivo coding into macro codes that each cascaded into more detailed micro codes; the author writes as a native anthropologist and the work was conducted for a study client
- Data types
- Observation, Interviews
Abstract
Roughly 1 million Blacks fled from the South to cities in the North, and with this shift New York City saw a 66% increase in its Black population between 1910 and 1920. By the end of the 1920s Harlem had become home to approximately 200,000 Black residents. But during the period 2000 to 2016 three of the nation’s top ten gentrifying zip codes could be found in Harlem, and Harlem’s Black population decreased by 23,166 residents, while Harlem’s white population increased by 33,442 during this era. Similar to Harlem having played a pivotal role in Black culture throughout the United States, the Black church has been a pillar and resource in the Black community. In sustaining its congregants, the Black church has played a critical role in Black liberation. But despite the potential that Black churches may hold, many are experiencing declining attendance and presence. This study aims to examine the racially nuanced dynamics of Harlem’s spaces confronting gentrification by looking at the interrelated dynamics of gentrification and the Black church. Data was collected via participant observation and semi-structured interviews in Harlem. The research elucidates findings regarding Harlem’s gentrification, the Black church in Harlem, tactics for survival of the Black church amid gentrification, and how the Black church may play a role in combating the state-sanctioned violence of gentrification.
Citation
Autumn Dawn McDonald (2022). The Intersection of Race and Space in Urban Environments Confronting Development: The Black Church and Harlem's Gentrification. UNT Digital Library. https://doi.org/10.12794/metadc1944220