This Neighborhood Has Potential

The Bay Citizen has a little feature up right now about a play called Clybourne Park, about some insensitive white people (pictured) moving into a black neighborhood and being pumped about “its potential.” They sent us a memo because “the play is about gentrification, which of course is an issue y’all are dealing with in the Mission.” Whoa! That’s true!

Read on to watch some clips of the play and its actors discussing their roles.

15 Responses to “This Neighborhood Has Potential”

  1. SCUM says:

    I think it’s time for whitey to gentrify The Richmond.

  2. hicky says:

    This play is well-written and well-acted and worth seeing. It’s not a simple story, or message.

  3. Interesting idea. Black family moves into a white neighborhood. White neighborhood reacts. (You forgot to mention that part, Allan.) 50 years later, it’s a black neighborhood, and whites move in. Black neighborhood reacts. Don’t know if the jokes work, and if there’s anything DEEPER than jokes, but it sounds like there would actually be some parallels with the Mission.

  4. T.C. says:

    What you call “gentrification”, I call “revitalization”.

    • Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:

      Sounds a lot like that 1960′s doublespeak term “urban renewal” to me.

      • T.C. says:

        They just did a lot of urban renewal/revitalization/gentrification at Eddy & Steiner and you can be sure everybody over there is happy about it.

      • Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:

        You mean when they bulldozed most of the Victorians and put in cement projects?

      • T.C. says:

        No, I mean they completely renovated one square block of the housing project. Looks great.

  5. SCUM says:

    Ethnic cleansing?

  6. olu says:

    and actually the ‘joke’ about the woman pictured is that she is OVERLY sensitive not the other way ’round. in all it’s a really good play and well written, with a good perspective on PC issues, white flight, and gentrification. and it’s funny. highly recommend it.

  7. I WANT TO PUNCH EVERYBODY IN THE DICK WHO BRINGS UP GENTRIFICATION ANYWHERE, ANYTIME. SHUT THE FUCK UP AND GO BUILD A TREE HOUSE OR SOME SHIT. LIVE WHERE YOU WANT TO LIVE UNTIL YOU DIE. JUST DON’T BE A STUPID FUCK.

    • Herr Doktor Professor Deth Vegetable says:

      If you look on the left side of your keyboard, in between the tab and shift keys, you’ll find one marked “Caps Lock”.

  8. Jane says:

    How am I the first asshole to comment on the use of the wrong “its”?

    It’s = it is or it has. Its = belonging to it. Come on, you guys.