Tag: affordable housing

The 1970s were a devastating decade for New York City. The middle class and employers fled, leaving the old,...

There used to be a time in NYC when the life-formula for a working man was simply this: out of the four weeks a month that you worked, one week was to pay your rent. If you don’t believe me, ask some old-timer on your block. The other three weeks of the month, you worked to pay for utilities; other bills of living-like credit cards and higher purchases; food, clothing and entertainment costs; and then you saved a few dollars for a lil vacation somewhere (like to Atlantic City before the casinos came, or to some lil spot on the Jersey Shore during the hot summer); and finally, you put aside a few more dollars for a rainy day. Since it was always pouring for black people in general, you didn’t see too many of us on the Jersey Shore in summer, but you could have glimpsed some of us on the AC boardwalk from time to time.