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This Year A Protest Against The Gentrification Of Pilsen

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On a cold, gloomy morning earlier this year a protest against the gentrification of Pilsen occurred. Signs were taped to the front of the hip new coffee shop Bow Tuss Coffee Roasters reading "Racism & Classism smelllls like your COFFEE" and "Sabes donde estas? ¡LA RAZA VIVE AQUI! GENTRIFICATION is NOT Welcome here!"

Pilsen is a predominantly Mexican neighborhood of Chicago’s southwest side expanding from the Chicago River north to 16th St., and the Chicago River west to Damen Avenue. This neighborhood is the recent target of new building constructions and refurbished service industries and much of the surrounding community is not content.
Erica Castillo, a student at DePaul who was born and raised in Pilsen, has noticed the growing changes. …show more content…

“Sure, like every place in this world there were problems. There were gangs, but I never had any problems with that. I would just see them.”
Since 1997 when the Pilsen TIF (tax increment financing) was approved by the Daley administration, it has increased rental and property taxes making it less and less affordable for the Mexican community. With the Mexican community being pushed out, Mexican restaurants, coffee shops and stores are losing business as their customers …show more content…

The community is celebrated for its street art, specifically the colorful and immense murals all over the sides of buildings. Located on 18th and South Bishop Avenue is an anti gentrification mural depicting a Mexican family being protected by an eagle and on the right side a man holds a poster reading “ALTO AL Desplazamiento en Pilsen, STOP gentrification in Pilsen.” While some say the murals contribute to the problem of gentrification in having people believe it’s an art community, others disagree. Hector Duarte, a muralist and community member of Pilsen, describes how this form of art is a vital part of the Mexican culture. “Painting murals is a way for us to denounce what is happening. When this mural was painted on South Bishop, there was a fight against Pilsen TIF, a redevelopment project. The images in this mural serve to inform and bring awareness in the opposition of gentrification. Our community does not want the new constructions, the increasing rent, or to have to pay $4 for a cup of

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