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Urban Decay In Boyz N The Hood

964 Words4 Pages

From the perspective of urban planning and the socio-cultural structure of cities, the landscape shown in the 1991 John Singleton film Boyz n the Hood brings to mind one of the foremost problems in the field of planning: that of urban decay. More specfically, the film presents some of teh socio-cultural phenomena that contribute to urban decay, such as forms of systematic racism in American life, whereby marginalized minority groups, such as the African-American community are essentially segregated to specific communities, and the corresponding difference in social class, where working class and poor communities are caught in environments of urban decay. At the same time, by presenting the conditions for urban decay, the viewer can also think through some of the positions which could reverse the effects of urban decay. If urban decay is caused by isolation and segregation along racial and class lines, than positions which seek to negotiate these boundaries, for example, by focusing on improving the quality of life of the affected area, can be effective means to reverse the phenomenon. One definition of urban decay is the following: “Urban decay exists in an area where the …show more content…

This is clearly the case in areas effected by urban decay such as Compton. The strategy, in this regard, is to improve the quality of life in a minimalistic fashion appropriate to what the urban planner can do. The urban planner is an idealist, because he or she believes quality of life can be improved; but he or she is also a realist, because he or she understands the deep systematic conditions which cause urban decay. A minimalist approach to urban decay, which emphasizes the aesthetic and social dimensions of the problem, is an effective strategy that combines the idealist and realist motives of the urban

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