Here we go. Happy New Year! Welcome to 2017. 2016 was a crazy one for me — my wedding was in 2017, I took my first sabbatical, traveled to places I’d never been, and had a chance to step away (from Camden activism, from the blog, from social media) to do some academic writing and … Continue reading Back Home from Sabbatical, and New Year’s Thoughts…
Local Knowledge
Taking a Break
It’s been a crazy few months here. I’ve gotten married, traveled, felt the pressure of upcoming tenure decisions and more. I just wanted to thank all of you for stopping by. I’m off on my honeymoon, and won’t be posting on the blog until after the New Year. But trust me, there is much to … Continue reading Taking a Break…
New Buildings, New Skepticism, and Improving Design
Man. A guy goes on sabbatical, and news just keeps coming about new buildings in Camden: a new Mastery School, Camden High, Rutgers’ nursing building on broadway, downtown delays and more tax credits (!). In the midst of it all, Allan Mallach came out with a provocatively article which gets at the heart of the criticism … Continue reading New Buildings, New Skepticism, and Improving Design…
From Rio to Camden, what #LochteGate and XTU show us about white privilege across the globe by Alexis Wilson
I’m thrilled to host this guest post by recent Rutgers-Camden graduate Alexis Wilson. I first met Alexis through her #blacklivesmatter work on campus: “Eat, play, leave” is a twist on the book title by author Ekizabeth Gilbert (Eat, Pray, Love). This interesting turn of phrase is a quirky way of highlighting the sometimes insidious side of … Continue reading From Rio to Camden, what #LochteGate and XTU show us about white privilege across the globe by Alexis Wilson…
The Metro Police Needs Officers, the Community is Trying to Provide Them
I stopped by The Village of Camden meeting this past Monday. Most of the meeting was taken up by Superintendent Paymon Rouhanifard’s “theory of change” presentation, about the logic behind the changes the school district has made in Camden. That certainly deserves its own post. But there was an announcement at the end of the … Continue reading The Metro Police Needs Officers, the Community is Trying to Provide Them…
A First Principle in Camden’s Development
One of the most interesting discussions happening in Camden right now is about gentrification and development. Some Camden residents, rightfully, are skeptical that when big development comes, it’s going to wipe out local community and start over. There are plenty of reasons for such skepticism — there’s the national history of urban renewal, which took … Continue reading A First Principle in Camden’s Development…