Harold Smith's family gathers in their kitchen in the Amsterdam houses. (Photo courtesy of Harold Smith)
New York City public housing often seems like a world unto itself–with its own culture, its own heroes, and its own set of laws. But since the first housing development went up in 1934, the New York City Housing Authority has been an inextricable part of New York, changing as the city has changed, sharing in its triumphs and its tragedies.
In this timeline, six senior citizens look back on the past six decades in public housing. They remember a blossoming city full of warm communities and vicious gangs, veterans returning from war and friends dying of AIDS, days of work and nights of music. They also recall their experiences during some of the country’s happiest and most traumatic moments–including the victories of the civil rights movement, the birth of television, the assassination of President Kennedy and the attack on the World Trade Center.
Each item in this timeline opens a window into the lives of NYCHA residents, bringing a personal touch to a turbulent half-decade. Read, watch and listen as six seniors remember.
Harold Smith, 62, is a musician who lives in the Amsterdam Houses on the Upper West Side. His parents were part of the first wave of new residents to move into the development after it opened in 1948 to veterans of World War II. Smith witnessed the razing of Lincoln Square and its replacement with Lincoln Center, the rise of gangs in the neighborhood in the 1960s,and the civil rights movement, all while continuing to pursue a career as a bassist and keyboardist for jazz and soul groups.
Hester Snipes, 86, is a great-great-grandmother who lived in the Borinquen Houses from 1948 to 1970. She moved to the projects with her husband, a World War II veteran. Snipes describes the 1950s in NYCHA as idyllic and still stays in touch with friends in the development. After raising her family in NYCHA, she moved to the Lindsey Park Cooperative across the street and has taken up stand-up comedy in her later years.
Merlene Humphrey, 86, lived in the Cooper Park Houses from 1952 to 1976. She laments the loss of the Brooklyn of old, which she describes as much less violent and more respectful. Humphrey led a very active social life in the projects; her family was one of the first to own a television in Cooper and she would often throw parties for other residents. Though others remember a more racially turbulent time, Humphrey says race was not an issue in daily life in the projects and was close with the Italian and Jewish families living in Cooper. Humphrey now lives in the Lindsey Park Cooperative in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.
Roy Richardson, 78, has lived across the street from Borinquen Houses in Williamsburg, Brooklyn for 35 years. When he first moved to Brooklyn, Richardson was shocked to learn his apartment building was so close to public housing but has come to love the neighborhood. In the 80s, Richardson personally witnessed the HIV/AIDS epidemic change the neighborhood. Now retired, he spends much of his time at the Borinquen Senior Center. Richardson is a lifelong opera fan (his favorite is Verdi) and speaks Spanish, French and Italian.
Juan Rodriguez, 77, is the president of the Borinquen Senior Center. Rodriguez moved from Puerto Rico to Brooklyn as a small child, later enlisting in the military and serving in Vietnam. Rodriguez was inspired by John F. Kennedy to become more politically active and has been working with community leaders since Kennedy’s 1960 Presidential election. Today, in his role as president of the senior center, he works hand-in-hand with the mostly Spanish-speaking seniors in Borinquen who do not speak English. He makes their lives just a little easier by translating, helping them to fill out NYCHA paperwork, and accompanying them to doctor visits.
Marie Cancel, 65, has lived in the Tomkins Houses for 40 years and moved to public housing the same year she was married. As a manager at the Cascade Laundry factory across the street from the Marcy Houses, she has witnessed the changes at different NYCHA developments over the last four decades. Now retired, she lives with her husband and two daughters and spends most of her days at the Diana H. Jones Senior Center, a private center which serves residents from the Marcy, Bushwick and Tomkins houses.
To contact the reporters about the story, please email Marc Georges (mag2245@columbia.edu) or Ben Sales (bis105@columbia.edu).
