A photo of the interior of the Manhattanville Expansion in New York, depicting the architectural and social desires that Columbia maintains and propagates. An “open” layout, with professional-looking people, only limited pops of color, primarily white demographic, primarily white architecture, with an “authentic” New York view. How does this represent the knowledge economy that Columbia and New York City overall situate themselves in? What audiences is this architectural design intended to appease? What does it say about inclusion/exclusion, specifically who gets included even as others are excluded? What is really happening here that is not overtly stated?
“We are not a profit-making institution looking out for our own advantage. We are trying to do things that help the world more broadly. The community is not everything.” (President of Columbia Bollinger, 2006)
“Yesterday the NYPD and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office arrested and indicted over 100 suspected gang members in West Harlem in one of the largest gang arrests in New York City history. These indictments make our city and community safer and come as a result of a long-term collaboration between local law enforcement agencies. Following these arrests, we are actively supporting an enhanced police presence in West Harlem and increasing our public safety personnel and patrols in and around Columbia buildings in Manhattanville. We will continue to do everything possible to keep making our campus community even safer.” (Columbia University Vice President for Public Safety, James F. McShane, 2014)
Columbia propagates narratives of being of the city of New York, of “transparency” and “accessibility,” even as local residents feel uncomfortable/unwelcome to partake in their resources at various instances. At the same time that Manhattanville construction commenced, numerous young people were arrested in the housing developments nearby, majority under "suspicion" of wrongdoing based on their social media pages. Restricting spaces and policing them in tandem render this place, this university, toxic for the groups of people who are perceived not to be welcome: in order to make Columbia "open" and "transparent" to the community, many were deemed as needing to be taken away. The construction of this photo is an idealized representation of what Columbia stands for, yet does not account for who the institution has stood on in order to reach this juncture. "The community" becomes disposable in certain instances and useful in others, depending on the image that the University is attempting to portray.
A photo of the interior of the Manhattanville Expansion in New York, depicting the architectural and social desires that Columbia maintains and propagates. An “open” layout, with professional-looking people, only limited pops of color, primarily white demographic, primarily white architecture, with an “authentic” New York view. How does this represent the knowledge economy that Columbia and New York City overall situate themselves in? What audiences is this architectural design intended to appease? What does it say about inclusion/exclusion, specifically who gets included even as others are excluded? What is really happening here that is not overtly stated?
“We are not a profit-making institution looking out for our own advantage. We are trying to do things that help the world more broadly. The community is not everything.” (President of Columbia Bollinger, 2006)
“Yesterday the NYPD and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office arrested and indicted over 100 suspected gang members in West Harlem in one of the largest gang arrests in New York City history. These indictments make our city and community safer and come as a result of a long-term collaboration between local law enforcement agencies. Following these arrests, we are actively supporting an enhanced police presence in West Harlem and increasing our public safety personnel and patrols in and around Columbia buildings in Manhattanville. We will continue to do everything possible to keep making our campus community even safer.” (Columbia University Vice President for Public Safety, James F. McShane, 2014)
Columbia propagates narratives of being of the city of New York, of “transparency” and “accessibility,” even as local residents feel uncomfortable/unwelcome to partake in their resources at various instances. At the same time that Manhattanville construction commenced, numerous young people were arrested in the housing developments nearby, majority under "suspicion" of wrongdoing based on their social media pages. Restricting spaces and policing them in tandem render this place, this university, toxic for the groups of people who are perceived not to be welcome: in order to make Columbia "open" and "transparent" to the community, many were deemed as needing to be taken away. The construction of this photo is an idealized representation of what Columbia stands for, yet does not account for who the institution has stood on in order to reach this juncture. "The community" becomes disposable in certain instances and useful in others, depending on the image that the University is attempting to portray.
Photo by Frank Oudeman for Columbia University.