As I researched the history of East Harlem, I discovered a city founded by immigrants, most of whom fled from persecution and poverty. Oppression, increased competition for jobs and housing, and tensions abroad fed distrust on a subconscious level, aggravating existing social prejudices, class struggles, religious discrimination and racism. Despite the social unrest of the time, immigrants responded in unique ways, forging communities, establishing relief organizations, influencing politics, and improving the lives of citizens in general. An interesting pattern worth noting is the change from a divided community, hostile to various ethnicities, to a forged community of harmonious coexistance, a pattern correlating to the chameleon effect.

About East Harlem