Socio-Historical Contextualization of the Birth of Hip Hop    Derek I. 

The rise of gang culture in the Bronx and the birth of Hip Hop in New York City were direct result of socio-economic hardships caused by the deindustrialization process during the early 1970’s. As the industrialization period came to an end, the lucrative manufacturing jobs located in the Bronx were replaced with few low-wage service industry jobs. Through the building of highways, turnpikes, and suburban communities many of the white-collar workers living in the city to relocate to the suburbs. These highways and turnpikes made it possible for companies to produce and transport the products between suburban factories into the cities. Suburbanization would ultimately leave the Bronx economically incapable of sustaining itself. Warehouses were left abandoned and property values would decline substantially.

As a result white collar workers moved to the suburbs, lower classes were forced into public housing and were trapped in the South Bronx. There was little to no community or government support and these neighborhoods were forced to survive on their own. These communities were economically depressed and diverse. There were many North American Blacks and Caribbean immigrants living in these “ghettos” that had very little. They were forced to live in the skeletal remains of the post-industrial era.

It was in these multiethnic neighborhoods that the Hip-Hop culture was born. The Hip-Hop culture was shaped by the many different cultures being forced to live together in a hostile urban environment. They were able to turn an obsolete situation into entertainment, by incorporating their multi-ethnic backgrounds with their environment. The Hip-Hop culture was created through what was available and easily accessible to the community at that time. The Hip Hop culture was a way for crews and gangs living within the South Bronx to express themselves.

I feel the Hip-Hop culture was created out of necessity in the urban areas of New York City. These communities were essentially abandoned and left to fend for themselves. These low-income communities were overlooked by the government and had no “voice” to stand up for themselves politically and socially. Through breaking, flow, and graffiti the Hip Hop culture was born and these urban communities were finally given an identity.