The Idea of ‘Cultural Preservation Districts’: Oral Histories of the Creation of the Latino Cultural District

Community organizers in San Francisco's Mission District first pioneered the idea of ‘cultural preservation districts’ in the early 2010s as an iterative, experimental strategy to address the negative side effects of the city’s explosive urban/economic development. But the origins of the cultural preservation district lie in the community’s earliest anti-gentrification organizing, which began decades earlier. Working with Calle 24, the anchor institution of the Mission's Latino Cultural District, I am conducting oral histories with community elders and long-time community organizers to document how their efforts have resulted in some of the most innovative approaches that leverage arts and culture to address issues of inequality and housing affordability.

Led by: Anisha Gade (PhD candidate)

Geography: San Francisco, California