I have personally witnessed the effects of neoliberalism as a resident of New York. One of those effects is the increase in the price of rent. Rents in most areas of New York are increasing every year, making it more difficult for the lower class and some middle class to afford. This leads to an increase in the number of people living in poor conditions and some individuals are forced to move to another state simply due to the price of rents. In addition, the prices of houses in states such as California and New Year are extremely high compared to other states. This means lower-class individuals are less likely to own houses in those states and only the upper-class and some middle-class individuals will be able to afford those houses. Over time, the house prices in major states will have a bigger increase compared to other states, which creates a bigger gap of economic inequality.
Today, we also have public and private universities. Private universities are extremely expensive which means not everyone will be able to afford them. Lower class and some middle-class individuals are less likely to pursue a degree in a private university because they can’t afford it or they don’t want to graduate with heavy debt. Rich individuals also pay for SAT lessons or tutorings that help them get a higher score on the exam and thus get into a better university. This creates the idea that upper-class individuals are more likely to succeed since they have more opportunities due to their financial situation.
In Dickinson’s text, he mentioned how graffiti writers are associated with poor individuals. In order to protect the image that NYC is a major city and to support business corporations, the city was trying to kick the lower class individuals out of the city and portrayed them negatively. The increase in rent and price of houses also result in cutting lower-class individuals from the city so that mostly wealthy individuals and businesses will be located here.
