Reclaiming Your Community
By Majora Carter
"You Don't Have to Move Out of Your Neighborhood to Live in a Better One"
Majora is quoted on the walls of the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture — which is also the subtitle of her book.
The book explores how we can address the problem of persistent poverty in low-status communities differently, and slow down the brain-drain that cripples local economic progress.
Just like successful companies have talent-retention strategies, Majora Carter argues that these communities need to do the same. She shows how brain drain cripples low-status communities and maps out a development strategy focused on talent retention to help them break out of economic stagnation.
Reviews
"In postpandemic America, we have the opportunity to reorder our society with a view to achieving our shared ideals — liberty and justice for all. Majora Carter's book could hardly be more timely in helping show us a more civilized way forward."
— Lin-Manuel Miranda
Playwright & Composer
"Majora Carter writes about issues of community, gentrification, identity, and home with great insight and clarity, asking us to reexamine our notions of what community development is and how we invest in the futures of our hometowns. This is an exciting conversation worth joining."
— Roberta Brandes Gratz
Author of The Living City and The Battle for Gotham
"This is an important personal story of a South Bronx activist whose good ideas for change are discredited because she is a black female who knows better than a lot of "experts" but doesn't have the proper credentials. Her vision for a "self-gentrified" South Bronx is not unlike the old Italian and Jewish communities but conflicts with the political power structure."
— Audrey Peterman
Environmental Advocate
"Majora makes it easy to follow her light by being open about her mistakes and her successes. She models how to balance self-interest and community care in ways that feed each other with joy and love."
— Rev. Dr. Jacqui Lewis
Author & Minister