1981 SPECIAL REPORT: "SOUTH BRONX"
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- Опубліковано 20 тра 2019
- On October 5, 1977, U.S. President Jimmy Carter paid an unscheduled visit to Charlotte Street, while in New York to attend a conference at the headquarters of the United Nations. Charlotte Street at the time was a three-block devastated area of vacant lots and burned-out and abandoned buildings. The street had been so ravaged that part of it had been taken off official city maps in 1974. Carter instructed Patricia Roberts Harris, head of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, to take steps to salvage the area. Progress did not come quickly; three years later, in 1980, presidential candidate Ronald Reagan paid a visit to Charlotte Street, declaring that he had not "seen anything that looked like this since London after the Blitz".
I'm 53 . I remember the Bronx looking like a warzone
mr zed So do I. I can smell it.
@@mariekatherine5238 one thing. Giuliani cleaned new York up real good.
Yes I agree he did a good job.
what was it like to live there?
@@dizmop we lived in Brooklyn but we visited an uncle that lived there. I remember my mom always in a state of panic
I was a teacher in the south bronx in the 70s 80s 90s. Incredible families and the children , precious.
Mary I taught one year at PS 65: 1994-1995.
Incredible? Precious? C'mon now i lived there😏
a dump when i was there born in fordham rd
@@carlitosortiz2870 a dump always drugs poverty everything was neagative
You must be nearly 90 years old. What’s that like?
We lost 80% of our buildings in the South Bronx. It was crazy!! My mom came home one night and the landlord literally told her.. the building is finished!! He left!! The building was massive and absolutely beautiful. They don’t build apartments with space like that anymore. The whole block literally died overnight. Even in those hard times we were able to be happy!! We did create a strong sense of community and friendship with our family, friends and neighbors. They always tried to help one another. I still have wonderful memories of those times.
I wish other politicans will follow Jimmy Carter's plan he was a good preisdent and a good man . Reagan came along and make things worst
Nicely put.
@@ivancampbell8123 what a crock. Those communities are littered with broken families. Carter a good president? Laughable. So good that the voters kicked him out after one term. Guy was a joke and had zero leadership ability. The only thing he was good at was being a political hack. But at least Jimmy peanuts was a better man and president than the inept crook that we have as President now. History will not look. Back on him favorably. Total loser
I dont get when you say " the building is finished" was it demolished intentionally?
I read those are "old world structures" just saying 🕵🏾
Lived in the Bronx in the 70's, terrible, poverty, drugs, killings, I was lucky to finish High school and joined the Army, now I'm a retired Army disabled veteran, but always my heart yearns for the Bronx, child hood place.
Thanks for your service. 🇺🇸🇺🇸🙏
@@qman4227 Thank you so much it is an honor to serve our country, freedom is not free, god bless you and your family Q man.
@@eddiesaninocencio7486 I pray for this country to come to terms and wake up. I feel like I’m shouting from the rooftops on deaf ears. But I won’t ever be complacent. And you’re most welcome.
@@qman4227 Thank Q man.
Thank you for your service. I left for the Marines in 1975 and the South Bronx was dangerous. I came home on leave after a lengthy tour away from home. Only bro see the South Bronx even worst. I re-enlisted and never looked back. But you should of seen the South Bronx in the late 50’s and mid 60’s. It was beautiful.
If you're a young poor person or child, never give up HOPE and remember that you're not to blame for your circumstances, and that you can change that once you become older.
Dirty Zanches you are correct grew up in NY in the 70’s joined the service flew in military aviation now I fly for an airline and live overseas. As bad and as rough as it was I miss the old New York some what. The home of Hip-Hop and House Music. From Latin Quarter’s to the Paradise Garage, Some fun times.
@@esoterico6062 You are oppressing yourself, with those thoughts!
Beautiful words.
@@esoterico6062 Who's commiting those crimes, try and get out of that community at all costs, create a better life for you and your children, i grew up lost both parents was on heroin for 20 years and i now own my own home paid for in cash. the only person holding you back is you and the fact you have been lied to. How many times have you personally experienced a racist attack by a white person, and how many times have you felt people of your own race let you down. The system is trying to hold you back for a democrat vote. Wake up I'am from the UK a Trump Supporter who would break bread with you any day pal. None of us are racist, the racists are the ones lying to you and trying to befriend you under lies. I hope you sort out whatever holds you back. from a Nazi racist conservative white supremacist (allegedly) but I'am just a person who does'nt look at skin colour. take care buddy
@@esoterico6062 yes, and yet there's always a way forward: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Bronx#Revitalization_and_current_concerns
Crazy how this same place is now being gentrified with top high-end condos and businesses you will never see in a low income area.
Don't you think it happened becouse of Regan's cutts?
@R R i mean gentrification of Bronx and a fact it's now quite nice place was because Regan's cutts
In most cases that's the only way to fix up a place.
@@romanzodziej96 Gentrification didn't happen because of the "Reagan cuts" It happened because everything was cheap, and white "hip" people moved in and bought everything cheap.
All those old buildings are gone now but they were from the early 1900's.
I’m 51. Grew up in Washington Heights and I remember looking across the river and seeing all burnt run down abandoned buildings 🏚. It was terrible.
It was awful
@@princesa2180 it was great! Everyone loves different things
RIP to Lorraine Montenegro- who led a long life of activism in the south BX & tragically died at 74 when she was stranded in PR during Hurricane Maria (2017). 💙
I’ve just watched this clip and thought what a strong determined & powerful woman she was. I’m sure she achieved so much in life, her story (and others) has made it all the way to the North of the UK. Saddened to hear of her tragic passing.
This was the bygone era when journalistic integrity still had some existence.
Could not agree with you more !
Now we have people on Fox News literally spouting conspiracy theories
Facts he quoted scripture, unheard of today.
YES! REAL NEWS. NOT LIES, SENSATIONALISM, AND PROPAGANDA !
@Christian Constitutionalist And we've had Trump calling a real virus a hoax, which ended up killing 500,000 Americans and rising.
This is one of the most important 'history docos' I've seen on youtube
I wonder where all these people are. The kids, the boxer. I hope they are well
Dead
Living in Rockland County suburbs and commuting to building construction and facilities management, or municipal jobs in Manhattan.
The Boxer Abraham Cruz made it to the Quarterfinals of the 1983 NY Golden Gloves losing by decision.
Most of the displaced populations where sent upstate to cities like Newburgh,Rochester,Albany,Buffalo
@@josephhuether1184Damn that’s really fucking accurate wtf lol
My buddy is from here, sadly he lost his sister and father in the late 1970s. One of the building collapse crushing them. Very sad story, my heart goes out to his family.
My heart goes out to him to I hope he’s been feeling better after 40 something years or so🙌
@edvinsalguero621 you never forget losing loved ones, even 40 years later
😢
Back when New York City was a rough and tough place. Its quite amazing how different NYC is
Tim I it’s still tough lol tf
@@Slim545 its soft as babyshit now bro
Johnny Kike no it’s not lol who told you that it still goes down do ya research!
Fuckin dump
reckless not like this it isn’t
Having grown up in a pretty rough neighbourhood, I totally get the lady saying she feels safer in the Bronx than anywhere else. It's not until the media and other people (normally from the leafy, affluent suburbs) tell you how bad the area where you live is do you really pay any attention to it. You just get on with your life and the circumstances you've been born into.
I was born in 82, not in new York but Michigan. But just the feeling of the 80s is beautiful. I know this is sad disaster that's not what I'm commenting on. The clothes, the vibe, the cars, the music. The 80s we're wonderful. My childhood.
I'm from Brooklyn and all I knew about The Bronx was that it was where the Yankees played. Discharged from the military in '73 and after a short stint in Baltimore, I returned to NYC in 1981 to drive city buses for the MTA. My first assigned depot was Hudson Pier in Manhattan and after five years on the job and unable to pick runs with weekends off, I discovered that opportunity in 1986 and picked into Walnut Depot in the South Bronx. My fellow drivers looked at me like I was crazy! I took the chance and not long afterwards, I discovered the people to be warm and caring and they didn't mess with the drivers but they did steal bus transfers! LOL! I worked the South Bronx routes for about four years before returning to Manhattan. Fond memories of the South Bronx!
Great documentary very nostalgic, I was born in 1980 at Lincoln hospital and raised in Burnside Ave. I remember the burned buildings looking like this along the 4 train line. Use to play in the abandoned cars and burned buildings. The empty lots with mattress were our baseball fields. Can still smell the cold air coming out of those abandoned buildings. The floors full of different colored crack viles and hydrants opened every summer .Growing up in the 80s was an experience.
That's crazy, I was also born in 1980 except in San Francisco. I seen the crack era hit The Bay Area really hard no abandoned building but slot of poverty and crime. Watching this made me realize that being born in the early 80s was extremely traumatizing. We were so young we did not understand.
ME BEING BORN MUCH LATER I EXPERIENCED THE ASS END; BUT IT WAS LIKE THAT IN DETROIT.... SHXT CRAZY ..IVE JUST BEEN BINGE WATCHING OUR BLACK HISTORY FR THE LIES TOLD TO BEGIN WITH; LOL JUST FATHOMING LIFE BEFORE AMERICA GOT INVADED ....AT THIS POINT...TECHNOLOGY IS THE PROBLEM
meh. Nothing was better than being born in Manhattan during the 1960s and watching the bronx turn into a kingdom of ashes. Everyone in NYC knew they were gonna take a slice out of the mainland lmao... it was genius... it was, a cinematic disaster. Quite a thing to behold in the 70s. Go to a nice party in the south bronx on friday, then watch the building get burned down on the news on sunday. at one point they stopped reporting on the bronx, thats when things really got spicy! All the fake rich people tried to run uptown and even into Mt vernon... They didnt last past Gun Hill Road lmao they couldnt burn anything past 180th street.
You should write a book.
@@Michelle-414 meh. No one would buy that book dear
It's like a jungle sometimes.
Great song by the grandmaster flash and the furious 5! Back to the early 80's.
It makes me wonder how I keep from going under...
@@user-pr2rz4jr5p Broken glass everywhere
james c makes me wonder
I swear I might hijack a plane!
My friend Derek, a Puerto Rican left New York City after 911. He came to San Francisco with little more than the clothes on his back. Today he is an experienced commercial highrise building engineer. He is a kind and honest man with an amazing work ethic. If I were a businessman I would definitely look at doing business in the Bronx.
I am also a Puerto Rican living in San Francisco. Is he single? 😅
Now San Francisco is hell on earth thanks to democrats.
Ha!!!, I don't know how to 🛑, laughing so hard,I am still drugged, up!.2002n?,LORD!!!!?, the clock stopped!!. It's,1900's!!!?,haaa!.ai'll, "I will whipped ALL,of you Worst looking things!.Ya'll "smell,"!!!! UGLY!!!..
I can somewhat remember my first time going to Yankees Stadium back in 1982/1983. I was 7-8 years old. My father was a career firefighter in CT and like most firefighters they're drawn to fire. I remember driving down the streets of the South Bronx before the game looking at burned cars, buildings being decrepit all because my father was fascinated with anything fire related. It's definitely one of those memories that stuck with me through the years. It is *absolutely* mind blowing what the South Bronx loos like today compared to 40 years ago. Full blocks were empty and now they're built back up and look as though they've been there since the early 1900's
I remember my dad taking me through Detroit in those years similar story to yours he was trying to teach me what happened from it being one of the wealthiest cities in the world to its abandonment at that time, the problems of that era extended far beyond the Bronx.
My older brother now lives in Detroit and loves it
Living there from the late 70's to the late 80's I received the best schooling of my life, learned to survive. Then I moved to Miami and I was told there by the locals be careful the place is dangerous, I was looking at them like they were crazy.
IF there was really love and support from the community, it would not have turned into the cesspool it became. Places turn into war-zones like this precisely because the community that is there let's it happen.
1981, the year of my birth at the Metropolitan Hospital East Harlem; I was raised in the South Bronx. I remember feeling and seeing the darkness of that period... It felt and still feels, like a heavy weight on my shoulders; the trauma doesn't go away... The vibration was so low during that time, that it felt like terrifying spirits followed me on the streets and the building hallways, that I frequented as a child. No child should be in such a systemically deprived and depraved condition.
Born in 79 and lived on Grand Concourse. It was scary. Everyone was so aggressive.
Your degenerate neighbors made it that way. STFU with your “systemic.”
@@NoahBodze I would usually wholeheartedly agree with you, but in NYC in the 80s case, the landlords were actively burning their own buildings down for the insurance money, turning the Bronx into a post apocalyptic nightmare. Junkies and hoodlums lived in those burnt out husks making that block unsafe for everyone.
Wow incredible for once it’s the same feeling seeing it and experiencing it
@@NoahBodze Your unnecessary aggression is degenerative. Go find the person who made you angry.
The Bronx influenced the whole world with urban culture. Electric Boogie, Break Dance, Hip Hop, Graffiti, Gangs, Clothing Style, etc. I grew up on Third Avenue near E 170th. I had friends that used to come from Manhattan just to see the burned out buildings at night time. The moon shining through a burnt window is something else.
Them and all that comes from the south.
Its so nice to hear your story. wish i could hear more. I am from a different continent altogether. Almost 8k miles away from Bronx but i like hearing things about peoples day to dat lives, especially during these times.
Texas influenced the whole world.
@@tjones7059 the whole world doesn't dance Texan music...
Gangs culture started in California. I just give y’all credit for break dance, nobody coping y’all clothing style.
This looks like Germany after war. No wonder, Italian filmmakers in the 80s shoot post apocalyptic movies in the Bronx.
And it was those movies that got the Bronx the attention it needed and they fixed that entire place!
Looks like Dresden
@@jaysantiago5737 1945
Back in the 1980s the CETA (Comprehensive Employment and Training Act) was a program that helped me get a job at a hospital and more schooling and helped me and many others in getting hired to achieve employment in the later years which now 30 years in the NYCTA and almost time for retirement I have a lot to thank for.
In 1980-81 I worked summer jobs for Nassau County and remember CETA employees. Many worked in the maintenance depts and cleaned bathrooms, but others were assigned in the traffic dept and learned how to wire traffic control devices and HVAC systems, that went on to really good jobs. CETA was a good program.
That’s amazing. Your story with Programs like that are proof its an long term investment & not a aimless handout to those who need it.
Gerald Ford started the CETA act
and Carter stopped it. I was trained in a program to be a children's advocate and it got me out of a housing project in Ma.
@@colinhalliley111 that’s amazing. It seems like that program had some material aid for a lot people who needed back then.
It was Reagan who cut the previously administration propose funding to the act then eventually ridding the whole thing.
@@a_real_one2000 I found out it was Carter a few years back, he felt the program cost more than it helped. But he gave the Panama Canal back too .😉 The act was officially signed by President Nixon in 73 and redone by President Reagan to become another type of program, but Carter had started phasing it out during his administration .
The landlord paid for those apartments to burn.
Ever heard of J*wish lightening? Lot of lightening strikes in NYC back in the day.
@@icecreamforcrowhurst 9/11 in 2001 was one of the biggest.
Indeed, but why? Because the claim was the only way to recover some value, no business, no rents paid, no resale and why not? Those are the political issues that brought the place so low
Exactly ..they were worth more burned down .too expensive to get them to code ..so they torched them ..
Just like today. The federal reserve and its debt based currency are the root problem, and unfortunately socialists think more government is going to fix it, lol.
I hate seeing all that devastation and destruction, there is no reason why it had to be like that. I am so glad to see that the South Bronx has improved and hope that it keeps improving for all the people who live and work there. God bless you people there.
These videos are amazing pieces of history. If not for footage like in them, no one would know actually how bad it was.
They really are a treasure because it is important to know and understand where we came from so that - hopefully - we don't one day in the near future forget and find ourselves right back in such a place. I had no idea, for example, that Times Square was once the place that it was and wouldn't have known had it not been for these videos.
@@TheVoiceofTheProphetElizerman times Square used to be GRIMEY. Now it's corporate as hell. Much of NYC is honestly corporatized and owned by people that don't even live anywhere near it. We gotta find a balance between crippling poverty and sht so expensive only wall street can afford it.
I think we can do it. But it starts with people understanding where we're from and where we're at - so we can see where we wanna go (and dont).
Blessings bro.
Or from actual stories from people like me who lived it.✌🏼
The biggest rats I ever saw with my eyes were in mid town manhatten. They would chase the dogs.
lmao
Wearing suits?
I’m sorry but that is funny af lmaoo
In 85 leaving jew mans in a freazing cold winter. I walked by a big ass German shepherd that was chained up. Then i heard. Whap I took 2 steps back, an that Dog took a piece out of a giant rat. The shit was big like a cat, an you could by how much was left. Profoundly embedded in my mind.
I purchased one of my coolest tshirts ever in 1993 down canal street, it featured a huge rat with a sword and a roach with a machine gun battling over NYC, gotta love New York!
Back when "safe spaces" meant not getting robbed, shot, stabbed, or killed.
shit...
real talk
When gun rights kept gangs AND government authority away.
Ray Gordon Teaches Chess true, but there were very few of those!
that right wing BS is why this was happening. GTFO
I'm from Glasgow in Scotland and my city looked like this all the way into the early 2000's, some places still look like this it's a sorry sight.
Are their lots of empty Skull splitter bottles around ? 😮😮
Gorbals?
@@CDN1975 Govan, but the Gorbals was the ghetto too
I just love how those who stayed saw the opportunity to rise. Just love it. I wonder if they are still there. God bless them
Oct 31 2020
I was born in the Bronx 1958
To me it’s been a forgotten place , it was insulting to the poor people to spend almost two Billion on a new Yankee Stadium and pay millions to ball players while the poor surviving on welfare or minimum wage jobs and treated as animals.
It’s the ‘poor’ that find a way to ‘support’ the Yankees, rather than INVEST In The Certainties Of Christ.
Tell it like it is!! Still same shit, more money.
That hasn’t changed today you can still find a $2 billion dollars football stadium not far from a run down neighborhood.
Well to those people you're "cattle" it says so in the Talmud.
@@KingvKing the certainties of Christ? What does that mean?
I lived in the Bronx in the '70s '80s, it was a hard life, we hardly had any food, but thank god we manage to survive, that lady is right, living in the Bronx was tough but I felt safer there than other places in New York City.
No rice and beans with Welfare food stamps?
uh the bronx wasent safer then brooklyn queens manhattan are u kidding me the bronx is the most unsafe borough
Michael Caputo south Bx and Brownsville
@@1265041 yup and east ny
yeah right safe my ass muppet
I was born n raised in the South Bronx it will always be home, if I can servive the Bronx I can servive anywhere!!
Born in Lincoln hospital n learned to be street smart!!! It has helped me survive to this day!!!!
Time square was nothing to what you see now what a better change!!!
Thank you for posting!!!
articulate and compassionate reporting
As Americans, we should be embarrassed that we let neighborhoods degenerate to this level. Unfortunately, for people in power... out of sight, out of mind.
Mark lmao go check it out now it’s beautiful
@Mark Lol
Lol I agree but it's to late for true transformations. 2020 baby, it's all on you or else it comes with the gig. The gig being old white money and capitalism aka what we call hipster area's aka new Harlem and the new Bay Area if you're from Cali . Only small towns less than 10-12k populated area's control their community's to at the very least, keep the streets clean. Imo this was all by design, cities will only get worst with certain neighborhoods getting fresh new look to them. This is why knowledgeable locals claim that you should move out before something global catastrophically happens and than you become stuck unless if you have a safe passage.
Andretti Talk stfu
"CoolDigerati" What could have been done? To prevent decay of neighborhoods, street people have to be controlled or gotten rid of. Drug dealers, prostitutes, homeless people, addicts, thugs, squatters, etc. That would be considered a human rights violation. It is considered "inhumane" to drive out "poor" people who contribute nothing to the economy or to the good of the community. It is considered intolerance and prejudice and "targeting minorities' to try to clean up the human dirt on the streets.
To bring in well-to-do educated people into a clean, well-kept neighborhood is considered "driving the poor away,"
I remember the South Bronx all too well, I was a student at Fordham University at the time. My friend and I got off the wrong exit and were deep in the heart of the SB at 1am on a Friday night. I kept on driving and it was pitched black, no street lights, abandoned, destroyed hulks of buildings, garbage strewn on the streets and roaming gangs. It was like a scene out of the movie "Escape from New York". The streets were blocked by burned out cars, and we came up to an intersection, where a bonfire of burning car tires with flames 20 feet high. Rocks and bottles were thrown at my car. I drove like a bat out of hell out of there driving about 80 mph busting through stop signs...I remember the billboards with "Father Gigante" who was trying to help the people of the SB.
He was the brother of mobster Vincent gigantes interesting
those were the dayzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
Looks to me, NYC author Tom Wolfe plagiarized your comment back in 1987.
At least you had a car.
What a story - I believe every word .
Lorraine Montenegro just died in Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria hit the island 2017, she did a lot of good things in S. Bronx, RIP.
Wow. Sorry to hear that.Much respect to her and her family.I will always love my Puerto Rican brothers and sisters.As a child of the late 50s and mid 1960s I remember Puerto Ricans also out there fighting for the rights of tenants , health care clinics, decent jobs and decent education for all people.A lunch program for the kids coordinated with the Black Panthers really helped a lot of people survive.Because the powers that be in the city andNY State gave up on the Bronx and decided to divert resources to the suburbs much like the federal government did by the mid 1950s.The Blacks and Puerto Rican residents of that era did get a bad rap and were blamed for all of the fires.But the fireman that I knew told me that most of the fires were electrical.As result of aging buildings that were poorly maintained.Resulting in poor plumbing and numerous leaks.Since the banks and insurance companies pretty much gave up on the South Bronx,some landlords resorted to torching their buildings in the hope of recouping some of their losses.It was a wicked cycle.But people like Lorraine Montenegro did not give up.
God bless...
It’s difficult to explain the love you have and the safety you feel for an area that is viewed as dangerous. People look at Detroit like this nowadays and my reflex is defend what I see as a beautiful city. 🤷🏼♀️
❤️
Stockholm Syndrome is the explanation
The simple explanation is that people find safety in what’s familiar to them, even if it’s not good
@@SinaAla For real, if you were born into mediocrity and thats all you know...youd think it was the best thing ever. As you move into middle class and upper class you get used to a level of luxury and you can't go back. I certainly would hate to live in the bronx back in those days (or even nowadays)
New York in the 70’s- early 90’s was a violent hellhole, but it also had a lot of soul.
How would you describe that soul?
guynxtdork it’s hard to explain unless you lived there.
@@anunusualironiccircumstanc2246 a lot of things are hard to explain
CJ Russ Just like most other older northern US cities. You think cities like Boston, Hartford, Philadelphia, and Baltimore were any better!
@@r.pres.4121 It was all just shit.
This is the Bronx I remember as a Puerto Rican kid really brings back memories and to see the Bronx now it's just incredible how far we have come the Bronx look amazing now.
But, the people from the Bronx can't afford rent.
@@HaztaLaVistaBaby I was getting ready to say, yeah ... It looks beautiful now but no one can actually afford to live there. There has to be a happy, functional median between bombed out war-zone and poverty vs. the sprawl of modern rebuilt gentrification where low-income, working class, and middle class families can't afford to live without housing subsidies and rent-controlled apartments
The Bronx initially didn’t need to come back. It was the best borough to live in. I’m sure it took a ton of tax $ to improve on what it became.
My uncle, aunt, and cousin lived around 210 & Moshula Pkwy, and left in the ‘70s. My uncle grew up in the Belmont section. I visited both in the early ‘70s, and they were like Bayonne was.
The South Bronx then was the gang capital of the world. Facts.
@@clemfarley7257 Being the Gang capital of the world certainly isn't anything to brag about.
Yes but the people are being pushed out
This is the result of a failure of local government and not the top level. The majority of people in this area who voted have never even been to a city council meeting and blame the government. People love to complain about a bad situation but don't want to help make it better.
This was so depressing and I lived it. Couldn’t wait to leave.
I was born in the Bronx and my parents grew up in the Bronx during the 1940’s. They moved to Long Island in 1950. The south Bronx started to deteriorate after that. I still have fond memories of going to St. Mary’s Park as a child.
Hello from Tyler Texas!
I remember those days. Our recreation was playing inside of abandoned buildings and flipping on thrown out mattresses.
Many people featured in this footage who remained in the area became major community leaders. 🇵🇷
As they should
Sometimes people need to stay put and do the hard work at the level these brave people worked on
It may look rough and dirty... but these streets used to be filled with a lot of FLY, hip and beautiful people !!!
I was born in 87 in the south bronx. Lincoln hospital.The era that caused my mom and dad to use drugs and then be infected with HIV😔. Rip mommy and papi. All the chaos around me and im proud to say i didnt allow myself to fall into the system.
Glad you made it out. Rip to your family
I was born in 87 too! I'm sorry about your parents. I'm glad that you survived it all.
Sorry about your parents, glad to hear you're well
🙏🏽🙌🏽
❣🙏🏽
Lorraine Montenegro, featured here, founded United Bronx Families with her mother, a social service organization, and there's a shelter for women and children is named in her honor. She and her family have worked hard for the Bronx. Sadly, she died in the wake of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.
Thank you for the update. I was wondering what happened to her. She seemed like a very good person.
I grew up here, while it was reported in 1981 it was already this way in the 70s. Joined the military in 74 went back in 78 and left again in 81, never looked back but have never forgotten. I instilled that in my siblings and nieces, all excelled and successful today. I myself became an engineer and visited 3/4 of this world, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Who would have thought a kid from the streets of the South Bronx realizing those dreams. I owe a lot to the South Bronx, I truly believe that I would not be who I am today had I not had that hard life pushing delivery grocery carts, cashing in soda bottles or doing whatever I could do to make a few dollars. It gave me the drive and fire to become who I am today. Some say that I push too hard, that I have no leeway. I say to them, you never grew up in the South Bronx.
Politics saw the problem and fixed it: in 2023 there's a South Bronx in every city of the US. Success!
Don't Push Me Cause I'm Close To The Edge !
I'm trying not to lose my head
Ah-huh-huh-huh-huh
Junkies in the alley with a baseball bat ;
I can't walk through the park 'cause it's crazy after dark
Keep my hand on my gun 'cause they got me on the run
What this song call?
@@djgoated7535 The Message - Grandmaster Flash
I live in the Bx and this hit home...I was 1 when this aired...thank you for opening my eyes to just how strong the Bx is!!!
I grew up in the South Bronx in the 70s and 80s, and yes , it was a wasteland out of a movie. You had to be rough and tough to survive.
They can say their worst about the Bronx but it will always be home to me.
This is tough to see. Growing up in the 80’s in NYC was no joke. I wonder how are these folks in this video are doing now?
I imagine most dead others old
Charlotte street was smack in the middle of this ... Now it's half million dollar homes... Much has changed since this... The stigma lingers but the changes have taken place..
I wasn't in the video, but I hung out with alot of them
They probably moved to Jersey or Florida by now.
@@edcruz8820 brilliant
The Bronx looks nothing like that now, it’s totally different and nicer.
AdrinaJohnson still crazy
Still fucked up ..ONLY thing new is that instead of Puerto Ricans being the poor Latinos ,its the Dominicans
I'm from Canada lol. What's the worst area in New York today?
Pedram Teymouri Brownsville bk, south bx, and Harlem
I remember when i was a kid in mid to late 1980s and my dad was sent down to the south bronx from Boston to work rebuilding some of the area and i had to go with him and it was a huge culture shock. I thought we lived in rough area in Boston but it was crazy there. But what i do remember is the people were amazing and we got to know a few families down there my dad worked with and man they let us stay with them and fed us so good. People are people and that was one of my favorite memories when i was a kid.
I’m from east London in the uk and I love learning about the 80s nyc keep up the good work look forward to a lot more from you my bro
During Regan economics crime and drugs rose to unprecedented levels.
Perfect example of what happens when industry goes overseas.
Perfect example of what happens when residents get lazy and don't bother to get off their arse and clean up their neighbourhood and make their own industries to replace what was lost.
perfect example of govt. money being squandered by the state. also the people not taking responsibiltiy for their city or lives and letting excuses rule. then the democrat enablers come along and allow the excuses to rule.
@Lilslim 650 . You ever been to Appalachia??
@Silvio Nunez Fuckin ehy
@@maxschaffer1607 The banks were the problem.
This is the best channel on UA-cam hands down
Facts
Why do you have to put your hands down?
The amazing thing is that it started with whiskey
We created this mess and then acted like it just happened on its own.
Priceless footage, thanks Hezakya.
Then crack hit...
Yup, thank Reagan! 👍
A lady in Central Florida(a white chick) told me Reagan and Trump were the best presidents EVER. I know what that means. No more rap
@@MuhammadAli-Lateef Have you ever met the real Muhammad Ali?
@@obscurelyvague no my dad met him i saw him leave the mosque and go into the limo
FACTS. THIS WAS THE PREVIEW
My Mom grew up here in the 40s and 50s and she was a tough cookie
Nigga how old are you?
@@Pablo14200 Old Pablo, Old
I'm from the south. Alabama to be exact. In the early 80s I had some friends who moved from NY to our projects and they were amazed at how big the places were. We had buildings with no more than 4 homes in one building and 2 stories high. 6 bedroom homes all the way down to 1 bedroom apartments for mostly senior citizens all low income. I never forgot that. They neighborhood took care of it's own. Hardly any crime. Some breakins but fir the most part safe.They would always stay inside until they saw that we would walk the neighborhood and everything was ok. Their parents told our parents that they got the best sleep since they moved down south. It was a culture shock and I never knew why until this video. Wow.
That is journalism we lack so much today.
We lack journalists period
Im So Glad I Came Across Your Channel! I Just Love To Watch Real True History Docs Especially From The 70s Through The 90s. About How Life Really Was and Still Is. Thank You Hezakya!!!
Lovely people back in them days. I love how positive people are.
@The Monocle No it's not, there not playing to the cameras they are genuine people unlike today. people were genuine back then, i lived in those times
@Estela Lopez Really? I look outside my door and it's full of cowards wearing masks. Come back on here in 3 months and tell me if you still feel the same.
Nobody cares about anyone anymore !
@@thornbird6768 Yea that's exacly where we are right now. We are in the last pages of the bible. Turn away from the cro.na lies, turn off your tv and turn to Jesus Christ.
@@lovedecors you religious people will never realize how delusional y’all sound. Shut the fuck up
It's amazing how much the bronx changed from then on to now. I wonder about some of the people in this short documentary how they all turned out. I hope well.
I remember in 1980 there was a 3 building complex across the street from 1195 Sherman ave 167th st They burned all the apts there, I was 6 yrs old. Living on the 6th floor. Fire started at night. The fire man grabbed me coming down the fire escape on the 5th floor.. I passed out and don't remember how I ended up in grandma's house but I truly remember the fire. Forgot the # to the building on Sherman Ave on 167th street. I remember those days running up and through those area's daily. I'm 46 yrs old
This is my new favorite UA-cam channel. Thanks for these videos.
Note to self: Don't rely your future on politicians and the government. In fact, stay away from them.
Some people never figure that out...(read Democrats)
@Maynard Ferguson no it has nothing to do with Democrats or Republicans.
Dont rely on the current government. Fight to change it to work for you first.
yes indeed
@@maynardferguson9599 some ppl don't have a choice... not EVERYONE that is poor is lazy, that's a misconception. Just pray you never fall in need someday and you're left with the same resources that you wanted available for everyone else, which is nothing.
Yo this channel always has good videos on the history of nyc
I was born in the mid 60's , but raised in the 70's. The Bronx has changed in many was. I was at 138th St between Brook Ave and Willis Ave. Hard times but they were good times to understand.
The Bronx has come a long way, I remember going to Yankee games with my Dad back in 1991, and seeing apartment buildings with no windows and people standing around oil drums lit on fire. Then going to work there back in the mid-2000s, and seeing a real difference, yeah it still had its issues, but nothing compared to the state it was in back in '70s/'80s and '90s.
That and briefly I dated a young lady who lived in the Bronx, on the very north end of the 2 Train. The neighborhood was very quiet.
Where did the $ come from?
@@clemfarley7257 What do you mean?
It cost a lot of tax money to fix the most dangerous neighborhood in the country.
It was a good use of $ and good cause. But it cost a lot. A good lesson, because as Christ said, the poor will ALWAYS be among us.
The north end of the #2 line was not the South Bronx
@@clemfarley7257 Developers, federal and state government it was a plan you cannot see
Blame it all on the landlords and the insurance companies and the frauds
Rough as hell south Bronx is part of '80s American culture
Blame on the government and its stupid policies. Landlords act according to the incentive provided by gov's regulations.
I agree with you both. The landlords and insurance companies burned down the south Bronx rather than low income people living in a descent place. Since they could not raise rent, the insurance peeps planned the burndown.
@@panama8009 you need to understand basic economics.
Today , it’s cleaned up but it’s even more violent , more illiterate, filled with crack, heroin, AIDS, and homelessness. Trillions of federal tax dollars and u just can’t help those who won’t help themselves
@@arikkatzenberg4498 Lol! Trumptard Lies Detected!
One time in the mid 80’s I misbehaved and to teach me lesson my father took me for a “tour” of the South Bronx. He asked me if this is where I wanted to wind up. I looked around, thought about it quickly and decided not to misbehave anymore.
Was he saying he would drop you off there or was he suggesting if you continued behaving badly you’d end up living in S. BX eventually? I’m just curious. I don’t blame you for straightening up after that, by the way. Lol
I’m an immigrant from Peru, i live here in the Bronx since 2007, my daughter is from here 6 years old, i know is not the best place to live but at least is safer than my country, with my work i can wear a clothes and eat what i like. Trying to move a better neighborhood.
I love how America makes documentaries on the tragedy they created
B Martinovid that part !!!!!
Why wouldn't they make documentaries?! It highlights the social problems and presents the need to find workable solutions.
There's really no better way of addressing such problems than insightful transparency!
Question to those who are missing what my comment meant, what’s the definition of propaganda
NJV oh ok 👌🏾🙄
erozpl01 the Bronx was literally largely shit due to private companies and individuals scamming private insurers are you that stupid?
Theres a lot of creativity that came out of the south bronx, Graffiti & Hip Hop, Graffiti changed my life, I've a lot to thank for the Original writers for. They never show the art & music that comes out of poor areas.
Graffiti isn't a thing to be proud of
While the origins of HipHop were from the Bronx, Queens made HipHop what it is today.
@@sureokk ok grandpa
Hip hop, rap and ghetto culture ruined the US and many parts of the world.
@@asherasator along with trailers and mountain addictions
Reagan, who here talked about reducing federal spending, ended up after 8 years as president raising federal spending almost 70% and tripling both the federal deficit and total federal debt.
And he knew exactly what he was doing. Or at least his advisers did. Cut taxes on the rich and drive up military spending and corporate welfare, and tell everyone the tax cuts will pay for themselves. Then when they inevitably don't, pretend to wring your hands about 'tough decisions', and always come to the conclusion that the debt must be paid off by cutting services to working Americans.
He was the beginning of the end of this country.
Delusional morons
He was a hypocrite. Not to mention fascist lite.
The South Bronx would not have gotten any better even if Carter had been re-elected.
Im from Harlem/Washington Heights 155th Street. My Uncle use to take me inside abandoned buildings where he worked in in the South Bronx. This was 1979 before he and his wife purchased a group of buildings in historical Hamilton Heights. They were worth hardly nothing back than because the area surrounding these buildings were dilapidated. They are worth millions today!
Same with my uncles their immigrants worked their ass in the 80s and it baffles them why people leave even though its near New York purchased them
cheap, now they reap the benefits. They got my grandmas habit of save money and buy low sell high
I swear they always have to show kids jumping on a mattress
actually this was the doc that made that a cliche.
I'm jumping on a mattress right now! It never gets old...
@@grasmereguy5116 😂😂
I was poor once. Oh, and I mean "eat once every 3 days," dirt poor. I left home at the age of 16 with the shirt on my back, a minimum wage job, no skills and no prospects.
So here is what I did about it:
1) I put off having babies until later in life, so I had time to get my shit together.
2) I finished High School, because the military won't take you if you don't. As the old saying went: "If Uncle Sam doesn't want you, who will?"
3) I joined the Navy immediately upon High School graduation. I served 4 years, 3 of them at sea in the fleet.
4) I came home at age 22 with OPTIONS. I could go work on jet engines at the airport, because I earned that skill while serving, OR I could use my GI bill to go to college and learn something else, because I earned that while serving as well.
5) I CONTINUED to put off having kids while I CONTINUED to get my shit together.
6) I graduated with twin degrees in Marketing and Economics. I have never had a problem earning a decent living since.
7) Graduated at age 28, got married at age 32 and had my first kid at age 33. My children have NEVER known the poverty I talked about at the beginning of this.
The problem I see with the people of this neighborhood AND the white Liberals who are on microphones talking about them is that they are ALL...to a MAN...looking for someone else to come save them.
"What are the Presidents going to do. What is the Mayor going to do. What is the city or the fed going to do?" yada yada yada yada yada...
They will never fix this problem until people start asking what THEY are going to do...for THEMSELVES! It is a fact of life,. No one else gives a f__k about you, the way YOU are supposed to give a f__k about you.
Im on the same page as you brother.
Facts well said ❤
Stellar comment, kennedymcgovern5413!!
*And that is how the cow chews the cabbage*
*Say it AGAIN, for the people in the back, kennedymcgovern5413*
I was born in the South Bronx in 1971---I am a 50-year-old, independent, hard-working, professional, Latina female-- I went to PS 5, IS 52, Morris HS, Lehman College, I have a BS and MS, multiple properties, a beautiful 23-year-old University graduate daughter and walk with my head up high. I remember with love the people in the building I lived as a child 442 Jackson Ave, I remember with love my teachers at PS 5...I am who I am because of my upbringing...I have beautiful memories there... It was not easy but, dear Lord they made the South Bronx look like the worse place on earth. To all the young adults out there, stay in school, do good, read, educate yourself, be a positive leader, stay positive, stay focused, practice daily positive affirmations, don't spend your money on silly things, learn to invest, study financial education...I thank God both of my parents worked...they worked in factories but, took pride in working and raising my two brothers and me in a one-bedroom apartment with love, food on the table, and always clean...I grew up with great, respectful people around me...Most of the buildings were burned by the landlords back then...it sad... we all need to take life into our own hands and make something good of it...help ourselves and help one another...never forget where we come from...I left The Bronx many years ago but, I have always worked in The Bronx and Harlem...I enjoy giving back with love, passion, knowledge, and experience....Blessings all...always walk with your head up high
I love my old Neighbourhood. That's what made me, who I am. Now I just love my neighborhood from afar and quick visits for loved ones and old friends
Came up through many foster homes and was homeless for 5 years. Now I’m self-made and will never need the government to hold my hand.
MajorYapper7 I eventually had luck and effort match up. It took many years with no hope in sight, lots of darkness, but on the other end of my pain was my greatest prize and even greater sacrifice.
@MajorYapper7 did you not read the full comment? He clearly stated that now he's self sufficient and doesn't need the government, like he once had. Some ppl just want to fight and insult ppl when they're really playing themselves
@MajorYapper7 idiot how can a child determine if he gets Gov help.id rather our taxes go towards the children not the stupid arms race unless there is proof we can deflect nuclear weapons.
Thank your foster people and now if your set HELP some other kid so he grow and be like you. govenment can't do it but people can
❤🤗 good job.
And this is the environment that shaped the culture of the world forever
Growing in Brooklyn, NY, in the early 80’s. My building was only one standing amongst surrounding rubble very similar to the scene depicted in this video. “Always, always keep your chin up, no matter what, keep moving forward.
I remember the south bronx growing up ... watching this in 2020 hard to believe that was 39 years ago... go there now still struggling but you would never know all the despair that came before it started to bloom once again.
This is the New York I remember
And the Bronx is still nothing to play with.. reality is a muther
Bronx and Brooklyn are the toughest.
The slayer Only small parts of Brooklyn are tough now. Have you noticed all the luxury skyscraper condos springing up in Brooklyn especially the Flatbush Avenue corridor. A giant super tall tower is now well underway.
I was born in 1989 in the Bronx and I remember a lot of construction, constant construction. That construction was the people rising from the ashes. It's so beautiful today it's incredible! Though we still have so much work to do.
The construction was about bankers investing in property and housing so that nowedays more and more people have to move out of the Bronx bc they can't afford rent anymore.
you better pray those poor people living in the Bronx don't get pushed out because it's so "nice" & "pretty" but EXPENSIVE.
Great video as always, the bronx has come a long way , still some area’s that are poverty stricken but not as bad as back in the 70’s and 80’s
looked like Germany after WW2
Germany nothing, try ww1 france
Germany after WW2 was much much worse, imagine a whole country like that with no food. Watch Germania Anno Zero and you'll see what it was .
@@victorfergn ua-cam.com/video/AhyifvjSHbU/v-deo.html Has a little resemblance in a way
@@rmac5584 yes but... it was a couple of blocks in the Bronx and less dead bodies (I think) :p
@@victorfergn nope it was much much more then a couple blocks. scattered around. there are maps of it you can take a look.
After the Bronx burning went down we had one men that became the savior of the South bronx his name is Father Luis Gigante. Not only he help rebuild the South bronx but help people with jobs I met Father Luis Gigante in 1969
He help the community with the Hunstpoint community Center to help kids to get off the streets by giving us a Karate school. Help with jobs. Summer camp in the summer for kids. He help drug addiction in the neighbourhood by sending addicts to drug programs. I had my first job in the Hunstpoint community Center in 1975. For years to come Father Luis Gigante had SEBCO. And the South Bronx became the New South Bronx. 👍
Julio Herrera too bad our politicians didn’t get off their rich asses and the same thing
Kudos to him
YAH! AND DO YOU KNOW. WHO HE'S BROTHER IS? AND WHAT HE DID... AND TO THANK THE FATHER NEVER SAID A THING.
How noble. May Allah have mercy on you all.
He was Vinny the chin's brother.
One dedicated his life to working with the poor in the poorest congressional district in the US and the other was a career mobster dedicated to running organized crime.
Yes SEBCO Gigante Houses legacy and HP community center still going strong over there by Longwood and Hunts Point.
Im 63 years old now....
I remember it well...its where i grew up/went to public school hungry/and lived right in the middle of this all hell...it sucked/living there sucked/and all my memories are of being very poor/living in poverty/very little food to eat/heroin everywhere/constant fires/abandoned buildings and abandoned people/hell /but somehow me and everyone else i grew up with at that time/for the most part/survived/thank god i moved on and progressed/but it wasnt easy/and i was very lucky/at the time it was my whole world/and the only one i knew...hunts point area/1958-1974....peace....
Today this is 75% of America.
I am from the Bronx and was 19 years old when this video was made. I lived down the block from Yankee 🏟 Stadium. I have listened to comments regarding the rejection of how the South Bronx was portrayed in Hollywood. I am just as offended!!!!! This report completely disregarded the African American population which out numbered any ethnic group in the Bronx yet we were not even acknowledged!!!!!! My father owned his own Auto Body Shop and all of his friends who by the way were African American owned their own businesses in the South Bronx!!!!!There were many of us including myself who earned a college degree and became teachers, nurses, Lawyers and doctors. My sister currently is an elementary school teachers across the street were my father had his business in the south Bronx!!!!!!! If anyone wants to tell a story tell the WHOLE STORY. Once again this a report produced by Caucasians, promoting their perspective and as many people do, they accept it as the truth due to lack of education and very poor critical thinking skills. This report showed one perspective and left out not only African Americans but Italians, Greeks, those of the Jewish faith (by the way they all lived in my building in the South Bronx and were not only my neighbors but my friends). If anyone attempts to tell the truth, tell it in its entirety!!!!!!!!
Facts
Italians Greeks and Jews are white or Caucasian as you would say. And I’d know that as I’m English and Cypriot.