MEMORY IN ANALOG: ANALYZING THE IMPACTS OF RAPID URBAN GROWTH ON YOUTH

Abstract

Denver, Colorado, has experienced rapid gentrification, impacting people of all ages. Photography was included as one part of a larger ethnographic exploration of how high school students in southwest Denver perceived and navigated the impacts of rapid urban growth. A collaborative research methodology that featured map making and photography were used to better understand loss of place, urban segregation, and transportation inequities experienced by students displaced as a result of the United States Financial Crisis of 2007-2009 and the subsequent gentrification of United States neighborhoods. I illustrate how creative practice, discussion, and action can contribute to a shared understanding of the effects of rapid urban growth on educational achievement and the importance of student voice in contesting urban policies that have led to segregation and the displacement of marginalized communities.