Harlem has been undergoing a continuous population shift as part of an ongoing cycle. Once culturally significant, the neighborhood has been struggling in recent decades. In Harlem USA, residents voice deep concern that business does not have consideration for them and wants to drive them out. The march of gentrification is vilified persistently, but there are voices that steer away from the obvious conclusions and black-and-white simplicity.
No clear solutions are presented. Thankfully, the movie does not lecture, preach, convince or condone but leaves space for wider discussion on how a merging of cultures can happen respectful to the circumstances and history of the people who were born there.
Boris Berlin