On the Injustices of Gentrification

ABSTRACT

This article provides a survey and critique of several arguments advanced to support the claim that gentrification is unjust. I describe eight distinct injustices have been linked to gentrification: deprivation, estrangement, erasure, domination, censure, exploitation, disrespect, and marginalization. Scholars seeking to provide a comprehensive account of the injustices associated with gentrification must contend with the plural and contested nature of gentrification-induced injustice, the pervasiveness of domination as a distinct form of injustice and a component or contributor to other forms of injustice, and the difficulty of accommodating individual and collective forms of injustice within a single conception of justice. Although landlords, property owners, developers, and gentrifiers share blame for inflicting the harms of gentrification, states ultimately have the moral obligation to rectify the injustices of gentrification through the establishment of policies and institutions that discourage unjust actions.

KEYWORDS:

• Gentrification
• justice
• displacement

Acknowledgments

A special thanks to Nohely Alvarez, Bi’Anncha Andrews, Nicholas Finio, and Willow Lung-Amam for conversations about gentrification that helped to inform the ideas found in this paper.

Disclosure Statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.