Journal Entry 2 part 4

Urbanization, and the Rise of the American Suburb. 

At the turn of the 20th century nearly 40% of Americans lived in cities, and that number continued to climb. Urbanization and the expansion of cities are a hallmark of the 20th century. 

  As we can see from this graph, the growth experienced during the 1880-1920s in New York was quite intense.  The rate was explosive, but the graph shows that when the bubble finally berst,  levels returned to only slightly above those of the pre boom. Of course such extreme trends are not sustainable, and a normal rate  of growth returned. The forecast for cities looks very different in  2021 than it did in 1921. 

The difference is found in a  mixture of places. On a global level urban centers are predicted to increase and host most of the world's population. However, these numbers are pre pandemic,  indeed the pandemic era has not been friendly to Americans urban centers. Now, 80% of U.S cities are shrinking. 

In the 20th century cities allowed people the ability to live and earn a liveable wage more comfortable than in the rural parts of the country. In the 21st century the perks that were the lifeblood of urbanization have become obsolete in the face of new technology. Over the last quarter century Americans have been able to conduct both business and social affairs over the internet, and this ability has lead to increased freedom regarding physical presence. 

I do not believe that the American city is dead, nor is this a blog about that topic. But it is clear that one major disruption between what was seen in the 1880s-1920s and what we're  seeing in 2020s is the rate urbanization.