Community Anal Description

In preparation for this paper, I reviewed all class notes and lectures. I also referred to Schriver's (2011) Human Behavior and the Social Environment and also Payne's (2005) Modern Social Work Theory. I also reviewed several websites in preparation for a thorough community analysis, while also evaluating my own notes and photographs from assessing the community. My analysis of a specific community is based on several interrelated theories of social work and sociology including conflict theory, systems theory, and functionalism.

In light of what I have read, and based on my observations and interviews with locals, Downtown Indianapolis has undergone major restoration, gentrification, and revival since the 1990s. Issues like empowerment, advocacy, cultural diversity, and conflict theory all come to mind as I evaluate the community by applying theories of social work. I would like to focus in particular on the positive changes that have taken place, and illustrate some of the ways social work theory can be applied to future policy development. This is because focusing on the negative issues that continue to lurk beneath the surface may be counterproductive, rather than proactive. It is important to learn how neighborhoods like the downtown core have come to apply an anti-oppressive philosophy of community organization, mobilization, and improvement.

The area of Massachusetts Avenue (Mass Ave) has what many people might colloquially call a "hipster" culture, in which young and creative people support independent local businesses including clothing stores, bars, and restaurants. By avoiding the infiltration of major real estate developers who sell out to chain stores, the community leaders have prepared Mass Avenue to become a livable, likeable community that attracts citizens with civic pride. As a result, the streets are clean and there is a lot of local character and flavor permeating the area. This community is, however, unique. Indianapolis downtown outside of the province of the Mass Ave district remains dilapidated and crime-ridden. In order to help spread the positive changes that have taken place here, it is essential first to describe in detail what these changes entail. It is also necessary to describe the specific policies and social work theories that apply to Indianapolis.

Massachusetts Avenue cultural revival programs have included art fairs, food truck events, and cultural festivals. There are several stage theaters, small "art" movie theaters, art galleries, and design stores with unique items of furniture and clothing. There are several coffee shops and restaurants, as well as bars like the Mass Avenue Pub, which serve regional craft beer. This description coincides well with Schriver's (2011) tripartite definition of community as being (a) a location, meaning a specific geographic space; (b) a place specifically where people reside; and (c) an economic hub. Mass Avenue fits all three of these components.

From a functionalist and structural-functionalist perspective, it is critical to describe the specific functions of the elements described in my report. For example, the theaters on Mass Avenue function as meeting places for residents who live in the community; but more importantly, these theaters attract non-residents from nearby areas who are interested in arts and culture. These visitors patronize local bars and restaurants when they visit the theater. These visitors also witness first hand how arts and culture are cornerstones of urban regentrification.

When examining Mass Avenue from a functionalist perspective, it is also important to describe how the community operates in light of its surrounding neighborhoods. Issues like social order, law enforcement, and mutually supportive social systems are in place here. The local law enforcement agency has migrated to a community policing model, which engenders trust among residents. The presence of social institutions like churches and other places of worship on Mass Ave also serve as anchors for community pride and identity. Residents of this area are proud to live here, which creates a positive feedback cycle.

Examine

Examining Mass Avenue, Indianapolis in light of prevailing theories of social work and sociology provides a fruitful framework for identifying the factors for positive prosocial community change. Functionalism is a perspective that addresses the functions of various social institutions that are relevant to the community. All social institutions, including schools, places of worship, family institutions, medical centers, public parks, law enforcement agencies, business organizations and governance, are taken into account. As Arndt (n.d.) puts it, functionalist theory emphasizes harmony in that, "society is in a state of balance and kept that way through the function of society's component...

Systems theory evolved from Durkheim's sociological theories related to the "complex nature of human interactions within a social environment," (Friedman & Allen, n.d., p. 3). Durkheim's concept of anomie also becomes relevant in systems theory. What I find particularly interesting about systems theory, and what I find most relevant for application to Indianapolis, is the inclusion of issues of race, class, gender, and social power. It is important from a systems theory to take all of these overarching issues into account, to understand the role of each person in the community and within his or her smaller social units. Thus, I need to see how women in the community view themselves and their roles in society. I need to see how Mass Avenue has shifted from a point of anomie, as it was once a crime-infested neighborhood, to a community of creative and productive persons who support each other by patronizing local businesses and re-investing in the community.
The concepts of adaptation, goal attainment, integration, and latency are important to systems theory (Friedman & Allen, n.d.). How have residents of the Mass Avenue corridor adapted to the changes taking place, and to the challenges of forming new community alliances? How have the residents adapted to diversity? The answer is embedded in goal attainment, I believe. The residents of the Mass Avenue community tend to be people who have visited other cities, and who have set goals for our community based on the models that they have seen work elsewhere. Those models include small business development and the creation of social order via cooperative efforts and collective pride. Next, it is apparent that the residents and business owners have integrated their efforts. Integration also explains how businesses and residents have worked with law enforcement, and contended with zoning permits and other civil law matters. Finally, I believe that Mass Avenue has reached the latency phase in its evolution. The system is now "invested in maintaining and transmitting its norms and values," (Friedman & Allen, n.d., p. 6).

Articulate Learning

Through my astute analysis of concepts and ideas related to social work and to the community, I have learned several things about how communities function cohesively, how communities can reach common goals, and how to apply what I have learned to my future social work career. I am most interested in helping currently disenfranchised and neglected neighborhoods regentrify in healthy ways, such as I have seen in this district of downtown Indianapolis. I believe that citizens need to empower themselves, rather than view community redevelopment as something that happens to them. The course texts by Payne (2005) and Schriver (2011) have both illustrated the importance of personal and collective empowerment. Citizens first need access to the means by which to transform their communities, even if it means acquiring funding, resources, and suggestions from outside sources. The installation of new businesses and centers for the performing arts does not happen instantly overnight. I have learned that residents need to take charge of their communities by actively planning and envisioning what it might look like a few years down the road.

Applying sociological theories and theories of social work, such as functionalism and systems theory, has helped me to envision my own role as a community motivator and organizer. In a capacity as consultant, I hope to show specific ways communities can develop with small businesses that empower local owners, rather than welcome large external corporations. The larger external businesses do not benefit communities as much as local small businesses, because the end result profits are channeled and redirected away from the neighborhood. I have learned that it is easy to be lured by the ease of welcoming big stores, whether that be fast food restaurants, Starbucks, or WalMart. Instead of a model built on external businesses that harm communities, we can promote visionary entrepreneurs who not only give jobs to locals but also improve the aesthetics and outlook of the entire community. The small business owners on Mass Avenue actually care about the community. They do not have what Durkheim would have called anomie, which is too often the case in neglected areas in which residents feel helpless and hopeless.

The most difficult part of applying what I learned will be to actually contend with the policy transformations and red tape required to assist the development of impoverished communities. There is a sense of overwhelm as there are too many things to do. This is why…