Demi McGuire starts the interview reflecting on her experiences advocating for the Morningside Heights neighborhood since the 1960s. She discusses the fight to save the buildings in the area after Columbia University wanted to demolish buildings while expanding the campus to the south, a part of the renewal plan for the neighborhood in 1964. McGuire describes activism on the Columbia campus in 1967 -1968 and the broader activist scene in the neighborhood at the time. McGuire discussed the ethnic and racial make-up of Morningside Heights and Blennerhasset apartments in the 1960s compared to 2016. She shares the process of buying the property from the Morningside House landlord and creating a tenant sponsored co-op with residents at Blennerhasset.
Gentrification--20th century.--United States; Urban renewal--New York (State); Home ownership--Social aspects; Morningside Heights (New York, N.Y.) Buildings, structures, etc; Morningside Heights (New York, N.Y.) History; New York (N.Y.) History; McGuire, Damaris; Columbia University History
Format
oral histories
Genre
Interviews
Date
2016
Physical Description
30 pages
Note (Biographical)
Damaris Walsh "Demi" McGuire was born in Ann Arbor, Michigan and grew up in Beloit, Wisconsin. She started attending Radcliffe College, but moved to New York after marrying Don McGuire in 1958. McGuire put school on hold while raising three children a nd started at Barnard College in 1967. Her family moved into Blennerhasset apartments in 1970. In addition to her activities in the building, she helped organize projects to support the community, including neighborhood playgrounds and day care services (Children's Free School). She worked at various Columbia University offices. She eventually made a career in legislative affairs: as staffer for several state legislators, executive director of the Arts Coalition of the Empire State, legislative director of the Civil Service Employees Association, and executive director of the New York State Episcopal Policy Network. She and her husband sold their apartment in the Blennerhasset apartments in 1999 and moved to Albany, New York