Current State of the CPC

Jennifer Preissel/CDS Manhattanville, a proposed site of Columbia expansion, has been the focus of much debate.

Currently, the CPC has evolved into an umbrella group for activist organizations involved with the proposed expansion. CPC brings together the Morningside Tenants Federation, the Columbia Tenants Union, the West Harlem Coalition, and the Harlem Tenants Council, as well as individuals fighting for community activism. Nellie Hester Bailey is co-founder and director of the Harlem Tenants Council as well as an active member of the CPC. These groups work together on many issues facing communities deteriorating due to gentrification. On campus, the Student Coalition on Expansion and Gentrification represents the CPC’s interests towards campus expansion. The fusion of all the groups gives the CPC enormous credibility, with an email list serve of over 1,000 addresses.

Hence, the group is soliciting President Bollinger to host an open forum on campus expansion, where members of the community, grass-roots organizations and students can ask various questions about Columbia’s plans for development. The group has been partly successful in their endeavourer. Earlier in the year, President Bollinger met with the CPC’s steering committee, a group that consists of 15 members.

Many could argue that the CPC is still in a formative stage. Currently, the group lacks a webpage and few formal employees. However, with the continual need for resources to help with the expansion debate, the CPC is growing by the day.

UPDATE: In the summer of 2006, the Coalition to Preserve Community started making public a new website they developed about their organization which can be found at the follow URL, http://www.stopcolumbia.org

Protesting on Columbia's campus to gain school support...

The University stalls...

In addition, the CPC works closely with the Harlem Tenants Council. Nellie Bailey, who is a Harlem community activist, is closely involved with both organizations. The mission statements for both groups is relatively similar, as they are engaged in a fight to keep Harlem’s cultural and racial identity in place in light of the recent pushes for gentrification of the neighborhood.

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