Nocturnal Geosemiotics of Forced Migration: The Gentrification of Miami’s Wynwood Arts District

• In Event: Grounding Transnational Communication Flows in Global Contexts: Emerging Research From Metropolitan Miami

Abstract

As in many urban centers across the U.S., neighborhoods near Miami’s downtown have become rapidly gentrified. Yet, popular communication about these changes focuses on life during daylight: journalism reports on development as a benefit of gentrification, while news of crime and danger within these spaces appear at daybreak. Same is true in popular discourse about Miami’s Wynwood Arts District, where art studios, high-rent lofts, and ‘public’ graffiti replace residents of historically black neighborhoods. Meanwhile, adjacent neighborhoods have experienced an increase in immigrants from Central America, arriving in the U.S. after fleeing economic turmoil in their home countries. To explore the power dynamics and neoliberal narratives where race, migration and ‘economic development’ collide, this research employs geosemiotics—visual capturing of “public texts” that contain dominant meanings of place. More specifically, researchers examine images and interactions of night-time activity, seeking a counter-narrative to the intentions, outcomes, and communicative power of urban development.

Authors

• Moses A Shumow, Florida International University

• Robert Gutsche Jr, Florida International U