Inclusivity in Our Industry and Our Cities

As American society becomes more urban, we must work hard to eradicate racial segregation and create cities that celebrate our country's diversity. Image © Gensler

“You know, there’s been a lot of writing about the American pathology of race and how it’s an overlay on all of our urban problems, our failure to deal with it…If we don’t get the city right, I don’t see how this society becomes anything but second-rate, because we are an urban people." - David Simon, creator of the HBO shows The Wire, Treme, and Show Me a Hero speaking on Democracy Now.

People outside the world of architecture and planning frequently bring up the topic of segregation in American cities. Our industry, however, remains oddly silent on the issue of race and how it factors into the cities we help shape. Instead, we focus on today’s vogue topics of urbanism; think shipping-container architecture and pop-up installations.

But as acclaimed chronicler of inner city decay David Simon so skillfully pointed out during an interview with Democracy Now, getting the city “right” means addressing the overriding condition of segregation.

Visible proof of just how segregated we are can be seen in the University of Virginia’s Cooper Center for Public Service racial dot map, which allows you to zoom in on any part of the United States and see a stark representation of our racial clustering. If cities are unvarnished statements about our values and desires, what does the racial dot map tell us?

Perhaps part of the reason that the racial realities of our urban condition are seldom discussed within the architecture profession is because the field is nearly 78% Caucasian. That makes it among the least diverse professions in America. (Architecture is also dominated by men; just 17% of the AIA’s membership is female. Clearly, the industry could use a dose of gender diversity as well.) Thus, in order for our industry to initiate a dialogue on race and the city, we must become more inclusive and diverse. We must examine the socio-economic factors that serve as barriers to the profession within minority communities. We must reach out to minority youth to spark an interest in architecture. And we must champion legendary minority architects, from Paul Williams, the first African-American member of the American Institute of Architects (AIA), to Mexican-national Luis Barragán, winner of the Pritzker Prize.

The architecture profession is nearly 78% Caucasian and only 17% of the AIA's membership is female. Image © Gensler

At Gensler, we’ve already begun to take steps in this direction. Our Baltimore office is involved with the Baltimore Design School (BDS), a middle and high school that introduces the basics of architecture, art, and fashion to local disadvantaged—and primarily minority—students. Most recently, members of our Baltimore office participated in a brainstorming session with BDS students and other stakeholders to find ways to evolve the school’s mission and impact. Members of the Baltimore and DC offices have also worked with the architecture program at Morgan State University, a historically black college. They’ve served on the board of advisors, participated in critiques, and explored ways to strengthen mentorship programs. But our efforts with these two schools are just first steps. We can, and should, do more.

Evolving the profession to incorporate more points of view is the only way to ensure that this century’s urban condition will be more integrated and equitable. And given that cities are becoming increasingly important as centers of the human experience, the separations embedded in them will grow only more pronounced as more people flow into them. That is why we must address segregation now. It is our duty to help everyone take advantage of the promises that cities hold—promises of new possibilities, new energies, and startling new ideas.

Of course, architects and planners alone can’t set things right when it comes to the divisions that characterize our urban environments. But we can spark discussions, wield influence, affect policy, and create new engagement strategies. We can build strategic partnerships and make people aware of how deep-seeded and complex the issues around race and cities are. And we can be honest with ourselves about our need to be less monolithic and more heterogeneous.

Brenden Jackson is a Marketing Writer in the Baltimore and Washington, DC, offices. With a background in creative writing, journalism, and marketing, he oversees storytelling for Gensler’s southeast region. Contact him at Brenden_Jackson@gensler.com.