1970S Harlem In Photos Before Brunch There Were Riots

Harlem in the 1970s was marked with violence and loss, but it was also a time where its residents cultivated an incredibly resilient character.

The popular afro style was everywhere.

French photographer Jack Garofalo’s photos of an iconic New York neighborhood have been making some impressive rounds on the Internet lately, catapulting viewers back to a time before Harlem was a brunch destination.

Harlem’s history in the 1960s and 1970s was one of violence and loss: the Harlem Riot of 1964 claimed the life of an unarmed black teenager; Nation of Islam members assassinated Malcolm X, and riots again rocked Harlem’s streets following Martin Luther King Jr.’s death in 1968. Many in Harlem responded by moving out in droves in what some would call an exodus.

Two members of the Black Panther party stand by a storefront. Source: Mashable“.

With crumbling infrastructure and trash-lined streets, the New York Times described the neighborhood:

Despite the grim description, business as usual went on for those who stayed: beauty parlors were often full, families grew, and cultural vitality was being renewed. Around the country, the decade of the 60s saw the popularity of Motown music, fashion, and a boom in visual arts media.

Selling newspapers on a street corner.

Though President Lyndon Johnson’s Model Cities anti-poverty program spent $100 million into improvements, job training, and education, the area seemed to make no visible progress.

That is, until 1987 – when the city installed new water mains, curbs, sidewalks, and even planted some trees. National chain stores opened in what used to be seen as one of the worst neighborhoods, and over proceeding decades, people began moving back.

After years of decline Harlem finally found its way back, but these photos prove that even through the worst of times, Harlem at its core was always about the resilience of its people:

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Death, Destruction, And Debt: 41 Photos Of Life In 1970s New York

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1 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 2 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 3 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 4 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 5 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 6 of 21Source: Mashable (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images) 7 of 21Source: Mashable (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images) 8 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 9 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 10 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 11 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 12 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 13 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 14 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 15 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 16 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 17 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 18 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 19 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 20 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images). 21 of 21Like this gallery?Share it:

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Want more vintage New York? Check out our galleries of 1969 in New York and staggering photos of the New York subways in the 1980s.

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And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts:

Death, Destruction, And Debt: 41 Photos Of Life In 1970s New York

Glamour, Gangsters, And Racism: 30 Photos Inside Harlem’s Infamous Cotton Club

The Harlem Renaissance: 41 Images Of When New York Was The Capital Of Black America

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Like this gallery?Share it:

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And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts:

Death, Destruction, And Debt: 41 Photos Of Life In 1970s New York

Glamour, Gangsters, And Racism: 30 Photos Inside Harlem’s Infamous Cotton Club

The Harlem Renaissance: 41 Images Of When New York Was The Capital Of Black America

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Like this gallery?Share it:

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And if you liked this post, be sure to check out these popular posts:

Death, Destruction, And Debt: 41 Photos Of Life In 1970s New York

Glamour, Gangsters, And Racism: 30 Photos Inside Harlem’s Infamous Cotton Club

The Harlem Renaissance: 41 Images Of When New York Was The Capital Of Black America

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1 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

2 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

3 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

4 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

5 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

6 of 21Source: Mashable (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images)

7 of 21Source: Mashable (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images)

8 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

9 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

10 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

11 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

12 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

13 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

14 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

15 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

16 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

17 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

18 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

19 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

20 of 21Source: Mashable" (Photo by Jack Garofalo/Paris Match via Getty Images).

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Harlem in the 1970s was marked with violence and loss, but it was also a time where its residents cultivated an incredibly resilient character.#

Harlem in the 1970s was marked with violence and loss, but it was also a time where its residents cultivated an incredibly resilient character.