What happened to Beale Street?

            As Zandria Robinson points out in This Aint Chicago, what was once identified as a location for the celebration of black culture, arts and history, has now become an economic exploit geared towards tourists.  Beale Street similar to Harlem and the movement of the Harlem Renaissance was celebrated for its soul music and blues along with art and black culture.  However, following the King race riots in 1968, Beale street was reconstructed in 1969 to be directed towards the interests of the tourists. Families were force out of their homes as this “renewal” of Beale meant the destruction of over 400 building dedicated to local businesses and housing.  Developers sought to reinvent downtown Memphis as an economic venture for tourists. 

            The Beale Street that used to be home to the Beale Street Flippers and soul music and the creation of art and culture, now began to push away these same Beale Street Flippers with the influx of white tourists who may have felt discomfort with their performances.  Beale Street became centered on middle class tourists and attempted to integrate both white and black populations.  However, many felt that this integration comprised a white tourist majority and lacked both black history and soul music that made Beale Street what it has become famous for from the beginning. 

Efforts have been made to build hip-hop clubs in Beale Street, but the developers reject and decline these efforts for fear of violence becoming a problem as suggested in This Aint Chicago.  How could building a hip-hop club lead to violence?  Now, Beale Street has become known for its bars among the tourist population.  Most frequently, Beale Street is compared to that of Bourbon Street, which has become known as one of the largest party venues for tourists.  The shops on Beale Street all contain similar items geared towards tourists. Many stores in Downtown Memphis are dedicated to souvenirs and drinking. 

How can Beale Street return to its foundation of the celebration of soul music, jazz and black culture? Every weekend downtown Memphis is extremely crowded and full of tourist, but the history and culture of downtown may be losing its roots.  For tourists, the history of Beale becomes decreasingly important and unknown as very little shops are dedicated to sharing or recreating this history that was once celebrated.  Unfortunately, Beale Street may never return to its original history because of the amount of money that is being made from tourists.  Tourists remain the most important audience for Beale Street.

Citation: "Beale Street." Beale Street | Entries | Tennessee Encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2016.

Link: http://tennesseeencyclopedia.net/entry.php?rec=67