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Metropolises such as Washington D.C., New York, Chicago, Denver and Houston have all experienced this type of gay-powered rejuvenation that transforms neglected neighborhoods into vibrant and desirable areas in which to live. This type of gay-motivated positive gentrification is taking place all over the United States. This phenomenon is not limited to San Diego. The investment of the gay community in itself has brought Hillcrest from isolated obscurity to its status as one of the premiere commercial and social scenes in San Diego. The social and economic status of Hillcrest from the early 1960s through the early 1970s allowed for affordable rent-space, a social scene otherwise impossible in a more up scale community, and the background for Hillcrest’s dramatic rise from the ashes of economic stagnation.
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Hillcrest in the late 1960s provided a suitable atmosphere, for a group of people perceived to be as subversive and dangerous as the gay and lesbian community, to foster pride, self-awareness and a strong sense of belonging. Hillcrest became an unwitting, albeit well-suited, base of operations for this leap forward in social progress. Throughout the early 1970s a group of men and women in San Diego developed a cohesive and united front, dedicated to the advancement of pride in themselves, and changing the attitudes of a homophobic society. In the 1970s Hillcrest began undergoing a radical transformation from a neighborhood in decline to San Diego’s premiere gay community. In the early 1970s, Hillcrest became such a refuge for the gays and lesbians of San Diego. The evolution has often centered on a specific neighborhood, which is transformed into a place of refuge and secure dwelling.
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This minority has developed a unified sense of self-awareness and community. San Diego History Center Institute of History 1999ĭuring the last thirty years of American social history, the gay and lesbian community has evolved from an obscure group of isolated individuals to a strong minority.