Langston’s Coffee Break
“Maybe you ought to move uptown where you’d be safer,” is a line from “Coffee Break,” a short story in The Best of Simple, by Harlem Renaissance writer Langston Hughes.
Situated on the corner of 145th Street between Bradhurst and 8th Avenue, on the former site of an unoccupied building and adjoining empty lot, his namesake condominum development is becoming one of the most attractive new properties in the once barren area. With penthouses sitting on top and glass encased prime retail space below, The Langston sits primly across from a Duane Reade, Pathmark and Jackie Robinson Park. On an opposite corner is a vacant space that advertises the new home of Maroons, opening summer of 2005.
Speaking of prime retail space, an undisclosed inside source has informed UPTOWN flavor that the retail anchors will be Citibank on the 8th Avenue side, The Gap in the space above running along 145th Street and Starbucks on the corner of Bradhurst. If you remember, we presented the question as to whether Harlem could successfully accommodate another Starbucks just the other day.
But back to Jesse B. Semple, the main character in Hughes’ stories known more for hanging out in bars rather than coffeehouses. During a coffee break Jesse’s boss asked, “Now that you can vote and have a congressman and all, what does The Negro want?” Semple informed his boss that the “problem” came down to white folks. Though they let a few Blacks integrate with them, they had no intention of integrating back. Jesse’s boss retorted, but what about all that crime, and Jesse responded “But it’s only poor folks that get robbed. We don’t have no multi-million dollar frauds or Hope Diamond thefts. Maybe you ought to move uptown where you’d be safer.”
The boss said, “The coffee break is over.”
Related: Myharlem.org
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I’m in High school and I’m reading this for my english class… this is a satire (obviously), with many of the classic elements of satire in it. It contains thinly developed characters, leaving us with only the characters’ flaws and no good characteristics to compare them to, so they seem genuinely ridiculous. There isn’t really a logical plot, per se, the story’s just a conversation that The NEgro has with his Boss, and we do not know why this conversation occurs. Also, the way that the Boss exaggerates the conditions under which he understands the people who live in harlem go by is entirely satirical. There is Horatian tone because the Boss isn’t commanding The Negro to really do anything ridiculous, he’s asking him to do things out of his best intentions. What he’s saying, however, is still highly exaggerated and ignorant. I hope that any other high school student who needs this can find it… i know i would have liked to have it!
Bradhurst is the most beautiful street in Harlem…it is wide and grand and sweeeeeet. It was only a matter of time before its appeal met the twins of gentrification: low street crime and low interest rates.
coincidentally, i would argue that the gaps move uptown is not as needed as capital and management support for those black fashion designers who could create international brands to compete with the gap. columbia sporting goods is one example of a firm that has remains “small” in management, but has an international reach. harlem needs to incubate the same sort of industry and development…easier said than done – and the question of manufacturing in china is relevant.
Even though I don’t drink coffee and don’t buy Gap, I think it would be great if Starbucks etc were to open a branch at The Langston. Trouble is, “an undisclosed inside source” sounds like unsubstantiated rumor, possibly provided by the Langston developer as a way of promoting sales of the condos. Don’t get me wrong, I do hope the Langston apartments sell very quickly and for top dolllar and that 145th Street will be dotted with restaurants and great stores. I am concerned about rumor mongering.
according to the gap website the furthest up they come is 87th street. gap in harlem is big news. good news? hard to tell. but certainly news!