Editorial Intern
Sandwiched between the hubbub of Chinatown and the vibrant nightlife of the East Village are the remnants of the historic Lower East Side, once the teeming center of immigrant Jewish life and now an area under the grip of gentrification.
For the past 20 years, one woman has championed the movement to preserve the neighborhood’s deep-rooted history and culture. Ruth Abram, 62, a social activist and historian, founded the Lower East Side Tenement Museum in 1988, transforming what was initially an empty storefront into a lively National Historic Site.
