hi! not discouraging NYC historians from contributing here, but fyi there have been a few threads on this topic that you might find interesting

• Why did New York City deteriorate in the late 1960s and 70s only to recover in the late 70's and 80's - featuring NYC flair /u/Yearsnowlost

• Was New York of the 1970s the shithole movies make it out to be? - more from /u/Yearsnowlost

• How did non-Americans regard New York City in the 1980s and early 1990s? - more from /u/Yearsnowlost

• What caused the economic decline of New York City between the late 1960s and the early 1980s? What caused its return?

• Why were the Late 70's/Early 80's a low point for many American cities?

if you have followup questions on locked threads, ask them here & include the relevant user's username so they'll be auto-notified

Lots of things. First off, many inner cities across the country experienced economic downturn after the tumultuous 60s and the assassination of MLK. Riots that ensued had a major impact on many cities. One could argue that Detroit is still trying to recover. As jobs left so did people, what was left is vacant buildings and the black market. The Bronx became notorious for fires, which became a downward spiral of collapse. On top of that the city was facing economic collapse. Then crack came on to the scene.

From MLK's assassination to the mid 80's, NYC (and many more cities) had a rough road.