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Old 10-23-2009, 12:03 PM
 
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thanks for the chart that really helps putting things into perspective
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Old 10-23-2009, 12:08 PM
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by brubaker View Post
Reminds me of when I took a multi-racial couple (who were friends of mine) to First Friday in San Antonio. There's this wild, swinging scene with people playing hand drums and circuit bending and really cheap, unique art by down-to-earth kids, lots and lots of people having fun and chatting and walking all over South Alamo Street and etc etc and the girl of the couple just stood there for a second, taking it all in, and said...'there's no bi-racial couples here'.


I had never even noticed.

I guess race doesn't play that big a part in my identity...or matter that much if I'm determined to have a good time.
In fact I find people that bring race into every single aspect of conversation to be dull and unimaginative.

I could and have hung out in all black crowds and I have to say, I enjoyed the diversity of experience that those situations presented to me.
...like I try to do with every experience.

Perhaps you can find something to enjoy in our lowly white and hispanic demographics as well.
Or...just stay where you know that you will always be around people the same color as you.
the fact t hat there arent black or Interracials or muslims or jews or whatever in a given place AGAIN doesnt mean there is racism or that racism in at play. heck, Alabama and Mississippi( and i am not attacking these states that i love so much) have 50% black populations and yet they were the sites of some of the most virulent racism and racial violence and still very racially divided today. so the numbers dont determine racism or non racism, the behaviors about race determine racism. racism is an act and a viewpoint not a statistic
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Old 10-23-2009, 12:10 PM
 
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Diversity a lot of times means problems and chaos. If Austin,Texas had more diversity there would probably be more problems than there are.

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Originally Posted by carolinajack View Post
the fact t hat there arent black or Interracials or muslims or jews or whatever in a given place AGAIN doesnt mean there is racism or that racism in at play. heck, Alabama and Mississippi( and i am not attacking these states that i love so much) have 50% black populations and yet they were the sites of some of the most virulent racism and racial violence and still very racially divided today. so the numbers dont determine racism or non racism, the behaviors about race determine racism. racism is an act and a viewpoint not a statistic
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Old 10-23-2009, 12:22 PM
 
Location: OUTTA SIGHT!
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I think it depends if people are staying within their little separatist cultural enclaves or if they are bringing the best of their culture to the Great American Stew Pot.

It all falls back on city planning and having public spaces for people to meet and interact with each other.

I have Pakistani, Vietnamese, African, Chinese people in my school and neighborhood...but we never interact and my neighbors are strictly behind-the-curtains / never-wave-or-look-directly-at-strangers types ...I guess.
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Old 10-23-2009, 12:28 PM
 
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i agree brubaker, real racial integration and harmony comes when people respect and celebrate differences without acting as if it is something so special one has to talk about it all the time. you would think that a big University city such as Austin would educate a more intellectual and conscious population of folks that enjoy having different cultures and races, but not acting as if diversity is some badge of honor or patting oneself on the back because they have a certain racial percentage quota.

racism happens not when there are enough racial balance but when races are seperate and forget they are first and foremost Americans and Texans. when people cant live side by side and shop at the same stores and greet one another on the street as just people, and have there kids play together and socialize together , intermingle, date, marry, and just be AMERICANS.
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Old 10-23-2009, 01:58 PM
 
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The city and UT Austin pat themselves on the back because of their percentage quotas LOL. It's silly and misleading.

Quote:
Originally Posted by carolinajack View Post
not acting as if diversity is some badge of honor or patting oneself on the back because they have a certain racial percentage quota.

racism happens not when there are enough racial balance but when races are seperate and forget they are first and foremost Americans and Texans. when people cant live side by side and shop at the same stores and greet one another on the street as just people, and have there kids play together and socialize together , intermingle, date, marry, and just be AMERICANS.
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Old 10-23-2009, 08:39 PM
 
Location: OUTTA SIGHT!
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Link?
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Old 11-13-2009, 01:15 AM
 
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As a black professional who has lived in nearly every area of the city of Austin, I have to say that I haven't encountered much in the way of open racial animousity, racist language or "what is this guy doing here" encounters in my 25+ years in Austin. Not to say that such experiences have never occurred, but they have thankfully been extremely rare, which is not something I can say for my experiences in Dallas and Houston. I think the city has taken somewhat of an unfair rap when it comes to whether it is a good place for blacks to live. It has certainly been great for me, my family and large numbers of friends and aquaintances who have made this place their home. People of all races on my job seem to respect me and the work that I do and seem to have no qualms about seeking my professional advice. I've had wonderful mentors of all races who've helped me to achieve all that I sought to achieve professionally. I eat out quite often (probably a bit too often) and have rarely experienced what I would consider to be rudeness or biased treatment on the basis of my race. I've experienced two racial profiling incidents in the 25 years I've been here, both of which occurred more than 20 years ago.

With all that being said, blacks are a small minority in Austin (as they are in many cities throughout the western region of the US -- San Diego, Seattle, Denver, San Francisco, Phoenix, etc.) Because of this, there are very few "black" neighborhoods, "black" businesses, "black" entertainment establishments, and so forth. Some people simply have a difficult time handling this reality.

None of police shooting incidents that have occurred here over the past few years have been clear-cut or easy to pidgeon-hole. In my opinion, I think most of them were probably more attributable to poor training than anything else. Not to say that there aren't a few racists on the force, but the racist perception far outstrips the reality, especially when compared to other cities. I think most Austinites would be surprised to know that there were more than 44 police shootings in Houston in the years 2005 and 2006 (some resulting in the deaths of unarmed teenagers and one involving the shooting of an unarmed man in his own yard for no apparent reason). This compares to a handful of questionable shootings in Austin over nearly a decade.

But I digress. Austin is not perfect, but it is a far cry from a being a bad place for blacks to live. And it is a myth that professional blacks (or blacks in general) are moving away. The reality is that the Austin metro area's black population has probably grown faster than the black population in most large metro areas, but because other ethnic groups have grown even faster, the percentage of blacks has declined. The black population grew from about 90,000 in 2000 to more than 120,000 in 2008 according to the Census Bureau (a more than 33% increase, while the Hispanic population grew by 55%). This is factual information not wild speculation based on hearsay.
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