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I understand what he's getting at. DC doesn't give you as much of a Black feel within the city itself (outside of the Black neighborhoods) because it's the nation's capital; you've got the national mall, the White House, the Capitol, federal offices, embassies, lobbyists, etc. that gives you much more of a diverse feel. Atlanta has a traditional CBD with most of its diversity in the suburbs, so you have a proportionately bigger presence of professional Blacks in the core. Also, gentrification is happening much more rapidly in DC which diminishes the Black feel. I was on U Street this past summer and never before has it felt so White to me; I was really surprised. Auburn Avenue would probably be Atlanta's equivalent of U Street and while you see more White faces there than you've seen in the past, the difference between the two is still pretty significant.
U Street has gotten more White yes but there's still a good number of Black people within that area. I still encounter a decent amount of Afrocentricity in the U Street/Cardozo and Shaw neighborhoods despite the changing demographics. It's not exactly Dupont Circle just yet, now THAT neighborhood definitely gives me a feeling that I'm on the "White side of town" every time I'm over there even though it's actually an extremely multicultural neighborhood filled with people of various racial/ethnic/social/economic backgrounds from throughout the metro area out and about along with students, interns, and embassy employees. Dupont is a major inner city hub after all.
Georgia Avenue gives me a vibe more akin to what U Street was like back in the mid-2000s. You'll see some White faces but you'll encounter a LOT of Blacks and Latinos (Black, White, Mixed) along Georgia Ave as well due to the neighborhoods it goes through. Still a good number of Black businesses along Georgia too, more so than U Street nowadays.
I was in Atlanta for one week and saw about 4 b list celebs. The dude that play "Ghost" in power came by one spot as casually as he could. I saw so many Porsche's, Lambod, Rolls Royce all driven by black folks.
Add to that the civil rights museum. The eternal flame and MLK's tomb. His house that you can walk up to and sit on the front porch with no one running you off. It's an amazing feeling. Blacks in DC are doing very well. But Atlanta seemed to be more inspirational. Blacks that were doing well were doing extremely well. No federal govt there to skew the numbers.
I love DC, I really do. I'd live there before I moved to Atlanta but I cannot say it feels like more of a mecca to me for black people. Atlanta is ours to lose. DC is a great place for us with good history and culture. It's not ours. It's the nations. PG county is ours. Harlem Renaissance was a mecca with entertainers and authors too. Just like atl is now.
That whole U Street/Cardozo, Shaw, Logan Circle, and LeDroit Park area was also the original "Harlem" bka the original 'Black Broadway' in a cultural context.
Thank you! Your black mayor of DC is powerless. Can't do anything without Congress who is overehelmingly white males from rural towns
Isn't ATL the same way being the state capital dominated by the "good ole boys"? Not tryna take a swipe at Atlanta but city government-side, it's not exactly picture-perfect either unfortunately.
NE side by BET.... and is that old ugly warehouse looking thing the headquarters? I went driving around searching for BET headquarters and google brought me to that... Like if you search for it on the map now, you'll see where I ended up but if you go to google images, you see a nicer building
Also just east of the supreme court is nice but slowly goes down and gets blacker the further you go southeast...
The NE side by &pizza on H street looked rough too (not as much as the se side and side by bet) but look like it was going through gentrification and gettin cleaned up
LOL, yep; it's probably because as of now, that's the most walkable shopping district in the city. I saw no shortage of Blacks in National Harbor when I was out there this past summer, but it's not exactly the most easily accessible from the city.
I've heard Atlantic Station has some similarities to National Harbor. Wish the Harbor can get a movie theater tho.
Isn't ATL the same way being the state capital dominated by the "good ole boys"? Not tryna take a swipe at Atlanta but city government-side, it's not exactly picture-perfect either unfortunately.
No, isn't it governed differently. The mayor of atlanta and it's municipal government has all the power given to any other mayor and government of a municipality.
DC is not a city. It's a federal district. Taxation without representation. Congress can override anything DC's government tries to do. Like passing recreational marijuana. Didn't congress vow to not make that the norm in DC. They have the power to do so.
And theoretically speaking.... wouldn't Georgia's state government being in Atlanta with the plethora of black elites, executives, and hollywood types help more than hurt. Isn't Atl more entreprenurial. Is it not as over reliant on government jobs as DC. I'm sincerely asking because I honestly don't know. I read an article that said georgia's government was progressive like the federal government which is why Atlanta was a great place for blacks like it was in DC.
Of the well to do blacks in DC: What industries are they in? Percentage wise? What are there occupations vs the well to do blacks in Atl? I'm curious
NE side by BET.... and is that old ugly warehouse looking thing the headquarters? I went driving around searching for BET headquarters and google brought me to that...
Also just east of the supreme court is nice but slowly goes down and gets blacker the further you go southeast...
The NE side by &pizza on H street looked rough too (not as much as the se side and side by bet) but look like it was going through gentrification and gettin cleaned up
Being an East Coast city, it's not uncommon for a good amount of neighborhoods to have a weathered look even in the Black neighborhoods. Northeast DC is actually one of the grittiest quadrants in the City if not the most. TBH, I don't really mind the grit and grunge and actually enjoy it and don't think everywhere in DC has to be polished like most of Downtown, but maybe I'm biased since I've grew up around here in the DMV. I know Atlanta has some gritty areas too and some ATL area posters even termed it as blight but I guess it depends on one's perspective and where they're coming from. Just like DC, the Black neighborhoods in Philly, Baltimore, New York City, and Boston are the same way too in regards to grit and grunge but that doesn't mean ALL of them are The Hood.
The area by BET HQ is quite industrial with a lot of warehouses, Metrobus depots, railroad/subway tracks, electric substations, etc. Sounds like you weren't too far from the NoMa (a lot of massive new mixed-use development) and Ivy City (working class/semi-industrial hood) neighborhoods.
You should check out the Penn Branch, Fort Dupont, Hillcrest, Fairfax Village, and Fairlawn east of the river in Southeast. Those neighborhoods are pretty nice working class to mid-middle class Black neighborhoods for the most part. These neighborhoods have some grit as well but a good amount of the houses there are nice, most particularly the single family homes that look like small mansions. The Ward 4 section of DC has some nicer looking Black neighborhoods such as Takoma and Shepard Park for example.
U Street has gotten more White yes but there's still a good number of Black people within that area. I still encounter a decent amount of Afrocentricity in the U Street/Cardozo and Shaw neighborhoods despite the changing demographics. It's not exactly Dupont Circle just yet, now THAT neighborhood definitely gives me a feeling that I'm on the "White side of town" every time I'm over there even though it's actually an extremely multicultural neighborhood filled with people of various racial/ethnic/social/economic backgrounds from throughout the metro area out and about along with students, interns, and embassy employees. Dupont is a major inner city hub after all.
U Street isn't *completely* White but I was a bit taken aback by just how many Whites I saw in the area. There was a performance at the theater on U Street when I was last there and there was a long line to get in; everybody in line was White. I was like "Wow."
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Georgia Avenue gives me a vibe more akin to what U Street was like back in the mid-2000s. You'll see some White faces but you'll encounter a LOT of Blacks and Latinos (Black, White, Mixed) along Georgia Ave as well due to the neighborhoods it goes through. Still a good number of Black businesses along Georgia too, more so than U Street nowadays.
Yeah Georgia Avenue is still pretty Black it seems.
Being an East Coast city, it's not uncommon for a good amount of neighborhoods to have a weathered look even in the Black neighborhoods. Northeast DC is actually one of the grittiest quadrants in the City if not the most. TBH, I don't really mind the grit and grunge and actually enjoy it and don't think everywhere in DC has to be polished like most of Downtown, but maybe I'm biased since I've grew up around here in the DMV. I know Atlanta has some gritty areas too and some ATL area posters even termed it as blight but I guess it depends on one's perspective and where they're coming from. Just like DC, the Black neighborhoods in Philly, Baltimore, New York City, and Boston are the same way too in regards to grit and grunge but that doesn't mean ALL of them are The Hood.
The area by BET HQ is quite industrial with a lot of warehouses, Metrobus depots, railroad/subway tracks, electric substations, etc. Sounds like you weren't too far from the NoMa (a lot of massive new mixed-use development) and Ivy City (working class/semi-industrial hood) neighborhoods.
You should check out the Penn Branch, Fort Dupont, Hillcrest, Fairfax Village, and Fairlawn east of the river in Southeast. Those neighborhoods are pretty nice working class to mid-middle class Black neighborhoods for the most part. These neighborhoods have some grit as well but a good amount of the houses there are nice, most particularly the single family homes that look like small mansions. The Ward 4 section of DC has some nicer looking Black neighborhoods such as Takoma and Shepard Park for example.
I don't know if I was in those particular areas but I did cross the bridge to get to SE DC b/c I wanted to get a feel for it. Yes, it was gritty. Wasn't my cup of tea. I'll pass
I also went to Chevy Chase, gerogetown and foxhall precent. That is a lily white area but it was very very nice. I long for the day when black people can live like that and not have to compromise. I couldn't live in those nice areas.
I am in love with Bowie MD though and parts of PG County. More so than DC.
So if Brooklyn, DC and Atlanta were women, would Brooklyn be Lisa Bonet/Esperanza Spalding, DC Melissa Harris-Perry/Michelle Obama and Atlanta Monica/K. Michelle?
What about LA, Chicago, Oakland, Baltimore, Dallas, Houston, Charlotte, Raleigh-Durham, New Orleans, etc.?
Ok, I know H-Town is fiercely obvious
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