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I don't know why SF is even the other option, much less why people are arguing in favor of it or have voted for it.
Yes, it has a big chinatown. However, it is still one of the whitest metros for its size in America. Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, Miami, probably even LA are all more diverse than SF.
The only places I can really see SF having a chance against are Seattle, Portland and Minneapolis.
The Bay Area is one of the least white metro areas in the country.
CSAs by Non-Hispanic Whites as a Percentage of the Total Population, 2008 Minneapolis-St Paul-St Cloud, MN-WI 82.4%...2,935,653
Boston-Manchester-Nashua, MA-RI-NH 79.5%...6,003,963
Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH 76.2%...2,202,548
Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA 73.2%...2,994,406
Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI 70.0%...3,751,117
Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland, PA-NJ-DE-MD 67.7%...4,332,178
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ 58.6%...2,510,423
Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City, IL-IN-WI 56.4%...5,531,148
Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV 55.6%...4,616,198
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville, GA-AL 54.0%...3,091,629
New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA 53.6%...11,875,453
Dallas-Ft Worth, TX 53.5%...3,558,903
San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA 50.6%...1,520,331 San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA 45.5%...3,351,099
Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX 42.6%...2,484,336
Miami-Ft Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL 37.7%...2,044,501
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA 34.9%...6,218,518
I think people are confused because the Bay Area is so wealthy and highly educated and so known for its yuppies and Silicon Valley and what not, that they automatically assume that the region is lily white...perhaps they do it subconsciously. I don't know.
But the reality is, the region is one of the most diverse in the world.
So I took you up on your offer and created newer variables and plugged in your diversity index, and will concede, SF still beats out NY metro - but barely: 0.755 vs. 0.736.
I broke up the White non-Hispanic into three groups:
White non-Hispanic US born
White foreign born (in Europe and Canada)
and Arab.
I broke the Black category into:
Black non-Hispanic US born
Black West Indian Ancestry
Black Sub-Saharan African Ancestry
Hispanic I broke into:
Mexican
Puerto Rican
Cuban
Other
And finally Asian into:
East Asian
South Asian
I used the 2006-2008 ACS Census estimates to come up with these numbers.
I think it paints a slightly more accurate picture.
That seems to paint a more realistic picture as well. I wish that the data to break down the groups even further existed, but I fear that even so, the index would become meaningless.
If you know of a more comprehensive formula to take into account more groups, I would be happy to analyze it. The problem is, at least within the statistics literature, there is no real way to OBJECTIVELY compare many different groups in a sample WITHOUT having the outcome be statistically insignificant. The difference between the Bay Area and the Tri-State area here is nearly insignificant (.755 vs. .736 can be barely seen by the naked eye)
Sorry for being initially hostile. It just reminded me way too much of getting my Senior thesis blasted into the ground by professors who thought "your methodology needs work..yadda yadda"
I just feel like the Tri-State area here is sliding way too easily (despite my personal opinion) without any backup data aside from "well, you know...." since this is NYC we are dealing with (the most important city in the US on ANY objective measure). NYC is an awesome city, but reputation alone should not be the only factor in dealing with comparisons.
Its easier to lie about personal feelings than numbers that exist in the objective reality. I realize that diversity could mean many things, but as long as the numbers exist, I feel its our duty to at least try.
That seems to paint a more realistic picture as well. I wish that the data to break down the groups even further existed, but I fear that even so, the index would become meaningless.
If you know of a more comprehensive formula to take into account more groups, I would be happy to analyze it. The problem is, at least within the statistics literature, there is no real way to OBJECTIVELY compare many different groups in a sample WITHOUT having the outcome be statistically insignificant. The difference between the Bay Area and the Tri-State area here is nearly insignificant (.755 vs. .736 can be barely seen by the naked eye)
Sorry for being initially hostile. It just reminded me way too much of getting my Senior thesis blasted into the ground by professors who thought "your methodology needs work..yadda yadda"
I just feel like the Tri-State area here is sliding way too easily (despite my personal opinion) without any backup data aside from "well, you know...." since this is NYC we are dealing with (the most important city in the US on ANY objective measure). NYC is an awesome city, but reputation alone should not be the only factor in dealing with comparisons.
Its easier to lie about personal feelings than numbers that exist in the objective reality. I realize that diversity could mean many things, but as long as the numbers exist, I feel its our duty to at least try.
No worries. I am a stats junkie myself. In no was was I trying to diminish the Bay Area's exceptional diversity. I think the overall conclusion would be that while NYC itself is incredibly diverse (probably amongst the top five most diverse cities in the world), the suburbs start to become "whiter" (for a lack of a better term) and less diverse. Where as places like the Bay Area, LA Metro, etc., mantain their diversity equally amongst it's suburbs and city core.
that doesn't mean that the bay area is more diverse. how many foreign born ppl are coming in from mexico and central america??
Ironically, New York has a higher percentage of foreigners from Latin America than the Bay Area does. They are a near majority of NYs foreign born-basically like most other US Metros.
The biggest immigrant group in the Bay Area is actually from Asia-and that's actually very uncommon but further illustrates how different the Bay Area is from the rest of the country-based on the region's unique circumstances.
Having grown up in the Bay Area and now living in NYC, I really say its a toss up. We really are talking about two of the most diverse metropolitan areas in the U.S. (along with a few others, i.e. LA, etc).
To me, I would put NYC (very) slightly ahead, because given the dense nature of NYC I feel like you have greater exposure to nationalities from all over the world. Additionally, NYC may have greater diversity within its "ethnic groups" that the census reports - like more immigrants directly from Africa, the Caribbean, South America and the Middle East.
That said, while NYC is incredibly diverse, I feel like there may be greater diversity in the Bay Area suburbs.
P.S. I didn't vote because it really is too close to call.
lifeshadower needs to chill with her condescending tone. not sure who she's talking to but it damn sure isn't me.
Lifeshadower is one of the better posters we have around here. He backs up what he states with exhaustive research, rather than a bunch of spout-offs and municipal chest-thumping.
There was nothing condescending about anything he posted.
Lifeshadower is one of the better posters we have around here. He backs up what he states with exhaustive research, rather than a bunch of spout-offs and municipal chest-thumping.
There was nothing condescending about anything he posted.
because she wasn't talking to you, you feel that way.
i back up what i say by "exhaustive" personal experiences, numbers, pictures and video.
saying something is retarded because you don't agree with it or whatever is well, "retarded."
because she wasn't talking to you, you feel that way.
i back up what i say by personal experiences, numbers, pictures and video.
saying something is retarded because you don't agree with it or whatever is well, "retarded."
You need to dispense with the insults asap.
Lifeshadower is a he, or didn't you even read what I typed? And I'll take his well thought out, researched posts each and every time, thank you.
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