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I'm guessing that most of the people asking that question are not white. Non-white people understandably feel uncomfortable in an area that is exclusively or nearly exclusively white, wondering what has kept other non-white people from moving there.
Most white people who pose the question do so because they think they're supposed to want racial diversity, and do so to make themselves look good. The reality is that most white people are perfectly happy living in neighborhoods that are heavily white, and many actively prefer it.
Whites and blacks also define 'integration' very differently. For most whites, integration means that the black population in a neighborhood is around the percentage of blacks in society as a whole -- 10-15%. For most blacks, a much higher black presence is required for them to consider a neighborhood integrated.
I think a part of the reason why is due to the percentages of where people live. I think Whites in the South understand if their neighborhood is more than the national average due to living in states that have always had a relatively higher than average Black percentage. That's why I always wonder if Whites from the Northeast and Midwest "know what they are getting into" by moving to the South. Meaning, they will have to adjust to having a higher possibility of living in neighborhoods with higher Black percentages than what many, if not most, are use to.
This also varies upon if the Whites are more urbanized or not, because regardless of region, with some exceptions, if you come from a city of a "decent size", you are going to have a higher chance or opportunity to interact with Blacks and/or other people of color. Of course, the group interaction opportunities are going to vary by region as well, with people out West having a higher opportunity to interact with say Mexicans or people of any Asian background, for example.
Doesn't this suggest people really don't want diversity. None of these people are segregated by force, Jim Crow is long gone. Even poor Whites and poor Blacks live in different neighborhoods. The truth is that 99% of people who say they want diversity are either only in it for the culture or the food (ie the benefit to them), or else they feel guilty about being White.
I think that both are wrong. Let people be. If you're White and want to live in a Black area, be my guest, but I personally like my White suburb, and in all honesty, would likely not live there if it were mostly any other race.
My feelings come from only living in places that are 95% or more white. The people are often narrow and shallow in understanding their own culture. Maybe it's peaceful, although not that peaceful, but it's a blase peace that can get fairly cliquish.
Still the differing understanding of "integrated", mentioned elsewhere, is a good point. From my experience a town or neighborhood that's 30%-40% non-white would be by far the most diverse I've ever had. A town that was "only" 85% white felt much more diverse and interesting to me. Although I think I could be good in a place that's 40% or even majority-minority. It would depend on how they view physically disabled white religiously orthodox Catholics. (Meaning belief in seven sacraments as taught by the Church, belief in Purgatory, rejection of abortion, rejection of euthanasia, homosexuals should be celibate) A mostly white town that dislikes orthodox Catholics, or is completely inaccessible for my wheelchair, would be bad by me. A mostly black town with great ramps and a vibrant and theologically orthodox Catholic church would be much better for me I think. (Interestingly disability sometimes trumps race. I think their might be blacks who maybe aren't super-open to whites, but are friendly to me)
Tell this neighborhood that: http://www.city-data.com/neighborhoo...racuse-NY.html Look at the demographics and this is supposedly one of the poorest neighborhoods in the US. I think in the Northeast, you can find some neighborhoods with a good amount of both poor/working class Whites and Blacks, along with some other groups.
I'm guessing that most of the people asking that question are not white. Non-white people understandably feel uncomfortable in an area that is exclusively or nearly exclusively white, wondering what has kept other non-white people from moving there.
Most white people who pose the question do so because they think they're supposed to want racial diversity, and do so to make themselves look good. The reality is that most white people are perfectly happy living in neighborhoods that are heavily white, and many actively prefer it.
Whites and blacks also define 'integration' very differently. For most whites, integration means that the black population in a neighborhood is around the percentage of blacks in society as a whole -- 10-15%. For most blacks, a much higher black presence is required for them to consider a neighborhood integrated.
I think most of this is unfounded assumptions based on stereotypes. Presumably those white people who don't want diversity aren't coming on an online forum and asking about; generally people online (and anonymous) are far more honest than they'd be if they be otherwise. Plenty of people seem pretty open about wanting to live only around people of one race, so I see no reason to assume that people who actually prefer living around people who don't share their same skin color are lying.
I do agree that what people mean by an integrated neighborhood varies widely. I do think you're showing a regional bias, perhaps, by defining diversity by just white and black, though.
I also think that in general on this thread people are getting ethnicity, culture, and race all mixed up. They are not necessarily one and the same. In San Francisco we lived in a neighborhood with a high Russian population; they were white, I was white, but that's a pretty simplistic way of looking at things. In Minneapolis there is a fairly large Somali population; again, they're black and so are the African American residents, but that doesn't mean there's a shared culture or anything necessarily in common other than skin color.
And on the shared culture thing, I don't feel as though I have to share a common culture with all of my neighbors. Well, I do want to share some basic things: I want them to be law-abiding and considerate of others. But other than that, differences make life more interesting.
Not every "white" person who says they want a diverse neighborhood is lying. I think many may be like me and look white, but really aren't. I'm half white half Native American and having grown up in a white community where everyone is cookie-cutter identical in attitudes and beliefs is boring in my opinion. I never fit in. I moved to a more culturally diverse place and got to know a lot more kinds of people. Not that I fit in here either since I'm still a minority but its nice to not live in a all-white all-Baptist town. So I think those looking for diverse cities are probably mixed racial people, people in mixed marriages or non-white immigrants who are looking for a town they could be comfortable in and not feel like they have to hide. I'd also say most diverse towns are also more accepting of gays and lesbians too and people of, for lack of a better word, rarer religions. I've also found living in a more diverse town that people are more educated here. The diversity attracts a higher caliber person in my opinion who isn't as likely to be prejudice and pigheaded.
People need to get over diversity meaning ratio of blacks vs whites. There are more races than just those two. My idea of a diverse town includes other races such as Asians, Latinos, Hispanics, Native Americans, Jews, Muslims, Pagans, plus whites and blacks to name a few.
It reaches a point where the trade off between ethnic food and all the problems that come with multi-culturalism doesn't balance out.
It's very simple, life is only enjoyable as the people init. Having people around from different backgrounds just spices up the pool of people you have to chose from. Just think of it this way, go into a buffet what would you prefer: a lot of variety of cakes or just one cake? Even if you happen to love that one cake you'll appreciate you had choices even if you didn't use them.
So what is your problem with diversity? You have some beef but you're pussyfooting around it trying to get us to admit your point. Tell us your problem, what ARE the problems with multi-culturalism?
Interesting topic, also a very complicated one. Personally, I don't have a problem with people who prefer to live around mostly their own race. As long as it's not for racist reasons. I'm openly honest about wanting to move to an area that is either majority black or has a very high percentage of us. If I all of a sudden was able to get a good paying job in Houston, Atlanta, Memphis or Dallas (or win the lottery) I would bolt in a split second. I don't participate in interracial dating either. I don't think that makes me a racist.
At the same time, I have no problem with exposing myself to a lot of things from other cultures and I don't look down on people just because they are from a certain race. I think the problem with some people who want to live with their own race is that they don't see the merit in any other culture outside of their's. I think that is where some of the negative stigma comes from. That's an extremely simplified version of how I see it.
It's very simple, life is only enjoyable as the people init. Having people around from different backgrounds just spices up the pool of people you have to chose from. Just think of it this way, go into a buffet what would you prefer: a lot of variety of cakes or just one cake? Even if you happen to love that one cake you'll appreciate you had choices even if you didn't use them.
So what is your problem with diversity? You have some beef but you're pussyfooting around it trying to get us to admit your point. Tell us your problem, what ARE the problems with multi-culturalism?
the problem is that multi-culturism seems to work for a time but it doesn't take much to for that multi-cultural setting to turn into a real racial mess with violence the result. Everywhere in the world where multi-culurism exits has eventually turned into places with tension and hatred and even war. Sri Lanka is one example where people got along until they mixed politics with racial questions and the result was a long civil war. People used to point to Maylasia as a place where multi-culturism worked. But then things changed as they always do in a multi-cultural society and now the ethnic groups are at each others throats. It doesn't take much to trigger an inter racial conflict in a multi-cultural setting. Just one rape or murder will send the tension sky hight. So who wants to live around that possibility? We have seen that happen in U.S. already and there will be more coming you can count on that. So everyone pick where they want to live and I have no complaints about that. But don't tell me that I have a problem because I choose not to live in a multi-cultural society.
There usually does need to be some shared values for multi-culturalism to work. I think this is part of why America emphasized patriotism so much. We don't have any unity in religion or ethnicity so the idea of the nation, and loyalty to it, reduces or overrides other loyalties that could cause conflicts.
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