Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
From what you can tell are other neighborhoods close to Valley Stream nearby becoming more diverse?
What about Lynbrook, Rockville Centre, Oceanside, East Rockaway, West Hempstead, and Franklin Square?
Lynbrook is starting to change, but it's mostly the same as I remember. Houses are also more expensive in Lynbrook and Franklin Square than they are in Valley Stream, so I am sure that has a lot to do with why VS is changing, but the others are mostly the same as I remember, with the exception being Franklin Square, as it just seems a lot more congested to me lately.
Lynbrook, Oceanside, and parts of Franklin Square are becoming a little diverse. So is West Hempstead (mostly Orthodox Jewish). Rockville centre is not changing too much because it is very expensive to live there...although the school has a lot of minorities due to the projects on the outskirts of RV.
Lynbrook, Oceanside, and parts of Franklin Square are becoming a little diverse. So is West Hempstead (mostly Orthodox Jewish). Rockville centre is not changing too much because it is very expensive to live there...although the school has a lot of minorities due to the projects on the outskirts of RV.
Is it fair to say that almost every town from the Queens border to the Meadowbrook Parkway in the Town of Hempstead (with the exception of Garden City and perhaps Rockville Centre) are experiencing increasing diversity?
It seems the Meadowbrook Parkway is like some dividing point - because east of it the towns of Bellmore, Merrick, Seaford, Wantagh and Massapequa seem not to have changed much. However, East Meadow and Levittown are becoming more diverse.
I wasn't going to do this, but I feel like I have no choice. I have lived in VS my entire life with the exception of a few years in the middle of my life. I am 33 years old, and this town resembles NOTHING of the town I grew up in. I am not talking about the skin color of the people walking around either, while obviously this has changed, but with it, so has the entire landscape, feel, and character of the town. It doesn't matter to me what the test scores say, because in my opinion, what really matters is personal experience, and I no longer feel comfortable in this town that I have spent the better part of my life in.
there is just a shift here, and I am uncomfortable here as a white family. I feel like a minority in this town right now, the only place where I can go where there is an appropriate mix of people is either church or to Ancona's pizza. I went to BJs today at the Green Acres Mall, and yes I think I saw maybe one other white person in the entire store with me. The other people there were not bothering me, they were just normal shoppers doing their own thing, BUT, it was VERY uncomfortable to say the least. I might as well had been shopping in Hempstead the way it felt in there.
So people blatantly want to call you racist or a "white flighter" if you want to move out of a place like Valley Stream, but honestly, and I believe someone else mentioned it earlier in this thread, it's a matter of comfort in most cases I believe. This town is a perfect example of so called test scores remaining high, but a complete sense of change in the town with the influx of the black and hispanics. We want our children to grow up with some semblance of the life we had when we grew up, and unfortunately, there are not going to get that here, so it was time to move on to try to find it somewhere else.
you really need to be a resident in one of these towns to truly appreciate what the feeling is like. Because if you don't experience it, you can never truly describe it or talk about it, because all you can really base your opinion on is statistics, which really don't always tell the whole story.
You're 33 years old, no town on Long Island resembles what it was 20 years ago. No town in America resembles what it was 20 years ago. I'm not here to judge you or anyone else, and I'm not, but you do realize everything you're saying supports what was said in my previous post? Remember, a community is not one person or one family. If every last white person moves out of Valley Stream, the ghetto it turns into will be built on the hands of everyone who didn't want to adapt to the new neighborhood, every family who didn't want their kids going to school around minorities and everyone else too scared to "stay behind" and make the best. Again, I can't really fault you or anyone in particular for turning their backs on their hometown because this is a larger societal problem in my eyes that goes beyond the so called "white flight" phenomenon and reaches from what has been passed down through the generations, to what children are taught in schools and even what we are told in the workplace. There are forces greater than us at work, and maybe to stay in Valley Stream with the obvious impending doom it faces would be too risky for me as well.
I agree with nbres' opinion that class is a much bigger divider in 2008 than it once was, but racial factors still prevail, especially in an area where we see a white exodus. Elmont, Freeport, Hempstead, Uniondale....drive through those areas. What types of stores do you see? Fried chicken, check cashing, bodega, 99 cent store. You didn't want to shop at Green Acres because you felt uncomfortable as a white person. Even if the majority of the people in this country aren't racist (maybe??) anymore, the almighty dollar still is. Everything from corporations to small business owners aren't willing to invest in minority areas because, like it or not, the majority of this country is still white and if you can't even get the majority of your consumers into an area, why try to sell anything there? There's an obvious correlation here with property values that I don't even think I have to spell out.
Perception is everything. Did you know Elmont Memorial HS received a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence award as recently as 1993. Did you know that as recently as 2005 Elmont Memorial HS had the highest number of African American students scoring a 3 or higher on AP exams in the entire country? Pretty shocking, right? Still a dump in most people's minds. Look for Valley Stream to suffer a very similar fate in the coming years.
Is it fair to say that almost every town from the Queens border to the Meadowbrook Parkway in the Town of Hempstead (with the exception of Garden City and perhaps Rockville Centre) are experiencing increasing diversity?
It seems the Meadowbrook Parkway is like some dividing point - because east of it the towns of Bellmore, Merrick, Seaford, Wantagh and Massapequa seem not to have changed much. However, East Meadow and Levittown are becoming more diverse.
Yes, I think you're right on the ball. The Meadowbrook Parkway is the big divider, although all those areas mentioned on the east side are becoming more diverse as well - just more slowly.
You're 33 years old, no town on Long Island resembles what it was 20 years ago. No town in America resembles what it was 20 years ago. I'm not here to judge you or anyone else, and I'm not, but you do realize everything you're saying supports what was said in my previous post? Remember, a community is not one person or one family. If every last white person moves out of Valley Stream, the ghetto it turns into will be built on the hands of everyone who didn't want to adapt to the new neighborhood, every family who didn't want their kids going to school around minorities and everyone else too scared to "stay behind" and make the best. Again, I can't really fault you or anyone in particular for turning their backs on their hometown because this is a larger societal problem in my eyes that goes beyond the so called "white flight" phenomenon and reaches from what has been passed down through the generations, to what children are taught in schools and even what we are told in the workplace. There are forces greater than us at work, and maybe to stay in Valley Stream with the obvious impending doom it faces would be too risky for me as well.
I agree with nbres' opinion that class is a much bigger divider in 2008 than it once was, but racial factors still prevail, especially in an area where we see a white exodus. Elmont, Freeport, Hempstead, Uniondale....drive through those areas. What types of stores do you see? Fried chicken, check cashing, bodega, 99 cent store. You didn't want to shop at Green Acres because you felt uncomfortable as a white person. Even if the majority of the people in this country aren't racist (maybe??) anymore, the almighty dollar still is. Everything from corporations to small business owners aren't willing to invest in minority areas because, like it or not, the majority of this country is still white and if you can't even get the majority of your consumers into an area, why try to sell anything there? There's an obvious correlation here with property values that I don't even think I have to spell out.
Perception is everything. Did you know Elmont Memorial HS received a Blue Ribbon School of Excellence award as recently as 1993. Did you know that as recently as 2005 Elmont Memorial HS had the highest number of African American students scoring a 3 or higher on AP exams in the entire country? Pretty shocking, right? Still a dump in most people's minds. Look for Valley Stream to suffer a very similar fate in the coming years.
Yes the UUnited States is still majority White, but only about 65% today. The non-White population is 35% and will grow to over half of the population as early as 2035 perhaps. So I think businesses are well aware of this and are trying to get their business. Just look at the advertisements today - commercials always have non-Whites, it wasn't like that 30 years ago when the Unitef States was 85% White. So that I think has changed...
North Bellmore is becoming quite diverse. I work there and there has been a huge increase in the amount of minorities in the area. There have been gang initiations and shootings in N. Bellmore. The area has changed so much in 3 years. I know some people moving out of the area.
East Meadow has changed a little bit and Hicksville too...mostly Asians moving in. Levittown has seen a little increase in Hispanics...but not much at all unless you live near the Tri county flea market.
I have a friend who bought in N. Bellmore a year ago and wants to move out as most of her block is minority and some of the kids have gang affiliations. She wishes she bought in Levittown, Island Trees as it's still nice.
Yes the UUnited States is still majority White, but only about 65% today. The non-White population is 35% and will grow to over half of the population as early as 2035 perhaps. So I think businesses are well aware of this and are trying to get their business. Just look at the advertisements today - commercials always have non-Whites, it wasn't like that 30 years ago when the Unitef States was 85% White. So that I think has changed...
I think the point ssss is trying to make is that folks need to wake up. There's no where to run or hide anymore. There's no glory in saying my town is great, just don't come through the town next door because it's a dump. We (Americans) need to stand up and fight for your communities. Take a look at other boards/blogs across the country...they've got gangs and illegals as well...so where are you running to? There's a large societal problem that's not being addressed. As long as there is no level playing field in terms of parental guidance/responsibility, education, career oportunities and hope (or lack there of) on the front-end, we will continue to be the benefactors of societal ills on the back-end.
I think the point ssss is trying to make is that folks need to wake up. There's no where to run or hide anymore. There's no glory in saying my town is great, just don't come through the town next door because it's a dump. We (Americans) need to stand up and fight for your communities. Take a look at other boards/blogs across the country...they've got gangs and illegals as well...so where are you running to? There's a large societal problem that's not being addressed. As long as there is no level playing field in terms of parental guidance/responsibility, education, career oportunities and hope (or lack there of) on the front-end, we will continue to be the benefactors of societal ills on the back-end.
Here's what I don't understand. When I was in school, yes, things were predominantly white, but there were those few Asian, Hispanic and Black kids in the schools, and we all got along with them great, we didn't think anything of it, we were just all kids in school together. Now that a lot of these towns have gone predominantly minority kids, these majority kids do not seem to integrate with the now minority white kids the same way that it was when it was the other way around. when I drive by the high school at lunch time or after school, what you see is packs of kids but very rarely are they a mixed pack, it would be black kids, or hispanic kids or a small cluster of white kids, but they don't seem to be hanging out with each other.
Obviously this is anecdotal and opinion, but I certainly feel that a majority white environment is more welcoming of minorities among them then a majority black environment is to white kids. Look, almost everywhere was white back in the day, then minorities moved into these neighborhoods, seemingly a progression from the city to long island. They were the ones moving into another area and culture and should have at least tried to blend in, and I believe that the first ones did this, but as more moved in, they seem to have kept their culture, which in turn is a factor in driving out the white culture, because now the white people feel uncomfortable being surrounded by all of their culture and little of theirs. I don't care how well the valley stream school district does with their test scores, but I would not feel very comfortable sending my child there now, and I am sure he would not feel very comfortable in the schools either, regardless of how well he did on tests or academically.
I really have to wonder where you honestly come up with this stuff??? I would say kids today are more accepting of others of different races, regardless of its a handful of whites in a majority minority neighborhood or vice versa than it was with African Americans in mostly white neighborhoods in the past. I went to Stony Brook which is a very diverse school and it wasn't like it was a long time ago that I graduated (four years ago) and people of all different races hung out together.
As far as not being comfortable in certain areas I can understand if your talking about a high crime area, but to sit there & compare Valley Stream to Hempstead is down right ludicrous. Nassau County is more diverse now than it ever has been, yet the crime rate is at 43 year lows and also has decreased in areas which were once vast majority white and now aren't (such as Valley Stream). So what does that tell you?? Stop judging things based off the color of peoples skin and look at reality. About sending your kid there, as any parent I hope first & foremost you put the quality of your child's education above the color of the people they are attending school with. Can you sit there and honestly say you think your kid would be better off in a school that is 3/4 white like William Floyd than they would in 1/3 white like Valley Stream Central?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Is it fair to say...
