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Not too familiar with Paterson so I cannot truly elaborate on it. I would stay clear of the fourth ward section tho.
Newark- its more about classism than racism. If your white and come from an urban environment you know how the politics are. Stick to what and who you know, watch what you say, and always keep your eyes open. Unfortunately, you can be a victim of anything regardless of what your race is. If your looking for more diverse areas (not only black) the ironbound and north newark would be ideal.
Elizabeth- Loads of Brazilian, polish, Hispanic immigrants. Crime is nothing compared to Newark as a whole. Would recommend midtown (broad st, westfield ave) because of ease to train.
In Urban NJ the racism isn't as prevalent as the suburbs cause everybody is struggling (if you get what i mean). Your more likely to find ppl who dislikes cops or politicians then you are somebody worrying about a young white dude. Like you mentioned above if your not a yuppie and have street sense you'll be fine.
Thanks for this, Wall.John. Exactly what I was looking for. I do know what you mean, and I figured as much, that's pretty much how Springfield is. You just get it how you live. I appreciate the insight!
If I were you I would look at Lyndhurst. Lyndhurst is diverse, close to bars and restaurants, close to Newark...but the reason I am really suggesting Lyndhurst is for your child.
I don't know about there being animosity against whites in Paterson but I do know that there are tensions between blacks and Hispanics in cities like Plainfield and Paterson. In Paterson Dominicans and blacks have tensions with each other and this is evident among Eastside High students. In JFK High, there is tension between Dominicans and Arabs. Urban places like this have the reputation of being hostile towards whites but nowadays you have minorities against other minorities here so if you are white it is not like they are all going to unite and jump you especially since these communities are already divided amongst their own. In Newark you do have a lot of black pride and if my understanding is correct it seems some of the blacks that live there generally see whites as oppressors, and this is probably due to their history (especially when you take redlining and blockbusting into consideration). I have seen the Black Hebrew Israelities preaching. The BHI believe that blacks, Latinos, and Native Americans are the "chosen people" and that whites are wicked. So just understand there is that mentality of some people here. I have not seen the BHI preach in Downtown Newark lately. Then again I haven't been in Downtown Newark in a while either. Jersey City is just too diverse for there to be too much racism at least I think so. No racial group makes up the majority there. Same thing with Union City only thing with Union City is that even though it is majority Hispanic city you have a mix of Cubans, Ecuadorians, Colombians, Dominicans, Salvadorans, etc you can't have too much racism among the Hispanic community here. I don't know about Passaic.
In Elizabeth Latinos tend to mix with each other more. I say this because when you go to Elizabeth Avenue you see different Latino nationalities although I do know Morris Avenue is Little Colombia. Meanwhile Paterson is more segregated where you have Peruvians in one section, Dominicans in another, Costa Ricans in one side, Colombians in another, etc.
As another poster you are better off just staying in the Ironbound and going to NYC. If you want to experience a Latino enclave in Newark you could just take the light rail from Penn Station to Branch Brook Park near Bloomfield Avenue. There is still an Italian bakery there and a few Italian businesses left of Branch Brook Park on Bloomfield.
Good luck with your move to the Ironbound. It is pretty safe and I am sure you will love it. It reminds me of a Lusophone Astoria.
Lots of white people in Elizabeth, Passaic, and Newark. It's all about neighborhoods as usual in terms of exact demos.
But, just for an example, I used to live in an all black neighborhood in California, and for the whole year that I lived there, one homeless guy called called me a *****. And that was like 20 years ago.
I think that would be the extent of it. You might get some comments from some homeless guys or some kids, but other than that, it'd be fine.
I also spent a year in one of the most redneck, white places you'll ever find, and zero comments the whole year I was there (which kinda surprised me).
Where I live it's really racially diverse, and most people don't interact with strangers. They just go about their own business, go to work, and then home to their families. It's pretty similar everywhere.
Last edited by jobaba; 12-10-2015 at 07:43 AM..
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Elizabeth
