Blue-Collar and Working Class areas. They really aren't bad. (Montclair: apartment, safe neighborhood)

[STrapani1105]

I've yet to have children, and I thought to myself that when I have kids, I don't want them to grow up in a "bubble", like the town I grew up in. I want them to grow up in a diverse area, with people of many backgrounds (race, ethnicity, class, etc.) I think it's good for children growing up to see all walks of life, I wish I had seen more of that growing up. I think it's a good thing, but am I crazy? I honestly don't know. Because my parent's grew up in blue-collar areas, and they chose to live and have me grow up in an area that is very socio-economically and culturally homogeneous.

So am I crazy? Is there something wrong with working class areas? Because I could probably name off some New Jersey towns that are considered to be blue-collar, but they are relatively safe. It sounds to me like an area that offers a lot of diversity and is fairly safe (if not very safe) sounds to me like a good thing. I guess it just depends on people's preferences. People tell me I'm fortunate to grow up where I did, and they are right. I grew up in a great community, with great schools, but I don't think that many people growing up in the same environment I did have an accurate perspective on people outside of town. I think that in the future they will be unable to connect with people of different backgrounds.

[tommyc_37]

You're young still. When you do have children, if you're able to afford to live in an affluent area, you will likely choose to live in an affluent area, because you will want your children to have the best public schools, and you will want them to live in a safe neighborhood.

[Lusitan]

I grew up in a diverse and decidedly blue-collar town, and in many ways I think it was a benefit. Sadly, we live in different times, especially when it comes to public schools.

Back when I was growing up, schools were much more serious about cracking down on knucklehead behavior, and more or less kept kids in line. The tone was set from first grade, with ruler/brush smacks, washing kids mouth out with soap, etc. Sure, we still had knuckleheads, but there really was a sense that the authority figures were empowered and in control of the situation.

These days, it's all about "empowering" kids who already have egos the size of Texas (even if they can't locate Texas on a map). Everyone is paranoid about lawsuits. Kids are out of control, and parents (if they're even around, especially the MIA fathers) have less interest and less control than ever before. Instead of cracking down and standing up to the knuckleheads, schools today try to serve as substitute parents, but parents without authority. Parents have shrugged off the responsibility for their kids, and the "progressive" types like to think they can solve every problem by being "understanding" and gentle. And all the kids suffer, especially those who really want to learn.

That's one of the reasons why I have decided that, unfortunately, my children won't be attending those types of schools. I refuse to put up with that garbage, and don't want my kids attending schools that tolerate it.

[STrapani1105]

yeah, that gentle stuff is BS. my parents had no problem smacking me right in the face when I was young. It did me a lot good I dare say...

[clevedark]

This is why people like to move to towns like Maplewood, Montclair, and South Orange--there's a fair amount of economic diversity as well as good school systems.

[GiantRutgersfan]

who said that blue collar areas are bad?

i dont understand why white people seek out diversity though... is there something wrong with living near mostly white people???? whats wrong with that.

[Lusitan]

Originally Posted by GiantRutgersfan

i dont understand why white people seek out diversity though... is there something wrong with living near mostly white people???? whats wrong with that.

I agree with you there -- the only diversity that truly matters is economic diversity. Rich, privileged black kids are pretty much the same as rich, privileged white kids.

[elflord1973]

Originally Posted by GiantRutgersfan

who said that blue collar areas are bad?

i dont understand why white people seek out diversity though... is there something wrong with living near mostly white people???? whats wrong with that.

I grew up in Australia, so perhaps I'm not representative of the American "diversity seeker", but here is a little on what I think of as diversity, and why i find it interesting.

When I was in college, I stayed in a hall of residence ("dorm") called "international house". I understand there is also such a thing at UC Berkeley. While I was there, I made friends with a number of overseas students, mostly from South East Asia (that's where most overseas students come from in Australia).

I enjoyed this in a lot of ways. First, the climate fostered a more open minded world view. When you are exposed to people from different parts of the world, many things that one might otherwise obsess about seem very petty. I also learned a lot about the world by meeting people from different corners of the planet.

Having said that, I don't completely understand the point of "diversity" as advocated by Americans. I see very little value in having "ghetto people" living next door. I'm perfectly happy to live alongside middle class African Americans (there are several in my apartment building), but they aren't all that different to middle class white Americans.

I do find very WASPy towns (e.g. not only no black people, but also, no Italians, no Asians, no Jews) tend to be somewhat dull.

[STrapani1105]

Originally Posted by Lusitan

I agree with you there -- the only diversity that truly matters is economic diversity. Rich, privileged black kids are pretty much the same as rich, privileged white kids.

did you not see what I wrote? I mentioned cultural diversity as well as socio-economic diversity.

Diversity is great. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with living in a mostly white blue-collar town. Let's take Lyndhurst. That's a working town. And it's like 80 something percent white. It's a great town.

[STrapani1105]

Originally Posted by GiantRutgersfan

who said that blue collar areas are bad?

i dont understand why white people seek out diversity though... is there something wrong with living near mostly white people???? whats wrong with that.

where I come from, blue collar towns are perceived negatively. we grew up right next to Morristown and people's parents wouldn't let them drive through Morristown because it has some "bad parts". Compared to some other places in this state, Morristown is harmless.

I grew up with an idiot who said Newton was a ghetto. He was 18 years old, and he still believed that Newton was a ghetto. He believed it because 1) he's just an idiot or 2) he grew up in a sheltered town and his view of certain areas were warped