Hispanics in Pitt (Pittsburgh, Penn Hills, North Versailles: stats, food, suburbs)

[Humanoid]

For decent authentic Mexican food, I recommend checking out Fajita Grill in Shadyside.

Dude....this is not authentic Mexican food.

Regardless you can find some okay-ish places that serve what amounts to "meat and potatoes" sort of Mexican food. But not things like Baja style Mexican foods where you find a lot of fresh veggies and herbs etc.

And Hispanics today probably comprise about 2.5%-3% of the population, but not one notices

I should say "Hispanic" is very useless category as far as race goes. Many people that are "Hispanic" are white, after all South/Central America was colonized by white people and the people all have different amounts of native blood in them. Its only the Hispanics with a lot of native blood that stand out from whites, you only see these people here and there in Pittsburgh. I believe some of the farms in the area bring them up during the growing seasons.

[zip95]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

I should say "Hispanic" is very useless category as far as race goes.

It the same as the category european or asian.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Katiana

Either my niece and nephew didn't find those places, or they didn't think they were authentic.

Fajita Grill is a relatively obscure restaurant. Mexico City is relatively new. So, that may be the explanation.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Katiana

Here are some stats for three fairly large eastern suburbs. . . .

Since the overall U.S. demographic is about 12.4% black, I'd say the percentage of black people in Monroeville and Penn Hills would count as within a reasonable variance for "integrated" neighborhoods.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by zip95

I don't think I agree.

Firstly, the city is overwhelmingly black and white, so integration as far as 'everyone else' can't really exist...

Secondly, the East End and North Side seem much more integrated than say...Boston.

Thirdly, the Eastern suburbs seem very diverse to me. In fact, I can't really think of a Northeastern area with more integrated...maybe New Jersey??

I think a more accurate assessment would be...The South Hills are probably the most segregated suburbs I've seen. The North Hills are still pretty segregated, but diversifying slowly, the Eastern Suburbs are some of the most integrated suburbs I've seen. The city is hit or miss, with the most integration on the North side and the East End.

Originally Posted by BrianTH

Since the overall U.S. demographic is about 12.4% black, I'd say the percentage of black people in Monroeville and Penn Hills would count as within a reasonable variance for "integrated" neighborhoods.

I was responding to the post above yours. I think Pgh burbs should probably be compared with the population of Pittsburgh, if you're looking at integration/segregation.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

Dude....this is not authentic Mexican food.

Having never been to Mexico, I can only note that I have been told by others who would know that it counts as authentic.

By the way, here is a little writeup:

Fajita Grill offers a fresh, creative Mexican menu

Head cook Meritha Nevisi, who was born in Mexico City, specializes in Mexican-style family cooking. She follows regional recipes, imports authentic ingredients and is constantly introducing new dishes.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Katiana

I was responding to the post above yours. I think Pgh burbs should probably be compared with the population of Pittsburgh, if you're looking at integration/segregation.

It turns out that per the 2000 Census, Allegheny County also had about a 12.4% black population.

[Katiana]

Originally Posted by BrianTH

It turns out that per the 2000 Census, Allegheny County also had about a 12.4% black population.

Yet Pittsburgh city's population is about 2X that. Meaning, there aren't that many blacks outside the city. I do agree with zip95 that Pittsburgh is not the same everywhere. At the high school that serves my parents' old house, the student body is 98% white (not the HS I went to, BTW).

[supersoulty]

Originally Posted by Katiana

Yet Pittsburgh city's population is about 2X that. Meaning, there aren't that many blacks outside the city. I do agree with zip95 that Pittsburgh is not the same everywhere. At the high school that serves my parents' old house, the student body is 98% white (not the HS I went to, BTW).

Exactly... this strengthens our argument, it doesn't defeat it. 12.4% of the total, and yet in most towns, and zip codes, blacks make up either 60-80%, or they are hardly present at all. That's the whole major thrust behind what we are saying. There really aren't many locals where you are going to find a 88-12 split, or anything even close to it. 80% of all the Blacks in the county live in roughly the same 5 parts of the county.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by supersoulty

Exactly... this strengthens our argument, it doesn't defeat it. 12.4% of the total, and yet in most towns, and zip codes, blacks make up either 60-80%, or they are hardly present at all. That's the whole major thrust behind what we are saying. There really aren't many locals where you are going to find a 88-12 split, or anything even close to it. 80% of all the Blacks in the county live in roughly the same 5 parts of the county.

Indeed, and I hope I am not coming across as suggesting that somehow the Pittsburgh metro region in general is well-integrated--it isn't. So while Penn Hills and Monroeville in particular seem to have around the expected demographics in a reasonably well-integrated neighborhood (given the overall demographics of Allegheny County), I know that most parts of Allegheny County do not, one way or the other.