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I would say a good gauge would be how the community is growing.
Here are the changes in Black population between the last 2 censuses.
Atlanta 376,299
DFW 259,134
Houston 214,869
Charlotte 160,822
DC 123,904
NYC 112,827
MSP 94,238
Phoenix 74,703
Orlando 66,035
Columbus 61,282
Raleigh D 56,146
Seattle 54,800
Indie 53,816
Jax 48,325
Tampa 46,521
Nashville 42,520
San Antonio 39,548
Boston 32,548
Austin 32,682
Baltimore 32,139
Philadelphia 31,340
New Orleans 26,814
Miami -12,136
Detroit -19,375
SF - 28,770
LA -59,412
Chicago -69,041
MSP, Indie and Columbus were a surprise to me.
Miami too. With all the Haitian and other black Caribbean influx it still lost black population.
DFW and Charlotte are sleepers. They both had higher percentages than Atlanta with Charlotte having a much higher percentage increase than Atlanta. The wealth is being shared more across the south east. Yes Atlanta so got the most but it's not THE Mecca it used to be. People are realizing more that there are options
I would say a good gauge would be how the community is growing.
Here are the changes in Black population between the last 2 censuses.
Atlanta 376,299
DFW 259,134
Houston 214,869
Charlotte 160,822
DC 123,904
NYC 112,827
MSP 94,238
Phoenix 74,703
Orlando 66,035
Columbus 61,282
Raleigh D 56,146
Seattle 54,800
Indie 53,816
Jax 48,325
Tampa 46,521
Nashville 42,520
San Antonio 39,548
Boston 32,548
Austin 32,682
Baltimore 32,139
Philadelphia 31,340
New Orleans 26,814
Miami -12,136
Detroit -19,375
SF - 28,770
LA -59,412
Chicago -69,041
MSP, Indie and Columbus were a surprise to me.
Miami too. With all the Haitian and other black Caribbean influx it still lost black population.
DFW and Charlotte are sleepers. They both had higher percentages than Atlanta with Charlotte having a much higher percentage increase than Atlanta. The wealth is being shared more across the south east. Yes Atlanta so got the most but it's not THE Mecca it used to be. People are realizing more that there are options
I'd argue it has become an even more well-rounded Mecca today than in years past with a more established Black civic and political class, more educational opportunities (with the rise of Georgia State), the solidification of the urban entertainment industry, and the emergence of the tech industry in partnership with area HBCUs. I'm glad to see more cities are becoming more appealing for Black folks for sure, but I think we have to wait a couple of more years to see how Black folks carve out their specific niches in cities like Charlotte and DFW.
I guess I'm looking at a narrow definition (the place where people are flocking too) and you are looking to a more broad definition (more in line with the topic of the thread).
In terms of where black people are flocking too, DFW and Charlotte are definition in the convo.
I would say a good gauge would be how the community is growing.
Here are the changes in Black population between the last 2 censuses.
Atlanta 376,299
DFW 259,134
Houston 214,869
Charlotte 160,822
DC 123,904
NYC 112,827
MSP 94,238
Phoenix 74,703
Orlando 66,035
Columbus 61,282
Raleigh D 56,146
Seattle 54,800
Indie 53,816
Jax 48,325
Tampa 46,521
Nashville 42,520
San Antonio 39,548
Boston 32,548
Austin 32,682
Baltimore 32,139
Philadelphia 31,340
New Orleans 26,814
Miami -12,136
Detroit -19,375
SF - 28,770
LA -59,412
Chicago -69,041
MSP, Indie and Columbus were a surprise to me.
Miami too. With all the Haitian and other black Caribbean influx it still lost black population.
DFW and Charlotte are sleepers. They both had higher percentages than Atlanta with Charlotte having a much higher percentage increase than Atlanta. The wealth is being shared more across the south east. Yes Atlanta so got the most but it's not THE Mecca it used to be. People are realizing more that there are options
Atlanta is definitely not the mecca it once was for blacks. That "mecca" status ended in the mid-2000's. The city isn't even majority black, sitting at roughly 45% or so. It continues to decline as other ethnicities, especially whites, asians and hispanics, continue to grow rapidly.
Atlanta is definitely not the mecca it once was for blacks. That "mecca" status ended in the mid-2000's. The city isn't even majority black, sitting at roughly 45% or so. It continues to decline as other ethnicities, especially whites, asians and hispanics, continue to grow rapidly.
The mecca expanded beyond the city proper into the larger metropolitan area sometime in the 80's. That coincided with more robust suburban growth all across the country which continues until this day.
So when folks talk about Atlanta as the Black Mecca, they are including suburban communities in surrounding counties as well--as they should be.
Also, many of the reasons Atlanta was initially called the Black Mecca had less to do with the size of its Black population. It was more about its abundance of Black institutions and its influential Black political and civic leadership--both of which have only expanded over the years, even as the share of its Black population has shrunk. There's more coverage about Atlanta's evolving status as a Black Mecca today than there's ever been.
The mecca expanded beyond the city proper into the larger metropolitan area sometime in the 80's. That coincided with more robust suburban growth all across the country which continues until this day.
So when folks talk about Atlanta as the Black Mecca, they are including suburban communities in surrounding counties as well--as they should be.
Also, many of the reasons Atlanta was initially called the Black Mecca had less to do with the size of its Black population. It was more about its abundance of Black institutions and its influential Black political and civic leadership--both of which have only expanded over the years, even as the share of its Black population has shrunk. There's more coverage about Atlanta's evolving status as a Black Mecca today than there's ever been.
Bingo.
Not many American cities have suburbs like Atlanta's. Some are majority AA, others are wealthy, but few are simultaneously prominently Black and Wealthy like many Atlanta suburbs are.
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