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My take on that is largely anecdotal, but let's just say it's part of the reason Blacks are leaving the city. How liberal of a place can you be if you still have groups that don't feel welcome in your city?
I'm not saying this makes Austin a less liberal city than Houston, but I do find the latter to be a more inclusive place.
I've read both of those articles before (even cited the second one a couple days ago) and basically what you have is gentrification happening in a city that never had a particularly high Black population to begin with. Gentrification is happening everywhere including heavily Black cities like Atlanta and DC, but the dynamic is obviously different. I thought you were referring to specific racial incidents that have increased tensions in the city.
I've read both of those articles before (even cited the second one a couple days ago) and basically what you have is gentrification happening in a city that never had a particularly high Black population to begin with. Gentrification is happening everywhere including heavily Black cities like Atlanta and DC, but the dynamic is obviously different. I thought you were referring to specific racial incidents that have increased tensions in the city.
If you had actually read both articles you would see that it is not a simple issue of gentrification.
The fact is that Austin is unique amongst the major cities in Texas in that people of color have the most obstacles there. And, no, the Black population in Austin has not always been small, but it has been shrinking for generations. That's not saying nothing.
If you had actually read both articles you would see that it is not a simple issue of gentrification.
The fact is that Austin is unique amongst the major cities in Texas in that people of color have the most obstacles there. And, no, the Black population in Austin has not always been small, but it has been shrinking for generations. That's not saying nothing.
I never agree with you, but you are right on this one. You can't simply chalk this up to gentrification. Austin has been segregating and running Black and Latino people out for decades, even before it started booming and got trendy. Both articles clearly talked about that, especially in relation to the unwritten rules for electing city councilmen, why and when those rules were put in place, and how long they stayed in place.
I wouldn't exactly say Austin running Latinos out. That population is still growing and growing pretty fast. The Austin Black population may have had a high percentage at one point. But by raw numbers, it was never that large. I think it's at the largest point in the city's history today at around 140,000 people. Austin does nothing to attract Black people honestly. You have some liberal cities that have small black populations and you have some conservative cities that have small black populations.
I wouldn't exactly say Austin running Latinos out. That population is still growing and growing pretty fast. The Austin Black population may have had a high percentage at one point. But by raw numbers, it was never that large. I think it's at the largest point in the city's history today at around 140,000 people. Austin does nothing to attract Black people honestly. You have some liberal cities that have small black populations and you have some conservative cities that have small black populations.
It's really blacks and Latinos, but ESPECIALLY blacks. The article from the Latina lady touched on that while the other article talked more about blacks in Austin, and the lack thereof.
I wouldn't exactly say Austin running Latinos out. That population is still growing and growing pretty fast. The Austin Black population may have had a high percentage at one point. But by raw numbers, it was never that large. I think it's at the largest point in the city's history today at around 140,000 people. Austin does nothing to attract Black people honestly. You have some liberal cities that have small black populations and you have some conservative cities that have small black populations.
Yes, but Austin is not in the same boat as Portland or Seattle, cities that I believe never had a significant Black presence or history to begin with. Don't hold me to this, but I think Austin's Black population once exceeded 30%. I'm looking for those numbers as we speak.
All of Austin is larger than it has ever been, so raw numbers are irrelevant here.
Yes, but Austin is not in the same boat as Portland or Seattle, cities that I believe never had a significant Black presence or history to begin with. Don't hold me to this, but I think Austin's Black population once exceeded 30%. I'm looking for those numbers as we speak.
All of Austin is larger than it has ever been, so raw numbers are irrelevant here.
Yeah, I'm pretty sure Austin's black population was AT LEAST just as big as Dallas' and Houston's at one point. I run into older black folks all the time who talk about how Austin used to have a much larger black population than it does today and about how they and their families had to leave Austin years ago because the city was pushing them out even back then.
See? You messed up on here when you let everybody know you're a kid in college...lol.
I've seen middle school debate students craft better arguments than some of the posters on this forum. Age doesn't matter, so far you can carry and facilitate intelligent discussion.
If you had actually read both articles you would see that it is not a simple issue of gentrification.
The fact is that Austin is unique amongst the major cities in Texas in that people of color have the most obstacles there. And, no, the Black population in Austin has not always been small, but it has been shrinking for generations. That's not saying nothing.
Gentrification is a big part of it. The issues spoken of in the articles aren't unique to Austin except perhaps the one dealing with city council representation, and as that article noted, rectifying that issue doesn't solve much because Blacks have been pouring out of the city to the suburbs for a little while now.
What seems to be the issue here is that Austin is a big tech city, which is an industry in which Blacks are woefully underrepresented overall; this is why the Bay Area is experiencing a similar phenomenon.
And this information from the city's website suggests that Austin's Black population, at its highest in the post-era, comprised 15% of the overall population. That's not much at all: https://www.austintexas.gov/page/top...s-austin-texas
Yeah, I'm pretty sure Austin's black population was AT LEAST just as big as Dallas' and Houston's at one point. I run into older black folks all the time who talk about how Austin used to have a much larger black population than it does today and about how they and their families had to leave Austin years ago because the city was pushing them out even back then.
Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth have always been the Texas big cities that the majority of blacks flocked too in Texas. All had black population of 25% or greater before the flight to the suburbs. Granted Austin did have a much larger black population at one time percentage wise but never on the scale of the 3 cities I mentioned. Other than that I agree with your post. Keep in mind that Austin is a very expensive city to live in now. Austin will probably never have a large black presence within its city limits again.
Last edited by Exult.Q36; 11-15-2015 at 06:31 PM..
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