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Old 11-21-2010, 06:21 AM
 
Location: New York City
224 posts, read 673,170 times
Reputation: 221

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Quote:
Originally Posted by 1nevets View Post
What's your background? From your comments I'd suggest Valley Stream or Elmont.
1Nevets:

I'm white but grew up in the most culturally diverse community in the world in the Jackson Heights/Woodside/Elmhurst area of Queens. My father was an immigrant from Argentina. My mother from Spain. My neighbors, kid you not, were from Colombia, Haiti, Italy, Korea, Greece, India, Ecuador, Germany and Croatia... ALL ON THE SAME BLOCK!

I ended up marrying a South Indian girl from New Hyde Park.

Race and ethnicity is not something that is important to me. I get along with everyone. I've come to feel that Long Islanders are generally very xenophobic. I've read way too often on these forums how "diversity" really means Black and Hispanic and how Black and Hispanic means a "sketchy" neighborhood.

It's disappointing to read, but then again we all have our own experiences. The "minorities" I grew up with were all hard-working immigrants. Maybe in Long Island the minorities have been here for several generations. I can understand how that can be a problem. Every black kid I grew up with never spoke of slavery. But you take "American" blacks, the great grandchildren of slaves, people who were totally displaced and caused to start off on a bad foot, I can understand why "black" generally has a negative connotation on Long Island. It's unfortunate.

Anyhow, I know Long Island isn't Queens, but I'm curious to know if there are any truly diverse areas where different groups of people actually like living side by side.

I haven't spent much time in Elmont, but from what I have experienced, I found it to be a little ghetto. No offense to anyone. I like New Hyde Park. I drove around East Meadow yesterday and liked it. Roosevelt was awful. Hempstead is awful. I like Post Ave in Westbury but found areas around there pretty yucky (but I think I'd live on or near Post Ave).

Some of you might say, "well, why leave Queens?" Well, my wife wants Long Island. And despite growing up in New Hyde Park, she doesn't know much about Long Island except her area. I like NHP, but wish it were more mixed (it's basically white and Indian, and I have a feeling it's going to be all Indian in 15 years). Too much of any one group is no good in my book.
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Old 11-21-2010, 08:39 AM
 
9,341 posts, read 29,587,111 times
Reputation: 4572
Quote:
Originally Posted by QueensKid View Post
... my wife wants Long Island. And despite growing up in New Hyde Park, she doesn't know much about Long Island except her area. I like NHP, but wish it were more mixed (it's basically white and Indian, and I have a feeling it's going to be all Indian in 15 years). Too much of any one group is no good in my book.
Please bear in mind, 8 of every 10 places that have a "New Hyde Park, NY 11040" mailing address (3,339 acres) are not in the Village of New Hyde Park (531 acres).

Places that have a "New Hyde Park, NY 11040" mailing address that are not in the Village of New Hyde Park are in the Village of Lake Success, the Hamlet of Manhasset, the Village of North Hills, the Hamlet of Manhasset Hills, the Hamlet of North New Hyde Park, the Hamlet of Herricks, the Hamlet of Garden City Park and the Village of Garden City.

You can find out in which community (city, village or CDP) your wife was actually living in, which, for many areas on Long Island, not only in the New Hyde Park area, is oftentimes different from the community named in the house's, where she was living, mailing address, by using the Census Bureau's online address search function. (CDP, or Census Designated Place, is the Census Bureau equivalent for a hamlet in Nassau and Suffolk Counties.)
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Old 11-21-2010, 09:14 AM
 
Location: North shore, Long Island
1,919 posts, read 5,752,956 times
Reputation: 507
Quote:
Originally Posted by QueensKid View Post
1Nevets:

I'm white but grew up in the most culturally diverse community in the world in the Jackson Heights/Woodside/Elmhurst area of Queens. My father was an immigrant from Argentina. My mother from Spain. My neighbors, kid you not, were from Colombia, Haiti, Italy, Korea, Greece, India, Ecuador, Germany and Croatia... ALL ON THE SAME BLOCK!

I ended up marrying a South Indian girl from New Hyde Park.

Race and ethnicity is not something that is important to me. I get along with everyone. I've come to feel that Long Islanders are generally very xenophobic. I've read way too often on these forums how "diversity" really means Black and Hispanic and how Black and Hispanic means a "sketchy" neighborhood.

It's disappointing to read, but then again we all have our own experiences. The "minorities" I grew up with were all hard-working immigrants. Maybe in Long Island the minorities have been here for several generations. I can understand how that can be a problem. Every black kid I grew up with never spoke of slavery. But you take "American" blacks, the great grandchildren of slaves, people who were totally displaced and caused to start off on a bad foot, I can understand why "black" generally has a negative connotation on Long Island. It's unfortunate.

Anyhow, I know Long Island isn't Queens, but I'm curious to know if there are any truly diverse areas where different groups of people actually like living side by side.

I haven't spent much time in Elmont, but from what I have experienced, I found it to be a little ghetto. No offense to anyone. I like New Hyde Park. I drove around East Meadow yesterday and liked it. Roosevelt was awful. Hempstead is awful. I like Post Ave in Westbury but found areas around there pretty yucky (but I think I'd live on or near Post Ave).

Some of you might say, "well, why leave Queens?" Well, my wife wants Long Island. And despite growing up in New Hyde Park, she doesn't know much about Long Island except her area. I like NHP, but wish it were more mixed (it's basically white and Indian, and I have a feeling it's going to be all Indian in 15 years). Too much of any one group is no good in my book.
I wish more Long Islanders thought like you then maybe we wouldn't have so many areas turning into slums because minorities are moving in. My suggestions for central and western Nassau are Valley Stream, Baldwin and Hicksville. Hope to see more future postings from you.
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Old 11-21-2010, 09:43 AM
 
Location: Massapequa Park
3,172 posts, read 6,724,855 times
Reputation: 1374
Quote:
Originally Posted by QueensKid View Post
1Nevets:

I'm white but grew up in the most culturally diverse community in the world in the Jackson Heights/Woodside/Elmhurst area of Queens. My father was an immigrant from Argentina. My mother from Spain. My neighbors, kid you not, were from Colombia, Haiti, Italy, Korea, Greece, India, Ecuador, Germany and Croatia... ALL ON THE SAME BLOCK!
I've come to feel that Long Islanders are generally very xenophobic. I've read way too often on these forums how "diversity" really means Black and Hispanic and how Black and Hispanic means a "sketchy" neighborhood.

Anyhow, I know Long Island isn't Queens, but I'm curious to know if there are any truly diverse areas where different groups of people actually like living side by side.

I haven't spent much time in Elmont, but from what I have experienced, I found it to be a little ghetto. No offense to anyone. I like New Hyde Park. I drove around East Meadow yesterday and liked it. Roosevelt was awful. Hempstead is awful. I like Post Ave in Westbury but found areas around there pretty yucky (but I think I'd live on or near Post Ave).

Some of you might say, "well, why leave Queens?" Well, my wife wants Long Island. And despite growing up in New Hyde Park, she doesn't know much about Long Island except her area. I like NHP, but wish it were more mixed (it's basically white and Indian, and I have a feeling it's going to be all Indian in 15 years). Too much of any one group is no good in my book.
Diversity on LI ends up being mostly Black/Spanish areas. Not that there's anything wrong with the 2, but it hasn't worked here. Like you said the areas were "pretty yucky" , "a little ghetto" etc... does that make someone unfamiliar with true diversity "xenophobic"? Of course not.

From the areas mentioned, I would recommend East Meadow (with E. Meadow SD).
Also, have you looked into Malverne, West Hempstead or Lynbrook?
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Old 11-21-2010, 10:12 AM
 
Location: New York City
224 posts, read 673,170 times
Reputation: 221
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pequaman View Post
Diversity on LI ends up being mostly Black/Spanish areas. Not that there's anything wrong with the 2, but it hasn't worked here. Like you said the areas were "pretty yucky" , "a little ghetto" etc... does that make someone unfamiliar with true diversity "xenophobic"? Of course not.

From the areas mentioned, I would recommend East Meadow (with E. Meadow SD).
Also, have you looked into Malverne, West Hempstead or Lynbrook?
Good point.

I've never even heard of Malverne. Will check it out. I know nothing about Lynbrook but have generally heard it's nice. Thank you.

As for the gentleman who asked what part of New Hyde Park my wife is from: She grew up one block off Jericho by New Hyde Park Rd. From her house, the train is a five-minute walk (Garden City begins directly on the other side of the train station). I like the area but she wants to get away from her parents. Ha. We want close, but not too close!
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Old 11-21-2010, 10:23 AM
 
Location: New York City
224 posts, read 673,170 times
Reputation: 221
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1nevets View Post
I wish more Long Islanders thought like you then maybe we wouldn't have so many areas turning into slums because minorities are moving in. My suggestions for central and western Nassau are Valley Stream, Baldwin and Hicksville. Hope to see more future postings from you.
Thanks.

Why are immigrants feared on Long Island? Is it because they are of the shorter, darker, less-educated variety? No one immigrates to a new country to cause problems. These people are here in pursuit of a better life and they will work very hard for it.

So when I read about this, "the minorities are moving in, we have to move out" mentality, I wonder what dynamic is exactly at play here. How much of it is fear and how much of it is truly legit?

Because I can tell you in my entire life living in an immigrant community, I've only had one or two instances where I witnessed an immigrant doing something unruly. Funny, now I live in Bayside, and white kids **** on cars every night, smash bottles, start fights in the streets, scream at 4 am, have sex in an alley (I've seen it twice!) and general act like scum of the Earth.

The only thing I witnessed in Elmhurst was two drunk Mexicans one night kicking mirrors off of cars. Another time an old Asian man was robbed by two Hispanic men. That's about it. You can just sum that up to drugs and idiots and acts done on behalf of people who probably don't even live in the neighborhood.

So, it's weird to hear people complain about the immigrants in Long Island. These people want to work and get ahead. But I don't know. I don't live on Long Island so I'm in no position to speak on that. Maybe if I lived in Hempstead, I'd feel differently.
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Old 11-21-2010, 10:48 AM
 
Location: Massapequa Park
3,172 posts, read 6,724,855 times
Reputation: 1374
Quote:
Originally Posted by QueensKid View Post
Thanks.

Why are immigrants feared on Long Island? Is it because they are of the shorter, darker, less-educated variety? No one immigrates to a new country to cause problems. These people are here in pursuit of a better life and they will work very hard for it.

So when I read about this, "the minorities are moving in, we have to move out" mentality, I wonder what dynamic is exactly at play here. How much of it is fear and how much of it is truly legit?

Because I can tell you in my entire life living in an immigrant community, I've only had one or two instances where I witnessed an immigrant doing something unruly. Funny, now I live in Bayside, and white kids **** on cars every night, smash bottles, start fights in the streets, scream at 4 am, have sex in an alley (I've seen it twice!) and general act like scum of the Earth.

The only thing I witnessed in Elmhurst was two drunk Mexicans one night kicking mirrors off of cars. Another time an old Asian man was robbed by two Hispanic men. That's about it. You can just sum that up to drugs and idiots and acts done on behalf of people who probably don't even live in the neighborhood.

So, it's weird to hear people complain about the immigrants in Long Island. These people want to work and get ahead. But I don't know. I don't live on Long Island so I'm in no position to speak on that. Maybe if I lived in Hempstead, I'd feel differently.
Because 50 years ago, the worst thing a wave of immigrants brought was stealth, yet prevalent mobs - (La Cosa Nostra, Jewish mafia, Russian mafia etc).

2010 it's 'in-your-face' - "we taking over" MS-13 & La Raza radicals and much larger criminal networks.

//www.city-data.com/forum/long-...hood-near.html
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Old 11-21-2010, 12:38 PM
 
Location: Brooklyn, New York
1,192 posts, read 1,806,370 times
Reputation: 1734
Stay in Queens if you can convince your wife.
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Old 11-21-2010, 12:46 PM
 
156 posts, read 447,736 times
Reputation: 98
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pequaman View Post
Diversity on LI ends up being mostly Black/Spanish areas. Not that there's anything wrong with the 2, but it hasn't worked here. Like you said the areas were "pretty yucky" , "a little ghetto" etc... does that make someone unfamiliar with true diversity "xenophobic"? Of course not.

From the areas mentioned, I would recommend East Meadow (with E. Meadow SD).
Also, have you looked into Malverne, West Hempstead or Lynbrook?
I don't think Lynbrook has much diversity. I have heard some people complaining about West Hempstead in regard to the school district. My vote would also be Valley Stream. I have noticed a number of biracial families moving in there of late, and the area seems more open minded then a lot of others on LI.
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Old 11-21-2010, 01:06 PM
 
3,686 posts, read 8,680,907 times
Reputation: 1807
Quote:
Originally Posted by QueensKid View Post
T
The only thing I witnessed in Elmhurst was two drunk Mexicans one night kicking mirrors off of cars. Another time an old Asian man was robbed by two Hispanic men. That's about it. You can just sum that up to drugs and idiots and acts done on behalf of people who probably don't even live in the neighborhood.

.
Im so tired of people making excuses for minorites robbing, stealing, raping,murdering or just causing mishief. You want to live in a "diverse" community..go right ahead...I still like my white ice cream.Keep your "diversity" in your own community
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