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People are free to ask about the safety of a neighborhood. Basically, if the thread is annoying, just keep scrolling down the list as there are many other topics on the NYC forum in which to participate, rather than attempting to guess the race, ethnicity, gender, creed, or any other personal information about another poster. If they state their race, that's not an issue, so long as they are not disparaging others in doing so.
Like it or not, certain neighborhoods have the stigma of higher incidents of crime, or more publicized incidents of crime, such that those from out of the area who do not know the geography of NYC, it's neighborhood borders, and the current status of the area inquire as to a relative degree of safety. From that perspective, an OP could then experience the neighborhood for themselves to see if they are comfortable. While it's impossible for another to put themselves in the position of someone else, there are degrees of safety, and behaviors that can make one more prone to incidents, such as walking late at night while carrying an iPhone, or wearing expensive jewelry, etc.
NYC is a complex, dense, urban environment in which people posing questions may not know the answers, so they come to the forum to ask. Moderators can identify and take care of those who are here to cause trouble, and are race baiting. Merely asking a question based upon the demographic profile of the OP with information that they may choose to share does not necessarily imply any racist intent, rather it's more a reaction to the portrayal of NYC in media and fiction, or relying on outdated information upon which the preconceived notion was formed.
Rather than resent an earnest poster who is asking a question, just ignore a thread that's at issue, or politely state a point of view with real information, not sarcastic jokes that give disinformation (again, usually problems that a moderator will handle), to help portray your view of the neighborhood or situation in question.
Ignore the posts?? I'm sorry but when I keep seeing the "Is it safe for a White girl/boy couple?" posts they are basically asking are the black/latinos gonna rob/beat/kill us for being white in their hood?
I'm more than annoying when I keep seeing this being posted over and over and over.......you can get mugged anywhere and in ANY neighborhood and it's not going to always be black/latinos doing it.
i know there's a stigma and it's NEVER gonna change but damn you can't put a price on your own safety....if you feel that moving into a minority hood will make you a potential target don't move there!!! I know for a fact that I would be a target out in irish/italian Long Island so there's NO question that I'd never live out there...so why don you wanna take your chances just to save a few dollars???
Funny incident (maybe not so "funny"): I am a melanin deficient person (basically, I'm pink) living in a melanin-rich neighborhood. One day, I walked out of my house, and an old guy of maybe 65 years old, black, and a normal-looking retiree was very close to me on the corner, and he was mumbling something. I wasn't paying much attention to him at first, but he kept it up for some time as we waited for traffic and started to cross the street. Eventually I tuned in and heard him saying, "Well goooolly, Srgnt. Carter..." over and over. "Well goo-oolly, Srgnt. Carter.... Well gooo-oooly, Srgnt. Carter..." And i realized he was doing it for my benefit. I happen to be just old enough to know the reference: He was calling me Gomer Pile - the epitome of a white idiot (which perhaps I am, but still...) It was an odd experience, and really off-putting. I mean I look more like Richie Cunningham than Gomer Pile, for god's sake, but I got the point. It was an echo of a former era in this neighborhood, as my neighbors have told me, when white people really were not welcome, and would have faced all kinds of intimidation if they came. There was a time and there still are places where white people, the symbols of racial injustice - more so than Asians, or any other group - were not (are not) welcome. It's changing, thanks to a lot of factors, but it's still real. It's a real conflict that is present for a lot of people - and certainly seemed to be for this old-timer.
I have a lot of sympathy for the negative effects that gentrification can have on a neighborhood. Displacement is a real issue and there should be mechanisms to decrease the effects. But it is conflict that some people confront with intimidation. That's what people are asking about when they ask if a "white person will feel safe". Is it inappropriate to ask? Maybe; I don't know. I think if one is going to ask a racially charged question, it's important to be careful about it - that's for sure. But I think it's valid to wonder how often you're gonna be called "Gomer Pile", or worse. No matter how apt it may have been in my case, it didn't feel good.
This is the point I keep trying to get across. That man definitely made you feel uncomfortable. Your presence there was an irritant to him and he, in a snide (but sort of clever I have to admit) way made fun of you for being the white guy in the black neighborhood. .
But although you were uncomfortable, did you feel unsafe?
There is a huge difference. I doubt you felt that this senior citizen was going to bang you in the head or lift your wallet. You were just pissed off and it didn't feel good. But you might also get pissed off at a white guy at a bar in Tribeca who also implied somehow that you were some country hick too unsophisticated to be living in New York City. In my book, they'd be the same. But to some people, the experience you had would mean that its unsafe, while the one in Tribecas would be brushded off as just some rude d-bag New Yorker. Get my point? People too often mistake being uncomfortable with being unsafe and the two are not even close to the same thing.
... you might also get pissed off at a white guy at a bar in Tribeca who also implied somehow that you were some country hick too unsophisticated to be living in New York City. In my book, they'd be the same. But to some people, the experience you had would mean that its unsafe, while the one in Tribecas would be brushded off as just some rude d-bag New Yorker. Get my point? People too often mistake being uncomfortable with being unsafe and the two are not even close to the same thing.
Racism by any shade of person whatsoever is unethical and immoral.
I especially love the people that come on here asking for the cheapest possible apartment in the best area and when we direct them to areas that actually work... they freak out.
And the worst are the people that say:
"My friends told me this area was bad. I don't want to go above 96th street or into Brooklyn past (idk)Lorimer."
This is the point I keep trying to get across. That man definitely made you feel uncomfortable. Your presence there was an irritant to him and he, in a snide (but sort of clever I have to admit) way made fun of you for being the white guy in the black neighborhood. .
But although you were uncomfortable, did you feel unsafe?
There is a huge difference. I doubt you felt that this senior citizen was going to bang you in the head or lift your wallet. You were just pissed off and it didn't feel good. But you might also get pissed off at a white guy at a bar in Tribeca who also implied somehow that you were some country hick too unsophisticated to be living in New York City. In my book, they'd be the same. But to some people, the experience you had would mean that its unsafe, while the one in Tribecas would be brushded off as just some rude d-bag New Yorker. Get my point? People too often mistake being uncomfortable with being unsafe and the two are not even close to the same thing.
A couple points:
1. I wasn't pissed off. I was sad to be honest.
2. No, I didn't think this guy was going to assault me. I thought he was trying to make me feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. He was fairly successful at that.
3. This old guy is a part of my community and he was expressing to me that I was not really welcome there. That made me feel uneasy, and to a degree, unsafe. And it was not the only incident. Another was from a younger, larger man, who was in a rage about racial profiling and pointed me out as "that white guy" who wouldn't get stopped by the police. He may have been right about that, but it was rude and intimidating to single me out. I've gotten the "evil eye" more than once. These incidences contribute to a feeling of being "unsafe". If I were to consistently get accused by white people or whomever of being too much of hick to be in NY while going about my business in my neighborhood, I'd start to feel like I was being singled out and intimidated then, too.
4. Your point is well taken, though, in this regard: you're basically saying that there is a fear bias toward black areas. I agree. The women in my family used to lock the doors when we passed through black areas of town. That's the same kind of bias I think you're describing, which is real and unfair.
As i postes a.couple of times, and get block from certain people , it's the same thing that iwas talking a out. Let's talk I. General,!! There maximum security for those that can afford it, and others has to deal with it. On this past 911 alll security was concentrated at the city!!and what about Bronx, Broklyn, Uptown Queens, LiC?? Everybody needs to be secure, and the reason is not Black,white, or spanish. It's about money, this why everything around here is so corruptive. It's business only. All that Passion about peoples safety is gone, thousands of cops around the city , just riding their cares. Instead of making them walk and patrol where the hoods, and gangs hang out . Are they afraid?? So here goes the big Question?? If you're problem is you're safety? Why do you project to everyone and show that you have the money? A the trains all that pride walking a iPad calling e erybodys attention ? Or worst showing all expensive jewelry. There's more to look for a simple white , or black or Spanish complaining about safety.
if i visit or live somewhere i want to know where the unsafe spots are because i know i will not be welcomed there. i could care less about your color, it seems the poorer the area the more crime there is. i go into all one color situations every now and then and if looks could kill i would be dead many times over, its like "what are you doing here, you dont belong, get out" hostility. i do wish to note that the youth are causing the problems for fun or lack of something better to do maybe? and large groups are the worst.
Tkake your experiences are anecdotal..but I mean really..THAT shook you up? I think you picked the wrong city to live in because you will get snyde comments everywhere you go from all sorts of people. So basically you will be feeling "unsafe" 24 hours a day...try a different city.
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