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Anon...unfortunately that is how the market perceives it...I agree. However, we know that the reality is far different, and people of color moving in can be middle class, while whites can be needing somewhere affordable to live. And I think what you are seeing today is alot of middle America types flooding into NYC because there are no jobs/no hope where they are now and need affordable places to live, and you are also finding alot of middle class people of color returning to the city and reclaiming neighborhoods and driving changes.
The NYC market is far more complex and nuanced than what most people perceive.
But... and im not disagreeing with you, it just makes no sense. NYC's unemployed rate is at one of its highest points ever on top of the fact that the cost of living over here is insane and yet you have people flooding these areas looking for apartments and jobs. Somewhere along the line one has to think out and plan about where there moving and not simply look to where they think is the ideal location cause right now NYC is not it. We're seeing it right now with the uptick in crime. Times are getting harder, people are getting restless, and in desperate times people forget how to act... I dont know its just confusing to me, the logic of some people, not all but some.
Anon...if there is ever a place in this country to find opportunity, or make opportunities, NYC is it..always has been, and that hasn't changed. I don't think you realize how bad the rest of the country is as compared to NYC. Despite the economy, there are jobs to be had here, networking to be done, opportunities to be had, unique experiences, and did I mention opportunities? Immigrants from other countries can do it and are doing it in NYC..why can't Americans do it?!
Im sorry but we are just going to have to agree to disagree because I'll give you NYC has been the city of opportunity for many throughout the years but right now thanks to poor leadership on many parts, this city is in the toilet economically speaking. To me, if I had the choice between trying to fix NYC and trying to help those 10-15% of New Yorkers that are currently unemployed get a job or simply add to the problem by bringing in more people and creating higher unemployment rates, at least to me it would be a no-brainer what my answer would be. But some people are simply convinced or simply wanna convince others to move to the most "wonderful city in the world" where opportunities are endless and everyone lives happily ever after. Im sorry but my agenda is not to convince people of a falsehood...
Once again NYC is nowhere near as bad in terms of crime and other statistics when compared to the late 80s and early 90s but at the same time the statistics of nowadays would lead us to assume that we are much better off than we really are as well and that includes areas like Bushwick.
Nobody is claiming the city is the most wonderful city in the world or that is a utopia. But if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere..and that still rings true. No matter how bad you think NYC's economy is, most other parts of the country are far worse..so NYC not only has the lure of endless opportunities (which is still true), it's economy is not as bad as most other parts of the country. Those 2 major facts combined explains why immigrants and Americans from across the nation continue to descend on our city despite NY's economic challenges.
Is it cool to live in the hood? Not if you don't have a choice. I think this is a debate reserved only for the people who have the money to make neighborhoods trendy if they choose to.
Simple & straight to the point. Post of the thread!!!
I live in Newark- My area isn't all that bad at all, it's quite urban suburban in character, but the "hood" can make you cool, whether you don't agree or not. It's only cool because the mentality of the residents living there is rough, tough and gritty. Any hood/ghetto is ridden with poverty and crime, so the people living there have to be tough, and in today's society "tough/hard" is what people look up to because it gains respect. People like to be respected based off of intimidation.
And if you successfully make it out of the hood, it makes you all the more "cooler"
BPerone, I think it used to be the case that people were tough and hard, but I think now, and really over the last 5-7 years especially, these kids are no longer hard (In NYC that is). They talk a good game, but the vast majority (in my opinion) are just playing along to fit in. There really are no more street fights, cuz they don't want to get their kicks scuffed or their pricey jeans/shirts ripped, and everyone knows the cops will lock you up and their goes the only chance you had to go to school/get a job...who wants to lose all that over silliness? They have seen how that story ends all around them. They look the part, but at the end of the day, they are just like you and me...just trying to live their lives.
This assessment of course has nothing to do with those involved in illicit activities/gangs/drugs, I am just referring to the majority of residents/kids. The older generation are tired of it all, are living with the ramifications of their bad decisions/circumstances and are just living day to day, while the younger kids are playing video games and hanging with friends, playing the part of gangsta when all they really want is to see their dads/moms. If you switch out their color from black/brown to white, your perception of what they are doing would become "oh they are just kids being kids." Somehow when their color darkens, those same immature/silliness activities become negative...very strange.
An influx of newcomers can actually drive the economy and spur job growth and opportunity. It's not like there's a static number of jobs and that every new person who comes must be taking a job away from someone who already lives here. That's just not how it works.
BPerone, I think it used to be the case that people were tough and hard, but I think now, and really over the last 5-7 years especially, these kids are no longer hard (In NYC that is). They talk a good game, but the vast majority (in my opinion) are just playing along to fit in. There really are no more street fights, cuz they don't want to get their kicks scuffed or their pricey jeans/shirts ripped, and everyone knows the cops will lock you up and their goes the only chance you had to go to school/get a job...who wants to lose all that over silliness? They have seen how that story ends all around them. They look the part, but at the end of the day, they are just like you and me...just trying to live their lives.
This assessment of course has nothing to do with those involved in illicit activities/gangs/drugs, I am just referring to the majority of residents/kids. The older generation are tired of it all, are living with the ramifications of their bad decisions/circumstances and are just living day to day, while the younger kids are playing video games and hanging with friends, playing the part of gangsta when all they really want is to see their dads/moms. If you switch out their color from black/brown to white, your perception of what they are doing would become "oh they are just kids being kids." Somehow when their color darkens, those same immature/silliness activities become negative...very strange.
Now that's real!
Good points all around. +1
The media seems to be scaring the youth into being actual thugs. It's promoting the "thug style" more than ever, but they're half assing the part. That whole mentality needs to be gone.
Can't say that there's not a lot of "true" thugs in the hood, but since they're being emulated- They're obviously considered cool to many.
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