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There is no trying to see past race... You either do or you don't. The older I get I really realize how many people have problems with people different from themselves. Maybe I'm a fool because all I see is the human race, our one race possesses many different colors, dialects, face and body features... I can go on but it ain't that hard to get along people, it isn't easy but it's not hard lol.
I understand why minorities prefer diverse areas but your situation hardly applies to whites. Would you reject an all Asian neighborhood?
Having a Filipino wife I guess there might be some areas I would not like. We once got a couple nasty looks when we went into a East Texas stop n go. Nasty enough for me to put my hand in my front pocket and grasp my knife with a 4.5" blade just in case. I just can't see any real advantage to a white couple of having racial diversity. Do not get me wrong. I do not see any disadvantage either.
The town I came from was like yours. There was one Asian (Vietnamese) pair of siblings in my school. Everyone else was white. I moved to diverse Houston . The color of the gals I dated changed. Not much else.
You are right, what I said does not apply to whites. It is in defense of minorities wanting to live where there are other minorities. I thought this thread was about why people ask to live in diverse communities? Or is it about why white people want to live in a diverse community?
Honestly, I probably would reject an all Asian neighborhood. I would want my children exposed to people of different backgrounds and be able to have an open discussion with them. If I did live in an all-Asian neighborhood, I would still want them to have some sort of exposure.
well, your experience is yours, and I have to say that we are all who we are through experiences.
The only time I experienced some kind of difficulties is when my ex boyfriend took me to the small southern town where he grew up. Don't get me wrong, people are super nice and friendly, but you can`t move to a small town without being bored as hell if you are from somewhere where the population is actually over 30 000+
It is a tough little town has been dying for 50 years.
No, I can't imagine being the ONLY black, hispanic, asian, or muslim in a small town like that. But I like the people there, they have their own mentality.
Nothing wrong with being from a small town. People in general were friendly, it's not like I felt they were hateful or "bad" people. Imagine being white and moving to Asia or Africa without any other white people around you. I am pretty sure it would be a comparable experience.
Nothing wrong with being from a small town. People in general were friendly, it's not like I felt they were hateful or "bad" people. Imagine being white and moving to Asia or Africa without any other white people around you. I am pretty sure it would be a comparable experience.
It is.
I don't think most people look for a diverse neighborhood is just being pc. Perhaps just look for acceptance.
I was a small town white male fresh out of college when I moved to NYC. I wanted to live in Manhattan and with my very low paying job that meant the affordable neighborhoods were rundown and with large populations Latinos and African-Americans. After the couple of months of feeling shocked and awed it was home base and it was fine, and I made all my friends from the neighborhood - white, African-American, Latinos. I really loved it for decades, though less when it gentrified. When I had to move, what I could afford was another racially and ethnically mixed neighborhood, but with lots more commerce.
My salary only ever afforded mixed neighborhoods. It became my norm because I could afford it, and I was happy with my life there.
As I wrote elsewhere, I visited a retirement community for five weeks that was all white and people with quite homogeneous backgrounds, I was bored. Skin color, education level and current income wasn't enough commonality.
I suppose if 58 years ago if my parents had been able and willing to pay the high rents for an apartment in an overwhelming white Manhattan neighborhood for me, I might have done it. However, that wasn't in the books for many reason, And I went where my salary could take me: in today's terms, a rundown diverse neighborhood. I've never considered that life screwed me, quite the contrary - I did benefit from that neighborhood experience and because of that I was comfortable in slightly better diverse neighborhoods at later periods.
For that reason it's my norm.
To be honest, though, I cannot pretend to have more than a superficial understanding of feeling a political need to buy into a diverse neighborhood. My beginning experience was driven solely by my poor income, and I grew to like the diversity. I have never felt a moral imperative to live in such a neighborhood.
So, in our local city thread, we just had another person say they are looking for a diverse neighborhood. I've read, I'm not sure how many of them over the years, and I find it strange.
Keep in mind, I'm talking about when people are asking for a "diverse neighborhood" and not asking about a specific race, ethnicity or nationality.
If you are from Japan, and you want a neighborhood where there are other Japanese people, because you want that connection with other people who know what you are talking about when discussing Japan or plan to have your children continue speaking some Japanese which would be easier with other Japanese families as neighbors, that's fine.
I can understand any race, ethnicity or nationality wanting that, but it's the diversity for the sake of diversity that makes me question motives. Additionally, it almost always seems to be white people. I see people from India moving and asking where other Indians live. I have seen people from Venezuela asking where there might be neighborhoods with people from Venezuela or other South American countries. I've seen black people asking about neighborhoods where middle class blacks live. But it seems that the only people asking for this generic "diverse neighborhoods" tend to be white people.
I can practically see their subconscious say, "Well, since I don't socialize with anyone but white people, maybe if I live in a diverse neighborhood I can tell Javier that I have a Hispanic neighbor and a black neighbor when we do our business lunch every six weeks."
In most decent sized cities, it's fairly easy to be exposed to different cultures and even make friends with people with other backgrounds than you with very little effort. Taking your wife to a Salsa class, volunteering at a shelter, mentoring a parolee, going regularly to a jazz club, being involved in a hobby, etc, etc are all ways to meet and befriend all sorts of people. However, I suppose it's much easier to move into that "diverse" neighborhood and occasionally wave to the Asian man at the end of the street and say good morning as you walk past him.
There are also plenty of opportunities to meet a variety of people through work for a majority of the population.
I select a neighborhood based upon things like proximity to work and leisure activities that I like. My only preference for a neighbor is that they are pleasant to be around and a good neighbor. As long as they meet those prerequisites, I don't care what their race or ethnicity is.
People are people. The only reason to seek out a different race or ethnicity than yourself for no other reason than them being different means that you view them as different.
Well, that's my vent for the day.
Let's discuss.
What these people are NOT looking for is socioeconomic diversity.
I was a small town white male fresh out of college when I moved to NYC. I wanted to live in Manhattan and with my very low paying job that meant the affordable neighborhoods were rundown and with large populations Latinos and African-Americans. After the couple of months of feeling shocked and awed it was home base and it was fine, and I made all my friends from the neighborhood - white, African-American, Latinos. I really loved it for decades, though less when it gentrified. When I had to move, what I could afford was another racially and ethnically mixed neighborhood, but with lots more commerce.
My salary only ever afforded mixed neighborhoods. It became my norm because I could afford it, and I was happy with my life there.
As I wrote elsewhere, I visited a retirement community for five weeks that was all white and people with quite homogeneous backgrounds, I was bored. Skin color, education level and current income wasn't enough commonality.
I suppose if 58 years ago if my parents had been able and willing to pay the high rents for an apartment in an overwhelming white Manhattan neighborhood for me, I might have done it. However, that wasn't in the books for many reason, And I went where my salary could take me: in today's terms, a rundown diverse neighborhood. I've never considered that life screwed me, quite the contrary - I did benefit from that neighborhood experience and because of that I was comfortable in slightly better diverse neighborhoods at later periods.
For that reason it's my norm.
To be honest, though, I cannot pretend to have more than a superficial understanding of feeling a political need to buy into a diverse neighborhood. My beginning experience was driven solely by my poor income, and I grew to like the diversity. I have never felt a moral imperative to live in such a neighborhood.
i dont want to live in a diverse neighborhood, i want to live with my own heritage, my own culture, I dont need pants around the knees or boom boxes in the am, I want my neighbor to be the mirror image of me. That what i grew up with, other people culture and lifestyle doesnt compliment my moral upbringing. If chinese want china town. Im ok with that. we have an africian town here, no its on the city maps as that. im ok with that too
i dont want to live in a diverse neighborhood, i want to live with my own heritage, my own culture, I dont need pants around the knees or boom boxes in the am, I want my neighbor to be the mirror image of me. That what i grew up with, other people culture and lifestyle doesnt compliment my moral upbringing. If chinese want china town. Im ok with that. we have an africian town here, no its on the city maps as that. im ok with that too
But not all diverse neighborhoods have these stereotypical images you speak about here.
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