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I'm going to venture to point out that there is a definite snobbery that goes on in Portland these days among those who now feel they "own" it. I lived in the neighborhood along Hawthorne, The Buckman Neighborhood, which was the first to become gentrified. We had a mix of everything before gentrification. Neighbors were friendly. They had community block parties, yard sales and barbecues. People said "Hello" if you passed them on the street even if they didn't know you.
Fast forward to today. I am only going to speak for the elderly because I am old. The last five or so years I lived in that neighborhood I felt a distinct disdain coming from the young Yuppies and Hipsters who have all but taken over the neighborhood. No "Hellos" just eyes diverted when they passed me by even if I tried to say "Hello." My apartment building went from a mix of ages to all twenty and thirty somethings. Some cordial and friendly to one another but not to the few older people remaining in the building. No more community events anywhere in the 'hood to which everyone was invited.
The reason I bring this up is because the one elderly hold-out still living in my former apartment building who is a lively, friendly 80 year old just emailed me saying pretty much what I have said here. She said she misses the community the apartment complex and the neighborhood once had. She says she feels a stranger in the place where she has lived for so long a time.
The new guard has taken over. They want to deal only with those like themselves. It's a big change from the way things used to be but changes happen. It's one of the things that makes me not miss the neighborhood I once loved so much and Portland in general. Let the new people live as they wish, I don't have to deal with it any longer, but those who want to relocate should know that Portland does have a certain class system and that not everyone fits in.
Great points, Minerva! One of the reasons I like SW Portland and the area I live in here in Beaverton is there are a lot Boomers who remind me of my parents.�� I grew up with heir inclusive values and I find a lot of people in that age group to be the neighbors who say "hi "when I walk to my kids' schools. The people my age out here seem way less hip than in my old trendy NE Portland hood which is fine because I have been met with way more friendliness. It was shocking at first!�� What the hell has happened to people acknowledging each other and nnot being so self absorbed? The Portland " cooler than school" attitude is going to be the city's downfall.
and yes, as the man says "Being black in Portland means that your play cousin might actually be your cousin.". This is very much true.
also another good point
"Portlanders love the idea of black people as long as they don’t have to deal with the reality of black life here, because that reality often comes off like an inconvenient buzzkill."
*stealth edit*
Heres a video that I also thought would fit
Last edited by Ss4gogeta0; 07-27-2016 at 05:16 PM..
Is there any African American influx to the Portland area? or black people who wanna move to Pacific NW typically choose Seattle? Seems like black pop. is shrinking in Portland?
I grew up between Fremont & Alberta in NE portland, went to sabin in the early 2000s and ended up moving back and forth between Portland, OR & Sacramento, CA throughout my life... I've seen the alberta gentrification with my own eyes, Hardly anyone I grew up with lives in North East Portland anymore. White people tried to buy my grandparents out of their home with a literal briefcase full of cash, but my grandparents held fast due to owning that house since the 70s and now they are the only african american family on their entire block. the (now) white neighbors have gotten really less friendly in the last few years to them and there were already a few conflicts between my black family and them... I'ts a real cluster**** of a mess. Grant High School was white... very white... compared to Jeff and hell, even Benson. Wish I would have went to Jeff...
also, you might notice that I have a really light skin tone, thats because im only half black. My mother is a Latina.
I thought that Grant and Roosevelt were usually around 20-25% Black. Of course they aren't predominately Black like Jefferson or as black as Benson, which is usually in the 30-33% Black range, but 1 out of 4 or 5 students being Black doesn't seem to be that bad. Isn't Madison usually in that 20-25% Black range too?
It seems like if Portland was just the eastern part of the city, it would probably feel like a more diverse city. While the city is about 6-8% Black, depending on who you include, it seems like that half of the city, if it was its own city may be around 10-12% Black.
Also, it seems like more Black people in the area are moving to parts of Gresham or Vancouver, with some maybe going to Beaverton.
It is interesting that it was the first city in the country, west of the Mississippi River to have an NAACP chapter and the state I believe, had a ban on Blacks moving into the state at one time.
Last edited by ckhthankgod; 07-28-2016 at 06:57 AM..
The Portland area--love it or hate it--represents ethno-national socialism at work: the population is progressive, educated, and non-religious; but it also has a very negative view of blacks. Much of it has to do with a Caucasian population where many have little to no exposure to blacks, and a general avoidance that just happens as a result of that. The discomfort many whites feel when a black male is in their presence is very obvious, even though those same people tend to consider themselves liberal or democrat. I have to add that you shouldn't hold it against the people here--they honestly don't have much exposure and what little they do is a very poor community that has been segregated. Asians, hispanics, and other non-black communities might not have to deal with the same reality. Portland and Boston have this blight upon their liberality, and hopefully it will soon change.
The Portland area--love it or hate it--represents ethno-national socialism at work: the population is progressive, educated, and non-religious; but it also has a very negative view of blacks. Much of it has to do with a Caucasian population where many have little to no exposure to blacks, and a general avoidance that just happens as a result of that. The discomfort many whites feel when a black male is in their presence is very obvious, even though those same people tend to consider themselves liberal or democrat. I have to add that you shouldn't hold it against the people here--they honestly don't have much exposure and what little they do is a very poor community that has been segregated. Asians, hispanics, and other non-black communities might not have to deal with the same reality. Portland and Boston have this blight upon their liberality, and hopefully it will soon change.
Portland transplants tend to be from very white places so Portland is what makes them comfortable. They don't know any different. My husband is mixed race POC, though not black, and he felt unwelcome by the white male population. We moved to Beaverton for some diversity. That's where you find the diversity... In the burbs! Churches everywhere. I just started going to Sunday food truck night at the SW Bible Church and I am a Catholic! We are all welcome! Hey, who doesn't like hearing about Jesus with their fries?! Yup, there is religious diversity and openness in the metro but you gotta get out of Portland to see it DAILY! There is still a very low African American and African population in the burbs but the one that exists here is more middle class and included in the general population. Portland is very segregated.
The Portland area--love it or hate it--represents ethno-national socialism at work: the population is progressive, educated, and non-religious; but it also has a very negative view of blacks. Much of it has to do with a Caucasian population where many have little to no exposure to blacks, and a general avoidance that just happens as a result of that. The discomfort many whites feel when a black male is in their presence is very obvious, even though those same people tend to consider themselves liberal or democrat. I have to add that you shouldn't hold it against the people here--they honestly don't have much exposure and what little they do is a very poor community that has been segregated. Asians, hispanics, and other non-black communities might not have to deal with the same reality. Portland and Boston have this blight upon their liberality, and hopefully it will soon change.
The difference is that Boston is actually around 25% Black and has multiple cities in its metro with visible to even high Black and Hispanic populations.
Also, I thought that western Gresham and parts of Vancouver WA also have enough Black people to know that they are there.
I thought that Grant and Roosevelt were usually around 20-25% Black. Of course they aren't predominately Black like Jefferson or as black as Benson, which is usually in the 30-33% Black range, but 1 out of 4 or 5 students being Black doesn't seem to be that bad. Isn't Madison usually in that 20-25% Black range too?
It seems like if Portland was just the eastern part of the city, it would probably feel like a more diverse city. While the city is about 6-8% Black, depending on who you include, it seems like that half of the city, if it was its own city may be around 10-12% Black.
Also, it seems like more Black people in the area are moving to parts of Gresham or Vancouver, with some maybe going to Beaverton.
It is interesting that it was the first city in the country, west of the Mississippi River to have an NAACP chapter and the state I believe, had a ban on Blacks moving into the state at one time.
when I was going to Grant, it felt like there were alot less black people than that... I knew most of them, either through my cousin who also went there or just from prior schools (king, Sabin, etc)
but yea, alot of black students ended up transferring over to jeff from what I remember. plus there was that gang war going on, a number of people I knew were getting shot, I got shot at. it was wild back then, I remember when Andre Payton got killed... Went to Sabin with him, Mrs Kreuzers class. RIP
same with Rashaad Banks, I remember when he got shot out in NE and the class having a moment of silence for him. on alberta, during last thursday there was always conflict between gang members and fights breaking out, shootings happened aswell. I remember at a couple funerals there were shootings too...
Portland transplants tend to be from very white places so Portland is what makes them comfortable. They don't know any different. My husband is mixed race POC, though not black, and he felt unwelcome by the white male population. We moved to Beaverton for some diversity. That's where you find the diversity... In the burbs! Churches everywhere. I just started going to Sunday food truck night at the SW Bible Church and I am a Catholic! We are all welcome! Hey, who doesn't like hearing about Jesus with their fries?! Yup, there is religious diversity and openness in the metro but you gotta get out of Portland to see it DAILY! There is still a very low African American and African population in the burbs but the one that exists here is more middle class and included in the general population. Portland is very segregated.
It's interesting you bring up the black people that come from predominantly white areas, I haven't thought of that until this past year (I'm 43). One thing that I have found out about Denver, Co from an old friend of mine (originally from Virginia) that has lived there since the 90's, is that black people there generally tend to prefer the company of whites they don't know vs. blacks they don't know of. He sees this when attending meeting ups and other social events. I have seen some of this behavior from black people here in the Portland area (I'm black myself). One San Franciscan friend that I have made out here since moving here for business a year ago, told me that the farther west-word you go in the US, the less prosperity you find among the black communities. This is actually a stark contrast from what you find in the east coast, which is very friendly relations between most peoples of color and whites too--despite the hype you see in the media. I should also note that cities in the east coast are rather continuous and inter-connected, this doesn't seem to be the case here in the west coast, where I am told cities are comparatively isolated and competing with each other.
I am trying, now, to figure out why the black communities are so much worse off in the western part of the country when compared with the east. I'm guessing there are a multitude of reasons. When I first arrived, I experienced a very rude awakening--people avoiding me, behaving fearful, sometimes looking at me with disgust--things that I had NEVER experienced in life spanning more than 4 decades at the time. It was extremely depressing. It's been a year and now I've grown used to this, you can say that I live around it. I'm also aware that not everyone is like that, transplants from areas in the east coast and midwest, and even the Seattle area that have lived around prosperous diversity tend to not freak out. Californians are a mixed bag. Anyways, this experience as a whole does have me curious; the problem is that I do not know what to do with this newfound curiosity.
It's interesting you bring up the black people that come from predominantly white areas, I haven't thought of that until this past year (I'm 43). One thing that I have found out about Denver, Co from an old friend of mine (originally from Virginia) that has lived there since the 90's, is that black people there generally tend to prefer the company of whites they don't know vs. blacks they don't know of. He sees this when attending meeting ups and other social events. I have seen some of this behavior from black people here in the Portland area (I'm black myself). One San Franciscan friend that I have made out here since moving here for business a year ago, told me that the farther west-word you go in the US, the less prosperity you find among the black communities. This is actually a stark contrast from what you find in the east coast, which is very friendly relations between most peoples of color and whites too--despite the hype you see in the media. I should also note that cities in the east coast are rather continuous and inter-connected, this doesn't seem to be the case here in the west coast, where I am told cities are comparatively isolated and competing with each other.
I am trying, now, to figure out why the black communities are so much worse off in the western part of the country when compared with the east. I'm guessing there are a multitude of reasons. When I first arrived, I experienced a very rude awakening--people avoiding me, behaving fearful, sometimes looking at me with disgust--things that I had NEVER experienced in life spanning more than 4 decades at the time. It was extremely depressing. It's been a year and now I've grown used to this, you can say that I live around it. I'm also aware that not everyone is like that, transplants from areas in the east coast and midwest, and even the Seattle area that have lived around prosperous diversity tend to not freak out. Californians are a mixed bag. Anyways, this experience as a whole does have me curious; the problem is that I do not know what to do with this newfound curiosity.
So SF has a very racist history but The East Bay is where the middle class- upper middle class - affluent African American families live ad have lived in Bay Area. The African American influence is felt throughout the greater community in East Bay. Many of my parents' friends in Bay Area are now in their 70's and have masters degrees, medical degrees and are retiring from professional careers. Their parents came from the south for opportunities in the west. The west coast is a funny place... I know. I lived in NYC for a long time and then moved to Portland. Culture shock. The difference between Portland and other west coast cities is the institutionalized racism that has limited the opportunities for POC, especially African Americans. Growing up in SF I knew black doctors, teachers, nurses... this was the early 70's. Here. Seems like institutional racism has truly kept the African American population down. There was still red lining in the 90's and do your research about PPS and you will be mad. I was and school equity is now a passion of mine. Portland is unique compared to other west coast cities IMO. Recent transplants to west coast cities are not representative of those of us who have grown up here. We tend to be inclusive without knowing it or talking about it. There is also more passive aggressive racism here than the east coast. It takes a while to get used to but I could not deal with Portland and found a more diverse population out here in Beaverton.
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