SA is still the little Stepsister (San Antonio, Austin: sales, purchase, school district)

[majormadmax]

Originally Posted by erio3

I agree with you. Moderator cut: see comment

Luckily, the younger generations are more open minded and forward thinking and that is a great thing!

We must move forward and change this city into a more diverse and open place for all cultures to feel welcomed.

Good luck with that.

Moderator cut: see comment

[smuboy86]

Moderator cut: off-topic San Antonio is changing for the better. It may not be as seen on the the far westside or out along the deathloop (I can say that, I remember when everyone called 1604 that). Inside 410 is changing and urbanizing, it's where people who actually care about the city live, work and play. How can you not want better public transportation or a new arts center, even conservative old money olmos park, Terrell hills and AH contribute to make San Antonio better and lead by example by supporting the various initiatives to make San Antonio a better place

[huckster]

Has to be Mexican or Tex or American ? That is what we are. Culture comes along with the history,
it is a teriific blend here, of cultures.
There are far more dreary and less colorful places than San Antonio in the U.S. Like Austin.

Originally Posted by Cramowheat

I've experienced this as well, BenN...it wasn't like that when we moved to SA the first time (late 90's). The vibe, if you will, has changed. I would like to see SA embrace some different cultures; it can only make the city better. Not everything has to be Mexican or Tex; I understand that we are near the border and the demographics, etc. but it would fun to have more variety.

[huckster]

I think not. The dominant culture here is American. American laws, holidays,language,products
on store shelves etc. I am sure this city would accept any ethnicity into the fold, yes. This is a matter
of attracting these immigrants here, to San Antonio.
When I lived in the Detroit, Michigan area there were many,many immigrant groups. Detroit is a port town. These immigrants settled into different areas according to ethnicity. Corktown-(Irish) , Greektown, Mexicantown( right next to Canada), Hamtrammack( Polish ), Frenchtown- south of the city, Koreantown, Dearborn (Arabic), and of course Detroit itself is 85% African American, the Slavic groups also came but did not settle into just one area nor did the Indians or Pakistanis. All assimilate quite readily into American society.
The Canadians have such a simillar culture to the U.S. that there is no influence from across the border except for commerce and tourism. They all watch Amercan t.v programming and get the same cable television stations !
With the exception of one of these groups. I am not bigoted or racist or prejudiced, firstly.
However, it was noticeable that Arabic peoples clung to their old cultural customs and habits without fail.
They were more closed off from American society, less accepting of American ways. But things are changing.
The oppression of women only seems to last a generation or two it seemed, by the time daughters reach maturity many had adopted modern American Attire sometimes keeping their head cover, mostly not. Some
times it would take three generations but people changed.
Many , many festivals occur in Detroit all of the time, annually, mostly in the suburbs some downtown..
It isn't any different really at all,from here, just dirtier, mostly just native cuisines and street clutter, signage in native languages advertising local businesses.
All of these people...
They all had a reason to immigrate there- for the automobile industry jobs. If one went to a large fruit and vegetable store, and there are many, it was weird, many different languages could be heard all at one time !
San Antonio has no such magnet as a huge manufacturing base. No free land to inhabit, etc.
I am sure we are accepting to the establishment of foreign businesses and ethnicities here.There were many
originally, but they were absorbed into, the American, the dominant culture and have faded away. There is still much influence from Germans of course,New Braunfels and such,and Czechs, Poles also of course. But eventually all become Americans here after one generation. This is great. That is true acceptance.

Originally Posted by BenjaminNicholas

And this is where I take issue: Folks who preach for non-progress, saying we should stick to the status quo and just be happy with it. Why? I'm young, successful and I want more from my city. I don't see anything wrong with that. If you want this city to succeed, you must accept it moving forward, not sideways. In life, if you're always just treading water, you're eventually dead. There's no reasonable reason I can't expect this from San Antonio without being told to move to 'a bigger city.'

News flash: We're nearly 2 million people. We're not a cow-town anymore.

Sacrifice of existing culture? Not likely. The Hispanic culture is so dominant here that inviting in other cultures to expand and plant roots will only help even things out, not overwhelm what's already here.

I preach for progress and from the looks of it, there's a slew of young SA'ers who are doing exactly the same. Thankfully, we have a mayor that is of like mind. This city is on the move and I'm excited to see what we can achieve over the next 10 years.



BN

[huckster]

San Antonio is accepting of diversity, it has to be. All of the people here living together in this mixing
bowl of a town interact peaceably. Undercurrents of tension are there, divisions, yes, but this is a
backwards state(conservative) so things will change more slowly here. I can see the difference in
attitudes as time has passed since I was a kid. Max is right. On horseback or not.
This is one heck of a town...

Originally Posted by BenjaminNicholas

By my count, it seems your mal opinion on diverse growth in SA is seriously under-supported in this thread.

I reckon you might just want to mosey on back to your horse, saddle up proper and gallop out of town before the threat of the Model T comes your way.




BN

[Merovee]

Originally Posted by huckster

I think not. The dominant culture here is American. American laws, holidays,language,products
on store shelves etc. I am sure this city would accept any ethnicity into the fold, yes. This is a matter
of attracting these immigrants here, to San Antonio.
When I lived in the Detroit, Michigan area there were many,many immigrant groups. Detroit is a port town. These immigrants settled into different areas according to ethnicity. Corktown-(Irish) , Greektown, Mexicantown( right next to Canada), Hamtrammack( Polish ), Frenchtown- south of the city, Koreantown, Dearborn (Arabic), and of course Detroit itself is 85% African American, the Slavic groups also came but did not settle into just one area nor did the Indians or Pakistanis. All assimilate quite readily into American society.
The Canadians have such a simillar culture to the U.S. that there is no influence from across the border except for commerce and tourism. They all watch Amercan t.v programming and get the same cable television stations !
With the exception of one of these groups. I am not bigoted or racist or prejudiced, firstly.
However, it was noticeable that Arabic peoples clung to their old cultural customs and habits without fail.
They were more closed off from American society, less accepting of American ways. But things are changing.
The oppression of women only seems to last a generation or two it seemed, by the time daughters reach maturity many had adopted modern American Attire sometimes keeping their head cover, mostly not. Some
times it would take three generations but people changed.
Many , many festivals occur in Detroit all of the time, annually, mostly in the suburbs some downtown..
It isn't any different really at all,from here, just dirtier, mostly just native cuisines and street clutter, signage in native languages advertising local businesses.
All of these people...
They all had a reason to immigrate there- for the automobile industry jobs. If one went to a large fruit and vegetable store, and there are many, it was weird, many different languages could be heard all at one time !
San Antonio has no such magnet as a huge manufacturing base. No free land to inhabit, etc.
I am sure we are accepting to the establishment of foreign businesses and ethnicities here.There were many
originally, but they were absorbed into, the American, the dominant culture and have faded away. There is still much influence from Germans of course,New Braunfels and such,and Czechs, Poles also of course. But eventually all become Americans here after one generation. This is great. That is true acceptance.

Excellent comparisons and explanation to why we are exactly what we are now.

Tis true that American culture is dominant here. Thanks for adding that in it does put the conversation we are all having in greater context.

[Cramowheat]

Merovee, I have to disagree... I guess it's what your own personal perception of "American culture" is. Being from the "American" culture I'm used to here. I also have the benefit of having lived here once before, and as I said, it is much different this time.
I would have thought San Antonio might have become a bit more forward-thinking, but I feel quite the reverse. Yes, we all realize that hispanics are the majority, etc., etc. but I think SA could be so much more if other cultures felt welcome... or even just people from other parts of THIS country.
Reading the newspaper often, as I do, I'm quite shocked at the divisiveness I see among posters.

[imaterry78259]

Originally Posted by TexasRedneck

It's always funny to me how folks wanna be "all that" about Austin. Get out of downtown, and it's nasty, with neighborhoods that make SA's worst look upscale!

I agree

[imaterry78259]

Sinatra almost single handed made Las Vegas what it is today. SA > needs to think bigger we are no longer a cow town as our neighbors to the north think

[huckster]

It is true people think of S.A. as an overgrown one horse town.

Originally Posted by imaterry78259

Sinatra almost single handed made Las Vegas what it is today. SA > needs to think bigger we are no longer a cow town as our neighbors to the north think