In the past decade, the White population increased significantly in urban cores across the country, bringing changes both sweeping and intimate
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https://wapo.st/3YE0o8Y
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Seems like not just “White people”, but “White people with money” moving in…
I.e. some of the stress encountered by long time residents is more economic than anything else, but when race/ethnicity is the most visible aspect of people (though correlated to SES), and brings with it changes in cultural amenities, it is no surprise that the phenomenon is seen mostly in racial/ethnic terms.
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Really good graphics illustrating the racial changes in each neighborhood.
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Looks like NIMBYism is alive and well, even in communities that need new housing. At least the DC City Council appears to have more sense (or perhaps just less money!) than some other cities:
“The struggle to keep a foothold in the neighborhood extends to public space. At one of two empty lots beside the Safeway and the Waterfront Metro station, the local farmers market sets up on Saturday mornings; every other Friday in warm months, a night market with local food and vendors and live bands attracts a diverse crowd of families, seniors, and new and old residents.
After learning in May that the lots were up for sale, Southwest DC Action members circulated a petition asking the city to purchase them and give them to the Douglass Community Land Trust, where McKinney is a board member. The idea would be to preserve the open area as a public gathering spot.
The lots last changed hands in 2008, and since then the owners had tried to get the zoning changed from commercial to residential and build nearly 600 units. In the meantime, McKinney told the crowd at a June rally, the space had become “a casual place where people could hang out outside without paying $12 for a cocktail.”
Later in the summer, McKinney and other Southwest DC Action members took the petition, which by then surpassed 1,000 signatures, to the mayor’s office, but it failed to gain traction among city officials.”
I also find it ironic that just a few months ago, based on the same data, WaPo was celebrating the growth of mixed race (suburban) communities as “a quiet milestone: For the first time in modern American history, most White people live in mixed-race neighborhoods”:
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This note was at the bottom of the article when I clicked it:
“You were gifted this article by a Post subscriber. Want to read more?”
Thank you to the anonymous subscriber! Whoever you are.
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“A decline in crime starting in the early 1990s also probably played a part, he said.”
So now we’ll see which way the flow of people goes in the next decade.
that’s me, the original poster of this thread.
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Different phenomena. One urban, one suburban.
The WaPo appears to be endorsing the idea that non-white families moving to white neighborhoods is good, while white families moving to non-white neighborhoods is bad. It’s ridiculous since you can’t have one without the other.
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I don’t agree with this interpretation of the article at all. My takeaway is that newcomers to traditional minority communities have the unwanted effect of making it more difficult for old-timers and their families to stay and enjoy what they have there, by raising rents/housing prices and crowding out traditional amenities. I have a lot of experience with Chinatown in Manhattan–my daughter went to school through 8th grade at three different schools there–and for sure it’s been a big problem for the various Chinese-American communities who live there.
My daughter lives in one of the cities mentioned but not featured.
Definitely describes her neighborhood. So much building! New townhouses built with tax abatements. Coffee shops, fancy restaurants abound. With fancy cars.
And then there are pockets that haven’t been improved interspersed. If you buy one of those places, no tax relief. So they get bought, torn down and new boxes of townhomes are built.
There are two supermarkets within a half mile so no food deserts. Daughter lived in a couple of food deserts in the last town she lived in. It was quite sad.
Although I am happy for the renaissance of these neighborhoods, the ethnic flavor is replaced with boujee upper middle class replacement.
Try substituting “white” for “minority” in that sentence and see how it sounds…
My objection is to WaPo framing this as a matter of race. Saying “poor” instead of either “white” or “minority” would be a more productive and less divisive debate, and actually relevant to the real question of how to deal with gentrification.
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Again, I disagree. Minority communities lose a lot when they are broken up. They have unique strengths and burdens and togetherness in a community helps them deal with being visible minorities and pass their strengths on to their children.
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I agree with the previous comment. Try to substitute “white “ to your statement above and see how it sounds
So you believe that visible minorities are burdened with the same societal problems as white communities?
Meant to reply to the two previous posters.
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You post doesn’t belong here. It belongs to political forum and I hope it will gets moved there or close
I think I see what @oldmom is trying to say here.
Cities used to be pockets of communities. It feels as if in my kids new neighborhood, it’s being replaced by upper middle class singles and couples. It’s becoming more generic and more expensive. You don’t know or interact with your neighbors. You live in a beautiful sterile box, walk your dog and go to work in your expensive import car. You don’t even see many school age children. Babies yes, dog walkers definitely!
But not neighbors out, with their music on conversing with the other families in the neighborhood.
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Not debating here but this sounds very like the “save our homes” tax cap (limited raise in property tax/year) that has occurred in our very white community. Prices and potential taxes are outrunning the people who actually created the community they live in. It’s a real problem for people of every color, age and income. The arguments in both directions have gone on for years so this isn’t anything new.
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No debate here. I agree