Read the following look at racial demographics in America's most "progressive" small cities in yesterday's paper: http://www.newgeography.com/content/001110-the-white-city, an interesting take made even more so by the comments at the end. A bit of a long read, but worth it.
Spent a bit of time in San Francisco some years back, and my experiences there seem to validate the author's contentions. Almost to a man (politically incorrect phrase, I know. Don't like it? I don't give a shit), residents of Sodom-by-the Bay seem to think that they are the most forward-thinking, tolerant and open-minded people in the world. They think most of American society would do well to learn from them, to become the enlightened people they think they are. Our cities should be run the way theirs is.
All the while, though, the city has become even more insulated and more homogeneous. Property values escalated as educated “whites” flocked to this West Coast Eden. Working class people of all shapes, sizes, and ethnicities found it nearly impossible to afford to live within the city limits, and if they could it was in some segregated community outside of the city’s heart. A quick look at SF today shows that racial make-up similar to those mentioned in the linked article. Further research indicates that fewer than half of the residents are in a “family” situation. I daresay that their county hospitals aren’t pumping out 20,000+ “illegal” babies every year (like those in my town). Hence such mundane necessities as public education and affordable housing are back-burner issues, leaving more money for cultural improvements. Educated elites further fill the city, driving up property values and driving out the remaining working class.
All the while, though, the city has become even more insulated and more homogeneous. Property values escalated as educated “whites” flocked to this West Coast Eden. Working class people of all shapes, sizes, and ethnicities found it nearly impossible to afford to live within the city limits, and if they could it was in some segregated community outside of the city’s heart. A quick look at SF today shows that racial make-up similar to those mentioned in the linked article. Further research indicates that fewer than half of the residents are in a “family” situation. I daresay that their county hospitals aren’t pumping out 20,000+ “illegal” babies every year (like those in my town). Hence such mundane necessities as public education and affordable housing are back-burner issues, leaving more money for cultural improvements. Educated elites further fill the city, driving up property values and driving out the remaining working class.
Yeah, real progress
1 comment:
Hater.
Seriously, very good article. I think the guy who wrote it won't be invited back to the next "Fair Trade Coffee Expo" in Portland.
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