That’s what my aunt jokingly wanted to know when she accompanied my uncle to Utah for his brother’s funeral.
I thought that question was in poor taste on so many levels, but I couldn’t come up with a quick retort.
Why I thought it was wrong:
1. The question implied that one group of people could be “kept” by another. 2. The question suggested that my aunt was observing people and assigning colors to them. 3. The question implied that a single ethnic group could lay claim to a color, ignoring the fact that many ethnic groups, including Maori and other Pacific Islanders, Native Australians, and Africans often refer to themselves as black. 4. The question was said in a manner to express disappointment at not being able to find an individual of the preferred ethnicity.
Does it make any difference to know that my aunt is of African descent or that she is a college-educated professional?
While I am on the subject, I might repeat an infrequently asked question: "where are Hatrack’s black people?" I'm pretty sure they would have announced their presence if they were here.
When the Hispanics and Asians here at Hatrack declare their ethnicity in their posts, I believe they are doing so to give us a feel for their background. By simply knowing their ethnicity, we get a feel for the kinds of traditions and culture they might have had in their homes growing up; there’s the possibility of a second language being spoken in the home; there’s the history of hardships that come with being part of an ethnic minority. So expressing one’s ethnicity is often a quick way of saying a lot.
Perhaps Hatrack's Asians and Hispanics also declare their ethnicity because they are interested in finding others with a common background, and that common background becomes fuel for thread discussions. However, I'm sure that we all have enough in common that we could find plenty of topics to discuss even if we were to discover that we were the only African here.
If one of Hatrack’s Hispanics or Asians came to Utah for a funeral, would he keep an eye out for other Hispanics and Asians? Would he feel a sense of relief and kinship when he found someone of his ethnicity? Would he go right up to that person and immediately have a dozen things in common to talk about? I wouldn’t think so. Neither would a person of European descent go looking for other Europeans when attending a funeral in China, unless said European suspected that prejudice against Europeans was prevalent in China and wanted to observe how other Europeans were treated in China.
I think that’s what my aunt really wanted to express. She didn’t see any other people of African descent in Utah and maybe wondered if people of her ethnicity were not welcome here or not treated well. Given the history of racial prejudice against people of African descent, I could see how that might be a constant question in the back of her mind: "how are black people faring in these parts."
I’m glad that I didn’t say anything to my aunt about her question.
Edit: Left out a word.
[ July 07, 2004, 05:35 PM: Message edited by: skillery ]
Posted by Jutsa Notha Name (Member # 4485) on :
Actually, it's probablt the difference from national population statistics that Utah has that caused her to question it. Outside of the larger cities, seeing any ethnicity outside of "white caucasian" is pretty rare in Utah and a few other states. It was noticable when I was there. Of course, I spoke to someone else about it and they told me of a rather rude instance in a hotel there, too: a black couple was told there were no more rooms, and the person I spoke to, who was in line behind them, began leaving right after the black couple. The person I spoke to was stopped and told that there was a room available for them, just not the other couple, with a knowing wink.
The person I spoke to left immediately.
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
Well, she probably didn't mean any harm.
I have heard similar things, and it is like you say at the end of your post -- she just didn't SEE any black people, so in her humorous way was trying to say "where are you hiding them?" Because she noticed an absence of whatever she was expecting.
But then again, I didn't hear her say it, so don't know her tone. But that's just how it rings to me.
Farmgirl
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
I think she was making a flippant comment on the racial homogeneity of the area, which is true. She could have just said, "Man, y'all are a bunch of crackers!"
Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
I'm sick of feeling like I have to apologize for Utah's "homogeneity." One, it's like calling the whole population "cultureless." Two, it's simply not true.
Posted by Book (Member # 5500) on :
I thought up a pretty poor response to the poor question if anyone wants to hear it.
You don't, by the way.
Posted by Annie (Member # 295) on :
The issue here isn't that Utah is cultureless - it's that it's a lot more homogeneous than other major US cities. It's just a relative observation. Utah culture is a lot more streamlined than other areas.
Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
I kind of had the opposite reaction when I returned home to the South after serving a mission in Orange County (where there are many members of nonwhite minorities, but relatively few blacks — mostly hispanics, asians, and islanders).
When I stepped off the airplane, I was like, "Whoah! Black people! I'm home!" And honestly, I'm hard-pressed to figure out what's wrong with that. There is nothing inherently insulting in noticing an individual's race, or in recognizing the racial makeup of your society. I don't think we gain ANYTHING by being so touchy about race that the mere mention of the subject ruffles feathers. People come from different heritages, and have different common features. Noticing these facts doesn't imply contempt or dislike for one race or another. It's just part of being human.
Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
Even so, Annie, people so often make that observation in a way that makes me feel like they want me, a white male, to apologize for it.
And the "City of Utah" does have some cultural diversity to it, in a pleasing spectrum of subtlety. It's not a huge salad like L.A. or N.Y.C., perhaps, but I think it's enough to be above reproach.
Posted by AmkaProblemka (Member # 6495) on :
Watched a movie recently where they were asking someone if they'd seen a guy, big and tall, kind of businesslike? The described person was also black, but that was left out. I wondered what was so offensive that they didn't describe his ethnicity? I mean, what if the person being asked had just seen a big, tall, white guy in a suit?
Am I going to get offended if someone calls me a white girl with auburn hair?
Carefully avoiding a true description of the man puts more stigma on being described as black than describing him as black would have been.
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
quote:more streamlined
I’ll go along with that.
From the LDS perspective on cultural and ethnic diversity in metropolitan Utah, I am aware of several LDS congregations here in the metro area, established for speakers of other languages. One of two 600-member Portuguese-speaking congregations meets in my building. My friend is the bishop of the Navajo ward (congregation) in Provo. There are two Japanese-speaking wards in Salt Lake. There are at least four Tongan wards. There are several Spanish-Speaking wards. There are also Russian, Laotian-Thai, Korean, Samoan, Chinese, and Cambodian congregations, each with 300 to 600 members. And that’s just LDS congregations.
The stated goal of these non-English-speaking congregations is that they are a temporary waypoint for immigrants to ease their integration into the main body. The members of these congregations are urged to join their local, English-speaking congregations as quickly as they feel comfortable. My friend is the branch president of the Portuguese congregation, and he views the members of his congregation as temporary, his job being to get them ready to attend an English-speaking ward.
The Black people in my neighborhood speak English and attend their local ward as one would expect. They don't feel a need to drive clear across town to attend church with other black people. Neither do they have their own corner at the cemetery, nor do they hang out at the airport to welcome black visitors. There is not any particular place one could go around here to satisfy one's burning desire to see a black person. They are "streamlined," meaning they don't stick out.
Posted by maui babe (Member # 1894) on :
quote: Carefully avoiding a true description of the man puts more stigma on being described as black than describing him as black would have been.
This reminds me of a few years ago when I was new in an area, a woman I had just met was explaining her relationships to several people I already knew. She was trying to describe her brother-in-law, and she gave me his name, height, build, coloring, his wife's name, how he usually dressed, what kind of car he drove... finally she whispered to me, "He's the one without an arm." If she'd only said that FIRST, but of course, how insensitive is that?
Posted by Insanity Plea (Member # 2053) on :
For the next time they're behind you, you can answer "Right behind you so they can kick your *** when you make such an inconsiderate remark."
That's just me though, the person probably was just commenting on the homogeniality of the place, but I find myself very offended when race is considered in almost any way shape or form, I don't see it as a factor for anything when comparing people. Of course, my superior skin allows me to almost never burn, and Jackie Chan movies have taught us all Asians are great at martial arts, but that's just genetics. Satyagraha
Posted by Jalapenoman (Member # 6575) on :
I spent three years in Laredo, Texas. The town has a population of almost 200,000 and is 97% hispanic. It has the largest minority population of any city in the United States.
There are only two or three families in the town that are non-hispanic that consider themselves natives to the area (lived there many years). Most non-hispanics are just people that have been transferred in by their companies and then leave after a few years in a different transfer.
I used to have a black man working for me there as my assistant manager. He told me that there were two other black men in town (that were there for the baseball program at the juco) and one family. He said that he had never felt like such a minority in his life, but that he encountered a different kind of prejudice.
For many of the people in the town, he was the first or only black man they had ever seen. Many wanted to know if the stereotypes were true or asked why his palms were not as black as the rest of his skin. A lot of women threw themselves at him for the "honor" of saying that they "dated" a black man. He hated this.
He also hated the fact that he had to drive 2 1/2 hours north to San Antonio just to find someone who knew how to cut his hair.
Utah is not the only place in this country that has few blacks. There are others, like Laredo, that also have few whites, orientals, or indians!
Posted by punwit (Member # 6388) on :
I get really peeved when people won't use the most obvious descriptor when they are talking about a person. There is NOTHING wrong with being, black, white, dusky, or any other desciptive term you can imagine. The onus lies in two areas, your perception of the descriptive term and the message that you include. Simply using the term black to describe someone's skin color is NOT prejudicial.
Posted by aspectre (Member # 2222) on :
"where are Hatrack’s black people?"
Well, except for the occasional visit by Irami Osei-Frimpong, some folks here have pretty much chased AfricanAmericans off this forum fairly quickly after they announce their ethnicity. Nothin' like several threads proclaiming eg "RodneyKing viciously attacked 24 police officers by beating his head and body against police nightsticks." to make this forum sound like a friendly place to discuss ideas. Wouldn't surprise me none if more than a few read-only visitors decided, "Well, that's a bit too friendly for me to wanna join in the conversation."
Kinda like this thread proclaiming insensitivity to white folks' feelin's cuz "my aunt...of African descent" "jokingly wanted to know" "Where do you keep your black people?"
[ July 07, 2004, 11:10 PM: Message edited by: aspectre ]
Posted by Kwea (Member # 2199) on :
I think you may have missed the point of the thread.
Then again, I'm white, so what do I know...
Kwea
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
skillery,
I knew I liked you for "some" reason.
Despite the ridiculous title of your post, I think you raise some pretty interesting questions. More intriguingly, nearly every post that followed it bears witness to the legitimacy of your aunt's question. i.e. This place is soooo white! (well versed, but white, nonetheless)
anyhow, the one bit I didn't get was your judgement that your aunt's remark was "wrong"?
fallow
edit: and while I'm asking questions... why is is that I can NEVER make a single post without a freaking spelling error? damn hatrack gremlins!
[ July 07, 2004, 11:28 PM: Message edited by: fallow ]
Posted by michaele8 (Member # 6608) on :
Annie states,
"The issue here isn't that Utah is cultureless - it's that it's a lot more homogeneous than other major US cities. It's just a relative observation. Utah culture is a lot more streamlined than other areas."
Maybe, but as for the homogeneous nature I'd say that Oakland or Washington DC is more homogeneous (majority black) than Salt Lake City is.
Posted by PSI Teleport (Member # 5545) on :
I thought that Salt Lake had a lot of different cultures. Not many blacks, 'cause apparently they all live in Tooele. But there were quite a few Native Americans, among with some others.
[ July 08, 2004, 12:29 AM: Message edited by: PSI Teleport ]
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
"Streamlined" is not a qualifier I would use to describe DC, or SLC.
Posted by littlemissattitude (Member # 4514) on :
Just want to throw this into the mix.
I'm about as white as it gets (ancestry is English and German), and I definitely notice it if I'm in a crowd of people that is all or nearly all white. It makes me nervous.
Now, you have to understand, I grew up in southern California, which is definitely multicultural. Fresno, the largest city close to where I live now, is also hugely multicultural. And the town I live in is about 80 per cent Hispanic. So I'm used to being around people from all backgrounds and with all shades of skin color. It's a mix I like very much.
So, while I wouldn't have used the specific wording in the title of this thread, I might well have said something like, "It is awfully white around here, isn't it?" I guess I just find it more natural to be around people with a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds.
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
aspectre:
quote:...this thread proclaiming insensitivity to white folks' feelin's
fallow:
quote:...your judgement that your aunt's remark was "wrong"
I've concluded that I was wrong to be offended. I think anybody traveling in a strange place, and finding himself in the minority, is going to be curious to know how others of his ethnic group are faring. However, I think it would have been better in this case to ask directly rather than to affect stereotypical ethnic mannerisms and dredge up painful images of one group "keeping" another.
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
skil,
why on earth are you referring to your aunt as "him"?
fallow
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
fallow:
I'm putting myself (him) in my aunt's shoes. The application seems more universal if I change gender in the middle of the story.
C'mon Fallow, skipping a logical step or two and allowing the audience to fill in the blanks is your trademark. That's what makes your posts so fun. Posted by Kama (Member # 3022) on :
quote:The question implied that one group of people could be “kept” by another.
You mean it can't?
[ July 08, 2004, 02:54 AM: Message edited by: Kama ]
Posted by Lalo (Member # 3772) on :
Er. Heh. Skillery, dude, I think you're reading too much into this.
Imagine you were a white person thrust into a state of startlingly homogenized black people. Let's also toss into the mix a famous stereotype of all-black states, or of states with black elites, that whites are judged to some degree by their skin color and dialect, if not outright persecuted.
Would you notice if you were in a state with no white people?
Colorblindness isn't a virtue. Especially if you're a member of the minority you're supposed to be colorblind to.
Hell, I'd get nervous in Utah, and I'm a big honking gringo. I imagine I'd feel the same if I were fully white. Going from the notable diversity of Los Angeles to staggeringly white Utah would throw me for a loop, at least initially -- and I'm a white boy. I feel for your aunt.
Posted by Ralphie (Member # 1565) on :
aspectre - What the hell are you talking about.
That said, I'm with Annie. She should have called you all cracka's.
Posted by Primal Curve (Member # 3587) on :
Just go to Atlanta sometime.
Posted by advice for robots (Member # 2544) on :
Hey, Eddie, if ever you are in Utah and starting to feel nervous, just get yourself up to the University of Utah campus and scream "Sanctuary!" They'll take you in and help you feel comfortable. Posted by Storm Saxon (Member # 3101) on :
"Have you gone berzerk? Can't you see that man is a ni?"
Posted by Mabus (Member # 6320) on :
quote: Colorblindness isn't a virtue.
So if I'm nervous in Paducah because of all the black people, that's not bad?
Just looking for clarification. It'd be convenient and easy, though not particularly moral IMO, to revert to the standard attitude in my home county.
Posted by A Rat Named Dog (Member # 699) on :
quote:aspectre - What the hell are you talking about.
Thank you, Ralphie. I had the same reaction, but I thought since I don't open every thread, I might have missed something. But aspectre's recounting of Hatrack's history seems really out of character for the place ...
Posted by BannaOj (Member # 3206) on :
Irami is black?
I don't really take notice of ethinicity unless I actually see a picture of a person. Heck I mix up some of the hatrack male and females on a regular basis.
That having been said, I echo lma. It was extremely weird to move from Southern CA to Norman, Oklahoma. I went from being the different minority (in the neighborhood that I lived in) to looking like everyone else. The thing was the people who didn't look like everyone else were shocked that I talked to them. That made me sad.
I feel much more comfortable in Chicago. I also fear less for the one I love, who is multi racial, because here he blends in more.
AJ
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
After all I said yesterday about people not feeling a need to drive across town to be with others of their own ethnic group, I was listening to the sports talk show on KSL radio last evening, and they were talking about why the Utah Jazz is having trouble luring good players, and one reason that was mentioned is that there really isn’t a black community here. Then some guy called in claiming to be black, and he said that all those black basketball players have to do if they want to be with other blacks is to drive to Ogden..."that’s what I do." I think he was lying.
Posted by UofUlawguy (Member # 5492) on :
I haven't noticed a particularly large black population in Ogden. Hispanic, yes, but that doesn't make Ogden all that different from many other Utah communities.
Posted by PSI Teleport (Member # 5545) on :
That ties in with my comment about Tooele. I did notice a lot more black people in Tooele, West Valley, and other 'burbs than I did in the actual center of Salt Lake City.
Regarding "noticing" black people: I was raised in a place with no white people besides my family and a couple others. The majority was black and I feel nervous when I haven't seen any for a while. Maybe it sounds stupid, but I feel more comfortable with blacks than anyone else.
At any rate, seeing a few in West Valley (at Cracka' Barrel) was a breath of fresh air for me.
[ July 08, 2004, 01:47 PM: Message edited by: PSI Teleport ]
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
Cracka' Barrel
Is that the one by the E-Center? I won't even have to drive across town.
Posted by PSI Teleport (Member # 5545) on :
I don't know....it's on City Center Ct. or something like that.
---
edit: I should point out that I have thought of a hundred amusing but inappropriate answers to the title question.
[ July 08, 2004, 03:21 PM: Message edited by: PSI Teleport ]
Posted by James Tiberius Kirk (Member # 2832) on :
quote:"Where are Hatrack’s black people?"
<-- Raises a hand.
Posted by Dan_raven (Member # 3383) on :
Living in Missouri I have visited Branson, quite often.
One would imagine this bastion of WASP culture -- Silver Dollar City which enjoys bringing back the good old days of the 1860's-- would be very pale. The crowds are diverse, and becoming more so every year. My favorite note, when I visited there during their World Culture Tribute, they had shows from around the world. The only show which required you to arrive an hour early if you wanted a seat, was the Caribean Music Show with an all African(Caribean) American cast.
Admitedly, the Dolly Parton Review, which plays up the spledor of traditional Southern life, plantations and formal dresses, was missing anyone with even a good tan (There was more ethnic diversity in the show than there was in the audience of several hundred). It was when I was watching that show that I felt uncomfortable in my Majority-Whiteness. I could imagine someone shouting to the good ole folk on the plantation, "Hey, where you keep your color'd folk?"
Posted by naledge (Member # 392) on :
quote: "where are Hatrack’s black people?"
-raises clinched fist in air in the most militant way possible.
Cool shirt. Where did you get the Dragon Army shirt?
AJ
Posted by naledge (Member # 392) on :
That one of a kind shirt I made myself.(Iron-on transfer) Hatrack sells t-shirts with that design, although smaller, and the other army insignias through their store.
shamelss Plug...
Hatrack Store Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
Oh great, another Ender geek.
nal, are you from Utah, or have you ever been to Utah?
Posted by BannaOj (Member # 3206) on :
hmm it has been a long time since I've been to the hatrack store and even then I didn't think to look at the clothing!
AJ
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
skil,
guilty as charged. touche, etc.
*brakes hard*
hold on now... since when did I ever take a personal story and flip it into an abstract generality drenched with nearly context-less moral judgements?
*ponders*
well, I probably have. carry on!
fallow
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
Oh man, Fallow you really are a stinker
My wife was complaining that my laughing during these late night sessions was disturbing her sleep. So I showed her one of your posts. I think you've got another fan.
Posted by fallow (Member # 6268) on :
*sniffs pits*
I beg your pardon sir! It's not me that stinks, it's that damned bloated goat somebody pinned to me *points yonder cross-wise over threads*.
Please give your wife your best (not mine!) and thank her for her discretion (and excellent taste!) in a suitable fashion.
(and wish me luck this Sat)
fallow
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
*scans threads for a mention of Fallow needing to get lucky*
Oh well...Vegas perhaps?
*wishes Fallow luck anyway*
Posted by Kasie H (Member # 2120) on :
quote:Maybe, but as for the homogeneous nature I'd say that Oakland or Washington DC is more homogeneous (majority black) than Salt Lake City is.
As far as DC goes, I'd say there's a *serious* amount of racial tension -- after all, the majority of the population actually living in the District might be black, but the amount of people *working* in the distract is probably majority white. The government comes to work at 9 and leaves for Maryland and Virginia at 5.
Also, I think it's hard to understand racism, really, until you've lived somewhere all the problems actually *are*. I grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, and all the black kids I met were pretty much exactly like me. I didn't consider myself racist, and I couldn't understand why people talked about racism...I didn't see it anywhere.
I first started figuring it out when I worked at Staples. Staples sells relatively high-value business electronics (computers, laser printers, etc) and sometimes we'd have problems with credit card fraud or bad checks. We'd always size up customers as they shopped to determine whether or not to make sure to double check.
Almost always the people we tagged as potential thieves were black people. I'd say 97% of the time.
And then there's the realities of living in a city. If I'm walking by myself late at night and there's a black man walking on the sidewalk behind or in front of me, I'm more likely to cross the street than if he were white. Granted, other things play into it too -- dress, in particular -- but obviously it's *all* about appearance. That doesn't mean I think black people are all out to get me, or that every black person I see would hurt me. Not at all. It's just a defensive instinct.
I think the major problem we've had in recent years is that we try and fix racism the symptom. In my opinion, we've made pretty good progress on that -- I believe (and I think most of my generation feels this way) that skin color makes no difference in personal worth. What we need to address are the social problems that *cause* the sort of institutional racism we've developed -- we need to fix the poverty, the crime, the terrible education systems in our cities. Otherwise the black man on the street will always seem more dangerous than the white one.
[ July 09, 2004, 09:03 AM: Message edited by: Kasie H ]
Posted by Dagonee (Member # 5818) on :
I'm working at Judiciary Square this summer and am over in the DC Superior Court House almost every day. Here's where you see the big racial disparities in this country.
I was there a week before I saw a white defendant (I do drug, weapon possession, and other small-time felony cases). I've still only seen two.
I was standing at a corner with a don't walk sign, no traffic in sight. Two young black men were standing there as well. It occurred to me that I can jaywalk with impunity - probably not get a ticket, and if I did, I would just pay a fine and be done.
But these men would be foolish to jaywalk near an officer. It would give the police officer the right to arrest them and conduct a search incident to arrest. At the very least, they'd probably be asked for ID and made to account for their presence there. This would be backed up by the threat of the arrest.
Although all this could happen to me, I can walk around with well-founded confidence that it won't. A young black male has to think about these consequense wherever he is in the city, whenever he interacts with the police, whether he's committing a crime or not.
At the same time, I see a mostly black police force working their tails off to make the city livable. The poorest sections of town are the ones most affected by crime. Residents distrust the police, but desparately want prostitution and drug markets shut down. 7-year old girls are killed in the crossfire. Juries acquit people caught selling drugs on videotape.
I've seen more self-destructive behavior document in 6 weeks than I could have believed possible. People "forgetting" a court date, which can carry a five year penalty and will definitely result in detention until trial. People receiving conditional release that states they can't go back to the scene of the crime, and being picked up there hours later.
It's hugely depressing. Mostly because I have no idea what can be done to improve any of this.
Dagonee
Posted by Lalo (Member # 3772) on :
quote:quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Colorblindness isn't a virtue. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
So if I'm nervous in Paducah because of all the black people, that's not bad?
Heh. No, you're making a leap of logic -- recognizing that they're black and getting panicky because they're black and thus about to rob/rape/murder you are two vastly different things.
Skillery complaining about this is vaguely disturbing, I've noticed whenever I read this thread. Why would a white man from Utah get indignant and self-righteous over a black woman noticing she's the only black person in a state of white people? Let alone assigning, forgive me, idiotic motives to her casual joke, such as her supposed implication that one group of people can be "kept" by another (do you not see the irony in his indignation? does he?); her categorization of white and black people (still, just ridiculously ironic, given the average black upbringing in America); her utter insensitivity in referring to African-Americans as black without even thinking about Pacific Islanders; and her supposed disappointment in discovering she's the only black person in a tri-country area.
Actually, now that I recount his reasons, I'm growing steadily more suspicious that Skillery's a troll. These reasons can't be serious. Add his apparently uncontrollable late-night laughter at Fallow's posts (?), and I have a nagging urge one is the pseudonym of the other, or collaborative trolls, or something. I could be wrong -- skillery fits the general Hatrack stereotype of white married Mormon in Utah -- but I can't believe this post was written in earnest. At best, maybe feeble political satire?
Posted by Lalo (Member # 3772) on :
And props to Kasie and Dag.
This playa's out.
Fo sheezy, dawg.
Posted by Mabus (Member # 6320) on :
Lalo, I don't know that Skillery is a troll, but something does strike me as off about his post. And when the two of us agree on something...um...something about day-old fish and Denmark.
Posted by skillery (Member # 6209) on :
Lalo:
quote:This playa's out.
Another clique? Brilliant!
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Fo'shizzle.
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
Oh, and, ummm. I'm pretty sure that Oakland is much more diverse than SLC. Although there is a large African American population [a large percentage of whom came during WWI to work in the shipyards], it's not as high of a percentage as you might think. In addition to a ton of white folk, there are, naturally, a lot of Hispanics, Asian Americans, Pacific Islanders as well as one of the more sizable urban American Indian populations.
There's even some Mormons. .
Posted by Zalmoxis (Member # 2327) on :
[QUOTE The City of Oakland is located in Northern California’s Alameda County, a few miles east of San Francisco. This urban city of approximately 399,484 is more diverse than its county in terms of ethnicity, education, and socioeconomic background. Approximately 31.3% of residents are White, 16.6% Latino, 15.2% Asian, 35.7% African American, 0.7% American Indian, 0.5% Pacific Islander. Five percent identify with two or more ethnic groups. The percentage of residents who live in poverty in all of Alameda County is 11% compared to 19.4 % of residents in Oakland.[/QUOTE]
![[Dont Know]](graemlins/dontknow.gif)
If she'd only said that FIRST, but of course, how insensitive is that?
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Cracka' Barrel![[ROFL]](graemlins/rofl.gif)
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waves to Pod.)![[Roll Eyes]](rolleyes.gif)
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