Black neighborhoods in "Non-Black" Cities

[Ronnie Lott]

Come to think of it, is there a single other major city in America where the projects are "othered" the way they are in San Francisco where they're not on the city grid, surrounded by the freeway and far away from commercial districts? For reference I'm talking about something resembling Alemany:

The actual Bernal Heights neighborhood is up the hill and the Alemany projects are on the flats right next to the freeway (foreground). This complex is literally known as "The Black Hole" which is apt because there's only one way in/out and it's the only concentration of black people in Bernal Heights outside of the Holly Courts projects a couple blocks up the street. Are there any other low income complexes in other major American cities that mirror this level of separation from the same neighborhood? To the point where you can tell the government intentionally designed it to keep nikkas broke and out of sight


The Bottoms in Inglewood is the only one that comes to mind in LA, it definitely qualifies though. It's incredibly separated from the surrounding Inglewood area despite being right behind a busy intersection (Crenshaw & Century), you would never know it exists unless you hit the right onto Darby from Crenshaw thinking you was about to take the backway to Costco

I can't think of a single low income complex in Oakland, Seattle or Vegas that was clearly designed to tuck nikkas out of sight and out of mind... Seavey Circle in Sacramento is out the way but not to the extent that Alemany or The Bottoms are.

For that matter I've never seen no shyt like that in Philly, Chicago, Boston or New York either The obvious explanation is that the Bay built its projects near the ports/military bases where migrant Southern blacks were finding work. Alameda Point and Treasure Island have very similar low income buildings to the ones in Marin City and Hunters Point that are similarly predominantly black. The military chooses remote locations for strategic reasons which oddly enough was doubly convenient for them when they started testing nuclear weapons in Hunters Point and Treasure Island. Nobody cared that Hunters Point's infant mortality and cancer rates were 6x the city average even after the military admitted they were testing nukes (look up Superfund sites for more info) because the victims were black babies. It only became a problem when 40 years later real estate investors realized that the projects were sitting on prime waterfront and that the radiation would deter monied people from buying the cookie cutter condos they're building now

In other words this black poverty island shyt is a California thing The vast majority of poor black neighborhoods in American cities were formerly white and middle/upper middle class before white flight because they were close to the jobs (i.e. inner city)... even the projects in most American cities were originally intended for poor whites to get on their feet. California (and especially San Francisco) actually went ahead and built ghettos strictly for nikkas Even more sad is that that shyt really worked, the black median household income in San Francisco city is $29,500... As opposed to $104,000 for whites. Keep in mind that the national household median income for black families was $33,000 in 2012... How the fukk is nikkas in San Francisco making less than the national average when the majority of the country's black population is in the dirt cheap South?! Never mind that the economy in SF is the strongest it's ever been

All that to say this... IDK if I can call Boston the most racist big city in America with a straight face. The economic racism in San Francisco is unlike anything I've seen in any comparably "cosmopolitan" major city. They got nikkas living in Alabama by the Bay frfr word to James Baldwin.

@Meh @Erratic415

The Black Hole in the 90s was

 

[Biscayne]

Come to think of it, is there a single other major city in America where the projects are "othered" the way they are in San Francisco where they're not on the city grid, surrounded by the freeway and far away from commercial districts? For reference I'm talking about something resembling Alemany:

The actual Bernal Heights neighborhood is up the hill and the Alemany projects are on the flats right next to the freeway (foreground). This complex is literally known as "The Black Hole" which is apt because there's only one way in/out and it's the only concentration of black people in Bernal Heights outside of the Holly Courts projects a couple blocks up the street. Are there any other low income complexes in other major American cities that mirror this level of separation from the same neighborhood? To the point where you can tell the government intentionally designed it to keep nikkas broke and out of sight


The Bottoms in Inglewood is the only one that comes to mind in LA, it definitely qualifies though. It's incredibly separated from the surrounding Inglewood area despite being right behind a busy intersection (Crenshaw & Century), you would never know it exists unless you hit the right onto Darby from Crenshaw thinking you was about to take the backway to Costco

I can't think of a single low income complex in Oakland, Seattle or Vegas that was clearly designed to tuck nikkas out of sight and out of mind... Seavey Circle in Sacramento is out the way but not to the extent that Alemany or The Bottoms are.

For that matter I've never seen no shyt like that in Philly, Chicago, Boston or New York either The obvious explanation is that the Bay built its projects near the ports/military bases where migrant Southern blacks were finding work. Alameda Point and Treasure Island have very similar low income buildings to the ones in Marin City and Hunters Point that are similarly predominantly black. The military chooses remote locations for strategic reasons which oddly enough was doubly convenient for them when they started testing nuclear weapons in Hunters Point and Treasure Island. Nobody cared that Hunters Point's infant mortality and cancer rates were 6x the city average even after the military admitted they were testing nukes (look up Superfund sites for more info) because the victims were black babies. It only became a problem when 40 years later real estate investors realized that the projects were sitting on prime waterfront and that the radiation would deter monied people from buying the cookie cutter condos they're building now

In other words this black poverty island shyt is a California thing The vast majority of poor black neighborhoods in American cities were formerly white and middle/upper middle class before white flight because they were close to the jobs (i.e. inner city)... even the projects in most American cities were originally intended for poor whites to get on their feet. California (and especially San Francisco) actually went ahead and built ghettos strictly for nikkas Even more sad is that that shyt really worked, the black median household income in San Francisco city is $29,500... As opposed to $104,000 for whites. Keep in mind that the national household median income for black families was $33,000 in 2012... How the fukk is nikkas in San Francisco making less than the national average when the majority of the country's black population is in the dirt cheap South?! Never mind that the economy in SF is the strongest it's ever been

All that to say this... IDK if I can call Boston the most racist big city in America with a straight face. The economic racism in San Francisco is unlike anything I've seen in any comparably "cosmopolitan" major city. They got nikkas living in Alabama by the Bay frfr word to James Baldwin.

@Meh @Erratic415

Amazing post. So much I wanna ask and address. But I just got off this 30hr Greyhound drive. In the meantime, take this rep!!

 

[Biscayne]

Yup Seaside Posse was a dope group

Seaside actually made a good sized impact on the NorCal Hip Hop scene despite its small size, one of the most prominent managers in our scene (Seaside Stretch) is originally from there.

He was the head of the Town Thizzness label which put out a lot of Livewire's (Philthy Rich, Stalin, etc.) music in the late 2000s along with a lot of other Bay Area artists at the time. Stretch managed everyone from Mac Dre to Kreayshawn to Mistah FAB and still has a lot of pull in the West Coast scene, he's a dope music video director too. Some of his directing work:

Amazing...

 

[BigMan]

Come to think of it, is there a single other major city in America where the projects are "othered" the way they are in San Francisco where they're not on the city grid, surrounded by the freeway and far away from commercial districts? For reference I'm talking about something resembling Alemany:

The actual Bernal Heights neighborhood is up the hill and the Alemany projects are on the flats right next to the freeway (foreground). This complex is literally known as "The Black Hole" which is apt because there's only one way in/out and it's the only concentration of black people in Bernal Heights outside of the Holly Courts projects a couple blocks up the street. Are there any other low income complexes in other major American cities that mirror this level of separation from the same neighborhood? To the point where you can tell the government intentionally designed it to keep nikkas broke and out of sight


The Bottoms in Inglewood is the only one that comes to mind in LA, it definitely qualifies though. It's incredibly separated from the surrounding Inglewood area despite being right behind a busy intersection (Crenshaw & Century), you would never know it exists unless you hit the right onto Darby from Crenshaw thinking you was about to take the backway to Costco

I can't think of a single low income complex in Oakland, Seattle or Vegas that was clearly designed to tuck nikkas out of sight and out of mind... Seavey Circle in Sacramento is out the way but not to the extent that Alemany or The Bottoms are.

For that matter I've never seen no shyt like that in Philly, Chicago, Boston or New York either The obvious explanation is that the Bay built its projects near the ports/military bases where migrant Southern blacks were finding work. Alameda Point and Treasure Island have very similar low income buildings to the ones in Marin City and Hunters Point that are similarly predominantly black. The military chooses remote locations for strategic reasons which oddly enough was doubly convenient for them when they started testing nuclear weapons in Hunters Point and Treasure Island. Nobody cared that Hunters Point's infant mortality and cancer rates were 6x the city average even after the military admitted they were testing nukes (look up Superfund sites for more info) because the victims were black babies. It only became a problem when 40 years later real estate investors realized that the projects were sitting on prime waterfront and that the radiation would deter monied people from buying the cookie cutter condos they're building now

In other words this black poverty island shyt is a California thing The vast majority of poor black neighborhoods in American cities were formerly white and middle/upper middle class before white flight because they were close to the jobs (i.e. inner city)... even the projects in most American cities were originally intended for poor whites to get on their feet. California (and especially San Francisco) actually went ahead and built ghettos strictly for nikkas Even more sad is that that shyt really worked, the black median household income in San Francisco city is $29,500... As opposed to $104,000 for whites. Keep in mind that the national household median income for black families was $33,000 in 2012... How the fukk is nikkas in San Francisco making less than the national average when the majority of the country's black population is in the dirt cheap South?! Never mind that the economy in SF is the strongest it's ever been

All that to say this... IDK if I can call Boston the most racist big city in America with a straight face. The economic racism in San Francisco is unlike anything I've seen in any comparably "cosmopolitan" major city. They got nikkas living in Alabama by the Bay frfr word to James Baldwin.

@Meh @Erratic415

damn

 

[Biscayne]

Bump..

 

[daboywonder2002]

Minneapolis-St Paul has large black populations. North/South Minneapolis, East St. Paul, Brooklyn Center/Park, Fridley, and East Bloomington just to name a few. A lot of people come from Chicago up here because the cost of living is lower, there are more jobs available, and there is less violence in general.

Don't forget it's easier to get assistance. the one thing here though is that there's not really a black middle class. And I don't mean to stereotype but it seems like most of our people I have come across either work in the warehouse or trying to be a rapper. You really don't see a black person that's a doctor or working in IT. It seems like people here are happy just making $13-15 an hour.

 

[daboywonder2002]

This is what bothers me about the Twin cities and I'm not sure if it's gonna get better. https://www.mprnews.org/story/2012/07/03/labor-unemployment-gap

 

[Originalman]

Sheeeeit my ex is from Iowa and they are deep as hell, and country as shyt too.

Yep damn near all the black folks from waterloo can trace their family back to Mississippi or alabama.

 

[Bubba T]

Don't forget it's easier to get assistance. the one thing here though is that there's not really a black middle class. And I don't mean to stereotype but it seems like most of our people I have come across either work in the warehouse or trying to be a rapper. You really don't see a black person that's a doctor or working in IT. It seems like people here are happy just making $13-15 an hour.

This is what bothers me about the Twin cities and I'm not sure if it's gonna get better. Twin Cities again lead nation in black, white unemployment gap

Yes, the gap here is ridiculous. But just as the article you linked states, Minnesota has a large education gap. A lot of our public schools are trash. We have some good colleges and universities in the state, but it doesn't do us any good if we aren't prepared for it. I will say that efforts have been made to bridge the gap, and the state's community colleges are putting in effort to mediate this gap.

But back on the jobs front. Again, you don't see a lot of black people in white collar professions here. I work in public accounting and I can tell you that I'm the only brother in the office . Even when I was interviewing at several firms, I was constantly the only brother in the building. It really lets you know how important education and a good upbringing is for youths.

 

[daboywonder2002]

Yes, the gap here is ridiculous. But just as the article you linked states, Minnesota has a large education gap. A lot of our public schools are trash. We have some good colleges and universities in the state, but it doesn't do us any good if we aren't prepared for it. I will say that efforts have been made to bridge the gap, and the state's community colleges are putting in effort to mediate this gap.

But back on the jobs front. Again, you don't see a lot of black people in white collar professions here. I work in public accounting and I can tell you that I'm the only brother in the office . Even when I was interviewing at several firms, I was constantly the only brother in the building. It really lets you know how important education and a good upbringing is for youths.

Thats why I hate when people are like Minnesota has the best schools. It's hard to go by those ratings because they only go by those state tests(MCA's) and the schools that are ranked high are all white. I thought about sending my daughter to Edina schools but the waiting list is too long and I'm worried about her being the only black person in the classroom. Im worried about sending the wrong message- hey you have to go to predominantly white school if you wanna go to a good school

 

[Bubba T]

Thats why I hate when people are like Minnesota has the best schools. It's hard to go by those ratings because they only go by those state tests(MCA's) and the schools that are ranked high are all white. I thought about sending my daughter to Edina schools but the waiting list is too long and I'm worried about her being the only black person in the classroom. Im worried about sending the wrong message- hey you have to go to predominantly white school if you wanna go to a good school

In the end, it's about getting the best education for your kid. When my mother and I lived over north she did her best to avoid enrolling me in a Minneapolis school. So private schools and then eventually public schools in good districts were schools I attended.

I remember reading an article about a student stabbing a teacher at that alternative school next to Harrison Elementary....when I was six. I understood then why my mom didn't want me to go to schools basically right next to our place.

 

[KangCraSS]

Yep damn near all the black folks from waterloo can trace their family back to Mississippi or alabama.[/QUOTE


And Waterloo can get a little hectic if you ain't careful

 

[daboywonder2002]

In the end, it's about getting the best education for your kid. When my mother and I lived over north she did her best to avoid enrolling me in a Minneapolis school. So private schools and then eventually public schools in good districts were schools I attended.

I remember reading an article about a student stabbing a teacher at that alternative school next to Harrison Elementary....when I was six. I understood then why my mom didn't want me to go to schools basically right next to our place.

Gotta love open enrollment. Now do South Minneapolis schools have a bad rep as well or is that just over North?

 

[Verbal Kint]

Thats why I hate when people are like Minnesota has the best schools. It's hard to go by those ratings because they only go by those state tests(MCA's) and the schools that are ranked high are all white. I thought about sending my daughter to Edina schools but the waiting list is too long and I'm worried about her being the only black person in the classroom. Im worried about sending the wrong message- hey you have to go to predominantly white school if you wanna go to a good school

I'm from Minneapolis but live outside of Chicago now and we got the same issues. You can send your kid to the local school where there's folks that look like them but the school sucks or the 'good' school where they're the token. Having grown up there I know there IS a black middle class but the real issue is that there just ain't that many of us. I mean in the city yea we there but we what, 15-20%? That's cool and all when you a kid but I'm guessing that doesn't translate to a ton of us in the corporate world or the ones that are are in the burbs spread thin. Once you leave Bloomington, B Park, B Center, Robbinsdale, etc ain't but a handful of black folks anywhere. That's why when people say I'm from MN I say 'naw I'm from Minneapolis. Twin Cities. I don't know nuthin about the rest of the state'

 

[Biscayne]

It gets hectic in Waterloo? I gotta do my research on Waterloo.