Is DC and its suburbs segregated?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The working class white people live farther out of the city, like Charles County, Frederick or hagerstown. At least that is where the white tradespeople I have used for work on my house live.

Agree, and we now have a lot of white working class people in Bowie -- plumbers, mechanics -- who maybe grew up in inner county PG. And eventually they'll move to Southern Md and even over the Bay Bridge. Seems to be the migration pattern.

[Anonymous]

I can't speak to DC proper, but the suburbs are not racially segregated. They are economically segregated, but isn't everywhere? People wiht the most money get to live int he most desirable neighborhood.

As far as people's race, my neighborhood is FULL of people of different colors, I even met a woman the other day from Mongolia! Crazy, how often do you get to meet someone from Mongolia. He grandma lives the traditional life as a nomad herding animals around and living in something that resembles a yert.

[Anonymous]

OP here. I'm just curious. Those who feel that there is diversity or that you have some meaningful interactions, do you have actual friends of a different race within your same socioeconomic class or vice versa?

[Anonymous]

Depends on how you define 'diverse.' A vocal segment on DCUM says diversity reflects only the % of (1) US-born blacks and (2) Central American-born Hispanics in the mix with the whites. So if your school in Col. Hts. has lots of kids who are African American or from El Salvador, then your school is "diverse."

But, if your school has lots of kids with Indian, Japanese, Argentine, Spanish, Russian, Chinese and Egyptian ancestry, then it may not be "diverse" by the standards of the 1st group.

You see this phenomenon especially in discussions of private schools and public schools in upper NW.

You can have a school with kids from 45 countries, but if not enough kids are AA or from El Salvador or Guatemala, then it's not "diverse" somehow.

[Anonymous]

DC proper is segregated in a lot of parts, but the many of the outlying suburbs have a huge mix. I grew up in Fairfax County which has pockets of segregation among the wealthiest and poorest but most of the county is very diverse.
That being said I lived near the intersection of 9th and U NW and I saw many different types on my block.

[Anonymous]

Whatever. There are no covenants banning people from moving in to neighborhoods. For years up until after WWII Jews were not allowed to live in Upper NW. Today if you have the $ you can live anywhere. People SELF-segregate!

[Anonymous]

Today if you have the $ you can live anywhere. People SELF-segregate!

So true.

Someone will quickly point out there are economic barriers to moving into some neighborhoods. I think this shouldn't be ignored, but, it has nothing to do with skin hue or religion or ethnicity. Meaning, there are poor blacks, whites, Asian and Latinos in the greater metro area.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Whatever. There are no covenants banning people from moving in to neighborhoods. For years up until after WWII Jews were not allowed to live in Upper NW. Today if you have the $ you can live anywhere. People SELF-segregate!

Yes, but they sometimes do it out of fear -- and that's sad. I learned a lot by living in a neighborhood where I was in the minority. It was enlightening.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here. I'm just curious. Those who feel that there is diversity or that you have some meaningful interactions, do you have actual friends of a different race within your same socioeconomic class or vice versa?

I'm the second PP in this thread. As I said, I have very few friends of a different race. That being said, I don't have many friends I see all that often in DC -- just a small handful. Also, as far as my only meaningful interactions being with my nanny and the support staff at my firm, I should clarify that these aren't just work related. Rather, I chat with my nanny almost daily about my family, her family, weekend plans, etc. And, seeing how she's in my home all day, 5 days a week and sees DS about as much as I do, then these are certainly meaningful interactions as she knows more about my family than anyone outside of it. And my interactions with a lot of the support staff are friendly chats, not just asking them to do things for me. Honestly, outside of DH and my sister, I really don't have much more "meaningful interactions" with anyone than the sorts of interactions I have with my nanny, the support staff, etc.

I mostly mentioned that the only people of a different race with whom I have meaningful interactions are my nanny and support staff because it was very obvious to me when I moved to DC that there was a distinct race divide in the workplace.

[Anonymous]

I live in a diverse neighborhood (by the Braddock Road metro) but find it odd that there does not appear to be much interaction between people of different races, even though they may live next door to one another.

[Anonymous]

Greenbelt, in PG county, seems to be fairly racially diverse to me. I know that when I swim at their municipal pool, I usually see about 1/3 each White, and AA families, and the other 1/3 a mix of Hispanic/Asian families. It is striking because other places I go I see a preponderance of one or the other group.

[Anonymous]

I live in upper NW DC, Chevy Chase-Friendship Hts to be exact. I think a lot of people would say my pocket of the city is not diverse. In fact a lot of you on DCUM have said this.

However, on my street alone, all the standard Census Bureau races are represented (except Pacific Islander). There are a variety of skin tones ranging from blackish to yellowish to brownish. People come from 3 continents and about 7 countries. There are also a couple of households with gay couples. Of the religions I am certain of, there are: Jewish, Catholic, Buddhist, Islam and 2 houses with professed atheists (yes, they talk about it so it's for sure).

But there is one thing that is not diverse, and that is household income. There's no economic diversity on our street, just race/religion/creed/country of origin.

Is that diverse?

[Anonymous]

PP here. I meant to say, I don't feel my neighborhood feels segregated by anything other than income.

[Anonymous]

But generally, African Americans live in east of 13th St. NW or so, NE, and SE. Exceptions are around Capitol Hill and pockets of gentrification in NW and NE. I don't believe SE has much gentrification at all. PG County vs. Montgomery County.

You haven't been east of 13th street lately, I take it?

[Anonymous]

I live in Lyon Village in Clarendon. Not very diverse at all. I am black and my spouse is white but all my neighbors are white. I don't think about if often, but when I do, I do find it a little strange. I do wonder about the self segregating argument since I do know several well off black people - not necessarily African American - who live in houses at least as expensive as ours ($1m+) but they all choose to live in the Rockville, Silver Spring, Bowie neighborhoods. I wonder if they just feel more comfortable in more diverse areas.