Do you fear "white flight"..?

beanie414

barbiedoll wrote: »

I live in a area which has seen a large ethnic population move in, simply because it is one of the cheapest areas in which to buy with a London postcode. It used to be mostly Asians but a few years ago, more and more black families started moving in...obviously priced out of their preferred areas by the middle-classes pushing up the house prices. This caused a mini "white flight", several parents that I knew through my son's school hastily moved out to the nearby suburbs of Kent. Of course, with the coming of Crossrail, we're all having the last laugh, our house values have soared (not quite sure why, there's been a mainline railway here since practically the dawn of time) and now, even the aspiring middle-classes are starting to think about moving back. Two of my neighbours are selling their houses and almost all of the viewers at their recent open days, were white families/couples.

I've never felt "uncomfortable" living with people of a different colour/race in my town. There's always been enough people of each to ensure that we have shops which cater for everyone, as well as ethnic food shops, hairdressers and so on. We all seem to rub along together ok. One of the most profitable local businesses is probably the African seamstress with her shop window stuffed full of colourful African outfits. She is apparently the first choice for parents who want a prom or bridesmaid dress for their daughters, my (white, Irish) neighbour commissioned a beautiful prom dress for her girl after hearing about her from another parent.

I feel the same way. I like living in a multicultural area. My area used to be a lot more white but a lot of white people from around here have moved out to Essex.

Linton

ReadingTim wrote: »

Despite attempts at social engineering, multiculturalism etc, human beings are still fundamentally tribal beings who prefer to associate with those who share similar social, economic and cultural characteristics as they do, just as they did when they grouped together to form a tribe to survive against woolly mammoths and other predators. It's hard-wired into our DNA, and no amount of reading of the Guardian can change that.

"White flight" is only a thing because it rhymes, but the concept applies whatever the skin colour.

Its normal for new immigrants to live close together - eg Jews in the East End of London a hundred years ago, Hugenots 300 years ago. After a generation or two things even out. The descendents of the original immigrants take on much the same characteristics as the descendents of the native population. Both change by exposure to the other.

DRP

ognum wrote: »

I really don't understand this concept with regards to the place I live. I live in an ethnically diverse city where a guy walking down the street who could be considered a down and out is actually the emeritus professor of physics or a Nobel prize winner.

There is a mosque within a few hundred yards from my house and hundreds of university students of all back grounds live nearby. My neighbours are from many different ethnicities, backgrounds and social classes. The homes are owner occupied, rented and HMOs.

We all get along and enjoy where we live.

This is true for most areas, but I think that when additional stress is put on the system (unemployment, housing shortages, perceptions of mass immigration, media/politicians scapegoating particular sectors of the population etc), the old tensions and stereotypes start to surface.

moneyistooshorttomention

Davesnave wrote: »

Those who know money will be having a quiet chuckle as they picture her at the wheel of a Transit, shouting, "Boro da, which way would it be to Llanelli, then, bach?":rotfl:

Early on in our property search we wrestled with with the wisdom of buying on the fringe of Dartmouth, so I know exactly where money is coming from.

Eventually, the vendor saved us any more heart-searching by withdrawing the property, but had it not been as a business purchase, we'd never have considered living in that village, where everyone seemed "considerably richer" than us.

There is a Transit-type van in our driveway, but it's Mercedes, so I'm not in the least embarrassed.

:rotfl::rotfl:

From which I take it that I wouldn't like Llanelli Dave?:rotfl:

Dartmouth is exactly the place that first came to mind. I do like Dartmouth and have spent a nice long weekend there - but yep...I would feel very self-conscious about my income compared to what many there have...

Davesnave

I think many of the above two posts make valid points, though it's clear to me that living within an education-influenced enclave of a city is very different from being somewhere that isn't receiving a high input of £££ and intelligent people in that way.

I used to work in a place where there was higher ethnic diversity because of economic draws from the NHS and higher education, but the day to day living experiences of those alongside me, varied tremendously. We might have congregated in one area, where everything was fine and rosy, but in the evenings and at weekends, some would experience unpleasantness never seen by others around their homes.

As to whether there is something hard-wired in our DNA which draws us closer to those 'like us,' I know that my chickens, which I'd not considered advanced enough to have a developed concept of self, always seem to know which breed they belong to, even if raised with others. I find this fascinating and I have no idea how they do it!

Davesnave

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

:rotfl::rotfl:

From which I take it that I wouldn't like Llanelli Dave?:rotfl:

I have a feeling that you might not, though house prices there are extremely reasonable, and there are miles of good coastal walking nearby in the Country Park and beyond.

moneyistooshorttomention

I can resonate with the difference having a University in the area makes. When I was wondering whereabouts to think of in Wales I instantly put Aberystwyth at the top of the list, precisely because of having a University. I like the influence a University has on a place normally.

Then I read more about the recent history of that particular university and chances of weather/sea wrecking the promenade etc area there (as subsequently happened) and changed my mind (aided by the higher house prices there as well).

I guess many of us work out our personal ideal of "what would suit us personally" and we are lucky if we can get it. But problems don't end there - ie because there is always the risk a place will change drastically and I think the "pace of change" generally over the last 10 years has accelerated at warp speed in many places and I am seriously nervous about it multiplying at an even faster (MUCH faster) pace over the next 10 years.

I rejected one place I had under consideration because I had checked out the "lie of the land" on it and there is a factor applying to that place that I figured could mean its "pace of change" over the next 10 years might turn out to be a multiplied Warp Factor rate of change....for the worse.

mumps

moneyistooshorttomention wrote: »

:rotfl::rotfl:

From which I take it that I wouldn't like Llanelli Dave?:rotfl:

Dartmouth is exactly the place that first came to mind. I do like Dartmouth and have spent a nice long weekend there - but yep...I would feel very self-conscious about my income compared to what many there have...

There are some very grotty areas in Dartmouth. A friend of mine lived there for a while, she had lived all over the world as her husbands job required them to move. She said she hated Dartmouth more than anywhere else she ever lived.

I love a day out in Dartmouth and a cream tea by the river but the whole town isn't like that.

[Deleted User]

I know when I moved to Wolverhampton, was given a HA house. The street was a world I'd not been in before.., private rentals with the occasional HA property. There were some white people there, but they tended to move on quickly due to being evicted. The vast majority of the people there were Asian (95% maybe).

I didn't think anything of it at first. But found I was very isolated. Tried chatting to women taking their children to the same school my son went to.., and was totally ignored. Not even a Hello. It was rather lonely and I was relieved when I transferred elsewhere.

Davesnave

mumps wrote: »

I love a day out in Dartmouth and a cream tea by the river but the whole town isn't like that.

This was a coastal village nearby. As you probably know, some villages may be singular in character and the 'Marmite effect' is magnified by their small size.

Luckily, I've purchased in a very friendly little village, with characters, from most parts of the social spectrum. What's best here is the way people muck in together to sustain the place as an active and caring community.

Significantly, we're under the tourist radar, so there are hardly any second homes.