Race and Ethnicity map in OKC

[soonerfan_in_okc]

SIAP. nothing crazy, but still interesting to see. The blue is AA, red is white, and orange is hispanic.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/walkingsf/4982014786/

[ljbab728]

SIAP. nothing crazy, but still interesting to see. The blue is AA, red is white, and orange is hispanic.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/walkingsf/4982014786/

Nothing too surprising there. It's basically what you would expect to be shown if you're familiar with OKC.

[HOT ROD]

OKC looks quite integrated, relatively speaking. ..

Look at other cities, like Portland (VERY VERY WHITE........) http://www.flickr.com/photos/walking...n/photostream/

[MikeOKC]

OKC looks quite integrated, relatively speaking. ..

Look at other cities, like Portland (VERY VERY WHITE........) http://www.flickr.com/photos/walking...n/photostream/

HOT ROD, I know you're black, so maybe you don't realize how your post came across....but try reversing your post.....

Look at othjer cities, like Detroit (VERY VERY BLACK..........)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/walking...7624812674967/

[bombermwc]

I think his point was to say that at least in OKC, we don't seem to divide our races into neighborhoods like some other places. Check out the Chicago map and you'll flip your lid. Obviously in OKC, tha African American population is more prominent in the NE Quad, but it's not as stark a difference as even in Portland or Detroit. In those cities, you can see LINES. It's like someone drew a line in the sand and said, You here, and You here. I'm sure there are municipal boundaries at play, but it's just crazy.

Detroit is one city that is just full of issues that never got resolved. The "white flight" that happened there was a result of change in city govt. that sort of liked the flight. And their type of government was the result of the poor treatment of the non-white population for years and years beforehand. Trouble is, the cycle never stopped. If you go to Detroit now, the population of the city is not that dense. There are abandoned homes everywhere. It's really a shame too because that's one city that has helped to influence America in soooo many ways and really has a great soul. The ovbious car influence, but music as well. But that's sort of off topic.

My point is, I don't think he was trying to make a racial statement...it's just demographics.

[earlywinegareth]

I agree with Hot Rod that for the most part, OKC is a mixture. It confirms what I already suspected in my area = very diverse. If anything, my area needs more dots. I'm a bit suspicious of all the dots on the property of Will Rogers World Airport though...

[circuitboard]

Pull a map of Tulsa, you should see a big difference. When I first moved to OKC from Tulsa, I could not believe my eyes, a black person in the "nice area of town". I like it diversity, so I was happy! But in Tulsa, it is much more segregated.

[BG918]

There are still very distinct black parts and hispanic parts of town that many whites avoid for those reasons. But it is like that everywhere. I wouldn't say Tulsa is any more segregated than OKC. Cities like Chicago, St. Louis, Memphis, etc. are though.

[OKCisOK4me]

I didn't even take into account what HOT ROD said until it was pointed out by MikeOKC. Why? Because it wasn't and isn't that big of a deal. I see what you meant HOT ROD.

Don't know if anyone else noticed, as the original poster didn't mention it, nor did they post a link to the original site but they forgot to mention that green is representative of Asian. Also, one dot is representative of 25 persons.

[Spartan]

Chicago and St Louis both have some amazingly diverse, well-integrated areas though. OKC, while overall well integrated, doesn't have that at the same time.

As for Tulsa, it's interesting how it's not really showing any concentration of Hispanic population east of 169..or at all anywhere, for that matter. Also interesting how the NE part of Tulsa is demographically the same as anywhere, and it's just north-central that is heavily African American. Also interesting how you can't really spot anything unique around 61st and Peoria..

As for OKC, the most interesting observation is probably that there seems to be an African American belt all the way from MWC to NW 122nd and Penn that is contiguous for the most part, and crosses Broadway around Britton.

[MikeOKC]

For all those who think diversity is such a great thing....if you were with your family on an interstate, and driving through a city needing to make a travel stop and saw that one of the exits was "Martin Luther King" (pick your city), if you're white - do you not do the SMART thing and keep on going? Everybody here is pretending as if black males don't commit the overwhelming numbers of armed robberies, rapes, etc. etc. Pick your crime. EVEN THOUGH they represent a small minority of the total population. Oh yeah, I just love it when I get a chance to experience "diversity" in E. St. Louis. Makes me feel warm and cuddly.

Come on. HOT ROD made a blatant racist comment: "Look at other cities, like Portland (VERY VERY WHITE........)." Why would he say that if it wasn't meant to be a negative thing? Would I be given the same racial pass had I pointed out how "VERY, VERY BLACK" Newark is?

Everybody can be so politically correct, but how many of the white people on this board go driving around to "enjoy the diversity" around 23rd and Lottie? Now, we can even say NWX and Wilshire or 122nd and Western! The fact that all of these areas are "diverse" (lots of blacks) also means lots of police calls because of high crime. But, I'll pretend that Hot Rod's comment was race-neutral. Read his post! By its very words it was not neutral on the question. The resulting opinion on Portland's "whiteness" was only implied, but HOT ROD knew he was pointing out how sad it was that Portland is not yet enlightened to the joys of "diversity." Pretend all you want. I know - I'm a racist for pointing out racism and going on further to point out simple facts. Damn those stubborn facts.

[PennyQuilts]

When we lived in Virginia, my neighborhood was roughly 50/50 black and white. It was primarily professionals with many military and government workers (CIA, FBI and contractors). We backed up to a neighborhood that had beautiful new homes but they pitched their houses to poor people using balloon notes. It ended up having gorgeous McMansions filled to the gills with illegal immigrants sleeping on the floors and with whole families renting one or two rooms with the kitchen being a common area. Crime over there was bad but in our neighborhood, aside from some kids that kept breaking into cars at night (we suspected they came from the neighborhood behind us) it was orderly and safe. The black people in our neighborhood were no more likely to engage in violence towards their neighbors or family than your average middle class white family would.

In contrast, I wouldn't go into SE DC. You'd be crazy. Those people are out of their minds with violence. That ghetto mentality has driven up the crime statistics of the African American community to the point where people don't realize that so few are doing so much. It is hard to imagine and a scary part is how many young black females are so physically violent. They take pride in it.

That being said, I entered into the homes of many, many black families while working as a guardian ad litem in Virginia. Rarely, did I feel any concern about it because, frankly, the ones who don't live in those crappy neighborhoods can't be judged by the same criteria. If you will excuse the term - it is just black and white. I would see well dressed black folks on the Metro on the way to work at 6:30 in the morning, and tired, exhausted black folks clearly returning home from working a night shift. Good people.

The AA community has a horrible problem with crime, poverty and children born to single mothers with no real likelihood that the dad is going to hang around. And it has hit them disproportionately. They have a higher drop out rate, higher levels of obesity with the attendent health problems that go along wth that. The family, statistically, has broken down for a huge portion of the AA community and that leads to the crime and violence we see.

But, again, that just a subgroup of black people. That they have driven the numbers up so high is awful and it makes the statistics, overall, even more astonishing. Black on black crime is awful. But the majority of black people work, go to school, pay their taxes and try to be good citizens. In DC, not that many women marry, however, which suggests to me that the problem is spreading, not getting better. Part of that is because in the DC area, so many men are criminals that the professional women don't have many decent men to choose from - and they settle.

To respond directly to MikeOKC, I am NOT going to get out of my car in certain black neighborhoods - I'll be honest. And that is because the crime stats are so awful to the point where they are killing their own grandmothers and children. My kids have black friends and I would pitch a fit if I knew that THEY were going into some of those neighborhoods (I think their parents would, too). That is a violent, dysfunctional subgroup but most predominately black neighborhoods are just fine. I just wish the black community would work to get that "bad" group cleaned up - and that means calling them out for their ridiculous behavior and demanding they respect education, marriage and avoid criminal behavior. Trying to give a united front to the rest of the world and hide their dirty laundry has only made people think that they are all violent and dysfunctional. Because it is the gangbangers, the drive-bys and the criminal statistics that everyone sees. They don't see the hardworking black dad taking his wife, kids and parents to church every Sunday. But those folks are out there.

[lasomeday]

What color are the Native Americans? I am sure that if they added those that Oklahoma City and Tulsa would add a lot more diversity.

[adaniel]

Penny, that was a great post and you summed up my personal thoughts quite nicely (I'm black BTW). I just got back from visiting a friend who lives just outside of DC (Along the Fairfax/Loudon County line if you know where that is) and I noticed the same thing.

I really don't see whats so wrong with what HOTROD said. Yep Portland is pretty white, Detroit is pretty black like you said. Also, San Antonio is pretty Hispanic, and Honolulu is pretty Asian. Just pointing out the facts. Chill out.

[ljbab728]

This reminds me of the many comments that came from people in the city of Seattle when we "STOLE" the Sonics from them. They were sure the black players on the team would feel very uncomfortable here in our "Lily White" redneck city.

[MikeOKC]

Penny, There wasn't a thing you said that I would disagree with.

[Spartan]

Oh yeah, I just love it when I get a chance to experience "diversity" in E. St. Louis. Makes me feel warm and cuddly.

Point taken, but I had a great experience when I recently discovered the rest of St. Louis, including some Hispanic areas like Cherokee Street, and old-fashioned black neighborhoods like Shaw and Soulard. Loooove Shaw. Virtually all of St. Louis is an extremely diverse mix of white/black and others. Granted, I'm sure there are some real tensions, especially in north and east STL.

In all honesty, a lot of the majority black neighborhoods in STL proper are nicer than most of the majority white hoods..

[HOT ROD]

Thanks guys, yes - my point was OKC is very integrated; while it does have predominate areas and ghettos - it isn't segregated like other major cities.

I pointed out Portland, mostly because it was near OKC in the Flickr list and has very high concentrations of white - which does not fit the "usual" stereotype of it being an integrated city, while other cities have high concentrations of black - Detroit as was mentioned. Whereas, in OKC - you see quite a healthy mix particularly in the inner city.

Chicago is a nice city, but you definitely know where the lines are. Integrated areas around Uptown are becoming more popular, but this has more to do with wealth. Even here in Seattle, it is a very white city - which is contrary to most people thinking it is Asian/integrated.

I'd say OKC is doing something right, despite the common misperception that I definitely heard up here in Seattle during the Sonics fiasco. When I pointed out that OKC has far more African Americans (and even higher income) than Seattle and that OKC was more diverse per capita - I was scoffed until I pulled up the statistics which showed Seattle had a higher percentage of white than OKC. One thing I do notice is that Asians in OKC tend to have less income in general. It is very nice to see the Asian District on the map.


And mike, I actually am not black - I apologize if you were offended by my comments. However, maybe now you could better infer my ethnicity from the last two sentences and what countries I often travel to for business and pleasure - - . .... but that's beside the point.

[MikeOKC]

Wait......you're not black? Not that it matters (except how you worded your post) but you posted a picture several months back that was in your photobucket account for "Hot Rod" and there was a link to a MySpace for "Hot Rod". It was your link to a photo and it turned out the whole album was public, so I looked around to see what else you had (I like photography). There were lots of pictures of "you" Rodney _____ talking big about Oklahoma City -- and "you" were very much a black guy. If that's just some weird coincidence, I'm sorry I was...uh...wrong.

[HOT ROD]

im actually mixed, if you cared. and I dont have a photobucket account.

[bombermwc]

Holy crap Mike...i don't think i've ever seen anyone posting such racist things here before. Wow. And just so you know, statistically you should be looking at socio-economics, not race. Just beacuse someone is a certain race has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with whether or not they are going to commit a crime. It does have EVERYTHING to do with socio-economics though. You can't tell me that a trashy white person is less likely to rob a 7-11 than a ghetto black person (and don't even try and say i'm making any statement about all black people being ghetto because that is NOT what I'm saying).

I just get tired of people trying to use race as an excuse for their woes. Just take the race box off the application and we'll all be better off.

[PennyQuilts]

Holy crap Mike...i don't think i've ever seen anyone posting such racist things here before. Wow. And just so you know, statistically you should be looking at socio-economics, not race. Just beacuse someone is a certain race has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with whether or not they are going to commit a crime. It does have EVERYTHING to do with socio-economics though. You can't tell me that a trashy white person is less likely to rob a 7-11 than a ghetto black person (and don't even try and say i'm making any statement about all black people being ghetto because that is NOT what I'm saying).

I just get tired of people trying to use race as an excuse for their woes. Just take the race box off the application and we'll all be better off.

I'd have to disagree when you are talking gangs, mwcbomber. Once the gangs come in to indoctrinate the kids, the likellihood that they look to crime to solve their financial woes skyrockets. Yes, there are hispanic gangs, black gangs, asian gangs, etc., but most trashy white people are either druggies or work independently if they engage in crime. They just don't have the same problem with gangs. I'm not saying there aren't groups of white thugs but you don't see it on the same scale. I do recall the motorcycle gangs some years ago that had a lot of criminal white people, granted. A scary thing about them was that they were often not just kids.

[MustangGT]

I just get tired of people trying to use race as an excuse for their woes. Just take the race box off the application and we'll all be better off.

Agreed.

[BG918]

Holy crap Mike...i don't think i've ever seen anyone posting such racist things here before. Wow. And just so you know, statistically you should be looking at socio-economics, not race. Just beacuse someone is a certain race has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with whether or not they are going to commit a crime. It does have EVERYTHING to do with socio-economics though. You can't tell me that a trashy white person is less likely to rob a 7-11 than a ghetto black person (and don't even try and say i'm making any statement about all black people being ghetto because that is NOT what I'm saying).

I just get tired of people trying to use race as an excuse for their woes. Just take the race box off the application and we'll all be better off.

Look at a crime map sometime. It is no coincidence that the vast majority of crimes are on the east and south sides of OKC, or in the low income ghettos interspersed throughout the rest of the city i.e. Classen-Ten-Penn, NW 10 & Macarthur, NWX & Lyrewood Lane, NW 122 & Penn, etc. All of these areas have higher concentration of non-whites. It is very PC to say race it is not an issue but it is.

[Stew]

So if I'm to believe race is an issue when it comes to crime then can I infer that crime is genetic? Would it be possible to isolate the crime gene?

Seriously, why does the color of ones skin make one more likely to be a criminal? I guess I just don't 'get it'.