[URBANTH-L]Is Diversity Bad for Cities? (Lisa Maya Knauer)

[FromYosee at aol.com]

Good, thought-provoking remarks.  I want to add to those.  I do  believe that 
Lisa is correct in that diverse communities do not often lead to  interaction 
among the differing groups.  In fact, populations in very  diverse cities 
might find themselves more confined to interacting within the  boundaries of 
select groups of people (e.g. ethnic and other self  identifying groups).  Thus, 
those in more homogeneous cities might  have a wider range of social networks 
and not be isolated into various  cliques.  A wider network would, in turn, 
encourage a wider and deeper  involvement of "social capital."  
Joe
 
In a message dated 8/10/2007 6:12:36 P.M. Central Daylight Time,  
jancius at ohio.edu writes:

thanks,  sam. a few more assorted thoughts (i have not read the book  either):

1.    it seems to me that there needs to be some  further examination of
contextual issues like segregation and the contexts  within which
"diverse" communities come together. that is, it's entirely  possible
that in a city with a lot of "diversity" (measured, perhaps, by  the
number of languages spoken in the public schools), people from  those
various ethnic/racial communities live largely separate lives.   an
increase in diversity does necessary indicate an increase in  interaction.
2.    other contextual factors have to do with  economic shifts such as
"restructuring" and gentrification. and antagonisms  can be highly
specific, shaped by labor market and neighborhood issues as  well as
class (working class members of group A are resentful of group B  whom
they see as taking aware scarce jobs because group B is  phenotypically
marked as "other"; however, group C is not a target of  resentment even
though they are "taking" as many jobs because they are not  as visible;
upper class members of group A aren't threatened in the same  way).
this should make for some lively discussions.

regards,
lisa  maya knauer 








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