Census: Decatur’s Black Population Declines By 1/3; Other Groups Increase
Decatur Metro | March 18, 2011A DM reader gives some great local tidbits on the 2010 Census data released yesterday…
Decatur between 2000 and 2010 grew modestly — 4.7% to 19,335. That’s slower than the 7.5% in the ’90s.
What’s worth noting is that the black population shrank by almost a third (-31 percent) — going from 5,592 to 3,858. That’s nearly double the 16.7% loss in the ’90s.
The white population grew 15.7% to 13,896 from 11,935 (it grew 33% in the ’90s). …But we gained diversity in other ways. Asian population went to 554 from 312, a 77.7% increase. And the proportion of population identifying as Hispanic — this can be any race — grew to 612 from 309, a 98% increase.
Another big growth area, and one of the most interesting: people who checked more than one race on the census form. It went to 416 from 221, an 88% increase. The rest of the racial breakdown is an infinitesimal share of Native Americans, Pacific Islanders and “other.”
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There is an interesting connection between this post and the previous one – the sad news about Alma Fleetwood. Our black population is declining as Alma’s generation passes on. Those southside homes that folks like Alma bought in the 1960s as whites left for the suburbs are being bought by a different demographic. Skin color is not as big an issue to me as the gentrification. People working as crossing guards, teachers, firemen, etc can no longer afford to live in our town. So we will lose that connection that we’ve had with people like Alma living and working in Decatur. Sad, but can’t be helped I suppose. Change or progress – whatever you want to call it marches on….
Dude, “Black” is not the proper nomenclature. “African American”, please.
It is according to the Census, which uses both terms.
It’s a variation of a Big Lebowski quote that I love. Just having fun!
Great quote and great movie.
“PC” Police?
Not all blacks are African-American. The census doesn’t just count citizens.
Another unintended, but much predicted, consequence of the 2004 CSD reconfiguration, just like overenrollment. Many folks realized that, while rearranging to the schools to decrease de facto segregation was absolutely the right thing to do, the way it was being done would have the ultimate effect of causing greater segregation only now the unofficial color/income line is at the city border instead of north/south. Some, on both the north and south side of town, suggested magnet schools as a way of addressing the de factor segregation but not have the same impact on the Oakhurst African-American population. Not sure if that would have worked long-term but it was one viable idea. It’s a conundrum how to have get the income/class/equal opportunity benefits of the melting pot without losing the cultural and social benefits of diverse neighborhoods.
I’m not sure I follow what you are saying here but I’d really like to. As a newcomer to the CSD experience, I really would like an understanding of the dynamics that have led to the present day. I can tell that there are undercurrents that have a great impact on today’s discussions and I feel kind of adrift. Is there any place I can go to get a Cliff’s Notes version of CSD history?
I too believe that we all benefit from a racially diverse community, but I think it is a very flawed argument to say that the 2004 reconfiguration caused the loss of African Americans in Decatur.
The alternative would have been to keep Oakhurst Elementary segregated so so many white families would not want to move there, and thus gentrifying Oakhurst?
Or bus even more children from South Decatur up to Westchester and Clairemont and vice versa bus more North Decatur children down to Oakhurst?
Those would have been a very bad choices as well, not to mention the loss of tax dollars collected from the increase in construction and property values that would have never been received by the city if it weren’t for gentrification.
I think some people in this town would blame the earthquakes in Japan on the 2004 reconfiguration if they could, but the reality is that the factors that have led to the decline in African American population in Decatur were already in place well before 2004 and would have eventually occurred whether the 2004 reconfiguration happened or not.
The bulk of Decatur’s African American population in 2000 were elderly and many have either died or sold their house and moved since the last Census in 2000. This explains most of the decline. Do you really think that if the 2004 reconfiguration had not happened (or had happened differently) that these folks would not have likely been replaced by non-African Americans? It was already happening pre-2004. I don’t see why that trend would not have continued, had the reconfiguration not occurred.
Gentrification in South Decatur – while it may have led to less racial diversity – has been very good for African American families who owned homes in Oakhurst and South Decatur. Many who purchased homes in the late ’60’s-early ’70’s for next to nothing have sold them for $200,000 or more and now have a little money in their pockets to live their last years. Should we not allow them to see these profits on their property because we want to keep more white people from moving in so we can feel good about it? That seems a little elitist to me.
In addition, I wonder how much of this was caused by the temporary re-location of many living in the public housing – which was under construction for much of 2010 – when the Census was being taken?
In my case, my street has become MORE diverse since 2000. We have elderly African Americans, gay couples, white AND black families with school aged children, poor people, middle income, and a couple of pretty wealthy people – all living within a couple of block of each other.
Oakhurst Gossip, you nailed it. Well said.
It’s complex of course. But the argument by some at the time was that anyone who opposed the reconfiguration as it was proposed was racist. The truth is that many folks who weren’t racist at all in their personal and work lives, in fact some who were actively working against racism, had valid concerns about the full impact of the particular reconfiguration plan on both enrollment and the diversity of Decatur, including many thoughtful folks in Oakhurst. Whether this could have played out in a way that Decatur retained more of a blue collar and middle class African-American community–I don’t pretend to have the answers. Who benefitted the most economically from the gentrification of Oakhurst? That is complex too. But my guess is that it wasn’t the elderly and low income folks, but the business and developer community. Did folks really want to sell their homes and make a profit or did taxes and the loss of community influence them? I don’t know and would love to hear from folks who do. I worry about the children no longer attending CSD schools–what schools are they in now and how are they doing? I worried the same about children who left during the DHA construction when their families took vouchers and left.
Re Decatur being diverse in terms of gay/lesbian residents–I’ve heard, quite anecdotally, that diversity is declining there too, but I don’t know what data one could use to verify that perception. I know of two lesbian families that have left CSD because they felt more isolated than they expected.
Re diversity: I agree that the concept of diversity is getting broader in Decatur and that’s a good thing. Decatur used to be odd in its low number of Asian American, Hispanic, and Jewish residents. But at the time of the 2004 reconfiguration, the only diversity discussed, despite attempts to do otherwise, was black/white color.
In my heart, I wish that we could maintain the kind of racial diversity in South Decatur that we have had in the past 10-15 years. But I also believe that the policies to keep it that way would benefit no one.
And let’s be clear, the only real racial diversity we have ever had in Decatur has been in South Decatur, really. Oakhurst specifically. The only significant African American population outside of South Decatur has been in Beacon Hill, which has never been diverse, because it has never had a significant white population. Most of the neighborhoods of North Decatur are mostly white, and have always been that way. Even Winnona Park on the south side is mostly white and has been traditionally because it did not see the kind of “white flight” that the neighborhoods west of S. Candler St. and south of Kirk Rd. did in the late ’60s and early ’70’s.
Some of us longer term residents of Oakhurst, black and white, old, young and in-between, have seen a significant improvement in the quality of life in our neighborhood in the past decade. We have seen our neighborhood school greatly improve and become a source of pride which attracts residents, not detracts them, crime has been dramatically reduced, organizations have been founded and are contributing, a truly historic building (the Old Scottish Rite Hospital) was saved and restored and has become our community center, we have terrific amenities and community events. And there has been investment in our community that has not only benefited the neighborhood but has improved the tax digest for all of Decatur: businesses have opened up and are thriving, craftsman bungalows have been renovated, new homes built, and our property values (our biggest life investment) soar.
Are there side effects to all of that? Sure. Some good and some bad. There are a lot more white people around, a lot more kids, there are some ugly new houses. But ask the elderly African American who lives here whether things are better now, or 10 years ago when they were shuttered in their house and scared to go outside because of the gangs and drug dealers.
But for Decaturite’s living in these non-racially diverse neighborhoods to bemoan the loss of racial diversity in Oakhurst, I would call a bit hypocritical. And to blame it on the heroic desegregation of our city’s elementary schools in 2004 is beyond the pale. ( For newcomers to Decatur: this is what the much derided 2004 reconfiguration was all about. We had two elementary schools in Decatur (Oakhurst and College Heights) that were 95% African American, while the other elementary schools were 80%+ white. Two schools were closed and the rest consolidated and now all of our elementary schools have a similar racial breakdown and academic standards).
Instead of sitting in your ivory tower in judgement, I would say to look at your own neighborhood and wonder why it is not more diverse itself.
It’s complex, of course. Hard to know whether the family that sold their house because of rising taxes and loss of neighborhood is better off or not, even if they got a good sale price. What were they able to buy with that “profit”, how is the neighborhood where they live now, and where do their kids go to school now? The conundrum is how to improve a neighborhood–get rid of crime, drug-trafficking, improve the schools, etc.–but keep it in reach for the law-abiding, long-standing citizens. Not easy. Meanwhile the developers and new businesses profit the most.
It’s ironic that racism was invoked when folks had qualms, not about the goals of the 2004 reconfiguration–desegregating the schools and giving all children a similar education, but about the data, assumptions, and specific plan being used to achieve those goals. Now here we are and the community we were supposedly helping cannot afford to stay.
Re Ivory Tower: Not sure what academia has to do with this. I think there’s just as many academics on the southside as on the northside, what with Agnes Scott, Columbia Seminary, and all. Anyway, I think academics tend to be a bit more diverse, tolerant, and open-minded than the general population as a whole.
“Meanwhile the developers and new businesses profit the most.”
It should be mentioned that this is not some swarthy secret that no one’s supposed to talk about. It’s actually the system by which our economy operates. Businesses and developers profit the most because they take on the most risk. You’ll note that, when their risk is poorly assumed, they’re also the ones that lose the most.
This was, incidentally, the same system that governed the building of every great American city, town and neighborhood. Fifty or more years ago, do you think anyone in Decatur was bemoaning the fact that the developers of the MAK district, or Winnona Park or Glenwood Estates or Great Lakes or the trolley-line block after block of Oakhurst saw opportunity, took risk, and made money?
If the goals of a city rely, in whole or in part, on the private sector doing much of the work (and taking on much of the risk), it’s counter productive to demonize them — even if it’s just the suggestion that them making money is somehow suspect. Of course, you could avoid this messy reality by just having the government build everything but the Soviet Union demonstrated a pretty compelling case study that this is a bad idea.
I don’t disagree at all. We just need to be open about what the 2004 reconfiguration was all about. In my heart of hearts, I do not believe it was just about correcting racism because no one was worried about that until gentrification made Oakhurst attractive to newcomers.
Businesses and developers profit the most because they take on the most risk. You’ll note that, when their risk is poorly assumed, they’re also the ones that lose the most.
I wish. Unfortunately, we’re in a system now where often profits are privatized and risks are socialized, with the taxpayers ending up paying. See: TARP, “too big to fail” etc.
“It’s complex, of course.”
Nuance.
I’m sure, Karass, you know better than the actual owners of the property about what they should do with their own property/money than they do. I’m sure they wished they had asked you before they sold their home and even though they were elderly with no children in school, you could have convinced them they they should stay in their deteriorating 90 year old home instead of taking the $200,000 and moving into assisted care or nice new apartment, so that they would not be able to sell it to a greedy developer who might build a house for white people with children who would attend our local schools.
The last I checked, there have been no reports of greedy developers forcing anyone to sell at gunpoint. These are choices people made based on their own circumstances. And the last time I checked, in this country, we are allowed to make such choices.
The new development in this city is also what has allowed it maintain financial solvency during the past couple of years, without tax increases or services being cut too much. In fact, they have maintained senior tax rebates and given tax money back. Without the greedy developers and new businesses, do you think this would be possible?
The 2004 desegregation of our schools was a good idea then and it has helped our community. Just like in the 1960’s and ’70’s there is some pain involved. There were many then who argued that desegregating schools would not be good for black children, just like many are arguing that Decatur’s desegregation in 2004 would do the same. I understand that. But it was still the right decision.
Who did not want to desegregate the schools in 2004? Not me and not anyone I knew. The question was how and with what dats.
Oakhurst Gossip-
Kinda seems like you’re the one viewing things from a tower. Jumping on karass for sharing her worries for elderly folks who may have been gentrified out of their homes? Really??? Have you paid attention to her worries about it expressed on here before? Or to her thoughts on community? Or to her ongoing concern that the CSD use the very best data & methods for making decisions to benefit all children? And what’s this about Oakhurst being the only diverse neighborhood in Decatur? It’s simply not so. I can only pipe up for Decatur Heights, but I can most definitely assure you that you are wrong! Decatur Heights is a beautiful potpourri of different races, nationalities, faiths, lifestyles, and interests– heck, even the main four political views are pretty well represented! Our neighborhood Potluck yesterday was a testament to our intentions of becoming one big vibrant community. Surely you’re not seeing things only in black & white?!
According to today’s paper, the black population in Atlanta declined as well.
agreed
http://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/census-more-blacks-in-875351.html
The post focusing on Decatur’s black flight to suburbia is too narrow and is leading to Decaturite navel gazing (speculation and blame of Decatur institutions) when it’s really a metro-wide trend.
Though it’s not for me. there are good reasons people move to a suburban lifestyle. To many, it’s still “The American Dream”. This movement to suburbs may be a sign of improved affluence of those families and improved racial tolerance in the suburbs.
If I knew this was black flight to the American Dream in suburbia, I would say this was a win-win for all. I am afraid that’s not what happened. I’m afraid that some could no longer afford their property taxes, many were renting and their landlords sold their properties so they had to leave (my son has a friend with a grandmother who used to live on Mead that this happened to), and some felt isolated without their community. I have a feeling many are living in foreclosure-land in DeKalb or Clayton Counties, their homes are currently unsellable if they bought them and their children are attending vastly inferior schools to Oakhurst Elementary, which might have been majority black in 2004 but was run by a terrific principal and staffed by great teachers. But I don’t know this, many on this Board think it’s not our concern, and I have no magic answer for how to gentrify without displacing long-standing, tax-paying, rooted residents, so there it lies. But what I do know is that the discussion in 2003-2004 was diverted by claims of racism and northside vs southside, when it should have been a more thoughtful, less political discussion with better assumptions, data, and planning. I don’t think we intended to bridge the minority achievement gap by moving it out of the City.
Freeze or cap property tax increases until a house changes hands.
This has problems too, as California has discovered. Warren Buffett, for example, has talked about the fact that his $4 million house in Laguna Beach has a tax bill of $2,264. And while that is nice for the homeowner, it also can lead to devastating effects for the state’s budget.
Are there no “gentrifying” African-Americans moving into Decatur at this time, i.e., professionals with higher incomes to match the higher end of the demographics?
Oh, there definitely are. All sorts of professionals from CDC, Emory, elsewhere, but not in the numbers that would replenish the original African-American community. And some have expressed concern that their children do not have as many African-American CSD classmates as they had hoped, just so they didn’t feel isolated. It’s interesting. What I used to hear a lot from professional African-American parents in the area was that they were sending their kids to private school so that it wasn’t assumed in public school that their children were low-income and under-performers just because of their color. I haven’t heard that for awhile but I am hearing from similar parents that they are going to CSD but they are worried that their children will feel isolated if the number of African-American classmates declines a whole lot more.
I’m seeing a 2000 population of 18,147 and a 2010 population of 19,335, which would represent 6.55% growth, not all that much off our rate through the 90s. But given that we hemorrhaged residents in the 70s and 80s, losing over 20% of our population in just 20 years, we’ve still got quite a ways to go before we near our historic highs.
That said, I’m just thankful to be on an upswing. Disinvestment ain’t pretty.
I too would agree that Decatur has become more diverse.
All I can say is so what. What did the great Morgan Freeman say about race? oh yea….”dont dwell on it. Being a black american,,,no, I am not a hyphenated american; You white people treat us like mascots or something. Just stop it. who cares about the racial breakdown of the city. It just doesnt matter. Last I heard, people are free to pursue happiness in this country. So what if they cant afford to live in Decatur. I am sure many of you white folks can afford to live on Tuxedo road in buckhead either. It just doesnt matter. Spare me your white guilt.
amen
Well, I disagree, with both you and apparently Morgan Freeman. Although I admit it’s hard to argue with a guy whose voice is so damn smooth. I moved to this town because people do care about race, about gender, about class, about fairness, about being a community, about people they don’t know and never will. I pretty much moved here because I think the majority of Decaturites disagree with you. I hope I’m right.
Just curious, but where did you move from that didn’t care about race, about gender, about class, about fairness, and about being a community? I would like to avoid it. I’ve lived in cities and towns in Wisconsin, California, Illinois, Indiana, Pennsylvania, Iowa, Georgia, and Colorado and don’t believe I’ve lived anywhere near a place that would care less than you believe Decaturites do.
Well put!
It would be nice it the Census was simply a tool for counting heads to determine representation in the different levels of government. Rather, it has become another tool for the continued balkanization of our communities and nation. Seriously, why should anyone care about how many people of a particular race live in a particular community as long as the people in that community are earnestly working to insure a high quality of life for all of its residents?
I agree that Decatur is becoming an “exclusive” city in several ways, however, I wouldn’t say ethnic make-up is one of those ways.
my sense is that we can get a bit precious in calibrating our racial sensitivity–to the point of awkwardness, and that makes no one feel good–even if the awkwardness is a simple artifact of trying too damn hard.
being truly comfortable about race ought to translate into us being able to relax and resist the impulse to overengineer this stuff. the ebb and flow of demographics is inevitable, and handwringing about it is what (i think) robert was responding to.
not sure you’re talking to me, but if so
1. I grew up in Georgia in a completely integrated, mature neighborhood and public schools. the integration was organic–people lived there because the homes fit their price range, and the racial composition varied over time.
2. I take Robert’s perspective as a a meaningful datapoint from a member of the community (black Americans, as he prefers) we tiptoe around so much.
I have to add the most awesome thing I once heard Angela Davis say live and in person:
Paraphrasing here:
Don’t call me African American. I went from being a n***** to being a Negro to being colored and then I got to be black. I am a black American. I earned it.
Interesting. I have asked many of my black/African-American friends, colleagues, and kid’s teachers what they would prefer to be called and most have said that they don’t care a whole lot but they prefer the term “African-American” slightly over “black. A few have said “black”. I have also asked my foreign-born dark-skinned friends and colleagues–they usually say they would prefer to be identified by their country of origin. It gets even more complicated when one asks about being Latino/Hispanic/Chicano(out of date now?)/Spanish(in northern New Mexico). I know I prefer white over Caucasian but who-knows-ethnic American would probably be more accurate.
Maybe we should simply avoid adjectives except where required.
Or desired. Some folks love to celebrate their background, culture, heritage.
Agree Parker!!!!
AMEN!!!
Um, “chicano” is DEFINITELY out of vogue…plus, it’s basically referring to only one sub-group of Hispanics (Puerto Ricans), so I wouldn’t use it to refer to anyone whom you’re not sure is PR (and even then, they might not like it). As for me, I use “latina” and “hispanic” interchangeably to describe myself. “Spanish” refers only to people from Spain (or whose direct descendants were from there). It also refers to the language, but isn’t used to refer to hispanics across the board (after all, Americans speak English, but we don’t call ourselves “English-Americans” or suchlike).
Glad to be of service!
I thought you were PRINCESS CUPCAKE.
In northern New Mexico, folks traditionally have used the term “Spanish” not Hispanic or Latino or anything else to refer to themselves. Could have changed in last XX years since I lived there. The idea is that they descended from the Spanish that colonized the area in the 1500s? and 1600s?, not from folks migrating up from Mexico or from other parts of Latin America. Whether or not they are genetically correct, that’s how they consider themselves. Of course, we know that lots of intermingling between native Americans, black fugitive slaves, gringos, Mexicans, and whatever else occurred but you have to respect what people call themselves. The Census Bureau has wrestled with the issues of how to classify race and ethnicity, both of which are cultural, not biologic, constructs, for years. My favorite definition is that a person is whatever they classify themself to be.
“There is no room in this country for hyphenated Americanism. When I refer to hyphenated Americans, I do not refer to naturalized Americans. Some of the very best Americans I have ever known were naturalized Americans, Americans born abroad. But a hyphenated American is not an American at all… The one absolutely certain way of bringing this nation to ruin, of preventing all possibility of its continuing to be a nation at all, would be to permit it to become a tangle of squabbling nationalities, an intricate knot of German-Americans, Irish-Americans, English-Americans, French-Americans, Scandinavian-Americans or Italian-Americans, each preserving its separate nationality, each at heart feeling more sympathy with Europeans of that nationality, than with the other citizens of the American Republic… There is no such thing as a hyphenated American who is a good American. The only man who is a good American is the man who is an American and nothing else.”
-Theodore Roosevelt
A great quote from my favorite president. Thanks, Left Wing.
He’s my favorite president as well, DTR, but for one reason only. The National Parks. Every time I visit one it takes my breath away and I feel compelled to say a little prayer of thanks.
Go Asians!!
So, by definition, Charlize Theron is African-American, right? Personally, I think the term African-American is PC garbage. I prefer black, or else refer to me as African/Native/Creole American.
Angela Davis is on your side. That’s where I would want her!
We’re all mutts.
Not me, I’ve got tiger blood.
writerchad: WINNING
Duh!
Feline-American?
+ 1
There was an interesting story in the NYT this morning about the rise in racially mixed households. In the article, it’s suggested that the same people who identified themselves years ago by a single race, may be more likely now to identify themselves as mixed race. Made me wonder about the validity of the stats in the original post. Here’s an excerpt that explains the point better than I can:
‘The share of the multiracial population under the age of 18 in Mississippi is higher than its share of youth in the general population, suggesting that much of the growth in the mixed-race group can be explained by recent births. But in Mississippi and in other states, some growth may also be a result of older Americans who once identified themselves as black or some other single race expanding the way they think about their identity.
“The reality is that there has been a long history of black and white relationships — they just weren’t public,” said Prof. Matthew Snipp, a demographer in the sociology department at Stanford University. Speaking about the mixed-race offspring of some of those relationships, he added: “People have had an entire decade to think about this since it was first a choice in 2000. Some of these figures are not so much changes as corrections. In a sense, they’re rendering a more accurate portrait of their racial heritage that in the past would have been suppressed.””
Very interesting. I was recently at a youth group meeting at which a couple of kids who identify as mixed-race asked “What’s the big deal about being mixed race?” The kids seemed surprised to find out that it wasn’t that long ago that people who had both white and African-American heritage usually were considered black and identified mostly with the black community. These kids seemed determined not to be pigeon-holed. Hope that isn’t just youthful naiveté.
Here’s a link to the article if you are interested.
http://nyti.ms/epL8qm
Thanks Rick Julian you are a “cracka” who gets it. over engineering, trying too hard, exactly what I meant in my post. I glaze over when I read the word fairness. I am not a black man that is crippled by some persecution complex. I believe the country is in large fair. Utopia doesnt exist. I believe everyones station in life is based on the sum of their decisions. If you have children while you are a teenager that is a recipe for poverty; or in the case of this blog post. not being able to afford living in decatur. Just live and let live and be considerate of those around you. Realize your potential and go from there. It seems that most white people that fall all over themselves due to white guilt dont even know how to act when in the presence of a black person. you are the ones with the issue. Now where the white women at??
Funniest closing sentence ever. Thanks for the laugh.
(But I totally disagree with ” … everyones station in life is based on the sum of their decisions.” We can save that conversation for another day.)
Simple strategies:
1) aging in place – making sure older, long-time residents can live out their years right where they are, thus not needing a $100k-$200k lump sum to live it out elsewhere.
2) estate planning – before the developers can get to them, talk to these elders about passing these homes down to decendents who have young families and could benefit from the quality schools and great quality of life. I just had my blood drawn by a young African American woman who it turns out grew up in Oakhurst but “moved on” (she didn’t really have a reason she could/wanted to give me…and said she didn’t understand the big deal about Decatur now, she went to DHS and it was fine but not great…so it seems unaware of the transformation happening) and is now enjoying living in Little 5 Points. She has older relatives still in the neighborhood. Seems she’s exactly the kind of person the neighborhood would benefit from retaining and as she has a family, would benefit from being here.
Just my thoughts.
+1