Unseen Boundries In Bradenton

Unseen Boundaries in Bradenton

Ryan King

Western International University

ETH123 - Cultural Diversity

Elizabeth Bossel, MA

July 2, 2006

Unseen Boundaries in Bradenton

Traveling to this remote city in Florida, one would expect to see medians with palm trees stretching to the sky. The brochures depict Tiki bars and water skiing lessons, deep sea fishing tours and kayaking down the hidden mangrove swamps. Less than ten miles away is the city of Sarasota, one of the most affluent housing districts in the state easily fetching $300,000 for an average family home. Homeless are shoveling away without abandon or care, and the "less than affluent" receive only passing stares. Within Bradenton, who many claim receive Sarasota's cast-offs, few realize the boundaries set up by not so much income as nationality. It is an invisible fence. A boundary between nations; and yet we are all neighbors.

I live on the west side of town. This in itself is an invisible line that certain people do not cross. If one wants to live with less worry of break-in or drugs surrounding your children, you move to the west side. The west side is merely the west side of the US41 strip, an imaginary dividing line that miraculously raises the cost of housing by almost $100,000 if you live on the west. The west side is predominantly white, European Americans who are searching for their first house. The east side began to gather a Hispanic and African American majority, and just a few decades ago founded their own "inner-city" called Oneco.

This is a strange phenomenon I will not get used to. The license plates on the vehicles still read Bradenton, yet people, even the post office recognize Oneco. Just as minorities are given less than equal say on the west side of town, if a European American were to look at a neighborhood in Oneco then you are "white trash or drug addicts". This is not only local conjecture; even law enforcement scramble every year at rotation of duty to see who goes into the "crack town".

To the south there is another little community labeled New Town. African Americans are the only heritage welcome here. The crime is phenomenal with at least 20 arrests a day coming from this small two-square-mile range of neighborhoods. Caucasians are told, "Don't go into Newtown after dark unless you want your car shot up". I grew up listening to this type of talk among the teachers and students in our town. The sad part is that even the students who lived in those towns believed and gave in to the propaganda. There is talk of "their school" and "our school" not in the context of which one you attend, but which one fits your ethnic background the best. "In Sarasota alone, 34 percent of the school population is classified as Hispanic." (2006, Silverburg)

In Bradenton, when the city counsel convenes to elect a new representative, there is always talk of needing an African American representative. The qualifications do not seem the predetermining factor, only that there is someone of ethnic decent to give a voice to the people. Although seeing someone of ethnic decent on the bench would give a peaceful natural to those he/she represented, I find it disturbing that the race is more important than the qualifications. "Approximately 22% of Bradenton is non-white. No single racial group represents Bradenton, a city where diversity is valued." (Bradenton City-info) This quote is only one in a long string of pleas for representation. Perhaps this shows the incessant need for representation and the need for a voice from those behind the fence.

Perhaps unintentionally, the media has reinforced these boundaries in Bradenton. Many times when a person is arrested, the media goes out of their way to show which part of the city they are a resident. As mentioned earlier, none of the brochures of the area shows anything except the beautiful skyline beaches with their "Jimmy Buffet" style flair. A subtle eye picks up the fact that European and Caucasian Americans get more airtime than other ethnic backgrounds. Recent national and local news has brought to many people's attention the fact that most blue-collared working adults cannot afford to live in the city, and instead are living up to 40 miles away and driving to work. The hospital in which I work has lost 25% of their workforce due to these unbalanced earnings versus living in the area. Yet there are those who are unaffected, and yet another boundary raises anticipation and racial view in the media.

Coverage concerning the welfare and Habitat for Humanity programs has stirred debate among locals. The affordable houses are going up in the east and south sectors of town, and welfare has been severely cut from those of Caucasian decent. This has fueled a local "reverse discrimination" issue among the populace. Many of my coworkers and neighbors have shown a strong distrust and resentment towards African Americans and Hispanic decent for these very reasons. The very sight of spinning rims on a Cadillac may determine is you are welcome in a certain community or not. Almost immediately there is prejudicial, views raised by the clothes you wear or the style of your vehicle that places you in an ethnic group or not.

In the work environment, there is less room for direct prejudice, although the slight humor among racial tones is prevalent. Due to the large representation of Hispanic and African Americans in the local workforce, much of