March 17, 2011
The ethnic makeup of southeastern San Diego is changing, and some residents don't seem thrilled about it. In fact, an underlying tone of racial tension is plaguing a nonprofit group's attempts to turn around the community, perhaps by welcoming a big store like Walmart or Target.
"I've been in this community a long time," a resident told an audience at a forum the other night. "And all these people I see around here, I just don't know where you all came from."
Many of "these people" are Latinos. The speaker, an African-American man, would rather see a mall where local blacks can open stores.
Others are concerned. As Adrian Florido reports, "some of the community's black pastors have grown uneasy about the nonprofit's work and the roughly 56 acres of land it's bought near the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Market Street." The challenge for the nonprofit will be to figure out how to bring the various ethnic groups together, if that's even possible.
The ethnic makeup of southeastern San Diego is changing, and some residents don't seem thrilled about it. In fact, an underlying tone of racial tension is plaguing a nonprofit group's attempts to turn around the community, perhaps by welcoming a big store like Walmart or Target.
"I've been in this community a long time," a resident told an audience at a forum the other night. "And all these people I see around here, I just don't know where you all came from."
Many of "these people" are Latinos. The speaker, an African-American man, would rather see a mall where local blacks can open stores.
Others are concerned. As Adrian Florido reports, "some of the community's black pastors have grown uneasy about the nonprofit's work and the roughly 56 acres of land it's bought near the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Market Street." The challenge for the nonprofit will be to figure out how to bring the various ethnic groups together, if that's even possible.
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