AURORA | Sentinel Colorado editor, Dave Perry, talked with Colorado Public Radio this week about what’s making top headlines in Aurora these days and some stories readers can expect for the next few weeks.
In Aurora, “you can learn from people from all over the world,” Perry told Colorado Matters host Chandra Thomas Whitfield on Thursday’s show.
Perry was talking about Aurora’s vast cultural, racial and even international diversity, which he said is a great strength for the community in the midst of a national wave of distrust of immigrants.
The interview was part of a CPR series on media across the state focused on ethnic voices and operated by ethnic journalists, the Colorado Ethnic Media Exchange.
Perry said the Sentinel would continue focusing coverage of police reform in Aurora in light of a state mandated consent decree.
And among the city’s vibrant arts, cultural and education scene, it boasts one of the best and most diverse food and restaurant communities on the planet, he said.
Listen in for recommendations on the best bahn mi or Iraqi flatbreads.
Click here for the full Colorado Matters radio show segment.
Many take pride in Aurora’s diverse community, which is all fine and well. Many feel that our diversity is a reflection on the quality of character and open mindedness of our long-term residents. But it more likely related to the fact that Aurora is one of the lower costing housing markets on the front range and nothing more. As such, it is easier to get started here than in many other communities.
It is often said that diversity makes us stronger. I’m not sure I have found this to be true. I live in a neighborhood which is highly diverse including White, African-American, Vietnamese, Latino, Ethiopian and some Venezuelan immigrants. Many of these residents do not speak English and only their native tongue; which makes it very hard to communicate with one another. Communication is limited to simply smiling and waving hello. This makes it very difficult to establish a sense of community. In addition, many have different prioities and values, possibly a result of cultural differences. It is often seen that many seem either unconcerned or unaware of city ordinances in Aurora. This can be quite frustrating for those who regularly follow them. As such, and all things considered, my experience has been that diversity here seems to be more of an obstacle to overcome than a strength. We all work hard to get along and overcome these barriers, but a strength it is not.
“And among the city’s vibrant arts, cultural and education scene, it boasts one of the best and most diverse food and restaurant communities on the planet, he said.”
LOL–it’s always about food with these people.
Dave Perry always displays a deep love of this community and the rich diversity it possesses. I see the comments above, and it disheartening to see that in these divided time others find diversity to be a burden – always negative, never seeing the positive. I lived in Houston for close to 20 years. It now is home to a very diverse community and my neighborhood was no different. I had two Korean families, one African-American family, one Indian family, and
two other white families besides ourselves in our cul de sac. The Korean families had members that did not speak English. Every day I walked through the neighborhood, I encountered Jaibo, one of the elders housed with one Korean family. He was very friendly, always bowing, smiling, and greeting me although he didn’t speak English. At work I knew a Korean woman and I asked her to teach me a Korean greeting, so I could surprise Jaibo. The next day I used it. You should have seen his face. After that, he learned some English and we became closer, helping each other with yard or fence issues. We worked through the language barrier and made our community better. At least it felt better to him and me. Sometimes you just have to put a little effort into something and be happy with even a small result. That’s community! I learned it from my great grandpa in Cedar Rapids. He came from Czechoslovakia and always spoke broken English, but he and his brother were good bowlers. Their friendly demeanors and sharp bowling skills won them many friends. That’s what it will take to make America great again – more acceptance, tolerance, and friendly outreach!
People on the left don’t like it when someone comes along and pokes holes in the widely held, often promoted ideologies such as “diversity makes us stronger.” And when someone recounts their personal experience challenging this ideology, they say that they are just being constantly negative.
Mikey’s personal anecdote about how he handled communication problems with diverse individuals in his neighborhood was endearing and mirrored mine. However, nowhere in his post did he explain how diversity in his neighborhood made it stronger; which was my main contention. It reminds me of how we often hear that our legal immigration system is “broken.” But they never support their contention by explaining exactly how it is broken. They just repeat it so often that people just come to believe it is true without question.