The Stomping ground: From Then to Now

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Welcome to my neighborhood, Jamaica, Queens. I’ve been living in this section of Queens all my life. I was raised in a single parent household, which made it difficult to maintain during my childhood. I did not have a father figure in my life, which cheated me out of a lot of experiences growing up. Living in Jamaica, today the atmosphere is much different; I notice a lot of changes throughout my neighborhood. The streets look sanitary, there are no more abandoned buildings or drug addicts on the corners and the list goes on. The outcome of this change led to a lot of homeowners settling in now instead of renters in Jamaica. I’ve noticed that homeowners tend to take care of their property and value it more than renters. Jamaica, Queens is one of the major African American neighborhoods in the borough of Queens. Creating a community with cultural diversity will enrich the learning process and academic environment with new perspectives. During the 90’s, when immigrants started to move into the neighborhood, the crime rate decreased gradually. Lately, I saw the structural -functional approach, black people in my neighborhood working together helping one another out.

Goodridge 2

It gives the community a better understanding of other cultures and ideas. Cultural diversity has decreased the crime rate in Jamaica Queens.

In 1660, a tribe of Indians once owned the neighborhood. Before it became Jamaica, it was originally called Jameco. Shortly after, the English settlers from Hempstead, Long Island

renamed it Jamaica (Chisholm 135). Most of the Native Indians are deceased now; they are no longer in my neighborhood. In the 1950s, majority of Jamaica was white Americans. Ten Years later, African Americans migrated fro...

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Chisholm, Hugh. “Jamaica, NY.” The Encyclopedia Britannica.

Cambridge: university press, 1911. Print.

Goodridge, Jacqueline. Personal Interview. 7 May 2010.

Goodridge, Randy. Personal Interview. 5 May 2010.

Grodin, Jaclyn. “In New York, Rising Teen Drop-out and Incarceration Rates”.

http://journalism.nyu.edu. New York: New York University, Department of Journalism.

2005. Web. 09 May 2010. http://journalism.nyu.edu/pubzone/wsr/article/rising_rates/

Hickman, Tara. Class lecture. 12 April 2010.

Johnson, Kristel. Personal Interview. 9 May 2010.

Morris E. Bernard. “Guyana Summary” http://education.stateuniversity 11 May 2010. Web. http://education.stateuniversity.com/pages/594/Guyana-SUMMARY.html

“113 Precinct, Compstat – Police Department City of New York” NYC.Gov 26 April 24 2010. Web. 10 May 2010. http://www.nyc.gov/

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