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December 4, 2007
Crown Heights near Medgar Evers Safe?
I am considering moving across the street from Medgar Evers College, and was wondering which subway provided the safest walk home at night. Would it be safer to walk from the 2/3 on Franklin, or the Q at Prospect Park? It all seems so deserted, and I know things can change from block to block.
Thanks.
Comments
go away troll get a life
Posted by: guest at December 4, 2007 3:11 PM
Why the hostility? Its not an unreasonable question when moving to a new neighborhood in NYC.
Posted by: slopehead at December 4, 2007 3:27 PM
Maybe yours is a legitimate question but check the forum; these "is it safe" questions are almost always attempts to start fights by fake posters, otherwise known as "trolls" looking to stir the racial pot and fill this board with lurid frightening nonsense for fun. I have been reading the forum for a long time (gave up on the other part) and can't count how many of these kinds of posts I have read.
Posted by: guest at December 4, 2007 4:04 PM
I'm thinking of starting a post titled "are you scared of black people" just for the hell of it
Posted by: guest at December 4, 2007 4:19 PM
guest 3:11, 4:04, and 4:19 -- I agree sometimes trolls do post to get a reaction, but the wording of this post was not inflammatory, and it's not the original poster's fault if a troll answers it this way.
As a woman, I read this post and what struck me as the OP's concern was the fact of it being "deserted" -- that's what I hate at night. It's much more safe to have people and open businesses around and the color of the people around you doesn't matter -- just that there ARE people around so you aren't walking down some lonely stretch at night. So it's responders who are trying to stir a racial pot when there is absolutely no need to do so.
Posted by: guest at December 4, 2007 4:41 PM
OK, I see that I was stepping into a forum with older issues about this type of thing, but please know that I am 100% sincerely looking to move into a brand new neighborhood, am NOT IN ANY WAY RACIST, but am a young woman and would be asking the same question about ANY neighborhood I was considering. I work at night and will be taking the subway, so am merely asking for suggestions about the safest routes, or if there are any notorious areas to be avoided. And yes, what worries me is that the area seems deserted, so if anyone, white, black, pink or green tried to hurt me, no one would know.
I hope someone with knowledge of the area can give me some sincere advice.
Thanks.
Posted by: slopehead at December 4, 2007 5:12 PM
Wouldn't the President Street stop on the '2' be closer than Franklin ?
I use the Prospect Park stop on the Q and it's quite safe, but a loooong walk from Medgar Evers
Posted by: Bob Marvin at December 4, 2007 5:58 PM
Eastern Parkway is always busy.... I would get off at the stop closer to the Parkway..
Posted by: guest at December 4, 2007 9:02 PM
Would you prefer walking down Bedford or Eastern Pkwy?
Posted by: slopehead at December 4, 2007 10:14 PM
Most people aren't hurt by opportunists but by people who they know or at least, those who know them. You might be better off rotating randomly between the stops instead of creating a pattern that some ill-willed observer sees.
Posted by: guest at December 4, 2007 11:10 PM
OK, thanks for the advice. If I may ask just one more question erring on the side of caution, is there any route that you would recommend I avoid? I will be walking home by myself around 11pm most nights.
Thanks again.
Posted by: slopehead at December 5, 2007 12:48 AM
First of all, if this is really about safety, then go get to know the area instead of depending on the anonymous advice of a handful of strangers on the internets. This doesn't seem like an effective strategy for getting to know whether or not a neighborhood is actually sparse at night or whatever.
Besides, crime rates in all five boroughs are at an all-time low, and people tend to be victimized by people who know them and not strangers.
People who say "is it safe" tend to be the same people who, if you continue the conversation, wind up saying "and then I was the only white face on the train!" in order to tell you that they then felt unsafe.
Not saying that this is what the OP is doing, just saying that this line of questioning looks really useless if it's about safety...
...but it seems like a great way to ask, in code, whether or not there are white people in the neighborhood.
I am just speaking from my own experience. I asked similar questions when I moved to Bed Stuy, and was, thankfully, forced to be honest about what I was asking, and learned a thing or two about how racism works, and I grew up considerably.
Posted by: guest at December 5, 2007 7:38 AM
EVERYBODY is racist...Black, white, red, green, we all fear and or disciminate against those that appear different from us, its natural since the dawn of time. Its only to what degree we express those feelings outwardly and admit them to ourselves that matters to the rest of the world.
Society tries to compel people to not act in a racist manner, but it is human nature and the OP is well within her rights to seek info to alleviate her natural instinctual concerns.
Those that think they are not the least bit racist, or are sooooo open minded they are offended by the mere thought of someone wondering if other people of their own race exist in a neighborhood, are just kidding themselves.
Posted by: guest at December 5, 2007 9:42 AM
I'm not the OP, but the last 2 posts really annoy me. Why are you assuming the OP doesn't know the racial make-up of the neighborhood she wants to live in? I don't know a single person who has signed a lease for an apartment without seeing the neighborhood, so she already knows the color of the residents and that didn't deter her. If it had, she would have signed a lease in a different neighborhood.
HOWEVER, in ANY neighborhood, regardless of make-up of residents, I don't like taking the subway and walking home on deserted streets late at night. It's sensible for the OP to ask whether it's a good idea, and if so, if there is a "best" route to take home, especially if she's seen empty streets.
Sorry, but I'd ask the same question in Park Slope, or at a Westchester suburban train station late at night. Please don't make this into something it is not.
Posted by: guest at December 5, 2007 11:01 AM
Yeah, the OP is sexist and so am I. As a woman, I ask these type of questions because I believe men are dangerous to me. White, black and brown men. That's how it is. If you don't like us asking this type of question, get over yourself.
Posted by: guest at December 5, 2007 12:33 PM
Yes, thank you to the last poster. While I get that racism is a relevant and extremely important issue, it's not the reason I started this post. Perhaps a better question would be:
Does anyone on this message board live near Medgar Evers? Can you recommend the most efficient subway stop?
Seriously. Those who are hyper-paranoid about people asking about safety seem to have it a little backwards. Safety is universal. It has nothing to do with COLOR. It may have something to do with rumors of CRIME in a given area. That's not racism, that's just common sense. As I am sure you're aware, most urban crime is the product of the economy, not of someone's skin color. I'm not looking to move into some rich neighborhood on a tree-lined block. I'm looking where I can afford to live. And I'm trying to inform myself about the neighborhood BEFORE I'm walking around alone late at night.
Posted by: slopehead at December 5, 2007 12:40 PM
Check here as well:
http://brooklynian.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=4
It's a crown heights message board
Posted by: CrownGardener at December 5, 2007 1:26 PM
Wow, let's try to answer an honest question rather than tangential socio-political commentary that doesn't really help OP.
When we moved into our new neighborhood not knowing much about it, we walked around at night, met a couple of neighbors and asked tham about some of these issues. We also called the local police precinct, spoke with someone for 45 minutes and then got his cell phone number for future questions. Can't hurt to call them in your potential new hood. Can also try the community board.
Posted by: guest at December 5, 2007 3:01 PM
When I was looking to buy, I was thinking of a place in Crown Heights which I wasn't sure about. I liked the building and the price but wasn't sure I liked the location for different reasons - it was on St. Marks and best accessed by the Franklin Avenue shuttle. So I tried the commute at different times to just sense how I felt about the commute and the walk home. In the end, I decided against it for a number of reasons - didn't like having to take a shuttle and to wait etc and the lack of amenities and the deserted streets in the evening. I suggest doing the same. In the end, you feel (and radiate) confidence or fear and you don't want to have the trip home feel like walking the gauntlet for whatever reasons.
Posted by: donatella at December 5, 2007 5:49 PM
Hi slopehead, I am going to be honest and tell you that neither one of those stations are great at night (from prior experience), however, if I have to choose I would choose the 2/3 because it's on eastern parkway with traffic. So when you get out of the train station station you can walk down eastern parkway (not on the sidewalk where the buildings are at but the lane where you get out at)then when you get to bedford avenue you turn and walk down to Medgars.
I used to live in Crown Heights but now I live in Bed-Stuy right in da hood but it's okay because there are plenty of cops around and it's a high traffic area with people walking all times of the night. Plus I live like a half block from the train station. Been there for 9 years and never had any problems. It's noisy and people sometimes fight but you get used to it.
Although I like the quiet deserted area as far as being peaceful I'd rather live in an area where is are lots of people walking home if I am going to be working or coming home late.
Best to try it out like donatella said so you can get a feel for the area.
7:)
Posted by: ms7of9 at December 7, 2007 3:18 PM
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