OPINION — Freelance Wasteland

My anti-anti-hipster column this week generated over 70 comments as well as peripheral arguments on a couple of other sites, so I will take the opportunity to address the more common concerns, assertions, and made-up nonsense about who I am and what I do.

A number of people have convinced themselves that I am a racist because I characterize "hipster" as "a catch-all term that has come to refer to anyone who moves to Brooklyn from somewhere other than Puerto Rico or some awful Balkan country." I would imagine that those people will be happy to learn that their worries in this regard are entirely groundless and prompted by a failure in reading comprehension, and though it would be difficult to break this sentence fragment down into something even easier to digest, I will try. What I was saying is that the use of the term "hipster" in general and the opposition to new arrivals in particular is almost always directed by such people as I am describing at whites, and never at Puerto Ricans or anyone else deemed to be "ethnic" (due to a common misconception, usually linguistic but sometimes based itself in racism, that whites are not possessed of ethnicity). Although the stereotypical characteristics of the "hipster" don’t apply to many Puerto Ricans, the objections based on the simple of act of moving to Brooklyn from somewhere else and the real and imagined effects this has on those who already lived here would seem to apply, yet such objections are only made against a subset of those who move here: whites in general and youngish whites in particular. Somewhat related is the bizarre belief that non-whites are somehow more "genuine" than whites, and thereby entitled to live in certain places that whites are not. Ironically, many whites of the sort that the anti-hipster crowd like to mock — and rightfully so — also hold this belief, which is not only unfair to whites, but also patronizing of non-whites, who are regarded thereby as somehow above the criticism reserved for other "transplants." It’s also worth noting that "Puerto Rican" is not a race and neither is "Balkan," and this is the only outlet for which I write in which I have to point out such things.

Characterizing as "racist" my opposition to the singling out of a certain race for criticism for doing something that people of other races also do — moving to Brooklyn, in this case — is not only foolish, but damaging to the efforts of those of us who attempt to point out actual, unambiguous racism when it occurs. I spent a good portion of last year teaming up with the black mathematics professor and political activist Jonathan Farley in attempting to bring attention to the fact that a fellow who used to write under a pen name for a white nationalist publication now writes for American Spectator, The Washington Times and other mainstream conservative outlets, and the fact that spurious charges of racism are so common provided this person with perfect cover by which to dismiss our unambiguous evidence. Obviously, a few idiotic comments on this site don’t make any difference in this regard; they are simply a drop in the bucket. But they contribute to a dynamic that allows actual racists to operate in such positions whereby they can do actual harm.

Now, I shall address a few specific comments.

The fact that you would move to a place and just assume that the people who live their [sic] lack talent really shows what kind of person you are. — Joe from Brooklyn

As I noted when I wrote that "there are a number of locals who are fine, capable people," I acknowledge that there is talent among the locals. There is just not enough talent among the locals that the locals are able to fill a great number of jobs that need filling, such as the many creative jobs available in Manhattan. I did not "assume" this, but rather came to this conclusion based on having worked in the media in a variety of capacities as well as having interacted with a great number of the locals (many commenters have asserted that I have not met any locals, which is ludicrous; I don’t live in one of the "hipster" enclaves, but rather have spent three years living in more typical Bushwick neighborhoods, and of course have met plenty of locals).

Really? The term "hipster" defines anyone who moves to Brooklyn from a non-impoverished country? — Gary

No. That is the usage against which I am arguing. Please stop reading my articles.

Most importantly, it is really unfair to generalize about Bushwick natives in the unflattering way you do. Sure there are people like the ones you mentioned in our neighborhood, but there are also plenty of capable, intelligent and well-behaved people who grew up here. — BK in BK

I know. That’s why I wrote that "there are a number of locals who are fine, capable people."

Besides the fact that it is an awkward run-on sentence, you said "one would probably not want to mess less one get beaten up". You probably meant to say "lest" rather than "less". For someone who has allegedly written for Vanity Fair and The Huffington Post, that’s a pretty dumbass mistake. – Trail of Disgrace

It was a typo. I made one in the space of a thousand-word essay, and every other writer makes similar typos — even the ones who write for Vanity Fair. Also, the sentence to which you are referring is not a run-on sentence; it is simply a long sentence with several clauses. You would be more convincing as a volunteer editor if the last sentence of your own first paragraph was not itself a fragment, or if you had any idea of what constitutes a run-on sentence and what does not.

So Mr. Brown, when are you moving back to Pensyltuckysconsin? — Wright5Mets

As soon as I get done eating this organic yogurt, of course. I mean, I’m from Dallas and spent parts of my youth in Mexico and East Africa and have never gone anywhere near any of the states that you and others will nonetheless keep claiming that I am from because you are every bit as dishonest as the religious conservatives who run around the internet making shit up about me.

And mocking "native brooklynites"  because they have faith in god?? Besides the complete logical fallacy you’ve laid out here (that native newyorkers are all waiting for the messiah and yuppie transplants are not), you are really not going to gain anything with anyone outside of a few stubborn off-the-wall atheists with a comment like that. — Your mother

I neither said nor implied that "native newyorkers" are all waiting for the messiah or that no "yuppie transplants" are doing the same thing. At any rate, I am not interested in winning over religious people and burned those bridges a long time ago anyway.

Warning: Do not try to argue with native Brooklynites. We’ve seen it all and argued with the best of every single group of people here on God’s green earth. We’re quick-witted like no one’s business and if that’s not what you call cosmopolitan then you’ve been watching too much Sex and the City. — Joe from Brooklyn

"TOO MUCH SEX AND THE CITY"? THAT’S BRILLIANT!

In conclusion, Jesus fucking Christ.

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