Map of the Day: White Folks’ Guide to the NYC Subway System

Wow, don't know that bar in Flatbush where only non-whites go, however, been to a couple of mostly white bars on the upper east side that have been pretty dangerous with the white preppy boys who can't handle their drink...seriously, if you're stupid, reckless and walk around scared cause you're "not in your area" or jump every time a non-white person passes you by too closely, you will get your ass kicked, probably not so much cause you are white, but because you look like an easy target. Generalizations are dangerous, so laugh at the "funny", but also learn from it.

Some of you are missing the point- this isn't about the places that are "safe" for white people to move, this is about how to keep white folk from GENTRIFYING the rest of brooklyn and queens. this is indeed about race, but this is not racist. it is honest and truthful satire.

So as a "true NYer" you would have no problem strolling around 145th and Lenox after midnight, hanging out in East New York, buying a round of beers in Flatbush? Just stop it. There are neighborhoods where white people feel uncomfortable because they're not welcome, it's a fact; if you are a "true NYer" you would know this.

Funny (?)...whatever, I'm glad that Washington Heights is still not recognized as "white" although it's become pretty gentrified. I'm all for stopping the map there...as for "places to find 'reasonable rent'...really? Upper West Side, "reasonable"? I guess if you're into paying $2500 for a closet. This is def not a New Yorker's subway map, a true NYer goes anywhere, anytime, and can mingle and hang with the worst and best of them....Loser. Honestly, if this is "your" New York, you are seriously missing out, maybe a place like Madison, WI would suit you best.

Funny (?)...whatever, I'm glad that Washington Heights is still not recognized as "white" although it's become pretty gentrified. I'm all for stopping the map there...as for "places to find 'reasonable rent'...really? Upper West Side, "reasonable"? I guess if you're into paying $2500 for a closet. This is def not a New Yorker's subway map, a true NYer goes anywhere, anytime, and can mingle and hang with the worst and best of them....Loser. Honestly, if this is "your" New York, you are seriously missing out, maybe a place like Madison, WI would suit you best.

Now, I'm no expert, but I don't think Bay Ridge was ever that Italian.

By Politburo

[76] | 01/14/08 01:17PM

HAHAHA really, though? Starting a blog will solve my disgust with what passes as journalism in the digital ether? At last I checked, this was a news blog and honey, this article ain't news. I guess i'll never understand why this drivel passes muster as being important. Everyone else's articles posted on Gothamist aren't pulled from the ass end of other blogs. They're actually doing work!

And if you read my statement carefully, I did NOT say that Gothamist has singlehandedly ruined journalism. Now THAT would be a ridiculous claim.

MAP OF HIS MIND

This puke guy

An obvious flipee

Has left out

Mississippi.

"i'm bored of hearing about the white and priveliged ad naseum. who the FUCK cares?! Blogging such as this has ruined journalism for people who care about their communities and the world outside of Williamsburg."

What a fuckin joke. If you are so bored, stop coming here and start your own blog. That's the magic of the internet. People mindlessly bitching or making ridiculous claims like 'this blog has ruined journalism' is the unfortunate downside.

"Jennifer breathes in the stuff that makes New York unique"

And racist and divided and scared.

She probably closes her eyes as her New Haven line train goes through Harlem and the Bronx when she visits mommie and daddy.

What bullshit. I'm white and my stop ain't on there. Another asshipster trying to divide people.

Transplanted twenty-something hipsters are boroughphobes. Their reality comes from Freinds and Seinfeld.

Obviously it's a fairly decent article if we're going by the metrics people use to determine the validity of online media: reads, comments and recommends. If nothing else, it makes for interesting discussion material and is humorous as well.

Who gives a shit about some hipster transplants stupid map? Only another transplant like Jen Carlson.

why are you idiots blaming Jen? you should be thanking her for bringing it to your attention. if you're really that outraged about this silly little map, then go yell at the guy who made it, you big babies: "whaaaa, my stop isn't on the map. whaaaaa, a post on gothamist is actually about nyc. whaaaa, hipsters don't visit my neighborhood & drive the rents up."

seriously, you guys need to stfu & gbtw.

C'mon now, Jen C 's a nice girl. She's not as creepy as her pic would indicate.

Cut her some slack would ya? By the looks of her, I would say she's on lithium and Zoloft. God knows what would happen if she got her feelings hurt!

and privileged. wouldn't want to be typed at for poor spelling.

ahem, nauseum.

Jen Carlson loves to "write" (about) boring stories about boring white people—their bands, their clothes, their love affairs, their extracurricular activities, and now this idiocy. Yes, i have a sense of humor, but wow, i'm bored of hearing about the white and priveliged ad naseum. who the FUCK cares?! Blogging such as this has ruined journalism for people who care about their communities and the world outside of Williamsburg.

I guess there's a distinction between white and white trash, perhaps? In that case, this map certainly makes sense. Note that the Giuliani constituency would fall in the latter category as the map seems to indicate.

Hmmm...."white trash"?

It's the White Folks Guide to the NYC Subway? Oh--it's just hilarious.

more like the ignorant wussies' guide to the NYC Subway.

Wow, people take shit WAY too seriously.

Right, azzhole....

In hindsight, it'd be funnier if it eliminated some really random stops in Manhattan like Wall Street on the 4/5 or 23rd Street on the C/E or Rockefeller Center.

Agree with bluefortytwo, just let it go. But what is it with all the racist ranting here? Really sad.

Go Giuliani!

Wow, people take shit WAY too seriously.

I'm happy that my stop up here in Upper Manhattan (145th) didn't make it. Hell, if I wanted to be surrounded by white people exclusively, I would have remained in the Land of Giant White People, Minnesota. Am I supposed to be afraid? Really? Lame. I can't afford to live where "its safe for the white folk to congregate." Does that make me something other than gal with a Norwegian/Polish heritage that I am?

Think it would have been funnier if the guy had been better informed. As it is, it's just stupid (as in ill-informed).

PS: Matty... let it go...

Definitely agree with Driftwood. Seems like a lot of posters are being too sensitive. Or trying to seem like they're sensitive through pulling for Catholics, Jews, blacks, et al., but unfortunately demeaning them in the process as they're singling these people out in such a context that points out how helpless these groups are.

The map is simply funny. Chuckle a bit, OK?

I don't understand how Coney Island made it onto this map, but Dyker Heights and Gravesend didn't.

Where did the 7 train go? Oh that's right, one only finds white people on it during the US Open.

One other thing, it's a joke, it's not supposed to be accurate.

The map isn't racist. It has no meaning out of a context. It could be addressing the issue of segregation in a larger context which would then make it....not racist. It could mean a variety of things.

On the other hand, half of these comments on this post...racist.

there are layers of irony in this, intentional or otherwise

Emily, ssssh, the first rule about south brooklyn club is never talk about south brooklyn club.

I can already feel my rent rising...

Another useless Jen Carlson post. This time she didn't even have the decency to find it herself, she just stole it from gawker. way to earn your pay

of course this map is racist... looks like it should be titled the white dominated subway stops of nyc

This map shows where it's OK to take your pants off an ride the nyc subway.

my train's barely even on there :(

@TSOL : I live in Ft. Hamilton/Bay Ridge, and I have for a long time. Actually, there are very few Italians left in Bay Ridge. There are quite a few Italian businees/restaurants etc., that are amazing, but a large percentage of the Italian folks have gotten old,and moved to Florida or Staten Island, and there kids didn't stay. Bay Ridge is actually extremely diverse nowadays. It's one of the only true middle class neighborhoods left anywhere in the 5 boroughs. Bay Ridge is mainly families and working people, there is large arab population, especially along 5th Ave., quite a big Chinese contingent, a ton of Mohawk Iron workers and yes, a bunch of middle class white folks (Swedes, Irish, Pols, Italians). I'm glad everyone thinks Bay Ridge is guido heaven, it keeps the prices down, but it doesn't reflect the reality.

Looks more like ignorant carpetbagger hipster map to me. Idiot.

lol funny I looked at the map and was wondering about Bay Ridge too. If I was to move out of the city if I had kids, I wouldn't mind living there.

Gothamist I'm so pissed at you! Reporting on something is the same as making it up yourselves! You should know that! WAH!!!!

"I thought there were white people in Inwood."

::raises hand::

If you this is racist- try to rent an apartment in Bensonhurst.

If you have even a slight accent, the very first question you are going to hear: "Where EXACTLY are you coming from?"

That's what I call "neighborhood watch"

Right! What happened with Bensonhurst?

"Bay Ridge is literally full of white folks", etc...

No, Bay Ridge is full of Italians.

Totally different.

I guess there's a distinction between white and white trash, perhaps? In that case, this map certainly makes sense. Note that the Giuliani constituency would fall in the latter category as the map seems to indicate.

Why doesn't it have the R train to Bay Ridge? Seriously, it's Bay Ridge. I'm here right now. That should have been the first line drawn.

G-ddam- you people are such an annoying bunch of whining pissants. It was an off-the-cuff spur-of-the moment throw-off. If you're a New Yorker, you've got a tougher skin than to get bent all outta shape at some blogger's post. Maybe you're pissy because he didn't put a big red star where you happen to be at this moment, citing it as the center of the known universe.

Get off it, move on.

Dadoc

streeter seidell works for CV owned by IAC. Gothamist is friends with alot of CV guys, hence that subway romeo douche and now this guy. Busted Tees is owned by IAC and they are a huge advertisement revenue for Gothamist. I worked at CV once in the College Humor department. They are the biggest bunch of racists on the planet. They aren't the "fuck you nigga" kind, but the guys that say snide shit behind your back and in the bathrooms. They won't even hire a black person.

yeah no one ever told his loser about Riverdale either.

This White man lives in Inwood and travels outside of this silly map every day. I look forward to the day when this map runs concurrent with the entire official subway map. We'll get there. I'm keeping my eyes on the prize.

Sorry, dat shood be Howid Beach and Bensonhoist

Yo WTF? How bout us guys in Howard Beach and Bensonhurst? Ya don't mean ta tell me paisanos like us ain't WHITE?

I don't understand why Gothamist endorses such garbage. One of the great aspects of living in this city for me are my friends of all races that I have made here. So now, according to this douchebag, because I am white, I should never visit them anymore ? If he never wanted to meet blacks/hispanics/asians, why did he leave the trailer park in the first place?

Guess he forgot Shea Stadium on the #7, but John Rocker singlehandedly took that express stop of the last a few years ago.

wow idiot left out all the white areas in brooklyn i grew up in.

It appears that those areas are too Catholic or Jewish for his tastes.

stupid, unfunny, inaccurate. Next!

Years ago when some white guy moved here, he found his niche in the city, FOUND A JOB, blended in (or not) and contributed to the city & his neighborhood. Now we have an abundance of a--holes coming here, trying so hard to accomplish nothing during their "visit" here.

By the way, if you're one of the few who are contributing or have been here for a long time, many thanks from a native New Yorker.

I agree w/ AHT.

Carpetbagger/Expat Yupster's guide to the subway.

the map ought to be called 'the subway map for out of town stupid white boy hipsters trying too hard to be funny'.

second thought; twenty years ago a fool like this would get his head beat in.

If I roll my eyes any harder I might strain something.

Can we retitle this post "Some Random Idiot's Pointless Opinion on the Conflation of Class and Race With Regards to Urban Rail Transit," please?

Does this qualify as passive racism?

Yeah, I'm weirded out by the exclusion of Bay Ridge...still a nicer place than Park Slope IMO, especially if you're looking to settle down. The R still sucks.

Should I be pleased or pissed that my stop was cut off by one station? I'll go with pleased.

Agree with those who say this is more like The Yupster's Guide To The MTA.

What about those who are Jewish and/or Hasidic, Polish, Russian, and Eastern European? Plenty of these whites live in areas that are not marked on Seidell's "White Folks' Guide to the NYC Subway System" map. Or do they not count because they're not WASP?

However...if by "white" Seidell means recent transplants and/or visitors to NYC who are WASP and middle-to-upper class, then his map is fairly accurate. He just needs to include the 1 train stops up to 116th Street, since most whites get off the train at that point, and the first few stops on the 7 train to include Long Island City.

As someone who rides the 2 train deep into Brooklyn on a near-daily basis, I can vouch for the fact that few whites are left on the train once it leaves the Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum station. It's kind of like a mass exodus. So, it's amusing to see that Seidell noticed this, too.

How about "White Upper Middle Class Professional Folks' Guide to the NYC Subway System" instead?

Are the hordes of Russians and Hasidim between Coney Island and Prospect Park not white now? I'm confused.

There are tons of white people in South Brooklyn. This guy doesn't get out much. Bensonhurst, anyone?

I thought there were white people in Inwood.

i think riverdale, the northeast bronx, all of south brooklyn, and middle queens should be included.

here's proof.

Yes, the NBC network has the most black execs and didn't they fire Imus? They will surely be "interested" in this. Hey, they'll give Gothamist some free publicity!

Good job, hipster bimbo! LOL

I'm looking forward to your posting the Anti-Semite's Guide to the NYC Subway System. Yeah - didn't think so, Gothamist hypocrites. To think that you guys are concerned about your ad $$ now, what if word goes OUT to ALL your advertisers AND POTENTIAL advertisers about this little posting? Actually, I'm going set into motion a series of e-mails to the top msm sites right now. I think I'll start with MSNBC which I have numerous contacts with.

the should re-title this map to the "nyc transplant subway map". yankee stadium is on there for all of the boston transplants to see the red sox play at the stadium.

schematic: you are right. the people from bay ridge are also the native new yorker families. they've been here a while. working city jobs, teachers, wall st. etc.

"For apartment hunters, this is also a great guide to what are reasonable and safe neighborhoods to look in."

Umm... now that's racist.

But I agree with schematic. This seems more like the yuppie subway than the white folks. (It also leaves out most of the northeast Bronx, which is chock full of white folks who make their way to work every day.) Most real NYCers aren't afraid to go anywhere in the city since they know how to travel.

Why doesn't he have Bay Ridge on there? For the longest time it was the only neighborhood in Brooklyn safe enough for white people to live in.

Old stop Jefferson St isn't on it and new stop on 135th isn't either. I guess I'm a pioneer.

I'd argue the 125th stop in Harlem should be on there for the same reason Coney's there: white folks don't generally live there, but the area is safe enough for tourists to drop in during the day.

He's also missing out on the fact that Bay Ridge is literally full of white folks. Or maybe they're not *real* white folks because they work for a living?

If anyone starts talking about how this is racist, you're insane; this is completely accurate!

For apartment hunters, this is also a great guide to what are reasonable and safe neighborhoods to look in.

that's racist!

LOL

I guess he's not a Met fan either. No stops to Shea!

What a coincidence. All my favorite stops.