Are Suburbs Communities for all? How about cities?

I wrote about this in the debate report and would like to share with more to get others opinions:

    In the final debate for "technology, sustainability, and landscape" one of the questions asked that stuck with me was "Are suburbs communities?"

To me this wasn't the correct question to ask. Here is the official definition of "community".

“A community is a social unit with commonality such as place, norms, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in each geographical area or in virtual space through communication platforms.”

 

    To KJ’s point, suburban developments can be areas of a “community” feeling. There is no doubt that extra distance between residents can be irrelevant in many instances and still allow the creation of towns where people associate with one another. As one who comes from a small town in West Virginia, there was a large sense of community through religion, sports, outdoor activities, gyms, etc. Depending on one’s stances and viewpoints, they can argue that each aspect listed either can bring people together or separate them from the larger community. The general issue I have here is that community is a very broad and vague term. One could argue that the KKK, Nazi Germany, or unethical users on the internet have created communities among themselves. One may say a better prompt would be “Suburban housing developments create communities for all”.  If this were the question, I would have to disagree. As a 'minority' in a predominantly white rural and somewhat “suburban” community, I cannot say that my community created a space ‘for all’. While KJ’s references to her experience in her community are valid and I can't argue against her own community/experience that I know nothing about, rural and suburban communities often have specific beliefs, viewpoints, religions, and political stances that do not create a community feeling for everyone.  

    To other points in the class, the relationship of public activities are also important. KJ also mentions how she was allowed to share her neighbor’s pool which created a sense of community. Where I’m from, if you were a minority, had a different religion or a different political standpoint from your neighbor, chances are they would not let you use their pool. To conclude, statistically speaking, denser neighborhoods often create a greater sense of community than suburban communities due to the greater diversity and open mindedness of the community at large. While my argument isn’t perfect and there are plenty of examples of negative attributes in densely populated communities; suburban residents often choose the suburbs because they want to avoid different groups, opinions, lifestyles, or even religious views; hence the community may be one based on intolerance, which is an ironic concept of community. 

community.