Rubén has no longer lived in Bushwick for two years, however he plays in María Hernández Park with his three children. He says he left the neighborhood after 13 years because his rent was increased.
“Before the rent was 900 dollars, since 3 years ago it is two thousand dollars … they miss this place, they want to come here, play with their classmates, they study here in Bushwick,” explained Rubén .
Rubén’s case is an example of the decline of Latinos in several Brooklyn neighborhoods, including Bushwick, where even though half the neighborhood is still Hispanic, in the last decade it lost 16% of Latinos.
“It has changed a lot, because there are almost no Latinos in this neighborhood, most of them are white now,” added Rubén.
In contrast, the number of non-Hispanic whites tripled and now they are already a quarter of the population of the neighborhood, in what some see as a process of gentrification.
Still, some say that the Census data may not be as accurate because several migrants chose not to participate out of mistrust due to their immigration status.
“I really did not fill out the census … I have some friends who have children and did not fill out the census,” revealed Rubén.
Census figures reveal something similar in Sunset Park, where one in 10 Latinos left the neighborhood.
“Going back a few years there were more Hispanics playing at the tables,” said another neighbor.
Here the number of Asians increased. But the Hispanic migration did not go to another neighborhood in some cases but rather to another country. They were people who lost their jobs during the pandemic and returned to their countries.
A Sunset Park.
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“I was definitely thinking of going to Mexico, I wanted to go back but I stopped to think about my little son, he is not yet 15 years old,” said another neighbor.
In contrast, one of the few neighborhoods in Brooklyn that saw an increase in Hispanics was Bensonhurst where the number of Latinos increased by 30%, adding to the Central American community that already lived there.
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