I had never heard of Jamaica Bay before reading this article, and I didn’t realize certain Brooklyn and Queens neighborhoods were considered part of it, or at least close enough to be important to the community (for example, Howard Beach).  The ethnic changes in the area are interesting, especially after completing the Peopling of New York City (seminar 2).  The signs of white flight and the new communities should be interesting to see develop; will new cultural practices help or harm the preservation of the Bay Area?  This question reminds me of an observation Saul and I made after watching the short documentary about preserving the Bay in Monday’s class: all the people advocating the preservation of the Bay were older people.  After reading the article, “older people” becomes narrowed to “older white men.”   In addition, possible conflicts are mentioned in the reading; for example, “Despite… efforts, Hindu offerings continue to wash up along the shores of Jamaica Bay…” (pp. 128).  However, this particular problem has been improving.  “In addition to organizing several beach clean-ups, The Federation of Hindu Mandirs and the USA Pandit Parishoners, along with leadership from the Shri Tamurti Brahvan temple, have taken action to educate devotees about the ecological consequences of puja offerings. Conse- quently, Dr. DhanPaul Narine and Mr. Naidoo Veerapan believe that religious remnants on the shores of Jamaica Bay have declined as a result…” (pp. 128).  So with education, problems such as these may be prevented or resolved.

The religious uses of Jamaica Bay connect with culture.  As aforementioned, some of Jamaica Bay’s Hindu population leaves puja offerings in the Bay’s water, which while a hazard to the Bay’s ecosystem, shows how community members connect with their environment; if they had moved to, say, Harlem, these Hindus would not have a nearby water source to practice their beliefs.  But because Jamaica Bay is so close, they utilize their habitat.  Formerly, the Jewish community would use the willow branches in Jamaica Bay for a certain practice, but recently that use has declined, because it is often considered stealing (which is against Jewish law).  This brings the question of ownership to mind: who really owns the park/public land?  By law, yes, the government.  But since many parks are made with their users (the public) in mind, what efforts should be made to accommodate the different cultural groups of Jamaica Bay (and other parks)?  If, for example, the use of willow branches was not harmful to the Bay area, should the Jewish population be able to use said branches, or at least a certain number of them?

(Also, I didn’t know that Jamaica Bay was where Floyd-Bennet Field is located, so I did not realize my brother and friends had just participated in the “Run For Your Life” zombie race this past weekend.)