Color-Full before Color Blind: The Emergence of Multiracial Neighborhood Politics in Queens, New York City by Roger Sanjek dissects how far diversity has come in the Elmhurst- Corona neighborhood. Sanjek refers Jacobs idea of the three levels of urban existence. The first being “the city as a whole,” the second being “the street neighborhood” and the last being “the district.” The article discusses the “majority minority” transition seen in many New York cities over the last 50 years. For Elmhurst- Corona, the threshold was broken in the 1970s when a previously 98% white population in 1960 turned into a 34% in 1980 and dropped to 18% in 1990.

Sanjek focused his fieldwork on Community Board 4. He attended 123 meetings and public hearings. In order to get a better sense of the community as a whole, Sanjek attended protest rallies, park openings, church services, as well as walking around the local parks. In the 1960s, the purpose of community boards was for “city budget recommendations, land use review and for monitoring the municipal service delivery.” Although the claim was for improvement, the community board in practice began with racist roots. In the Lefrak City Tennant Association, the blacks were referred to as “welfare cases” and immigrants as “people’s pollution.”

The board was unable to develop any ideas that could be implemented into the community. With no improvement and change, the community faced a decreased quality of life which came with an increased level of violence. It was clear that something must be done in order to combat violence. The community board decided it was finally time to work as one to decide what the community needed. Over time, the board began to represent most ethnic groups that made up the population and were able to meet the needs of the community.