Italian-American have always been a tight-knit group, and Howard Beach proves to be no exception. The Howard Beach community, although has gone through a rough time in the media for its involvement in the "Howard Beach Case" in 1986, has certainly turned around in the past few decades. Howard Beach is still predominatley white Italian-American, however the community's acceptance of other races and ethnicities has grown. One needs only to walk down Cross Bay Blvd. and he can see the different people who have started to join the community. The values of family, religion, and culture have remained strong all these years, and will hopefully now be shared with the new residents of the area.