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Lindsey Zehring

Prof. Barnes

English 1201

16 March 2021

The Desires of New York City

Author E.B. White once said that New York City is like poetry because it compresses all

life, all races, and all breeds into a small island. NYC has been a major city in the United States

since the formation of this country. It has always had a dense population containing members of

all social classes. From the later part of the 18th century to now it has attracted people of all age

groups and ethnicities. It has proven to be a socially acceptable place filled with glorious

entertainment, but it also presents its challenges such as exceedingly high rent and further issues

with population density. New York City is a desirable place to live due to the vast diversity, an

extensive amount of competitive opportunities, and the creative atmosphere throughout the area.

In 1624, Dutch traders first settled in this region. Forty years later, the English captured it

from them, and the city slowly started to grow. Europeans flooded the area, transforming it into

the most populated city. In 1797, the population was only 52,000. By 1811, the city leaders were

already expecting a huge influx of immigrants so they proposed the Manhattan grid plan

(Zhang). Railroads, ferry routes, Central Park, and the Brooklyn Bridge were slowly being

constructed in the city. Near the end of the 1800s, the population exceeded three million due to

the incorporation of the five boroughs: Manhattan, Queens, Bronx, Brooklyn, and Staten Island.

In 1940, 37 years after the first subway line was installed, there were “830 miles of running

subway tracks, 500 stations, 4,400 cars, and 1.9 billion riders per year” with a population of
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7,455,000 people (Zhang). The population was continuing to skyrocket. In 2019, the population

was 8.6 million and growing.

NYC is also one of the most diverse cities and has been since day one. Once Europeans

started flooding over into the states a majority of them settled here despite how different they all

were from each other. In a New York Times article, the author stated that “at the southern tip of

Manhattan, Dutch fur traders, English merchants’ sons, random fortune seekers from Spain or

Norway, Welsh tavern keepers, Gaelic blacksmiths, religious dissidents and a smattering of Jews

and freed slaves somehow managed to conduct business even while speaking 18 different

languages”(Hymowitz). They all worked together even though there was a language barrier and

turned the city into a well-functioning machine. The area was so crowded with foreigners that

69% of voting-age New Yorkers were composed of them in 1810, and the influx of immigrants

through Ellis Island showed no signs of stopping (Hymowitz). This constant flow was greatly

reduced during the First World War but picked back up near the end of the 1900s with the

passage of the Hart-Cellar Act. The many different ethnic groups came over to the states for

many different reasons such as political turmoil, famines, and massacres in their native countries

(Hymowitz). Once they landed in NYC, each group separated into distinct occupations, created

their own newspapers in their home language, and created different churches. They all came

together seeing as they were in the same position, trying to make a home far away from their

original home. A Russian immigrant summed it up well by saying, “To me, this city appeared as

a tremendous overstuffed roar, where people just burst with a desire to live,” (Hymowitz). This

explains that an outsider's view of their life is the same as someone who was experiencing it.

The diversity in the city doesn’t stop with ethnicity seeing as the LGBT community

makes up a large part of the area as well. In 1969, an uprising in Manhattan known as Stonewall
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catalyzed the gay-rights movement. On June 28th, 200 plus patrons of the Stonewall Inn, a gay

bar in Greenwich Village, were involved in a riot after police raided the bar due to a Mafia that

ran the tavern. Customers and workers were being shoved into cop cars with no mercy which is

what started the fighting (Walsh). All of this turmoil is what led to pride parades that take place

now. At current pride events, people travel from all over to be a part of them because of how

inclusive the city is. For example, siblings Ethan and Wyatt who are both transgender traveled

from Syracuse, Indiana to take part. Others such as the Wiley family came from Dallas, Texas

(“Youth Express Themselves At New York Pride Event”). Lily Esdailes explained the

significance of these events by stating that “everyone gets to be themselves for one day, and I

love being able to experience that and not having to hide yourself at all” (“Youth Express

Themselves At New York Pride Event”). Many of these kids come from small conservative

towns where it is hard to feel like they belong because they can’t express themselves. Kids feel

more comfortable being out in an accepting place like NYC.

Opportunities come when you least expect them in New York. With the recent Covid

outbreak, the need for medical professionals was insane. There wasn’t enough space in hospitals

to treat those infected meaning there wasn’t nearly enough staff to help all of the patients. From

March 5 - April 25 of 2020 5967 patients, from the age range 18-35 years old, were admitted to

public hospitals (Altonen). This attracted health care workers from all over the country to

volunteer their services. Not only are these medical professionals needed during tough times like

a pandemic, but also in general. Another way health care workers are increasing in the city is

from a program called Mentoring in Medicine (MIM). This is an after-school program that

“promotes careers in health care for urban youth” (Holden). It is a course offered once a week

over a ten-week semester that teaches the body systems, takes kids on field trips, and does class
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projects. Students say it “improved their self-confidence in their ability to succeed” (Holden).

The formation of programs like MIM educates the youth of New York and provides them with

career opportunities for the future.

The above model represents the framework of the MIM program.

NYC is often referred to as the city where dreams are made of thanks to Miss Alicia

Keys, and it holds a lot of truth. It is the “biggest market for radio and television content” which

leads to many opportunities for up-and-coming artists (NYC Media & Entertainment Industry).

People come from all over the world to pursue their acting and singing careers here. Some may

have dreams of being a lead in a Broadway Musical while others are street performers with

hopes of playing at Madison Square Garden with a sold-out arena. Comedians have also had a

big break here on the popular comedy series Saturday Night Live and some of them include
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Adam Sandler, Tina Fey, and Chris Rock (Saturday Night Live). Not everyone wanted to be in

the spotlight, though. This city is also a great place to go for all of the behind-the-scenes jobs

such as a music producer or set designer. According to Telligent Marketing, NYC has provided

60,000 music-related jobs yearly and the production of about 200 films a year has led to the

employment of more than 100,000 people (NYC Media & Entertainment Industry). In addition,

NYC houses some of the most well-known publishing companies including the New York

Times, the Daily News, the Wall Street Journal, and the New York Post. It also has specific

ethnicity papers from Chinese to Greek with a specific one being the Jewish-Daily Forward

which has a target audience of Jews and is written in both Yiddish and English (NYC Media &

Entertainment Industry). They are all competitive positions, but being a part of a well-known

company comes with its perks and makes the fight worth it.

New York City is home to The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) which provides many

job opportunities, both financial and those that support the workforce. According to the

Corporate Financial Institute, the NYSE “is the largest securities exchange in the world, hosting

82% of the S&P 500, as well as 70 of the biggest corporations in the world” (New York Stock

Exchange (NYSE) - Overview, History, Trading). This means that a majority of the richest

companies in the world are located in the United States; in fact, many of them have their

headquarters in New York in the financial district. Wall Street offers additional opportunities for

New Yorkers who are involved in the financial industry. Due to the abundance of people

working in this city, there is an equal amount of supporting businesses such as food and clothing

places that provide even more jobs. The NYSE being the busiest financial market across the

world as well as the huge workforce promotes the hustle and bustle of the city.
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The above image shows the best kind of stocks to buy in 2021.

The city intertwines opportunity, diversity, and creativity within everything. Therefore, it

is safe to say that the prestigious colleges in New York City aren’t only opportunities but also

creative outlooks. People from all over the country come to New York to study law, fashion,

musical theater, and every other major imaginable at one of 120 higher education institutions.

Right in the center of the city is Columbia University which is an Ivy League School. It is known

for its high academic standards and prominent Journalism School (Colleges in New York City).

Another popular school is New York University, which is a private institution with locations all

over the world, “including Abu Dhabi, Shanghai, Africa, and Europe” (Colleges in New York

City). The Juilliard School is also a well-known performing arts school. It offered degrees solely

in Dance, Music, and Drama, which shows just how many people are pursuing those kinds of
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careers in New York City (Colleges in New York City). Columbia, NYU, and Juilliard are just a

few of the popular schools that attract so many people every August to the city.

The crowded streets and stellar cityscape make up the exciting atmosphere of this city.

There is always music being performed by street artists, shows to catch on Broadway, sports

games to see, and landmarks to visit. New York is home to blues and R&B music. It also has

theaters such as Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, New York City Ballet,

and the Jazz Foundation of America where people can attend performances (NYC Media &

Entertainment Industry). Another way that NYC is promoted through music is in songs. Jay Z

and Alicia Keys have a song titled “Empire State of Mind” and Taylor Swift has a song title

“Welcome to New York.” Both of these songs give off a good feeling about the city. The

positive vibes are so prevalent that it is a common setting in movies and books (NYC Media &

Entertainment Industry). Popular movies include Saturday Night Fever, West Side Story,

Ghostbusters, and The Godfather. Saturday Night Live is a popular show that is filmed in NYC

and has been airing on NBC since 1975 (Saturday Night Live). It is a comedy series with an

ensemble, musical guest, and guest host that has a live audience. In addition, there are well-

known attractions like the Empire State Building, Yankee Stadium, the Statue of Liberty,

Madison Square Garden, and The Today Show. These all give people things to do on top of

restaurants and shops on every corner.

The abundance of people presents problems as well, especially when it comes to renting.

There is limited space in this city allowing landlords to charge an outrageous amount compared

to the size of the apartment. The median rent in NYC for a two-bedroom apartment is $2499 a

month, while the national median is $1175 (Wallace). On the other hand, these high prices can

often be a misconception since areas outside of Manhattan are much cheaper. The average price
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for a single-family home in NYC is only $403,900 which also comes with a bonus seeing as

homes in NYC raise in value by 4.52% annually (Wallace). Although some areas are cheaper,

they may not all be safe. Brownsville is considered the most dangerous place in Brooklyn. In a

documentary about the neighborhood, a man by the name of Prince has lived there for over 20

years and says that many people struggle to have a roof over their heads and feed their families

(HeroinDVD). Youths often turn to violence and the police aren’t much help. The Brownsville

projects are where 60% of crime occurs and are often referred to as Baghdad (HeroinDVD).

Members of the community agree that people need to change for real change to happen. Not all

of them feel unsafe in this area; in fact, teen Isaiah and his friend were interviewed and said that

they have lived there all of their life and have always thought it was fun and they feel safe

(CharlieBo313). The city is home to every kind of person out there, so no matter the life

someone may live, they will be able to find a place that fits them.

In recent times, with the Covid-19 outbreak, the attraction to this city has been put on

pause. Once the virus hit, people were being infected all over the place, there wasn’t even

enough space in hospitals to fit everyone. A study was done on 18 to 35-year-olds in public

hospitals in NYC who were infected with Corona. Results showed a 13.1% mortality rate for

young adults, but it is important to keep in mind these patients were of low socioeconomic status

and they “represent a considerable portion of the high-risk population typically reported for this

region” (Altonen). These numbers may not seem high, but they only stand for a portion of the

people living in this city, older members have a much higher mortality rate. The close living

space leads to higher rates of infection, but this pandemic is taking over every large city, not just

New York so there is nothing that could have prepared anyone for it.
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The city has seen its fair share of tragedy, most notably are the 9/11 attacks on the World

Trade Centers. On September 11, 2001, a terrorist attack was launched against the United States,

targeting several locations but having the largest effect on New York City. Two planes were

hijacked by Osama Bin Laden’s terrorist organizations, known as Al Queida, and crashed into

each of the Twin Towers in a matter of minutes (Bumiller). Although thousands of people lost

their lives this day making NYC a frightening place to be for some time, this hardship also

brought the city together. President Bush reassured everyone by saying that “Our country is

strong. Terrorist acts can shake the foundation of our biggest buildings, but they cannot touch

the foundation of America'' (Bumiller). Additionally, the destruction of the towers helped

kickstart the move to electronic banking in the United States because on this day air travel was

grounded, halting the distribution of financial paperwork such as checks and credit card

transactions. Nowadays when something unexpected occurs like a pandemic the shutdown of air

travel won’t have an effect on the financial system in the United States. 9/11 was a horrific day

for NYC, but it connected the nation in a whole new way.

The Big Apple, the city that never sleeps, NYC, whatever people like to call it, is truly a

microcosm. It is home to dreamers of all different ethnicities and sexual identities. The city is a

well-oiled machine that works nonstop. It is a landmine of opportunity for the younger

generation and people from all over the country. Visitors and residents enjoy the many

attractions that are found here and give the city so much life. On the other hand, there are some

flaws such as high rent, dangerous neighborhoods, and terrorist attraction, but they can be

avoided or prevented making them not so much of an issue. Thus, New York City is a desirable

place to live that leaves a person feeling like they belong to something great.

Works Cited
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Altonen, Brian L., et al. "Characteristics, comorbidities and survival analysis of young adults
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Bumiller, Elisabeth. “A Somber Bush Says Terrorism Cannot Prevail.” The New York Times,

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2021.

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