“You’re steering somebody in the wrong direction and causing discrimination to take place.”

Maria, who watched Newsday’s Long Island Divided series, thinks more legal steps should be taken to tackle systematic racism. While Maria says the region is moving in the right direction, she thinks more work needs to be done in the way people think.

As a follow-up to nextLI’s 2019 survey of the next generation of Long Islanders, nextLI conducted two focus groups to look at the future of diversity and housing on Long Island.

Discussions centered on the changing demographics of Long Island, perceptions of Long Island’s multicultural climate, the racial and ethnic diversity in our communities, the role of school districts in diversity and reactions to Newsday’s Long Island Divided series.