Whites now make up 77 percent of the population, compared with 84 percent during the previous count. That's almost equal to the 11 percent figure for blacks countywide. The Asian population, though smaller in number, grew by nearly 50 percent and now totals 15,826. That number represents about 5 percent of the population. Piermont was the county's least integrated village for Asians and whites, with a 59 percent dissimilarity rate for the two groups.
Segregation is forced and biased.
While Spring Valley's dissimilarity index of 56 percent is the highest between whites and non-whites in the county, it's not really a bad sign, planners said. Planning experts said there are many reasons people chose to live in clusters. However, people of color must attempt their escape within a highly segregated, racially segmented housing market. At the same time, because of segregation, no one will move into a poor neighborhood of color except for other poor people of color. There are other factors causing people to live with those from the same racial or ethnic background.