Dear Hunter: What does it mean to be a New Yorker?
‘To be yourself and not give a fuck I guess?’
One of the things that makes Hunter College special, besides the bathroom graffiti debates and escalators that never seem to move, is the fact that it’s located in the heart of Manhattan.
As a commuter school, Hunter sees thousands of students each day from every borough and beyond. Real, subway-grown New Yorkers who’ve grown up with the city as home and not as a tourist’s fantasy.
I went around on the skybridge, one of Hunter’s most popular hangout spots, to ask people what they thought on the same topic.
Ashley and Sahar, Freshmen, Undecided
Jorge, Senior, Chemistry
“To be able to understand different types of people in New York City, to have tolerance, that’s what a real New Yorker is. I want to go into the medical field, and study how people’s minds work- people forget about mental health and wellbeing, especially when the city moves so fast.”
Renee, Senior, Sociology and African Studies
“We’re just interesting people because none of us are the same.”
Roland, Junior, Psychology
“A fast-paced individual with absolutely no downtime. And a lot of attitude.”
Shakawth, Freshman, Pre-med
“It means being proud, and always in a rush. Because if you go to somewhere else, another city or somewhere, you always see people taking their time and in New York, you always see everyone walking fast. And then you see diversity, for sure.”
Brielle, Sophomore, Early childhood education
“I think New Yorkers are go-getters. They’re very motivated and you can tell because they’re super aggressive- in a good way though. I think there’s bad ways of it, you know we can be a little bit rude, but we definitely know what we want. We’re very much go-getters.”
Munia, Freshmen, Sociology
“I would say it means a busy life, that if you’re in New York you’re always going to have something to do- you always have to meet somebody or be somewhere. But you will enjoy life, no matter what it is you are doing.”
Sara, Junior, English and Spanish
“Thats a tough question. I think to be a New Yorker you have to be culturally acceptant and to love culture in general and to be really happy to meet new people. That’s the most important part of being a New Yorker.”
Sheikh, Senior, Psychology and Sociology
“To be yourself and not give a fuck I guess? I don’t know. That doesn’t even mean be positive, it just means embracing yourself for whatever you think you are, and really not letting people effect you as much as you can.”
Tom, Junior, Political science and Environmental studies
“Living life on the fast track.”
Abdul, Senior, Political science and Studio art
“Always moving.”