"unless you are non-white or non-British, or dead set on being best friends with the neighbour, it doesn't really affect you."
You're so wrong. Harassment, prejudice & violence affects everyone, regardless of colour or race. Just because we're white doesn't mean being called names every time we left our front door didn't affect us. -and it was always from white-british, the same as us.
"Antisocial people in council houses are still a minority."
There's minority, and then there's minority. 15% antisocial people in council houses is a minority, but 1% in educated areas is a much smaller minority. We owned various different ex-council houses across the UK over the past 20 years, and we are relieved to have escaped it- knowing what we know now, we would never do it again. We can now live in peace knowing we won't be harassed. I would challenge you to try living in a northern council estate with a southern accent, or try being perceived as "AB" in a white area where the demographic is 90% C2 / DE. You won't enjoy it, I can assure you (assuming you make it out alive). Our son had to actually go to sports direct & buy a load of hoodies to avoid being beaten up or shouted at every day just because he wore shirts. I was threatened while walking along the pavement in broad daylight, by a stranger- just because I was in his way & he wanted to cycle on the footpath. Our attempts to be friendly were met with hostility. Our attempts to avoid contact were met with harassment. This went on for years & years, and was not a one-off experience, nor was it in any one specific area. It was in council estates across the country.
We looked at ex-council flats in West London in a bid to get more space, but after setting foot on the street & the weird angry looks we were receiving from the neighbours, we decided enough is enough. We were very open minded people, perhaps that was the problem- ironically, being less open minded would have saved us a lot of stress.
Just because you're one of the lucky ones who is accepted by a certain demographic, doesn't mean everyone is.. and just because you've not experienced it, doesn't mean the people you know & love, aren't guilty of it toward others. For example, you could live 10 years in a place and be completely unaware that your neighbours are racist against east asians- you wouldn't know because you're not east asian. The same applies to class / demographic prejudice.
The mere fact that they're so class-prejudiced (and I'm sorry, but you can't deny the experience of 20 years & of so many people)- is enough to warrant a huge risk to some people. While 80% who live in these areas might be pleasant, there are many people who would rather alleviate that 20% risk factor all-together, and live somewhere where there is no (or very little) class prejudice, particularly if you speak or look a certain way. Fortunately, the same cannot be said in reverse- the AB / C1 demographic seems to be accepting of everyone, including C3 / DE.
After 20 years living in ex-council houses & flats around the UK & private houses where the demographic was very wealthy less educated (C2 & DE), we now live in an area primarily AB / C1 , where none of our foreign friends have experienced racism in any form, and where none of us have experienced any class-prejudice, and all our friends who fit the C2 / DE demographic don't have problems here either. Life is now the way it should be. Our friends are relieved & everyone in our family feels the weight lifted off their shoulders.
So, just to re-iterate, not everyone will experience a problem in DE / C2 demographics, but many will, particularly if you're perceived as different in a way they don't like.
For a look at demographics, read my first post above.
Regardless of what this yesyeswhatever character believes or it being a "zombie thread", I genuinely hope this helps some people who find this thread via google.