moving from Pittsburgh, Pa. Sacramento or somewhere in Socal? (Los Angeles: transplants, 2015)

[sch0221]

I am a 30 year old wife and mother of 2 kids, a 4 year old and 2 year old. My husband is black and I am white. We are planning to move out of god awful Pittsburgh, away from the blatant racism, and camo as a fashion choice. Is Sacramento a good choice for a family like ours? I keep reading its a hick town. Dont want to move into what I'm escaping from! The affordability is tempting. Or should we look somewhere like Murrieta? Hubby is a car salesman, originally from Washington DC, and I work on behalf of banks to make sure people's homeowners insurance policies are in order. Thanks!

[nightlysparrow]

Since racial issues seem important to you, know that neither California city is known for Black-based racism, but note that per US census:

California state 6.2% Black population
Murrieta 5.4%
Sacramento 14.6%
Pittsburg 26.1%

Sometimes these figures come as a shock to transplants. Dominant minorities are Hispanic and Asian.

[aslowdodge]

Hmm, I keep seeing Pittsburg as a top rated city to live in, but have never seen Sacto listed.

[sch0221]

I never understand how Pittsburgh makes the list. They must not interact with the locals. Its the most small minded town I have ever lived in. Even if the population is higher, it is very much segregated. My husband is a car salesman, and people purposely will not work with him bc of his skin color. It is always the ones with Trump hats and camoflauge. Not to mention we are so sick of the winters! Also, there are no other minorities in Pittsburgh except black people, unless you count university students. We want to move so racial issues don't have to be a deciding factor in our every day life. We also lean very left when it comes to politics, Bernie lovers....that doesnt go over well here in the rust belt.

[nightlysparrow]

Comparing Murrieta and Sacramento is like comparing apples...well, you know. Sac sounds like a better fit for because it is a real city, it's historic, and has everything you need in close range. Being the state capital helps, but in truth it formerly had a hick reputation which has, however, dissipated a lot in the last decade due to a population influx from pricier CA cities and general overall gentrification.

Weather varies there more than SoCal, but you won't be shoveling any snow, Sac is as Blue and Left as can be, and you should have no racial prejudice issues. You sound like perfect California people already

[Losfrisco]

Originally Posted by sch0221

I am a 30 year old wife and mother of 2 kids, a 4 year old and 2 year old. My husband is black and I am white. We are planning to move out of god awful Pittsburgh, away from the blatant racism, and camo as a fashion choice. Is Sacramento a good choice for a family like ours? I keep reading its a hick town. Dont want to move into what I'm escaping from! The affordability is tempting. Or should we look somewhere like Murrieta? Hubby is a car salesman, originally from Washington DC, and I work on behalf of banks to make sure people's homeowners insurance policies are in order. Thanks!

Native Pittsburgher here. Haven't spent any time in Sac but I can't see how it would be anything but a downgrade from PGH, with a higher COL. I could be wrong though. Not sure how we jumped to Murrieta, that is a nice place but completely suburban in character.

I understand a little bit where you're coming from, I moved out of Pittsburgh as a kid, I'll be back there in two weeks. It is still, IMO, one of the most thoroughly urban cities in the country despite it's shortcomings. In fact, if we're going just by city amenities, I would think on this coast you would need to get to Seattle, San Francisco, or Los Angeles to surpass Pittsburgh.


I would try somewhere in Los Angeles County(not Palmdale or Lancaster). Even if you end up in a far flung suburb it probably won't matter much with the way they are railing up LA big time with LRT and subways.

[boulder2015]

Originally Posted by sch0221

I never understand how Pittsburgh makes the list. They must not interact with the locals. Its the most small minded town I have ever lived in. Even if the population is higher, it is very much segregated. My husband is a car salesman, and people purposely will not work with him bc of his skin color. It is always the ones with Trump hats and camoflauge. Not to mention we are so sick of the winters! Also, there are no other minorities in Pittsburgh except black people, unless you count university students. We want to move so racial issues don't have to be a deciding factor in our every day life. We also lean very left when it comes to politics, Bernie lovers....that doesnt go over well here in the rust belt.

Keep in mind sac is affordable for reasons. There are hardcore sac defenders on this board and while i respect their love for their town, it has never won me over. Also while there are pockets like midtown that are more progressive the central valley and sac suburbs are pretty conservative overall. The problem is that where the liberals are things are pretty expensive! The bay and la have insane housing prices. Its easy to get fooled by all the blue, but many of those areas are blue because of large number of culturally conservative roman catholic mexicans who vote dem mostly due to mmigration issues. There is also a lot of racism towards blacks in mexican culture, sadly.

Also, i have heard WHITE people describe sacto as the most racist place towards minorities they ever lived! Changing, but a lot of the attiitude remains. For example, when the stickers with a red line through asian drivers ( aka "no asian drivers" )was a thing, i remember seeing them all over sac! Quite honestly unless you are willing and able to bite the financial bullet and live in the westside of la, or the bay area, you simply wont find the diversity and left politics you are looking for. I would suggest looking at other states? Sorry to burst your california dream.... santa cruz and marin would fit the left bill, but have few blacks and are super expensive. I just dont see a fit for you unless you are willing to drop your expectations of housing quality you may have from a cheaper place like pittsburgh. La and the bay would work but i suspect you ruled those out due to cost if you are considering sacto. Just a matter of priorities... if you want the liberalism and diversity of, say, berkeley, be prepared to live in an overpriced and tiny dump of an apartment. If that is worth it to you then go for it! For many millions of ca residents it is worth it..

[BeauCharles]

Pittsburgh rocks. Great city. Like someone said you'd have to go to a much larger city in the West to the cultural options, educational opportunities and amenities that it has. Allegheny County voted overwhelmingly for Clinton. Not by a little - by 16.4 points. I seriously doubt there are rubes in Trump hats and camo gear roaming the streets looking to make interracial couples who lean left miserable.

[sch0221]

Originally Posted by BeauCharles

Pittsburgh rocks. Great city. Like someone said you'd have to go to a much larger city in the West to the cultural options, educational opportunities and amenities that it has. Allegheny County voted overwhelmingly for Clinton. Not by a little - by 16.4 points. I seriously doubt there are rubes in Trump hats and camo gear roaming the streets looking to make interracial couples who lean left miserable.

My experience with Pittsburgh has been anything but great. It is severely segregated. And maybe part of the problem with the world today, is that people 'seriously doubt' what others are telling as their actual experience. That is exactly what happens here. Maybe not directly downtown, but in literally every surrounding suburb. It is the most backwards place i have personally ever lived.

[sch0221]

Originally Posted by boulder2015

Keep in mind sac is affordable for reasons. There are hardcore sac defenders on this board and while i respect their love for their town, it has never won me over. Also while there are pockets like midtown that are more progressive the central valley and sac suburbs are pretty conservative overall. The problem is that where the liberals are things are pretty expensive! The bay and la have insane housing prices. Its easy to get fooled by all the blue, but many of those areas are blue because of large number of culturally conservative roman catholic mexicans who vote dem mostly due to mmigration issues. There is also a lot of racism towards blacks in mexican culture, sadly.

Also, i have heard WHITE people describe sacto as the most racist place towards minorities they ever lived! Changing, but a lot of the attiitude remains. For example, when the stickers with a red line through asian drivers ( aka "no asian drivers" )was a thing, i remember seeing them all over sac! Quite honestly unless you are willing and able to bite the financial bullet and live in the westside of la, or the bay area, you simply wont find the diversity and left politics you are looking for. I would suggest looking at other states? Sorry to burst your california dream.... santa cruz and marin would fit the left bill, but have few blacks and are super expensive. I just dont see a fit for you unless you are willing to drop your expectations of housing quality you may have from a cheaper place like pittsburgh. La and the bay would work but i suspect you ruled those out due to cost if you are considering sacto. Just a matter of priorities... if you want the liberalism and diversity of, say, berkeley, be prepared to live in an overpriced and tiny dump of an apartment. If that is worth it to you then go for it! For many millions of ca residents it is worth it..

Im definitely preparing for the sticker shock. Pittsburgh has the lowest cost of living i have ever seen. I guess im trying to find someplace suburban enough to raise the kids (safety) but still culturally diverse enough, where we aren't around raging racists at every turn. I only mentioned Murrieta as a southern California option that a girlfriend who lives nearby in Ramona suggested. We aren't sure where we fit, is all. Thank you for the honest responses!