Move to Charlotte Area from MA Interracial Family (Huntersville, Wake Forest: home, good schools)

[kemba3672]

We currently live in MA and we are planning a move to the Charlotte area next year. I will work in Charlotte, but want to live in a small town atmosphere but do not want to have to commute too far. I am interracial (mixed black/white) and have have three girls. My husband is black but my two older daughters look black and my youngest daugther looks white with blond hair and blue eyes. I want to move to a community where we will be accepted but I am also looking to move to a community that has a diverse population. Any ideas or suggestions?? We have never lived in the South (except one year in Atlanta) so we have been outside of Boston pretty much forever. We have family in Wake Forest but I believe that is too far outside of Charlotte.

[XNYgirl]

Buddler - this isn't a fair question. You are accepted every where. I do not know of any reason why you'd feel otherwise. I don't know how Boston is demographically but the south is very welcoming of everyone. Do you have a strong boston accent? Just curious.

[sheena]

Originally Posted by kemba3672

We currently live in MA and we are planning a move to the Charlotte area next year. I will work in Charlotte, but want to live in a small town atmosphere but do not want to have to commute too far. I am interracial (mixed black/white) and have have three girls. My husband is black but my two older daughters look black and my youngest daugther looks white with blond hair and blue eyes. I want to move to a community where we will be accepted but I am also looking to move to a community that has a diverse population. Any ideas or suggestions?? We have never lived in the South (except one year in Atlanta) so we have been outside of Boston pretty much forever. We have family in Wake Forest but I believe that is too far outside of Charlotte.

Charlotte is not the backwoods, I see all kinds here.

[kemba3672]

I am not trying to say that anywhere is backwoods. I just want to live in a cultarally diverse area. We just have a "different" type of family and we have had are share of issues. Not everyone and not every community is open-minded. We have dealt with that here. If someone asked me if there were any culturally diverse tons outside of Boston, I could list several. I was not trying to offend anyone. My job is relocating me, and I don't know anything about the area. I like small town living and was just simply hoping to find a small town outside of Charlotte (within commuting distance) with good schools that would be a good fit for me and my family.

[searpr]

Your best bet to find out what areas are culturally diverse (and Charlotte for the most part seems to be) is to look at school demographics. They'll tell you everything you want to know. I started researching areas I wanted to live in based on school demographics because I also wanted to live in a diverse area.

I don't know about outside Charlotte, but this will at least give you an idea of what you're dealing with when you move to the Charlotte area:

http://www.cms.k12.nc.us/departments...5/profiles.asp

(BTW, I ended up with SW Mecklenberg county

[Anigirli]

You always find a few "bad apples" here and there but most people are fine with it. Other than the occasional ignorant comment or icy stare you get here and there, it's not bad. Racism is everywhere not just exclusive to the south. Moderator cut: Personal
From experience I feel that American society as a whole has a very archaic attitude towards the issue of race. On the flip side we have made great strides in becoming a pluralistic society.

[kemba3672]

I guess I had it easy as I grew up in a completely inter-racial family. My mom is irish catholic and one of 11, her and her five sisters all married black men. Now in my generation, all of my cousins (mostly female) have gone on to marry black, spanish, portuguese, white men. You name it is in my family. So making a move down south will be with the loss of all of this extended family. We have not really had problems until I had my youngest daughter who is now 7 and looks completly white you would never know she is black at all. However, I am my husband is and so are her other sisters. So now as she is getting older and bringing friends home and then their parents, there is this huge like this if your family?? I make sure she is aware of what she is but as being a mom I want to shield her from people who are uintentionally cruel. We are so open about race and I teach my kids to always judge a person by a person not for what nationality, color, sexual preference etc..... Where we live now no one would really blink to see that their grandmother is white or cousin is black or uncle is spanish etc.... An I am hoping just to find another equally diverse place to live when we make this move.

[buddler52]

Originally Posted by XNYgirl

Buddler - this isn't a fair question. You are accepted every where. I do not know of any reason why you'd feel otherwise. I don't know how Boston is demographically but the south is very welcoming of everyone. Do you have a strong boston accent? Just curious.

I'm not sure how carefully you read my post

[sheena]

Originally Posted by kemba3672

I am not trying to say that anywhere is backwoods. I just want to live in a cultarally diverse area. We just have a "different" type of family and we have had are share of issues. Not everyone and not every community is open-minded. We have dealt with that here. If someone asked me if there were any culturally diverse tons outside of Boston, I could list several. I was not trying to offend anyone. My job is relocating me, and I don't know anything about the area. I like small town living and was just simply hoping to find a small town outside of Charlotte (within commuting distance) with good schools that would be a good fit for me and my family.

You weren't offending me because I'm not from here, but what I was saying since I've been here in Huntersville I've seen all kinds of people from all kinds of backgrounds and sexual orientations no one here seems to look twice at anyone. I'm from Phoenix and I say this is more diverse.

[friendnc]

Originally Posted by kemba3672

We currently live in MA and we are planning a move to the Charlotte area next year. I will work in Charlotte, but want to live in a small town atmosphere but do not want to have to commute too far. I am interracial (mixed black/white) and have have three girls. My husband is black but my two older daughters look black and my youngest daugther looks white with blond hair and blue eyes. I want to move to a community where we will be accepted but I am also looking to move to a community that has a diverse population. Any ideas or suggestions?? We have never lived in the South (except one year in Atlanta) so we have been outside of Boston pretty much forever. We have family in Wake Forest but I believe that is too far outside of Charlotte.

You shouldn't have any problems. My church has many mixed race couples/families. Welcome!