White Chicagonians (Lincoln, Bridgeport, Greenwood: neighborhoods, public school, college)

[Surf&Turf]

Originally Posted by ApplesInAACab

Are white people in metro Chicago particularly republican and/or religious? What are white people in Chicago like? Are they culturally like north eastern whites, mid western or WASPY?

In the city mostly middle or upper-middle class, mostly liberals, many Catholics although probably on the decline as organized religion is on the decline nationwide and Chicagoland is no exception.

[Alacran]

[quote=IrishIllini;45638327]Have you spent much time in Chicago? This doesn't really jive with reality for much of the region. I would say on average white Chicagoans are probably wealthier than most Americans. Also A LOT of Catholics.[/QUOT]

There's pockets of such people.

[ChicagoMeO]

Originally Posted by Dport7674

Most of the white folks I know in Chicago are low-ish middle class and don't give a **** about politics in general, but usually vote Dem. out of habit. Most are somewhere between atheist and non practicing Christian.

Not me, Im totally opposite of the idea that you wrote above.

[NealIRC]

Most Chicagoans have been married.

"Not me, I'm an exception to this."

Originally Posted by Blah blah blah

Most Chicagoans believe in God.

"Small pockets of this are not."

Most Chicagoans lost their virginity by college.

Blah blah blah.

Funny how every time people make demographic generalizations on majorities, the minorities have to point themselves out.

But they don't want to disagree with the statistic, or even narrow it.

[compactspace]

Originally Posted by NealIRC

"Not me, I'm an exception to this."


"Small pockets of this are not."


Blah blah blah.

Funny how every time people make demographic generalizations on majorities, the minorities have to point themselves out.

But they don't want to disagree with the statistic, or even narrow it.

OK, well I'll disagree with the statistic. Chicago, including white Chicago, is one of the most liberal and Democratic parts of the United States. It's deepest, darkest Blue. I suppose DC and San Francisco might be more liberal.

The thing that traditionally sets white Chicagoans apart from the West Coasters is that the lower-middle and working class people are more old fashioned, 'hard hat' liberals. Unions, tariffs and social mobility rather than guns and identity politics; though a growing portion of white Chicagoans are the college liberal types more often found in coastal cities.

As somebody else mentioned, neither Hillary nor Trump pay the city much attention for the same reason they don't pay rural Alabama much attention. Of course, Chicago's crime and its status as the home of both Obama and Hillary make it a perfect political football for the Republicans.

[Chicago60614]

Originally Posted by Dport7674

Most of the white folks I know in Chicago are low-ish middle class and don't give a **** about politics in general, but usually vote Dem. out of habit. Most are somewhere between atheist and non practicing Christian.

Really? Most whites I know in the city are middle to upper class. Of the main groups in Chicago the wealth is certainly highest amoung whites, and most of the white areas from Hyde Park and then the South Loop through Logan Square and the north lakefront are all fairly well off areas with a well off population.

The northwest and southwest side white areas are more middle class, and some upper class.

I really don't know many areas of the city with white populations of below average incomes.

The white population skews upwards and the black population skews downwards compared to the nation as a whole.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by ApplesInAACab

Are white people in metro Chicago particularly republican and/or religious? What are white people in Chicago like? Are they culturally like north eastern whites, mid western or WASPY?

No, they are particularly not Republican or religious.

[artillery77]

Originally Posted by ApplesInAACab

Are white people in metro Chicago particularly republican and/or religious? What are white people in Chicago like? Are they culturally like north eastern whites, mid western or WASPY?

Midwestern, but Chicago's big enough to have it's own culture. It's a course, gritty, hardworking, harddrinking kind of friendly fun town.

Most of them are Democrats, and all of the vote counters are. I think both religion and politics are just kindof there. Yes, there's many Catholics, and big Catholic universities as well, but the Priests seem very chill. They host block parties and will have a beer and are very human. There's not a superchurch feel like in the South. More of a background....yeah be good but we're all human and respect other faiths.

I'd guess the Democratic machine is still rolling, so if you want to do something, you become Democrat, because you need the alderman's ok to get pretty much anything done, and they'll do it for a trade. So unless you've got a real reason to take some sort of stand politically, you just play the game and in return things get done. You want the sidewalk fixed, ok but maybe you can write up some story copy on some project the alderman is working on. Of course it would be honor...especially for hizzhonah.

So I thought Chicago was liberal because of that, but really it's just a city with a machine needing a party, and it's filled with several generations of Italians, Irish and Polish who happen to be Catholic. Too bad the city's broke. I hope it finds a way through.

[EddieOlSkool]

Varies. Whites who MOVE to Chicago tend to be liberal and not very religious. Sure you have Moody and Wheaten but that doesn't represent the city was a whole by any stretch. Talking about religion is a positive light gets you weird looks. People aren't very anti religion but they are against Christian fundamentalism.

It's really typical of most large metros and definitely typical of the Great Lakes. You want a place with more liberal Whites you might want SF. But on a national scale, Whites of Chicago lean left even if they are religious. Catholics out number Protestants something like 3:1 and Protestants are not usually Christian fundamentalists. They more so mind their business and love Jesus but won't stand on street corners and say gays are going to hell. Keep in mind I am referring to White Chicagoans.

The city is WASPy if you consider Germans to be such. German is a common ethnic group but many identify as more American than German in culture. English descent isn't HUGE but they do exist.

What makes Chicago differ from the Northeast in terms of Whites is that Italians aren't a plurality. Italians are usually the largest ethnic group from Philly to Rhode Island and in Chicago this isn't the case at all. You have more Germans, Irish, and even English than you do Italian (I believe). I might be wrong. The suburbs are where you find more Mediterranean types. In the city however, White people are like Jim Gaffigan White as opposed to Ariana Grande White.

As a city, Chicago is kind of undergoing a similar demographic shift to Philly. Italians and White ethnics are moving out, and people from the Midwest are moving in. The demographics of the city proper now lean more "typical Midwest" than Great Lakes. The European influence is lessening. Heck, in Philly Italians are now outnumbered by Germans and Irish.

[Dport7674]

No one on this board knows any white bartenders or kitchen workers or blue collar shlubs, or someone white who has a Walgreens type job? I'm the only one? There's plenty of those folks in Chicago.