Diversity in Denver (homes, magnet schools, college)

[steveco.]

Also the columbus day parade which almost always ends up in fights between american indians and others

[Katiana]

DenverAztec: I tried to give you a rep pt., but I have to spread some more around. Great, amazning pix!

[DenverAztec]

Originally Posted by pittnurse70

DenverAztec: I tried to give you a rep pt., but I have to spread some more around. Great, amazning pix!

Kind of you, thank you!

[Duke_grl]

Hi you guys! I’ve been looking around a lot of these (generally helpful) posts but as an African-American female, I worry about some of the posts which cite Denver’s lack of diversity. I was just wondering what the Black population in the city is like (middle class, sizable, etc.)

My mom and I are considering moving to Denver. My mom has been there several times and LOVED it. We both are pretty intellectual, love food and culture and are looking for a change of scenery. Right now we live in Phoenix, AZ and while I see a lot threads comparing the two, I don’t think that Phoenix is cosmopolitan at all in terms of amenities and attraction (museums, unique bookstores, shopping, etc).

Anyway, my mom is convinced I would love the city and all the things I have read have seems to confirm this. However, I do have some reservations. I will soon be graduating from Duke University and I am really interested in the culinary and tourism industry so I’m not too worried about job opportunities. Still, I see a lot about Denver being a great place for singles but does that extend to the African-American population? I have lived all over the east coast and the south east and although most cities have sizable Black populations, I’m looking for a more progressive and cosmopolitan area but I don’t wanna be the “token” Back girl.

Is Denver that place?

p.s. I hope I didn’t offend n e one with the title of this thread but I needed something to catch your attention! I’d appreciate any replies!

[Katiana]

Races in Denver:

White Non-Hispanic (51.9%)
Hispanic (31.7%)
Other race (15.6%)
Black (11.1%)
Two or more races (3.7%)
American Indian (2.2%)

There you have it! There is little racial tension in Denver. Last fall, Denver's white population dropped to about 49.9%. It's now "majority minority".

[steveco.]

Thats right I almost forgot about that figure. Unlike many eastern towns, also, you won't find neighborhoods that are mainly one single race. There are certain clusters around the city but I like the fact that people are mixed up a bit

[blacksmith76]

Coming from a school in NC, you will probably think the black population is pretty small. I grew up in NC. But, Denver is way more diverse in a different way. I'd list all the places where people at my last job were from, but it would take too long. Maybe you should come check it out yourself.

[Katiana]

Maybe you should come check it out yourself.

Good suggestion, blacksmith!

[LisaCACO]

Originally Posted by Duke_grl

Hi you guys! I’ve been looking around a lot of these (generally helpful) posts but as an African-American female, I worry about some of the posts which cite Denver’s lack of diversity. I was just wondering what the Black population in the city is like (middle class, sizable, etc.)

My mom and I are considering moving to Denver. My mom has been there several times and LOVED it. We both are pretty intellectual, love food and culture and are looking for a change of scenery. Right now we live in Phoenix, AZ and while I see a lot threads comparing the two, I don’t think that Phoenix is cosmopolitan at all in terms of amenities and attraction (museums, unique bookstores, shopping, etc).

Anyway, my mom is convinced I would love the city and all the things I have read have seems to confirm this. However, I do have some reservations. I will soon be graduating from Duke University and I am really interested in the culinary and tourism industry so I’m not too worried about job opportunities. Still, I see a lot about Denver being a great place for singles but does that extend to the African-American population? I have lived all over the east coast and the south east and although most cities have sizable Black populations, I’m looking for a more progressive and cosmopolitan area but I don’t wanna be the “token” Back girl.

Is Denver that place?

p.s. I hope I didn’t offend n e one with the title of this thread but I needed something to catch your attention! I’d appreciate any replies!

my two cents. denver is diverse, but just denver/aurora metro area. everywhere else in colorado outside of denver and aurora isn't. whites may think it's diverse, but that's because diversity is in the eye of the beholder. sociologists have studied this phenomenon extensively and have noted that what's diverse for one group, whites, is usually not viewed as diverse for other groups, non-whites.

what's hard is finding schools where my daughter won't be one of six black children in the school for example (as in littleton schools we looked at). The numbers are low here, esp for blacks. there's no getting around it. A few black families I've met since moving here are considering moving away. They love it here, but they're not happy with the numbers for their children and that's a big issue. you can see how this perpetuates the low numbers, lol. we are considering moving to the aurora areafor our daughter. it means a megacommute for dh, but it means we can have the type of house we'd like (large suburban with land) and also have a slightly larger number of blacks in school with dd (sadly not a whopping amount, but more than 6 or 7).

my sister is here and is single, living in littleton. if you're dating, be prepared to date across racial and ethnic lines. living here in highlands ranch/littleton area (30 min southwest of denver), we can see maybe 2 black men a day if we're lucky. seriously. we call each other when we do, lol.

anyhoo, I'd say visit, talk to other blacks in the area before moving out here. I love colorado-I've been here for 9 months now and did a ton of research before moving here, so I feel like I knew what to expect. we figured we'd be living in the denver/aurora area but decided to try out Highlands ranch since everyone spoke so highly of it. my california gut appears to have been right, lol. btw, the denver/aurora black population is given as roughly 12-15%. the state of colorado has 3.5% roughly. many of the denver suburbs have significantly less than that 3.5% (for example, highlands ranch- about 1.3%; lakewood- 1.5%, boulder 1.6% and so on).

[NickMan7]

In addition to all of the ethnic diversity posts, I might also add that Denver is home to a large gay/lesbian/bisexual/transgender population (another facet of diversity). There are several photos of this in DenverAztec's post. Denver's gay pride is held every summer (last Sunday in June, typically) and is considered one of the 5 largest such celebrations in the country. It is amazing to see and, if you're open-minded, a wonderful afternoon! Many of my straight friends, as well as family members, have accompanied me and couldn't believe their eyes! It's not necessarily for young children, but the ecclectic mix of black, hispanic, Asian, Indian, caucasian and other ethnicities is refreshing and empowering.