Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm white and live not only in a majority black city (60%) but in a majority black census tract (60% black, 30% Hispanic, 10% white). Judge a neighborhood the way you always would, by amenities, safety, convenience, etc. If the neighborhood that meets your criteria and budget happens to be majority "other than you", then you have more in common with the "others" than you previously thought.
I am in the process of deciding where to live next, within my metro area (Hartford, CT). There are some towns that have very high black populations (40-60%), but the towns themselves are middle/upper class with low crime rates. I am white and have almost always lived in towns where the vast majority of residents are white. Has anyone ever had an issue with this? I am not racist, and have several black friends, whom I love and get along with very well. But I would imagine that living in a town would be a difference experience.
I've lived in a number of black neighborhoods in Seattle and Boston though I'm white. I also lived in Oakland for about a year and a half.
Quote:
Some questions to consider:
As a white person in a black town, have you ever felt isolated?
I didn't really. When I was a kid, well, we were all kids. No one cared for the most part, and most kids' parents welcomed me like any other kid from the neighborhood.
As a teenager, when we moved to Boston, I was the only white male in my class, and things got a bit hairy, so to speak... because I was white, and moreover, an outsider - these kids had basically all been in school together since kindergarten. I also started dating the girls... so I wasn't exactly popular. I got in a lot of fights... but hey, that's life as a teenaged male, I guess.
As an adult? Not at all. Everyone in both the neighborhoods I lived in over in Oakland were super-friendly and outgoing. I got invited to barbecues, church, multiple neighbors came over when I moved in and offered to let me use any tools or things like that.
Quote:
Have you ever had a difficult time making friends with the other residents?
See above. I still keep in contact with some of them; I reconnected when I moved back to the Bay and saw some of them when I was up there last week.
Quote:
Have others treated you differently, because you are white?
On occasion, but honestly? It's rarely negative... more just that they figure I may not be totally comfortable with the area or the people or anything like that. Like, if anything, I felt like some of them were going out of their way to make me feel more comfortable and welcome than they would have, had I been black.
Quote:
Can anyone comment on this matter from their own experience?
Personally, I would prefer to be around people who are similar to myself, so that I can relate to them better, culturally.
Thanks
Well, one thing I would caution you about is thinking or saying things like "people who are similar to myself" when referring to people of different races, ethnicities, nationalities, etc. My best friend since I was 14 (and in that whole negative situation) is black, and we have an absurd amount of shared personality traits, interests, etc. - his GF, when trying to hook me up with one of her friends, referred to me as his "shorter, whiter twin brother" (he's 6'8... I'm a scant 6'2). I have much, much more in common with him than I do with, for instance, celticgermanpride, who is also white.
The things that will make you "similar" to other people are your interests, your hobbies, your job, etc. If you're looking at a middle/upper-middle class black neighborhood, you're going to have a much easier time relating to the black guy next door about the daily 9-5 grind, school costs for your kids, and property taxes versus the white guy across town who drives a forklift part-time and has gripes about child support, his kid getting expelled, and his current wife's disability checks not being enough.
I already do, and I have no problem with black people, but the plantation mentality runs rampant where I live. I'd rather live in a northeastern city with a majority black population like Baltimore then some southeastern city with a majority black population like where I am now. There are too many racist ones here, who call you ignant if you so much as look at them the wrong way if you're not black. I was waiting in Walmart in line and a younger black couple dressed in typical people of Walmart type attire had a little girl with them in line in front of me, the girl notices me and says "satan" with some wierd creepy grin. She couldn't be any older then 4 years old, but it was just sickening how some people raise their kids with stereotypes like that. One of the reasons I hate living in the south.
1) i don't want my kids growing up talking and acting like they are black or gangster or whatever just because they were raised around it
2) as long as i'm alive, race mixing in my family won't be tolerated... not out of racism, but in the best interest of our identity and culture that took thousands of years to protect and develop
So is that how you think all blacks talk and act? Don't get around much, do you?
I already do, and I have no problem with black people, but the plantation mentality runs rampant where I live. I'd rather live in a northeastern city with a majority black population like Baltimore then some southeastern city with a majority black population like where I am now. There are too many racist ones here, who call you ignant if you so much as look at them the wrong way if you're not black. I was waiting in Walmart in line and a younger black couple dressed in typical people of Walmart type attire had a little girl with them in line in front of me, the girl notices me and says "satan" with some wierd creepy grin. She couldn't be any older then 4 years old, but it was just sickening how some people raise their kids with stereotypes like that. One of the reasons I hate living in the south.
Oh OK; this makes it all believable because only things like this happen in Georgia and Alabama......
Hey live here and see how it is, I'll be glad to trade places with ya.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.