Blacks in West Des Moines (Johnston, Waukee: fit in, hotel, townhome)

[rhonda2k]

I am seriously thinking of relocating to west des moines to start a new life for me and my children,last weekend me and my kids booked a room at a clive iowa hotel and stayed for a couple of days and check out the city, i must say that i was very impressed,it is wonderful if u can say that after staying only 3 days.i am a nurse by profession, i have 3 well mannered kids one is a honor student in the 10th grade, the other is a honor student in the 3rd grade in a catholic school, the baby is 2 in kindercare.i am a Black 35 yr old female divorced we are living in the north suburbs of chicago illinois.My question is will me and my kids fit in,in west des moines i am so afraid that they might not accept us there.will my kids experience any racism,how are the people in west des moines attitudes towards blacks i am just looking for a nice quiet place to live and raise my kids.I have been told by several people that i should look in another part of Iowa cause west des moines don't have many blacks living there and we might be uncomfortable is this true,PLEASE HELP NEED TO RELOCATE SOON!

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by rhonda2k

I am seriously thinking of relocating to west des moines to start a new life for me and my children,last weekend me and my kids booked a room at a clive iowa hotel and stayed for a couple of days and check out the city, i must say that i was very impressed,it is wonderful if u can say that after staying only 3 days.i am a nurse by profession, i have 3 well mannered kids one is a honor student in the 10th grade, the other is a honor student in the 3rd grade in a catholic school, the baby is 2 in kindercare.i am a Black 35 yr old female divorced we are living in the north suburbs of chicago illinois.My question is will me and my kids fit in,in west des moines i am so afraid that they might not accept us there.will my kids experience any racism,how are the people in west des moines attitudes towards blacks i am just looking for a nice quiet place to live and raise my kids.I have been told by several people that i should look in another part of Iowa cause west des moines don't have many blacks living there and we might be uncomfortable is this true,PLEASE HELP NEED TO RELOCATE SOON!

Just as a frame of reference, Des Moines has had a Black mayor before. I thinkiowa is more open minded than many people think. I say go ahead and move. Heck, you probably could live in Des Moines and be fine pretty much anywhere.

There are Black people in West Des Moines. There are about 1,000 in a city of about 47,000 people. Valley High, the HS there is about 4-5% Black, but it seems like the elementary schools have higher percentages of Black students. Schools like Westridge and Brookview are both over 5% Black in terms of student population, while the rest of the schools are in the 2.5-4% range.

[Go Ne]

If West Des Moines is anything like West Omaha, I think you'll be fine.

[mrs_moby73]

Hi Rhonda,
We just moved to West Des Moines a little over a month ago. We came from a Navy community in California that has a relatively diverse population -- black, hispanic, filipino -- and I was really concerned about my kids growing up in a lilly white community like I did. Since moving here I have been pleasantly surprised by the diversity I have seen in my children's school (we are actually in the Waukee school district). One of the minority groups that seems well represented is Eastern Indian. In our neighborhood we have a family from China on one side and a single, black father on the other. Don't get me wrong, the area is predominately white, but it feels like a very integrated community.

[rhonda2k]

I think I have pretty much made up my mind I just needed to here from people who live there or who has experienced this type of, setting,It's all about the children I only want the best for them and west des moines seems to be the right place for us.My kids will also be in the Waukee school district if I chose to live there, I feel in love with this wonderful townhome in that area,it pretty much has my name written all over it. thanks alot for your response!

[Vidyapati]

We used to live in Johnston, IA not too far from West Des Moines. We are an interracially mixed family, and we really enjoyed living in Johnston (which was predominantly Caucasian). We made a lot of friends (with whom we still correspond via email and phone) To this day my daughter wishes we would move back to Iowa (and we might). I must say Iowa is a great place to raise the kids!

[historybuffpj]

If you are black, and have a son that is an excellent tailback, you will fit in fine in WDM

[ckhthankgod]

Here's some information on the Waukee SD:Search for Iowa public schools.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by historybuffpj

If you are black, and have a son that is an excellent tailback, you will fit in fine in WDM

What if the child is a bookish, nerdy type, like me?

[Elyahme]

My sister and I are considering moving from Syracuse, New York to Iowa sometime next year. We are minorities. We have children, and we are concerned with the atmosphere for our families. Big city living isn’t my forte; the Mid-West is best. In the past, I lived in Franklin County, Missouri which is 98% white, and I never had a problem with other races. Engineering is my profession, and I’ve been pretty fortunate to get along in a field that’s dominated by white males. I know racism is everywhere; are there serious issues of racism in Warren County, Iowa? How is the minority’s standard of living in Warren County, Iowa?