mixed race families welcomed in tn? (best, market, sticker)

[mbmouse]

Well, how old are your boys? What are your interests? That would give us a better idea of what to suggest so the boys would be interested too. I would say be sure to spend part of a day at Bay's Mountain State Park in Kingsport, everyone of all ages would enjoy that.

[MountainLovin' Mom]

My boys are 10 and 12 years old. They like to swim and play video games. We're a baseball family... my oldest played on an all-star team that ended up 11th in the state of CA. Other than that we like nature hikes, movies, good food, and dogs (we have 4). My hope is that we will all fall in love with the area (especially my husband who has been resistant to moving out of CA all these years) and can begin preparations to relocate there. My husband works for ICE - Immigration & Customs Enforcement. There are stations all over... Chattanooga, Knoxville, Nashville, Memphis, as well as VA, GA, pretty much all over. Once we decide where we want to move to, he will put in to transfer... he only has 4 years until he can retire. I am a teacher and will apply for a credential wherever we move to. Anyway, that's a little bit about us. Thanks so much for your advice!!

[GrannyLois]

Just so you know: Johnson City is about 100 miles from Knoxville - too far to commute to work. There might be other federal jobs in town, though.

[jbuhl]

Your reading biased information here. Go to some of the surrounding (progressive) city sites such as Asheville, NC and Greenville, NC and do some searches on East Tennessee and see what you come up with.

[MountainLovin' Mom]

jbuhl, what exactly are you telling me??

[jjbradleynyc]

I grew up in Church Hill (little town outside of Kingsport) and worked/went to school in Kingsport until I was 19. My advice would be to pick Johnson City. It has East TN State University, and more diversity in general. Bristol is very conservative overall, as is Kingsport. Johnson City is definitely overall conservative too, but having the university there, and the fact that the city has the most people (around 60,000), it is the most "liberal and progressive." The entire region of East TN was pretty much the heart of the bible belt growing up. Nice, friendly people, but there is a lot of uneducated and uncultured people there also. Absolutely some great people, but LOTS of uninformed folks. Just do some research. Good luck!

[dreamofmonterey]

I wouldn't even pick Bristol...JC is a city- alot of diversity. JMO, I am not biased and have no agenda here- I am not a broker or realtor....


sunny

[cabbarker]

I too am thinking of relocating to the tri-cities area and had some of the same concerns. I am not a part of a mixed race family, but was terribly concerned to hear of public KKK meetings outside of JC. I grew up in the suburbs of Washington, D.C. and can't image things like that happening in public. I realize this is probably not the majority, but I was hoping someone could tell me otherwise and ease my concerns. Thanks.

[jbuhl]

Originally Posted by MountainLovin' Mom

jbuhl, what exactly are you telling me??

Your reading information from people who live in the area and like it. If you go to surrounding area's you may find some information from people who left the area for various reasons. It would be good to see both sides. regardless you need to weigh those opinions very carefully.

jb

[jabogitlu]

Wow, this thread is still going? Look, it's pretty simple - racists, bigots, idiots, and people who are prejudiced exist in all walks of life, all over the Earth. The South, in the past, has had more than their fair share, for whatever reason, but we're over that now, by and large, especially in the upper South (Tennessee) and especially with people under 55 or so years of age.

Yes, there are still KKK meetings in public. That's their right to peaceably assemble (bearing in mind laws against incitation of violence on basis of race or ethnic origin) and we protect it. The KKK has been relegated to a fringe group in all areas of the South and when the old generation passes the torch it will be virtually eradicated.