Why is Louisville so politically Liberal? (Union, Audubon Park: appointed, home, neighborhood)

[censusdata]

I have always wondered how Louisville got to be such a politically Liberal city, almost a mini San Franscisco, given its location in a very conservative state, not to mention being home to the Southern Baptist Convention.

For those longtime natives, has Louisville always been this way?

[louroclou]

One cannot underestimate the impact of Henry Watterson and the Bingham family. Watterson embodies the wonderful contradictions and paradoxes of Louisville: an ardent opponent of slavery who nonetheless felt he had to fight for the Confederacy. He was a brilliant writer (He won a Pulitizer) and pushed in the early 20th century for a vision of a new, renewed South that would become an equal partner in the Union. He founded the Courier-Journal, which became, under him, and then under the Binghams, an eloquent source of liberal ideas. The Binghams were the Kennedys of Louisville - their political liberalism and generous love of the arts fostered the Louisville Fund and other art and social causes and set the tone for liberalism among the social set (Count now the high number of Obama yard banners in the Cherokee Park area). We owe a lot to the pre-Gannett Courier.

[missymomof3]

Originally Posted by louroclou

One cannot underestimate the impact of Henry Watterson and the Bingham family. Watterson embodies the wonderful contradictions and paradoxes of Louisville: an ardent opponent of slavery who nonetheless felt he had to fight for the Confederacy. He was a brilliant writer (He won a Pulitizer) and pushed in the early 20th century for a vision of a new, renewed South that would become an equal partner in the Union. He founded the Courier-Journal, which became, under him, and then under the Binghams, an eloquent source of liberal ideas. The Binghams were the Kennedys of Louisville - their political liberalism and generous love of the arts fostered the Louisville Fund and other art and social causes and set the tone for liberalism among the social set (Count now the high number of Obama yard banners in the Cherokee Park area). We owe a lot to the pre-Gannett Courier.

Interesting perspective, thank you. You don't see many banners at all out here, I have seen maybe four or five.

[springtimegirl]

Good to hear there are Obama signs in the yards in Louisville. We are probably moving there this summer, and have been concerned about choosing an area in which to live where we will feel the freedom to put out a sign for a democratic presidential candidate. We now live in a heavily republican area outside of Nashville, one in which there is a sense of oppression if anyone chooses to support a democratic candidate. Heaven forbid if we don't have a "W" on our car window...which we do not. It's like we are "sinning". We are Christians, and democrats. Hopefully Louisville allows people to be proud of being both. We would love to live in an area of like-minded people. Yes, we appreciate differences, but for most of our adult lives, we are the ones who have felt so different...not free to express our true views for fear of being rejected, or our children being ridiculed in school, so we live amongst the red with blue hearts...silently.

Are there any areas anyone would recommend for us to live other than the cherokee triangle area? I'm afraid it may be out of our price range. We would like to stay around 250K to start off in. Maybe even eventually build something larger. We have one fourth grade son who enjoys golf, and one seventh grade daughter who likes to take dance lessons and does gymnastics. Both kids have requested that we live in a neighborhood with other kids near their age to play with. We will also be looking for a methodist church to attend. One additional piece of the puzzle to factor in: educational level. I have a graduate degree plus additional hours toward a doctorate. My husband has technical training and will be working in a skilled trade position in a factory. He is extremely handsome, mechanically intelligent, a wonderful man and father, and he enjoys working with his hands...not an academic kind of guy. I do NOT want to live anywhere in which the majority of people would look down on my husband for where he is employed. I know, I know, everyone is different, and we can't generalize an 'attitude' to an 'area'...but from experience, there are parts of Nashville where the majority of people carry around an air of superiority. If you don't have a "real" college education, then you are not very intelligent....lower class. That is an attitude that I can not stand, and am sooo hopeful to live where people are just people. Live and let live. They will know we are Christians by our love...right?

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance....

[tomocox]

FYI: Louisville is not the home of the Southern Baptist Convention. It is the home of the Presbyterian Church, USA headquarters. PC, USA has become a most "liberal" of protestant denominations as it focuses more each day on social issues rather than redemption.

If this thread is about faith, then I can offer much input, but if it is about throwing mud at perceived Christian behavior, then why would I want to argue with a perception rather than intelligence?

[louroclou]

Originally Posted by tomocox

... but if it is about throwing mud at perceived Christian behavior, then why would I want to argue with a perception rather than intelligence?

Whoa, whoa, tomo - a bit paranoid?... c-data's question is an interesting and appropriate one. American Christianity and Conservativism are pretty close buddies nowadays, so it is, indeed, surprising to find such a liberal city (especially in such a conservative state) in which church-going is still such a central part. So far no one in this thread has bashed churches or Christianity!

The connection between churches and conservatism has not always been there. Back in the 60's when I was active in the civil rights and anti-war movement at UL, we got a lot of support from local religious groups - particularly Methodists and Quakers and Catholics.

Yes, Catholics. Younger people may not be aware how socially conscious and active Catholics used to be. They did a lot for both social justice and for peace. I would say that our atypically large Catholic population for a Southern city is another reason for Louisville's liberal leanings. Again, one has to look back past the current milieu to see how that could be true...

I would also posit that labor unions and union members, like Catholics, used to have strong support for liberal causes, and Louisville has been a moderately strong union town.

Springtimegirl - it should be clear just looking around a little in this forum that Louisville would be a great fit for you: strong sense of roots and church, strong belief in progress, justice, balance, democracy in its true liberal sense. Let me put in a vote for our St Matthews, where you'll see lots of Obama - and Hillary - yard banners - and bumper stickers for every known liberal cause (there's a van totally covered in them just down the street). We're also a bit cheaper than the high-priced Highlands spread.

[tomocox]

[quote=louroclou;3653909]Whoa, whoa, tomo - a bit paranoid?... c-data's question is an interesting and appropriate one. American Christianity and Conservativism are pretty close buddies nowadays, so it is, indeed, surprising to find such a liberal city (especially in such a conservative state) in which church-going is still such a central part. So far no one in this thread has bashed churches or Christianity!
QUOTE]

I believe the thread itself is based in an indirect attempt to bash Christianity. While the writer may not acknowledge such bashing, and may not have intended to bash, the facts are that much of this forum in every discussion is a liberal way to counter conservative values.

You may define paranoid in any manner you wish, so maybe I am. What I know however is the false hope of diversity as defined by most liberals. It is that box canyon that "diverse" people are running up to hide from reality. So maybe I am paranoid, or maybe, just maybe those who rail against the self-discipline of faith need to be paranoid.

So when someone puts a thread together that indirectly promotes "liberalism" and "diversity" I shall challenge the false hopes of such political misrepresentation.

Footnote: I am certainly not opposed to diversity and advancement of people. I am however absolutely opposed to using "diversity" as a code word for political advancement of one's own agenda. The very conserative Southern Baptist Convention nearly self-destructed when a group of Calvinist Baptists claimed the word "conservative" to describe their agenda during the 1980's and 90's. It was a false use of the word to describe themselves rather than being blunt about being Calvinistics. I see "diversity" being misused in the same manner.

[nlschr0]

Originally Posted by tomocox

FYI: Louisville is not the home of the Southern Baptist Convention. It is the home of the Presbyterian Church, USA headquarters.

But it is still the home of the Southern Baptist Seminary also, isn't it? That is probably the source of the confusion.

I personally would love to see a map that breaks down the political (and possibly even religious beliefs) by neighborhood. I can guess at the obvious ones but it would be interesting to see for the entire city. After visiting Southeast Christian for a day, I was amazed by the masses of conservative Christians that were in attendance. It was my first experience at a "mega-church", and it was definitely interesting.

Of course, some of my in-laws in Louisville are very conservative Christians,(and to them Southeast is liberal )so I do see a lot of that side of Louisville in addition to the more liberal experiences around the Highlands, etc.

[tomocox]

Yes, Louisville is home to the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. It actually has three "sibling" seminaries sponsored by the Southern Baptist Convention.

One of the attributes about me that few people understand is how "Baptist" I am. Baptists by agreement and history believe their relationship to God is specifically personal. Most Baptists believe in the "priesthood of the believer" meaning that we have our own direct line to God. I say this as a matter of information only as an aid to help readers understand how angry I get at individuals who either try to powerplay as pastors or other clerics. I also am terribly disappointed with people who just follow the crowd or the James Jones's of the world.

[censusdata]

Originally Posted by springtimegirl

Are there any areas anyone would recommend for us to live other than the cherokee triangle area? I'm afraid it may be out of our price range. We would like to stay around 250K to start off in. Maybe even eventually build something larger. We have one fourth grade son who enjoys golf, and one seventh grade daughter who likes to take dance lessons and does gymnastics. Both kids have requested that we live in a neighborhood with other kids near their age to play with.

If you want to be in a more urban area with lots of school age children look at Audubon Park, Windsor Forest, Crescent Hill or St Matthews.