Framingham or Salem? (Boston, Gloucester, Newburyport: condos, schools, colleges)

[BostonOrBust]

Which city is more gay/lesbian friendly, Framingham or Salem?

And if your answer would be any different, which college is more gay/lesbian friendly, Framingham State or Salem State?

Thank you!!

[holden125]

I can't speak to the schools, but as far as cities I'd go with Salem.

I'm not saying that Framingham is unfriendly, but Salem is a small city with a much more happening downtown. As a result it's become something of a magnet for younger adults on the North Shore, including gay and lesbian younger adults. Salem today is a pretty tolerant place because the cautionary tale of the witch trials is always present. It's also a more attractive and fun city.

Framingham, though quite populous, is basically suburbia, with a lot of malls, etc. out on Route 9. The downtown area is smaller than Salem's. Some people think of it as seedy but I don't think it's that bad. It's not, however, particularly interesting.

[eloyfan]

Salem all the way. Framingham is sadly being over-run with outsiders, to be PC. North Framingham is much more upscale than the rest. East of Rt. 9 is less than scenic or quiet.

Salem is more of a village. Go to Salem. You'd be so much closer to other beautiful areas too: Gloucester, Newburyport, etc.

[brent s]

Yea, I certainly wouldn't recommend Framingham over Salem either. Framingham, other than the northern parts, is pretty seedy.

[holden125]

Originally Posted by eloyfan

Framingham is sadly being over-run with outsiders, to be PC.

How PC.

[brightdoglover]

Salem, no debate. That's from my gay male couple friends who live there in rehabbed condos and love it. Framingham is suburban bleh, except for the many many Brazilian restaurants.

[eloyfan]

Originally Posted by holden125

How PC.

?

[bmak57]

Salem. Plus the nearby beaches and close proximity to Boston is an added bonus.

[ogre]

Holden's first post pins down the difference between the two towns. Never mind whether there is a gay scene in Framingham, because there's really not much of ANY kind of scene except malls, chain restaurants (with a few exceptions, but mostly chains), and generic suburbia.

As far as the schools go, I'm not familiar with Salem State. Framingham State has a lot of students from Boston suburbs and from small towns in central and western MA. Many of the students are from working class backgrounds, or sort of middle class. Many have jobs on the side, with some students paying their own way through college. It's kind of an apple-pie sort of school. The general atmosphere around the campus is laid back and friendly, and the faculty, staff, and administration all seem to be very supportive of the students. That being the case, you're most likely to find that F. State will not generally be unfriendly toward you, and a lot of the offices around campuses have those triangle "safe zone" stickers on their doors, but you're not going to find much in the way of specifically gay-oriented activities.

I don't know what you'd find at Salem State. I think it's a somewhat larger school than F. State, so it might have more of a varied student body. On the other hand, because Salem State is another one of those relatively inexpensive state liberal arts colleges, it wouldn't surprise me if they had a similar apple-pie bunch of students, who would be too busy working all their jobs on the side to be heavily involved in promoting lots and lots of social activities. That's speculation, though, as I'm not personally familiar with S. State.