Do residents of Miami consider Miami a Southern city? (Orlando: schools, live in)

[Nikki9947]

Originally Posted by Spade

I lived in Miami, all of my friends and family live in Miami and Fort Lauderdale and all of them consider themselves Southerners. Yes, I do think Miami is Southern. It's just has a different vibe. Just like Chicago has a different vibe from every other city in the Midwest or New York has a different vibe from every other city in the Northeast.

Especially amongst the blacks in Miami. They do the same things they do in Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. They ride the big box chevy's, has a very large baptist churches in and around Dade County, listen to nothing BUT Southern music, eat the same food (every city in the South does have their differences to this I admit but it's basically the same).

Wow pump your breaks. This is not the culture of all Black people in the south OR Miami. That was a generalization & misconception rolled into one. Neither my friends or myself ride "big box chevy's" (especially with these gas prices), I grew up in a presbyterian church, listen to all types of music, and we don't all eat the same food (soul food is great yes but some blacks also eat tofu & ect.)
Furthermore, as someone wrote in a post before, a large number of the blacks here are from the Caribbean and some even consider themselves Hispanic. (This population is lot higher than in other "typical" Souther States). Also in this sense, their culture is totally different from the African- American culture. I just couldn't go on with my day without clearing that up.

[miamiblue]

I really think the term "Southern city" needs to be defined here (and not by Wikipedia, unless you want that kind of answer). The modern larger cities of the southeast US are quite different now than they were 20 or even just 10 years ago (including Miami). Also, I think southeastern US cities are even quite different from their southern US (LA, AL, MS, etc.) cousins.

Also, what aspects of the city are we talking about? Demographics, cultural norms, development, etc.? There are a lot of variables at play.

Without knowing the specifics of the question, it is really both a Yes and No answer. There are aspects of the Miami metro (such as demographics or culture) that are very different than most other southeastern and southern US metros, but other aspects that are fairly similar (development patterns).

[Scientifical Madness]

Originally Posted by dadeguy

I don't wish miami to be a southern culture city. I find the faux genteelness of southern society to be quite possibly the very worst hipocracy. I'm one of those people who will appreciate a sincere frown over a fake smile any day.

I'm far more comfortable with miami as it is. I like northeasterners which is not to say that I don't like southerners just that I like a person who is direct and southerners are not directly direct you need to know the buzzwords. if you know the buzzwords then southerners are just like anyone else but they seem sweet to the outsider, they ain't but they are pleasant in their abrasiveness.

I have lived in South FL (born there actually), and lived in rural Central FL (I live in Orlando now) and I have also lived in Asheville NC, and I can tell you that there isnt anything that I have witnessed as "fake" nice. Many of these Southern people are genuinely some of the nicest I ever met, and are really nice and treat one another accordingly. The "fake" sweet you talk about I dont see. I think you have lived in Miami too long bub.

I'll give you a little story, not a big deal, just an example. I was playing golf a couple weeks ago with a family member. A group from TN were also playing golf and were a couple holes behind us but caught up to us. We said hi and so forth. At the end of the round, we were both in the parking lot by our cars, sweating like crazy, and the man said, "Hey, you guys want some cold water? We have a big cooler filled with bottled water." We had our own water, and thanked them anyway. But we go to this golfcourse all the time, and we have never been offered water like that before until these folks from Tennessee offered. Just an example.

[Scientifical Madness]

Originally Posted by Leovigildo

No, not a southern town:

According to the Wikipedia:

Miami is recognized as a global city because of its importance in finance, commerce, media, entertainment, arts and international trade.[7][8] The city is home to many company headquarters, banks, and television studios. It is an international center for popular entertainment in television, music, fashion, film, and the performing arts. The city's Port of Miami is known for accommodating the largest volume of cruise ships in the world and is home to many cruise line headquarters. Miami is also home to the largest concentration of international banks in the United States.

It's the gateway to Latin America, nothing else. Miami is situated where it is convenient for them, thus the banks and the cruise lines. The fashion aspect of Miami attracts the shallowest and "wanna be rich" types that males and females both try to become a part of, whether it's the money hungry women trying to find her husband or the man maxing out all credit cards to buy expensive things, lease nice cars, meanwhile his house is about to be foreclosed on b/c he is 6 months late in mortgage payments. Then you have the really rich people there - the athletes and musicians that live there, secluding themselves from everything Miami, living on Fisher Island somewhere, escaping tax burdens.

[TXRyan23]

Originally Posted by Spade

Especially amongst the blacks in Miami. They do the same things they do in Mississippi, Alabama, and Georgia. They ride the big box chevy's, has a very large baptist churches in and around Dade County, listen to nothing BUT Southern music, eat the same food (every city in the South does have their differences to this I admit but it's basically the same).

You're VERY wrong.

Trust me, Black people in South Florida are very different from Black people in other parts of the South East.

Lived in Florida, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Texas.

[Scientifical Madness]

^^^ What differentiates 'em?

[TXRyan23]

Originally Posted by Scientifical Madness

^^^ What differentiates 'em?

Honestly, Culture.

Obviously I can't speak for everyone. I would compare most of the AA I met in the Miami area with most that I've met in New Orleans. Same lifestyles.

Most ive known in smaller southern cities like Nashville and Birmingham have different values and lifestyles. It's rare to find alot of AA in Nashville driving old pimp mobile cadillacs from the 70's and there are alot of professionals here. I've noticed more AA in Florida ( from my time living there ) accept making minnimum wages and the lifestyle that goes with it and usually have a very large chip on their shoulders that you don't find in other parts of the South.

Also, As another posted previously said, not all AA people go crazy for soul food, greens, and chicken. My wife, for example, hates soul food and greens and can only stomach chicken once in awhile. It's all a huge stereotype. It's said that almost all AA people go to a baptist church, Hell, I'd say atleast half, almost positive that it's more then half of the AA people I've known don't even go to church. These things may be different from the AA people of South Florida, which is exactly my point.

[MiamiRob]

having lived in the greater Miami area for 30 plus years Miami is vastly different from the "Southern culture" most expect. The closest thing growing up to southerness was being exposed to the Confederate flag!

[mdiggs1]

i would say the Liberty City area/Brown-Sub and Overtown are the most southern parts of the city.

[Scientifical Madness]

I find Miami's AA population to be vastly different from that of Atlanta or Charlotte, TNRyan. Not too sure about Nashville, never really visit. But the professionalism and education of the AA found in Charlotte and Atlanta are definitely different (just in general) than that of Miami.