Does Pittsburgh Fit That Bill ? (rent, safe neighborhoods, living in)

[Egyptian2009]

Hi All ,I need to know from residents if Pittsburgh really meet those criteria :* Ease to find service / clerical job* Cost of life is low* Can live without a car * Generally safe and specefically for a Hair Covered Muslim WomanMillion Thanks in Advance

[Hopes]

I believe Pittsburgh does meet your qualifications. Of course, you will need to be fluent in English for a clerical job. Our cost of living is low. Thare are many safe neighborhoods with good public transporation. You will be just as safe as everyone else. Your hair being covered will not be a problem.

[Tirade]

My best friend is Muslim and nobody here has ever harassed her about it. I've also seen women wearing niqabs in one of Pittsburgh's worst ghettos, and while they got some confused looks, nobody said anything or harassed them for it. I realize this all anecdotal but I've never gotten the impression that this city is unsafe for Muslim women.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the Squirrel Hill neighborhood has an Orthodox Jewish population, so it's not uncommon to see women with their hair covered in that area. Nobody bats an eye at a headscarf there.

[escilade18]

Originally Posted by Egyptian2009

Hi All ,I need to know from residents if Pittsburgh really meet those criteria :* Ease to find service / clerical job* Cost of life is low* Can live without a car * Generally safe and specefically for a Hair Covered Muslim WomanMillion Thanks in Advance

Starting with cost of living, Pittsburgh has one of the most reasonable cost of living for a large city* in the US. Although rent is not dirt cheap, it is still not at the level of NYC, SF, or DC where rent below $1000 a month does not exist for all practical purposes. In many neighborhoods (mainly in the east end or in the south hills along the T line) it is entirely possible to live without a car comfortably given everything you need is either withing walking distance or has easy access via public transit. Pittsburgh is socially libertarian so unless you are living in the fringes of the metro (i.e., Fayette County) nobody will harass you about being Muslim (well maybe one or two jerks occasionally, but we are not the bible belt in that aspect thankfully.)
As for the job, I would assume it would not be difficult to obtain, but I will let someone more knowledgeable such as BrianTH answer that question since he has hard data to back up the claim.

* By large city, I mean metro area larger than 1.5 million which I know some might disagree with but I feel that number covers most recognized cities with the exception of New Orleans

[PreservationPioneer]

I read your post wrong - for a minute, I thought you meant you were covered in hair.

[sskink]

Originally Posted by alleghenyangel

I read your post wrong - for a minute, I thought you meant you were covered in hair.

LOL, you're not the only one. I was picturing the poor woman being a Yeti or something.

I think "head-covered" would've been a better choice.