What I Love, Hate, Like, Dislike about Portland Oregon (Gresham: renting, townhouse)

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

They don't call it "Lake No Negro" for nothing...

I have never heard anyone ever call it that. It's doubly interesting when you realize that a lot of prominent African Americans in Portland live in the area - IE, a good portion of the Blazers.

[DoctorRain]

Originally Posted by hamellr

I have never heard anyone ever call it that. It's doubly interesting when you realize that a lot of prominent African Americans in Portland live in the area - IE, a good portion of the Blazers.

That could be used as joke bait really. More blacks exist in Portland itself, but seems they ride the max or they stay to their own side of the city overall and of course use the max to get around. Usually not interracting with whites. To me its refreshing though since multiculturalism to high degrees can ruin many places. I am surprised there isn't a support base for David Duke anywhere. Several voted for Obama when I visited Portland, I do remember this. I wonder if their tones have changed now though. I read about how white power/pride groups used to be in Portland, but they are probably now on the outskirts.

[TDNY]

It's unbelievably insulting to assume that because Oregon is heavily white that it's full of racists.

[Twilighter]

DoctorRain, it's remarkable what you profess to know considering you've not been here for more than a (one?) visit.

Now for one thing I like about Portland: the process of being a customer at DEQ and DMV. I visited both today (at noon no less) and was back at home within 45 minutes. And $86 every other year is a bargain.

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by DoctorRain

That could be used as joke bait really. More blacks exist in Portland itself, but seems they ride the max or they stay to their own side of the city overall and of course use the max to get around. Usually not interracting with whites. To me its refreshing though since multiculturalism to high degrees can ruin many places. I am surprised there isn't a support base for David Duke anywhere. Several voted for Obama when I visited Portland, I do remember this. I wonder if their tones have changed now though. I read about how white power/pride groups used to be in Portland, but they are probably now on the outskirts.

Is this from personal observation? Please post some statistics to back up this claim.

[Patron of Wrath]

I read a university study several years ago that stipulated that people are most comfortable living near people who are similar to themselves, both in physical appearance and economic status. We see this fairly commonly across our country and it begs the question:

Where are the Asian, African-American, Latino, etc... areas of Portland, if applicable?

[UrbanAdventurer]

Originally Posted by Patron of Wrath

I read a university study several years ago that stipulated that people are most comfortable living near people who are similar to themselves, both in physical appearance and economic status. We see this fairly commonly across our country and it begs the question:

Where are the Asian, African-American, Latino, etc... areas of Portland, if applicable?

AA culture is centered around NE Portland. Latino...Hillsboro/Aloha. Asians tend to disperse fairly homogeneously amongst all areas, although I've noticed less of an Asian influence in Portland than other west coast cities. Vancouver BC, for example is heavily Asian.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by DoctorRain

That could be used as joke bait really. More blacks exist in Portland itself, but seems they ride the max or they stay to their own side of the city overall and of course use the max to get around. Usually not interracting with whites. To me its refreshing though since multiculturalism to high degrees can ruin many places. I am surprised there isn't a support base for David Duke anywhere. Several voted for Obama when I visited Portland, I do remember this. I wonder if their tones have changed now though. I read about how white power/pride groups used to be in Portland, but they are probably now on the outskirts.

So I'm guesing you don't want Blacks to live in the rest of the city, but to remain on one side of town, as was mandated in the 1950s?

And I would hope that there is no base for David Duke in Portland. I don't have any respect for that racist. And what is so good about having White power groups in the city of Portland? Last time I checked, in 1988, Mulageta Seraw, an Ethiopian college student at Portland State University, was murdered by members of the W.A.R.

[PNW-type-gal]

Originally Posted by hamellr

I have never heard anyone ever call it that.

you have to have been here long enough. "Lake No Negro" and "Sucker Lake" are both stabs at what some people see as the pretentiousness involving a former agricultural flushing channel, dammed up to make a lake with high-end houses built on lake dredge-fill. Those terms are 30+ years out of date.

When I was at PSU in the geology dept, it was a yearly thing to have people coming in the show us this strange green obsidian they found at the lake - one of the first uses for the lake was to power hydro for an iron foundry and the "obsidian" is actually remnant chunks of glassy iron vat slag. The "Sucker Lake" bit is because, when it served the original purpose of flushing channel, the temporary pond would drain in the late summer, leaving dead (and stinking) catfish on the shores (or so one of my professors, a 50+ year resident of the area, would tell me).

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by DoctorRain

That could be used as joke bait really. More blacks exist in Portland itself, but seems they ride the max or they stay to their own side of the city overall and of course use the max to get around. Usually not interracting with whites. To me its refreshing though since multiculturalism to high degrees can ruin many places. I am surprised there isn't a support base for David Duke anywhere. Several voted for Obama when I visited Portland, I do remember this. I wonder if their tones have changed now though. I read about how white power/pride groups used to be in Portland, but they are probably now on the outskirts.

How would know that? I see African American people on the buses I take in SE Portland all the time.

What outskirts are you talking about?