I'm Black and was born in Seattle. Why was I? (Everett: appointed, fit in)

[pwright1]

Black people in Seattle have a unique accent. IMO its kind of nasally and southern combined. Not just a certain type of black person, but all black seattleites who grew up here. Its so noticeable when you move here from someplace else.

[CTownNative]

Im not from Seattle but you can get stats right off of city-data for demographics. Here is some.
Seattle-2007 population 594,210-8.4% black or 49,914 black people live in just the Seattle city limits.
Tukwila-2007 pop. 17,230-12.8% black or 2,205 black people.
Kent-2007 pop. 84,474-8.2% black or 6,927 black people.
Federal way-2007 pop. 84,819-7.9% black or 6,701 black people
SeaTac-2007 pop. 25,710-9.2% black or 2,365 black people
Des Moines-2007 pop. 29,076-7.2% black or 2,093 black people
Burien-2007 pop. 31,394-5.1% black or 1,601 black people
Riverton-Boulevard Park- 2007 pop. 15,688-8.3% or 1,302 black people
Bryn Mawr-Skyway-2007 pop. 15,223-25.3% black or 3,851 black people
Renton-2007 pop. 60,331-8.5% black or 5,128 black people
Cascade-Fairwood-36,810-6.1% black or 2,245 black people
White center-22,417-6.4% black or 1,435 black people
Tacoma-196,520-11.2% black or 22,010 black people
Lakewood-57,231-12.3% black or 7,039 black people
University Place-30,469-8.7% black or 2,651 black people
Fort Lewis-20,964-20.3% black or 4,256 black people
Parkland-26,416-8.1% black or 2,140 black people
Midland-8,142-8.4% black or 684 black people
Spanaway-23,709-9.1% black or 2,158 black people
So theres a good example of the black population in the Seattle area.
Total population of those cities-1,380,833 Black Population-126,705 9.2%
So its not that theres not black people in Seattle, but keep in mind that Atlanta is around 60% black and many of its suburbs are 80% plus black. Also some counties in the ATL metro area are majority black. So for a black person from Atlanta, it would probably feel like there was a small black population there, whereas if you were a person coming from Spokane or Boise it would seem large to those people.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by CTownNative

Im not from Seattle but you can get stats right off of city-data for demographics. Here is some.
Seattle-2007 population 594,210-8.4% black or 49,914 black people live in just the Seattle city limits.
Tukwila-2007 pop. 17,230-12.8% black or 2,205 black people.
Kent-2007 pop. 84,474-8.2% black or 6,927 black people.
Federal way-2007 pop. 84,819-7.9% black or 6,701 black people
SeaTac-2007 pop. 25,710-9.2% black or 2,365 black people
Des Moines-2007 pop. 29,076-7.2% black or 2,093 black people
Burien-2007 pop. 31,394-5.1% black or 1,601 black people
Riverton-Boulevard Park- 2007 pop. 15,688-8.3% or 1,302 black people
Bryn Mawr-Skyway-2007 pop. 15,223-25.3% black or 3,851 black people
Renton-2007 pop. 60,331-8.5% black or 5,128 black people
Cascade-Fairwood-36,810-6.1% black or 2,245 black people
White center-22,417-6.4% black or 1,435 black people
Tacoma-196,520-11.2% black or 22,010 black people
Lakewood-57,231-12.3% black or 7,039 black people
University Place-30,469-8.7% black or 2,651 black people
Fort Lewis-20,964-20.3% black or 4,256 black people
Parkland-26,416-8.1% black or 2,140 black people
Midland-8,142-8.4% black or 684 black people
Spanaway-23,709-9.1% black or 2,158 black people
So theres a good example of the black population in the Seattle area.
Total population of those cities-1,380,833 Black Population-126,705 9.2%
So its not that theres not black people in Seattle, but keep in mind that Atlanta is around 60% black and many of its suburbs are 80% plus black. Also some counties in the ATL metro area are majority black. So for a black person from Atlanta, it would probably feel like there was a small black population there, whereas if you were a person coming from Spokane or Boise it would seem large to those people.

I have a different calculation of this. I calculated by county.

6,865 Blacks in Kitsap County(2.9%) Total population:238,732
54,121 Blacks in Pierce County(7%) Total population: 773,165
5,725 Blacks in Thurston County(2.4%) Total population:238,555
100,401 Blacks in King County(5.4%) Total population: 1,859,284
11,507 Blacks in Snohomish County(1.7%) Total population: 676,898
There are 3,784,634 people in the Seattle metro area. There are 178,619 Blacks. About 4.7% of the metro's population is Black. You do present a good point though. I should know because I used to live in Seattle metro and I live in metro Atlanta now. I would like to go back to Seattle soon. I never felt judged for being the way I was there.

[Samaara]

All of this talk about people being so racist towards black people really bothers me. It saddens me that so many people can be so racist against you.
I was born and raised in Texas. I never felt like a Texan though because everyone in the south (many state's that I've visited in the south) were very racist (not only whites but also blacks). I moved to WA as soon as I could and it just amazing how different not only the white people are here but also the black people. I've gotten into many arguments with my father (because he has lived nowhere else except Texas) about how the way he thinks towards other races is so completely wrong and have tried to convince him many times to get to know some black people here in WA. Same for some friends I have in Texas who are of many different races (indian, african american, english). It's just very different here in WA. I just feel like every state has their different types of people. I'm so glad I live in WA now though. The people here are so much more accepting of ALL cultures (probably because of the fact that we have Microsoft here so many people from different cultures live in Seattle). I love it here and feel it's MUCH more friendly than some states in the South.

[The_Fairfaxian]

Originally Posted by Samaara

All of this talk about people being so racist towards black people really bothers me. It saddens me that so many people can be so racist against you.
I was born and raised in Texas. I never felt like a Texan though because everyone in the south (many state's that I've visited in the south) were very racist (not only whites but also blacks). I moved to WA as soon as I could and it just amazing how different not only the white people are here but also the black people. I've gotten into many arguments with my father (because he has lived nowhere else except Texas) about how the way he thinks towards other races is so completely wrong and have tried to convince him many times to get to know some black people here in WA. Same for some friends I have in Texas who are of many different races (indian, african american, english). It's just very different here in WA. I just feel like every state has their different types of people. I'm so glad I live in WA now though. The people here are so much more accepting of ALL cultures (probably because of the fact that we have Microsoft here so many people from different cultures live in Seattle). I love it here and feel it's MUCH more friendly than some states in the South.

Just for personal reasons, where was this in Texas where "everyone's racist?" Although I'm not doubting you, from what I heard, most of Houston, San Antonio, and Austin were anything but racist, and places that I'm also considering to move to (besides Seattle ). The rest of Texas including Dallas, from what I got, has the run-of-the-mill Southern racist mentality rampant and wouldn't surprise me if you were from those areas.

But overall, I would assume that Washington and Seattle has better race relations than Texas and even Houston and Austin.


But as a response to the OP, I pretty much face the same circumstance. Only the perpetrators aren't blacks in Atlanta, but in the DC area, specifically the mostly-black so-called suburban county of Prince Georges in Maryland. The funniest and saddest thing about it is that I don't get as much crap from the blacks who actually live in the district itself and deal with more poverty and crime.

[SeattleWA]

Blacks in Seattle talk with a broken English accent like everywhere else. They also just as rude here too.

And when I say "they" I mean the majority of them. Not all of us.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

I learned that some people are just going to clown me about sounding "white" when I talk, no matter what, not just from other blacks either. I have been clowned by some white people as well. I learned that some people are going to clown me no matter what because the way I am goes beyond their own scope of what they think I should be(or what people who look like me should be). To some people, I am hard to understand. I have a friend from California I met when I was a college freshman. I was basically a nerdy, intellectual type. I did get clowned by some of the students. According to my friend, this was the reason I caught crap: It wasn't a matter of whether or not they liked me any less than the other black students, but they were more familiar with the blacks who lived up to the "stereotypical" black youth. I was an intellectual and had different interests and some of the students didn't know how to deal with a black man who was like me. In a nut shell, my friend told me it was their inability to understand me and take me as I was. He had a point. His advice was to realize that some people are just going to hate on me simply because they don't know how to do anything else. Even at the college level I was made fun of somewhat. I just learn to be stubborn and confident in who I am. Alot of that crap involving making fun of blacks who are considered to talk "white" isn't just something you find with blacks. Sometimes there are white people who will make fun. I should know because I experienced it. I like the way I am.

Been there and done that. I went to a school that was around 93% White and actually had some White students question my "authenticity". Considering that my parents are from Mississippi and South Carolina, which are historically the Blackest states in the US due to being the biggest slave states and growing up in NY State, I learned to take things with a grain of salt. Same thing if Black people did it too.

[ckhthankgod]

Originally Posted by CTownNative

Im not from Seattle but you can get stats right off of city-data for demographics. Here is some.
Seattle-2007 population 594,210-8.4% black or 49,914 black people live in just the Seattle city limits.
Tukwila-2007 pop. 17,230-12.8% black or 2,205 black people.
Kent-2007 pop. 84,474-8.2% black or 6,927 black people.
Federal way-2007 pop. 84,819-7.9% black or 6,701 black people
SeaTac-2007 pop. 25,710-9.2% black or 2,365 black people
Des Moines-2007 pop. 29,076-7.2% black or 2,093 black people
Burien-2007 pop. 31,394-5.1% black or 1,601 black people
Riverton-Boulevard Park- 2007 pop. 15,688-8.3% or 1,302 black people
Bryn Mawr-Skyway-2007 pop. 15,223-25.3% black or 3,851 black people
Renton-2007 pop. 60,331-8.5% black or 5,128 black people
Cascade-Fairwood-36,810-6.1% black or 2,245 black people
White center-22,417-6.4% black or 1,435 black people
Tacoma-196,520-11.2% black or 22,010 black people
Lakewood-57,231-12.3% black or 7,039 black people
University Place-30,469-8.7% black or 2,651 black people
Fort Lewis-20,964-20.3% black or 4,256 black people
Parkland-26,416-8.1% black or 2,140 black people
Midland-8,142-8.4% black or 684 black people
Spanaway-23,709-9.1% black or 2,158 black people
So theres a good example of the black population in the Seattle area.
Total population of those cities-1,380,833 Black Population-126,705 9.2%
So its not that theres not black people in Seattle, but keep in mind that Atlanta is around 60% black and many of its suburbs are 80% plus black. Also some counties in the ATL metro area are majority black. So for a black person from Atlanta, it would probably feel like there was a small black population there, whereas if you were a person coming from Spokane or Boise it would seem large to those people.

I get what you are saying. it just seems like if you are used to growing up in an area with a large Black population, it is second nature to be surprised by that.

I will say that the Black community of the Seattle-Tacoma area is spread out and in a way where there is a decent concentration of Black people in many communities in the area. This is especially the case starting from the CD, down through the South side neighborhoods into the suburbs like Federal Way, Kent, Renton, Lakewood, Fort Lewis, etc into Tacoma.

[tindo80]

Originally Posted by Samaara

All of this talk about people being so racist towards black people really bothers me. It saddens me that so many people can be so racist against you.
I was born and raised in Texas. I never felt like a Texan though because everyone in the south (many state's that I've visited in the south) were very racist (not only whites but also blacks). I moved to WA as soon as I could and it just amazing how different not only the white people are here but also the black people. I've gotten into many arguments with my father (because he has lived nowhere else except Texas) about how the way he thinks towards other races is so completely wrong and have tried to convince him many times to get to know some black people here in WA.

Same for some friends I have in Texas who are of many different races (indian, african american, english). It's just very different here in WA. I just feel like every state has their different types of people. I'm so glad I live in WA now though. The people here are so much more accepting of ALL cultures (probably because of the fact that we have Microsoft here so many people from different cultures live in Seattle). I love it here and feel it's MUCH more friendly than some states in the South.

I left Texas for the near-exact same reasons and moved (initially) to Washington.

Needless to say, WA is 10x as tolerant a place as Texas. Even the really really bad parts (centralia, tri cities, etc) dont hold a candle to the status quo in TX. And that is not just racially, its religious, sexual orientation, income level, national origin...the whole gamut.

The people of all kinds are more accepting of different people, and a person can be themselves without dealing with a lot of crap. In central-southern Texas where I grew up, it seemed the standard was that smart people were looked down upon as being weak, and not worth respecting. People who accomplished anything in life were seen as sell outs. In general, it seemed people were ignorant fools for the sake of being ignorant fools. In the cases of whites, it seemed as if they all wanted to be the 'cool cowboy' or 'traditional southerner' type, loud, angry, belligerent, and racist and hateful as all hell. In the case of hispanics and blacks, it seemed that they, for whatever reason, thought the way they lived was how everyone lived. All whites 'are dangerous racist, f-g hating, anti-semetic, mexican and black hating rednecks' or 'trying to take advantage of them somehow' and people of color 'are poor because thats the way it is and thats the way it always will be...why try and change the world'? I could not stand the way people think down there.

I may have been born in TX, and though I lived in WA for a number of years, and am not sure if I will return to stay after finishing grad school, but in my mind I consider myself more of a 'Washingtonian' than a Texan by far.

[pirate_lafitte]

Originally Posted by tindo80

I left Texas for the near-exact same reasons and moved (initially) to Washington.

Needless to say, WA is 10x as tolerant a place as Texas. Even the really really bad parts (centralia, tri cities, etc) dont hold a candle to the status quo in TX. And that is not just racially, its religious, sexual orientation, income level, national origin...the whole gamut.

The people of all kinds are more accepting of different people, and a person can be themselves without dealing with a lot of crap. In central-southern Texas where I grew up, it seemed the standard was that smart people were looked down upon as being weak, and not worth respecting. People who accomplished anything in life were seen as sell outs. In general, it seemed people were ignorant fools for the sake of being ignorant fools. In the cases of whites, it seemed as if they all wanted to be the 'cool cowboy' or 'traditional southerner' type, loud, angry, belligerent, and racist and hateful as all hell. In the case of hispanics and blacks, it seemed that they, for whatever reason, thought the way they lived was how everyone lived. All whites 'are dangerous racist, f-g hating, anti-semetic, mexican and black hating rednecks' or 'trying to take advantage of them somehow' and people of color 'are poor because thats the way it is and thats the way it always will be...why try and change the world'? I could not stand the way people think down there.

I may have been born in TX, and though I lived in WA for a number of years, and am not sure if I will return to stay after finishing grad school, but in my mind I consider myself more of a 'Washingtonian' than a Texan by far.

I must have grown up differently. I never found that much hatred in Texas. Maybe it was location. I was living in the DFW metroplex. Everything you described, well, the closest I have see to that I have seen it in Georgia . I used to live in Washington myself. I can honestly say I would go back if I could.