Is it true that Texans do not like to be referred to as Southerners? (Houston: horse, title)

[Pink90]

Never heard of that. I live in a rural town, and people have always repped both Texas and the South, and much of Texas is Southern.

[TexasReb]

Originally Posted by Nairobi

I'm a proud Texan AND a proud Southerner. No one else can speak for me.

Same here Nairobi! Well said and no contradictions in the two statements at all!

[hound 109]

Originally Posted by Nairobi:
I'm a proud Texan AND a proud Southerner. No one else can speak for me.

Originally Posted by TexasReb

Same here Nairobi! Well said and no contradictions in the two statements at all!

I like visiting the "South" & enjoy southern cooking & pork BBQ. I admire the Southern attitude & sense of place.

I also love visiting New Mexico & I love Carne Adovada. I really enjoy the almost zen like NM vibe & it's sense of place.

But I'm not New Mexican and I'm not Southern. I'm Texan. When I get back to Texas (after visiting Atlanta or Taos) I feel like I'm home.

[TexasHorseLady]

Originally Posted by hound 109

I like visiting the "South" & enjoy southern cooking & pork BBQ. I admire the Southern attitude & sense of place.

I also love visiting New Mexico & I love Carne Adovada. I really enjoy the almost zen like NM vibe & it's sense of place.

But I'm not New Mexican and I'm not Southern. I'm Texan. When I get back to Texas (after visiting Atlanta or Taos) I feel like I'm home.

Well said!

[Gunion Powder]

Originally Posted by TexasHorseLady

Well said!

Why was his statement well said but not TexasReb's? There are parts of East Texas that are far more similar to the states east of the region than they are to most of Texas itself. There is no denying this so I don't understand why there would be an issue with any part of the state been labeled as southern. Marshall is more like Atlanta than Austin.

[KathrynAragon]

I'm grateful that I'm southern, and I'm grateful that I'm a Texan.

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by Nairobi

As I alluded to in my previous post, one of my issues with that mantra is that it suggests that no other southern state is unique within itself.

My other issue is that it also suggests that we are one monolithic entity, which simply isn't the case. There's no one thing you can say about Texas or Texans that applies to every corner of this state or everyone. Parts of the state are Deep South, part of it is Southern Plains, part of it has Cajun influence, and other parts feel like Mexico. For example, being raised in Southeast Texas, I grew up eating things like boudain, crawfish, dirty rice, and on the menu of more traditional (yet unpopular) southern foods were things like chitlins, ox tails, and pigs feet. These are dishes that I can safely assume most Texans have no experience with, yet they are a significant part of my Texas experience.

My point is that saying "Texas is Texas" is almost an arrogant way of denying regional identity, and it even dismisses many of our varying customs, because, all we all know, when the world sees Texas, they don't picture anything more than cowboys and cattle. That simply isn't accurate, though.

Maybe if you said it, it would come from arrogance, but when I say it, it doesn't.

When I say "Texas is Texas," I simply mean that it's hard to categorize it as any one monolithic entity - you can't say "Texas is a southern state," or "Texas is a western state," or "Texas is diverse," or "Texas is not diverse," or "Texas is conservative," or "Texas is Tex Mex," because while all of these may be true, they are just PART of the truth, and to me that truth is that Texas is, well, Texas.

We've got a lot going on, because we are Texas. We're a huge state, with five of the fastest growing metro areas in the US (out of the top ten).

By the way, LOTS of Texans are familiar with the foods and cultural things you brought up (me, for one, but also many, many east Texans - and we're the most populous region of the state).

Of course each state is unique. I don't think anyone would claim that Louisiana, or Georgia, or Pennsylvania, or New York, or (fill in the blank) are not really unique places (not sure I can apply that mantra to Indiana, but I digress). And when I lived in Georgia, and Louisiana, and Virginia, and Tennessee, and California, (etc etc - I've lived in a lot of states), I enjoyed my time there and appreciated what those states have to offer. And I am ESPECIALLY a fan of Louisiana, Georgia, and Virginia. Wow, those are interesting and intriguing states, with fascinating histories.

But there is a reason that Texas is particularly unique, and that's mainly because of it's size and placement within the US - at least that's my opinion. And our huge border with Mexico, our history as a sovereign nation, our shared history with both the south and the American west (two distinctly different experiences) - among a myriad of other elements - these all create a unique flavor to our state.

And I don't apologize for it or intend to minimize it. Yes, I am proud to be a Texan. I am extremely grateful I wound up here (to my surprise) twenty five years ago, and I plan to live and die here - gratefully and with plenty of enjoyment. I don't mean this in an arrogant way - I mean it in a grateful way - but if some people want to insist that my gratitude is arrogance, well, sometimes what we see in a situation comes from our own perspective and character.

[GhostInTheMatrix]

Originally Posted by KathrynAragon

Maybe if you said it, it would come from arrogance, but when I say it, it doesn't...

All of this response to a post that is 3 years old?

[KathrynAragon]

Originally Posted by GhostInTheMatrix

All of this response to a post that is 3 years old?

Sure, why not?

Truth is eternal.

Do you have anything relevant to add to the discussion?

[TexasHorseLady]

Originally Posted by GhostInTheMatrix

All of this response to a post that is 3 years old?

Here's what City-Data thinks about that - it's prominently displayed on every old thread that hasn't been closed. Don't know why some folks get upset enough about threads being revived (as City-Data encourages) to comment on it.