Ann Arbor and Michigan in general (Detroit, Grand Rapids: school, university, live in)

[Buffalo38]

I live in East Ann Arbor and a woman of color, between school (EMU) and work in downtown Ann Arbor, exported from the East Coast, I don't get a real sense of diversity in the community or Michigan in general. Is it really that bad or am I looking in the wrong places? I hear the Grand Rapids area is very tolerant and diverse.

[randomguymike]

Originally Posted by Buffalo38

I live in East Ann Arbor and a woman of color, between school (EMU) and work in downtown Ann Arbor, exported from the East Coast, I don't get a real sense of diversity in the community or Michigan in general. Is it really that bad or am I looking in the wrong places? I hear the Grand Rapids area is very tolerant and diverse.

This does sound very odd. I'm on the north-east side of Ann Arbor right now and the first thing I noticed when I walked into CVS after I omved here was it was like a little model UN. You had Indians, Pakistanis, Asians (with Toyota), you had African Americans, and of course there was me (the white guy).

You must be hanging out in the wrong areas. Ann Arbor is one of two areas in the state with diversity (the other, as you mention is GR). Of course, GR shuts down at 5:00. So, A2 is the only place with diversity and nightlife.

What type of stuff are you looking for?

[Wabbit]

I agree that Ann Arbor is by far the most diverse city in Michigan.
Diverse in the sense that you can find practically every culture in
the world represented in connection with UofM.
The disconnect for Buffalo38 may be that EMU and Ypsilanti in general
are not.
You would certainly be welcome in GR. I find the attitude toward diversity here to be very uplifting.
In my opinion GR has totally shed its skin of the past and is on its way to becoming Michigan's most modern and progressive minded city.
I don't mean 'progressive' in the political sense (AA will always be that) but the sense that most people here, Reds, Blues and in-between seem to be on the same boat going in the same direction. -Forward.
As for Grand Rapids shutting down at five. That is only the businesses downtown. The bars and nightclubs are open until 2AM like most other places.
People who haven't been here for awhile are always floored at how many nightclubs G.R has downtown now. Thanks to Van Andel Arena and the colleges this ain't your daddy's furniture city.

[Buffalo38]

Originally Posted by randomguymike

This does sound very odd. I'm on the north-east side of Ann Arbor right now and the first thing I noticed when I walked into CVS after I omved here was it was like a little model UN. You had Indians, Pakistanis, Asians (with Toyota), you had African Americans, and of course there was me (the white guy).

You must be hanging out in the wrong areas. Ann Arbor is one of two areas in the state with diversity (the other, as you mention is GR). Of course, GR shuts down at 5:00. So, A2 is the only place with diversity and nightlife.

What type of stuff are you looking for?

It's one thing to see different types of ethnic groups it's quite another for them to be interacting with one another.
I'm trying to get a sense of the social/racial climate of Michigan in general. I know Ann Arbor is an anomaly, a recent trip to the U.P.,specifically Alpena County proved to show only one Chinese restaurant owned by Chinese Americans, that was it.

[Angel Bear]

Ann Arbor is very diverse But, school did just get out for University of Michigan, so not sure if that affects things. There is still summer classes, but it's much smaller

[randomguymike]

Originally Posted by Buffalo38

It's one thing to see different types of ethnic groups it's quite another for them to be interacting with one another.
I'm trying to get a sense of the social/racial climate of Michigan in general. I know Ann Arbor is an anomaly, a recent trip to the U.P.,specifically Alpena County proved to show only one Chinese restaurant owned by Chinese Americans, that was it.

Michigan as a whole isn't very integrated. You only need to look at the ethnic mix of Detroit 86+% homogenious and Birmingham 87% homogenious the opposite way to tell that. I think you'll find that anywhere in the midwest outside of Chicago, though. The further you get from Metro Detroit theless diverse places are likely to be, as well. I don't think Anybody is going to call Ishpeming or Alpena the great American Melting pot anytime soon.

As an earlier poster pointed out, staying in Ann Arbor itslef or Grand Rapids are the only places you'd likely find a solid mix of cultures interacting.

[Meg Lesher]

As an Ann Arbor native, I'm aware of its positives and negatives. While it is a city with much to offer in terms of night life and community activities, it is a place that can be hard to make connections in. I think that this is due to the concerns of so many here about their careers and their own lives. I don't feel much tension between races in the town; I'm sure there is some but it's not what you notice first. Diversity is trendy here. There is, and always has been in my experience, an element of superiority among many in the town and the university. This isn't attractive, and may lead to the assumption of inaccessibility to people trying to get their moorings here. But there are so many groups, so much to connect with, that it should be possible to achieve if an effort is made. The Observer, the monthly guide to doings around town, is a good resource for finding out about activities, music and more in Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti. You might start there. I think it's important to recognize that people in this town are so used to the fluid comings and goings of people that they might have to be given a nudge to make the effort to be friends. But it's possible to form fine ones here.

[Buffalo38]

Thanks Meg, I will check out the Observer

[michiganmoon]

Originally Posted by Buffalo38

It's one thing to see different types of ethnic groups it's quite another for them to be interacting with one another.
I'm trying to get a sense of the social/racial climate of Michigan in general. I know Ann Arbor is an anomaly, a recent trip to the U.P.,specifically Alpena County proved to show only one Chinese restaurant owned by Chinese Americans, that was it.

First of all, Alpena and Alpena County are in the Lower Peninsula not the Upper Peninsula as you say.

Second of all, there are THREE Chinese restaraunts in Alpena, not one like you claim. (#1 Hunan Chinese Restaurant on State Avenue, #2 Chee Peng Chinese Restaurant on Highway 23 North, and #3 Mandarin Gardens on Highway 23 South.)

Third of all, even if there were only one Chinese restaraunt, who cares, does it really matter? Does it really speak volumes about people's racial tolerance if they don't eat enough Chinese food?

If you went to rural China, far away from its big cities, would you be concerned of the social/racial climate of China if there was only one American restauarant in that little rural little Chinese Village? With time, Alpena and the rural north will become more diverse, besides of which, it is not like there are a lot of booming job opportunities for a variety of different people from the Detroit area use to city life to just pack their bags for the back woods.

[usroute10]

Buffalo38, the most diverse places you will find in Michigan are Pontiac and Hamtramck. These are two communities that are in the Metro Detroit Area, but they are not really suburbs as they are as old as Detroit and experienced the same decline and white flight as the City of Detroit.

Pontiac is 13% Puerto Rican, which is exceptional for a Midwestern Community not named Chicago. It also has white and black folks.

Hamtramck was traditionally a Polish town. It is still 30% Polish, but boasts alot of European and Middle Eastern immigrants, as well as regular whites and blacks.

Those Grand Rapids slappies saying only Ann Arbor and GR have diversity and nightlife is preposperous!!!

The city of Detroit is very predominantly Black, but there are sections with diversity, especially Southwest Detroit, which boasts a ton of Mexicans and Arabs, as well as black & white.

Also, an actual suburb that is very diverse is West Bloomfield township, which has a mix of upper middle class whites, jews, chaldeans (who are Catholic Middle Eastern People), and asians (pacific islander and east asian).