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West Virginia had a long history of segregation. Much of the state was "sundown towns," which forced the small black population to congregate in a few areas.
Not to mention that once unionization kicked off in the mines, a lot of mine owners brought in black labor forces as strikebreakers, with pretty obvious results.
There was also a poll a few years back, IIRC, which suggested West Virginia was the most concerned of any state in the country about illegal immigration. This is despite having less immigrants than any other state in the country.
That isn't to rag on WV in general. Some places are far worse in the modern era regarding tolerance. But the idea you can correlate an overwhelmingly white population with a high level of tolerance is pretty ridiculous. Areas have different local cultures, which can be more accepting, or hostile, to outsiders.
Living alongside isn't the same as truly embracing minorities.
The white lifelong Southerners surely live alongside black Americans, but they do so with the full awareness that they are descendants of people their ancestors had brought as slaves. Sure, Midwestern cities with a high black population are more segregated than southern cities. But that's only because there are more African Americans in the South. Also cities like Detroit and St Louis are dangerous because of rust belt economic woes and the blame was heaped on blacks, thus explaining the segregation. You'd find the same phenomenon in Buffalo even though it's a Northeastern city.
Racism also comes in many different forms, and directed at different groups.
There's racism against African Americans, and then there's racism/xenophobia towards foreign cultures and newer immigrant groups (Asian Americans). Midwesterners are very accepting and genuine towards foreign cultures and newer immigrant groups.
Iowa has one of the highest rate of inbound immigration of first generation Asian Americans.
Anglo Americans in the Midwest are among the most prolific in cultural exchange programs and foreign immersions, whether it's language immersion courses to East Asia or sendihng of missionaries to the Middle East and Far East, probably the most prolific and embracing behind liberal NY/NJ Jewish Americans.
Racism will never be eliminated. Your right white southerners do not "embrace" minorities. They do however get along with them and treat them with respect. I think that is the best you can hope for in a world where conflict based on race, religion and culture is the norm. Whites, blacks, Hispanics and other ethnicities all usually prefer to live together, hang out together etc. Its not racism, its human nature. I think its actually surprising how much social interaction between whites and blacks does happen in America today, in spite of the distrust that naturally occurs between people of two different races. It takes a lot of work and effort to overcome that natural aversion to trusting people who are of another race. America in general has done a better job than most of the world in dealing with racial differences. We don't have endless war and racial violence here, and for that we can all be thankful. Look at other parts of the world where races, regligons and cultures mix and you usually find war. The middle east, Africa are prime examples. Europeans slaughtered each other by the millions over it just 70 years ago. Both white, black, and Hispanic American put on a uniform and fought together to put a stop to Hitlers madness. I think we have done something right to avoid that kind of war and violence here in America. I do disagree with your interpretation of the Midwest as being this place of higher tolerance than the south or other parts of America however. I spent decades of my life living up there and my experience is that it is segregated and has a lot of lingering bad feelings when it comes to race relations. Wisconsin has a minority called the Hmong, an Asian group that no one there seems to like. There is a case where one of them killed some hunters in the woods triggering a large backlash against that minority group. Michigan is often cited as having the largest Arab community in North America, well I can say from living up there that most people in Michigan truly despise that being in their state. Both the black and white residents of the state seem to hate having the muslim presence there. Now a lot of this has to do with the war and September 11 to be sure, but its not a sign that people there welcome all foreign culture. Now if you are talking about foreigners from more advanced parts of the world like Europe or the Pacific rim nations then yes, the people of the Midwest are welcoming and curious about them. If your talking about a troubled minority group that is perceived to be violent, criminal or impoverished the people in that part of America are not so tolerant. I am not faulting them for that, it is human nature to want to protect yourself from dangerous things. No one wants to live next to crime, or violence. In fact nowhere will you find so much tolerance that a ethinc community that seems to embrace a culture of violence or crime will be accepted. At best people don't talk about places and ethnic groups like that, simply to avoid being labeled racist by liberal activist groups. Their silence does not mean acceptance however, and no ethic group can expect to be well received if they are in general living unproductive or even destructive lives here in America. That being said I do think most people in all parts of this country, both black white and Hispanic do not walk around with racial chips on their shoulders. Most people want to get along with others.
The least racist part of America is the southern states. Black and white people have lived together here in the south for hundreds of years. We live near each other, we work together and see each other daily. This is not 1950, for the most part we all get along. Race issues have been dealt with here more thourougly then they have in other parts of America. I say this as some one who lived in the upper Midwest and then moved to the south. The races just get along better here, less troubled areas. I know what people from up north will say, What about Jim Crow?? what about segregation, separate but equal etc. That was 60 years ago, the south is not like that anymore. The Midwest is far more like that then the south is. The cities up there are highly segregated, racial problems abound. Ironically a lot of the liberal college students who traveled south in the 50s and 60s to reform the south came from Midwest places, but in the end they failed to change their own home states. They are just as racially divided as they were 40 or 50 years ago.
LOL get out, I have stayed in the south for years, it is the still the same south. The only place you see White and Black people interacting a lot are the trailer parks and more lower income areas. In the well off areas there is this invisible line between White and Black people. Not to mention foreigners, anyone that looks Latino or Asian in some of the southern states will be made to feel "Unamerican". The south might not be as racist as the Northeast but it is still pretty bad with the racism. Not to mention that interracial dating is off limits there in any of the well off areas, I never saw White women in suburbs going interracial there while I saw it a lot in the upper midwest.
I know I will get a lot of heat for this but the reason I said the Upper Midwest and Northwest were the least racist is because White women in those states from well off areas dated interracial AND there was no issue over it. In Seattle I saw so many Asian men with White women while living in Atlanta I never saw such a couple, these couples were young and college aged too.
The reason I say this is because there has been a lot of hatred in America towards interracial relationships involving decent looking White women with men who are minorities. I never saw such interracial relationships down south, it was only in the lower classes where I saw them in high numbers. Then I come to Seattle and see a cute blonde kissing her Asian boyfriend, where else in the USA can you even think about such a thing? I can promise you it will never exist in the Dixie and if it does then it will be shut down quickly.
Same with the Upper Midwest, I saw a surprisingly high number of White women with men who were Black, Asian, Arab, and Latino. These women were from decent families and the men were great too.
That is groundbreaking type of stuff. Move a couple that involves an Asian man with a White woman down to Louisiana and see how big of a deal it becomes.
The fact that in these areas I saw the White American population reaching out and trying to associate with different races to that extent (lots of White men in interracial relationships too but that is common everywhere) and no one making a scene out of it was what closed the deal.
Lets be real here.
Anyone of any color can get a job if they have the qualifications.
Anyone can make SOME friends of any color if they are a decent person.
Anyone of any color can live in peace if they bother no one.
There is also a massive hatred between those states and their minority dominated cities. Detroit vs Michigan is a very intense conflict, lots of resentment.
Speaking as someone who actually lives in Michigan, I disagree emphatically with these statements. Fortunately, even most of us who live well outside of Detroit are wise enough to see that as Detroit goes, so goes Michigan, even if we don't like the current state of affairs in that city. Actually, too, there is more optimism and excitement about the future regarding Detroit than there has been in many, many years and it is infectious.
The bankruptcy filing has forced Detroit to address its myriad debts, something that was absolutely necessary for the city to ever move forward.
The good people of Detroit, 81% of which are African-American, just elected a new, white mayor, in spite of him running against a popular African-American member of the community. This is not meant to imply that a white mayor is better, but it means that at last the people are willing to vote for someone based on what they feel his qualifications to run the city are, regardless of whether or not his skin color matches theirs, which is a HUGE step for Detroit. I don't think that people outside of Michigan, especially SE Michigan, can appreciate how huge this is.
People are flocking to the Midtown, Corktown, and Downtown neighborhoods once again and there are waiting lists for many of the condos and lofts in those areas.
The Ilitch family is planning to build a new arena for the Red Wings Downtown in the near future.
Several large corporations have moved their headquarters back into the city in the past few years. Quicken Loans, Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Michigan, to name just a few.
The new and much needed bridge to Canada will soon be a reality and will revitalize the neighborhood where it will be located.
Violent crime was actually down in 2013, reversing a years long trend.
The domestic automotive industry is back, big time. I didn't necessarily agree with the government bailout of Chrysler and GM, but it is what it is and both companies are going stronger than ever now, along with the Ford Motor Company.
So you see, most of us Michiganders gladly support Detroit's emerging turnaround and are rooting for this once great city, and not filled with hatred or resentment for it at all. To hate Detroit is to hate the American way. As one local television reporter once stated far better than I ever could, "Detroit created America's middle class and put it on wheels." Detroit was once one of the most powerful cities in the U.S. and still has the resources to be so again. What's not to be proud of?
Last edited by canudigit; 01-13-2014 at 03:38 PM..
Speaking as someone who actually lives in Michigan, I disagree emphatically with these statements. Fortunately, even most of us who live well outside of Detroit are wise enough to see that as Detroit goes, so goes Michigan, even if we don't like the current state of affairs in that city. Actually, too, there is more optimism and excitement about the future regarding Detroit than there has been in many, many years and it is infectious.
The bankruptcy filing has forced Detroit to address its myriad debts, something that was absolutely necessary for the city to ever move forward.
The good people of Detroit, 82% of which are African-American, just elected a new, white mayor, in spite of him running against a popular African-American member of the community. This is not meant to imply that a white mayor is better, but it means that at last the people are willing to vote for someone based on what they feel his qualifications to run the city are, regardless of whether or not his skin color matches theirs, which is a HUGE step for Detroit. I don't think that people outside of Michigan, especially SE Michigan, can appreciate how huge this is.
Several large corporations have moved their headquarters back into the city in the past few years.
The new and much needed bridge to Canada will soon be a reality.
Violent crime is actually down for 2013, reversing a years long trend.
The domestic automotive industry is back, big time. I didn't necessarily agree with the government bailout of Chrysler and GM, but it is what it is and both companies are going stronger than ever now.
So you see, most of us Michiganders gladly support Detroit's emerging turnaround and are rooting for this once great city, and not filled with hatred or resentment for it at all. To hate Detroit is to hate the American way. As one local television reporter once stated far better than I ever could, "Detroit created America's middle class and put it on wheels." Detroit was once one of the most powerful cities in the U.S. and still has the resources to be so again. What's not to be proud of?
I would love to see places like Detroit rebound, however reality suggest this may be very very tough to do. Much of the city is abandoned, buildings ruined, and those who have money and jobs moved away to the suburbs or to other states. It is now the prime example of urban decay in America. The years I spent living in Michigan taught me that people in that state don't like Detroit and avoid it like the plague. This is for good reason, that city is dangerous, depressing, costly in tax dollars and its problems have hurt that entire states reputation. That does not mean that I believe people want it to fail, but that they are angry about its condition and the burden it has become to their state. Race is an issue because as you say it is a black majority city. People do forget however that most of the black middle class left too, for the same reason white middle class people left. Its not as racial as it appears IMO, but appearances are everything. Now I will say I never lived near Detroit or its suburbs, the parts of Mi I spent time in are very different from the southeast part of the state (Detroit area) People outside of southeast mi are quite negative and resentful about Detroit. The last 50 years has given no one any reason to think anything positive about that area. Now people who live closer to Detroit may have a different attitude, maybe in part because they have to. It would be tough to live in a metro area if you thought its core city was doomed. In order for it to recover several things need to happen. Real jobs need to move in there, working people of all ethnic background need to return, and the ruined buildings need to be torn down. The racial tension needs to be defused, and I agree with you that the election of a white mayor seems to suggest a change. I was shocked when I heard about that to be honest. I want to see it fixed, it was once an important city, heck it played a huge part in winning WW2. How sad it is to see an American city in what amounts to third world conditions. It needs to be fixed, I just don't know how.
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