Do the extreme southern areas of illinois have more of a southern feel/influence than midwestern???

[Avengerfire]

Originally Posted by WishToLiveInSeattle

These Southern Illinois people are backwards, ignorant and it is very, very racially divided around here to the point that an African American can not get a good job in this area...

...I am ashamed to even say that I grew up in this wretched area of the country.

Oh lord. And you want to move to Seattle?

According to the 2000 census Seattle is only 8.4% black.

"Seventy percent of Seattleites identified themselves as white in the 2000 Census."

Seattle Prior Censuses: 1900 - 2000 Population & Housing Trends, Population Trends: Race

The numbers keep dropping since then.

"As of the 2005-2007 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau, White Americans made up 70.5% of Seattle's population; of which 67.9% were non-Hispanic whites. Blacks or African Americans made up 7.8% of Seattle's population; of which 7.5% were non-Hispanic blacks."

Seattle - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[MTM90]

I have lived in Southern Illinois my entire life and still do. Yes some people are racist, as they are anywhere, but it comes from both sides, white to blacks and blacks to whites. Our area is definitely influenced by the South, but also from just about any other part of the country, especially due to the college. Saying that black people can't get a job because of their race is completely false, if they work hard they have the same opportunity as anyone, and in many towns you will see more black workers in many places than white. As for the view that everyone around here is ignorant and racist, well if those are the kind of people you choose to be around, you will find them. But for the most part, people down here are hard-working, faithful, friendly people. There's good and bad everywhere.

[Mylläri]

I currently live in the St. Louis area, I have spent plenty of time in Southern Illinois in the past and still visit on a fairly regular basis. While I do think the area could be classified as having a decent Southern influence I think it is still quite "Midwestern." Marion, IL is one of the fastest growing areas (economically) in the entire state. If the area only had a hockey rink I would move down there no questions asked. The scenary is beautiful, it is similiar to the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee only with less elevation. The Shawnee Nation Forest is remarkable!

[BigDogDave]

Extreme Southern Illinois is only about 125 miles from the Tennessee border, and almost 400 miles from Chicago. It shares many traits with Southern culture. It's also hilly like the south and not flat at all like the plains of the Midwest. Their food has a Southern twist to it also. There is more catfish consumed per person in Southern Illinois than anywhere else in the nation except for the State of Mississippi. And the people are friendlier than up North.

I've never seen any excessive racism in Southern Illinois, certainly not more than what I've seen in Chicago, Detroit, St. Louis, and other northern metro areas.

[Drover]

Originally Posted by BigDogDave

Extreme Southern Illinois is only about 125 miles from the Tennessee border...

No, it's way less than that. Cairo is only about 40 miles from Tennessee. Even Arkansas is less than 100 miles away.

[Irishtom29]

Illinois south of the Shelbyville Moraine was settled mainly by southerners who felt at home in the more wooded and broken southern part of Illinois but balked when they reached the Moraine and the Grand Prairie to the north of it. The Grand Prairie was mainly settled by New Englanders and New Yorkers after the opening of the Erie Canal.

The social and economic differences between the areas settled by southerners and New Englanders are still apparent.