Is Indianapolis Midwestern culturally? (Marion, Highland: fit in, tax, to live in)

[grmasterb]

Originally Posted by Kamms

1970s Cleveland was the U.S. version of Belfast.

And we should all want to experience that.

[grmasterb]

Originally Posted by Emigrations

As someone from TN , there is little to no Southern culture in Indianapolis.

People do not have anything close to a Southern accent. You'll find more people here from KY and other parts of the upper South than you probably would in Minneapolis, but that's just because of the proximity. The locals have a fairly neutral accent.

You can find sweet tea...here and there. I've very rarely seen places serving traditionally Southern foods like cornbread, chicken biscuits (other than Chick-Fil-A), chitlins, crawdads, alligator, fried catfish, etc, that weren't national chains here.

Racing is big here, but that's really due to the 500. NASCAR has a more Southern orientation. College football is nowhere near the religion here as it is down South - not even Notre Dame, IMO.

People are not as chatty and outright friendly here as they are down South. It's not uncommon for people to talk even in grocery store lines in TN, VA, and SC. People here would probably look at you like you had a hole in your head if you started making small talk in a line.

That's not saying Indy is bad or wrong at all, but it is not Southern.

^^This. I spent 8 formative years in Arkansas. People who claim Indy has a southern feel haven't truly experienced life in the south.

[Kamms]

Originally Posted by W & C

Both of the movies are rated above 7.0 on IMDB so I'll have to put them on my list, they sound interesting.

It sounds like you're hinting that Cleveland is a lot less bland than Indy i.e. a colorful Irish enclave.. probably has more ethnic neighborhoods in general, Little Italy, Chinatown, I'm guessing ?

Has your own personal experience been that living in Cleveland feels a lot more like a big city than Indy, then?

Cleveland is very ethnic, manufacturing/industrial history, home of John D Rockefeller. A Top St Paddy's Parade, the real deal, not the faux stuff. Cleveland has a gritty big city feel to it; Indy, not so much, if at all.

[Kamms]

Originally Posted by grmasterb

And we should all want to experience that.

Interesting place to grow up, trust me, complete with a Mafia War they eventually made a movie about. Danny ''The Irishman'' Green, Shondor Birns, what characters. Yes, you should all want to experience life in a tough town like Cleveland.

Indy has ''Hoosiers'' and ''One Day at a Time; Cleveland has ''The Drew Carey Show'' and ''American Splendor'' and now ''HOT in Cleveland'' to name a few; all complete polar opposites of each other. So the answer is, no, Indy is not like Cleveland, for better or worse, it depends what you like.

[W & C]

I'll definitely check out that Irishman movie soon here, watching the preview, looks really good, plus it's got Christopher Walken

[Arthur_Indy]

Originally Posted by SciFiNerd1

Thank you for sharing your perspective about Indianapolis! Based on the comments, most view Indy as Midwestern.

I had my own reasons for asking. Here are my reasons:

1. Indiana seems to be conservative politically compared to the rest of the Midwest outside the Great Plains.

2. Like Missouri, Indiana has its own share of population that identify their religion as Baptist, especially evangelicals. I believe most of the Midwest is Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, and non-religious.

3. Even in Indiana, people are friendly in what you call "Hooiser Hospitality." It's similiar to southern hospitality compared to Minnesota Nice/reserved nature of most Midwesterners, IMO.

4. Indy 500 makes me think of NASCAR. Isn't NASCAR a southern orientation extremely popular with rednecks and country folks? No offense.

First off, hands down, Indianapolis is midwestern.

1. You are correct, INDIANA is politically conservative. Indianapolis, thankfully, is more nuanced and progressive than the greater state. Though, Indianapolis's suburbs can be MORE conservative than small town Indiana. Having lived here my whole life, (all over the state) and knowing there are a million ways to dissect the politics and beliefs of "hoosiers", all I can really say is life in Indiana and Indianapolis are as interesting and/or as dull as you want them to be.

2. This is an interesting one.... My personal Indiana AND Indianapolis experience is that I only know Methodists, Catholics, Lutherans, and non-religions persons of all varieties. Then there's the Quakers. Baptist? ....not so much.

3. Hoosier Hospitality is marketing. Yes, we love to project this image to the world, but I find that most everywhere I've ever traveled, there are people who are nice and conversational. I know very nice people in Wisconsin, Iowa, and New Jersey... are they southern? do they poses hoosier hospitality? It's all relative and I think there are flavors of hospitality no matter where you are.

4. I suppose generalizing all of auto racing as NASCAR is understandable, though the F1 crowd will take exception to that. But seriously. of the 3 races held at the track, the NASCAR race is the poorest attendance and the rudest people. Take that for what it's worth. As for the Indy 500, Indianapolis is the only place in the country where you can NOT watch it live, so unless you're physically at the track or listening on the radio, you barely know its happening.

[grmasterb]

Originally Posted by Kamms

Interesting place to grow up, trust me, complete with a Mafia War they eventually made a movie about. Danny ''The Irishman'' Green, Shondor Birns, what characters. Yes, you should all want to experience life in a tough town like Cleveland.

Indy has ''Hoosiers'' and ''One Day at a Time; Cleveland has ''The Drew Carey Show'' and ''American Splendor'' and now ''HOT in Cleveland'' to name a few; all complete polar opposites of each other. So the answer is, no, Indy is not like Cleveland, for better or worse, it depends what you like.

I actually spent a couple years of my youth in the Cleveland area (in the late 70s). Definitely more ethnic, and a larger area. Don't know that it makes it more "gritty." I think too many Clevelanders on CD want to see Cleveland as an east coast city. The midwest isn't monolithic.

[Ivory Lee Spurlock]

Indianapolis feels much more like Louisville, Charlotte, and Nashville than it feels like Cleveland, St Louis or Minneapolis. Actually I think Indianapolis feels more like Dallas and Houston than it feels like Chicago or Detroit.

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by John7777

Midwestern? Indianapolis is part Hillbilly, part Redneck, part Right Wing Christian Nutcase/KKK, and part Neanderthal, with a fairly large African American population. The net result is not good.

This post is very stereotypical. I don't think Indy is that bad. Does anyone else agree or disagree?

[SciFiNerd1]

Originally Posted by Ivory Lee Spurlock

Indianapolis feels much more like Louisville, Charlotte, and Nashville than it feels like Cleveland, St Louis or Minneapolis. Actually I think Indianapolis feels more like Dallas and Houston than it feels like Chicago or Detroit.

I believe Louisville is slightly more southern. Louisville has more in common with St. Louis when it comes to geography and climate while Indianapolis has more in common with Columbus (OH).

Minneapolis is in its own league with Madison and Milwaukee, WI.

Cleveland is more East Coast.

Dallas, Houston, and Charlotte are definitely southern.