African-American Moving to Minnesota? (Mankato: home, public schools, college)

[Mikay2]

I'm moving to Minnesota in a few months for a fresh start. Thing is, I'm black. I've heard stories about older Minnesota people not liking black people but I suppose that I should go straight to the source. Will I have any issues?

[iNviNciBL3]

Many Africans and African-Americans live here and have no issues with discrimination, don't worry you wont have any issues.

[asitshouldbe]

I don't know what you've heard, but our state is very diverse, there is many African Americans in MN.

[HazyOwls]

Originally Posted by Mikay2

I'm moving to Minnesota in a few months for a fresh start. Thing is, I'm black. I've heard stories about older Minnesota people not liking black people but I suppose that I should go straight to the source. Will I have any issues?

No. You will not have any issues. Hope you have a safe move

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by Mikay2

I'm moving to Minnesota in a few months for a fresh start. Thing is, I'm black. I've heard stories about older Minnesota people not liking black people but I suppose that I should go straight to the source. Will I have any issues?

Speaking as a middle-aged white guy who grew up in the Twin Cities and now lives in Atlanta:

I suspect you'll have a lot fewer issues in the Twin Cities than you would down here in the Atlanta metro.

Most of the Minnesotans I know don't seem to have that much experience dealing with people from other races (my introduction to large numbers of people who weren't white didn't come until I went to Mankato State and ran into the 2,000 or so students from Taiwan who were there at the time)., and the main issues you might encounter will probably be due to unfamiliarity or curiosity rather than hostility.

We had a few black and asian kids in my high school when I went to school, and they were just kids in my class just like anyone else. The clique you were a part of was more important than what you looked like.

In a smaller town, you might be treated as an outsider, but I suspect most of that would be due to the fact that you're new and unknown rather than anything directly related to skin color.

Perhaps a little embarrassing, but the whole idea of "racism" was just an academic exercise to me until I lived in a small town for a few summers during college (a few folks had issues with Native Americans), and it really didn't hit home how serious it still was for blacks until I moved to Atlanta eight years ago.

I see a lot more tension down here than I ever saw up there, mainly (I think) because some people seem to want to go out of their way to stress differences (not as much to celebrate them as to use them as leverage). I didn't run into that in the suburbs up there. Maybe some of the urban areas are different.

[Anneee]

Minnesotans tend to be polite, regardless of what they're really thinking. So, if you run into any racism, you probably won't know about it. I guess that's the good news and the bad news.

And, for what it's worth, I think you're probably right in thinking that older Minnesotans tend to be more cautious toward diversity than younger Minnesotans, but I think that's less about racism and more about Minnesota having had so few minorities until recently. They simply didn't grow up with people who looked much different from themselves.

Check out the charts on this page...
Minnesota prepares for challenge as minorities become classroom majority | Parents United for Public Schools

[GBCommenter]

I'd be inclined to agree with the above. Assuming you are generally a civil, respectful, pleasant person I think you'll have no particular problems. If you encounter ill will, I'd be more inclined to believe that person is equal-opportunity crabby - little to do with you being black as opposed to they are just kind of crabby by nature.

Do note, I have heard some people who move here have a sense Minnesotans come off as reserved or standoffish and/or it's hard to form friendships. Your mileage may vary, but note if people seem standoffish it could be more the Midwestern/MN culture to not be immediately extroverted. Minnesota culture is to be not too flashy or non-practical. However, the flip side is once you make true friends (joke being when you are invited over for dinner, you have become a "true friend"), you tend to be long-term friends with those Minnesotans.

[Mikay2]

Originally Posted by GBCommenter

I'd be inclined to agree with the above. Assuming you are generally a civil, respectful, pleasant person I think you'll have no particular problems. If you encounter ill will, I'd be more inclined to believe that person is equal-opportunity crabby - little to do with you being black as opposed to they are just kind of crabby by nature.

Do note, I have heard some people who move here have a sense Minnesotans come off as reserved or standoffish and/or it's hard to form friendships. Your mileage may vary, but note if people seem standoffish it could be more the Midwestern/MN culture to not be immediately extroverted. Minnesota culture is to be not too flashy or non-practical. However, the flip side is once you make true friends (joke being when you are invited over for dinner, you have become a "true friend"), you tend to be long-term friends with those Minnesotans.

Pennsylvania is pretty much the same way so I'm used to that.

[daboywonder2002]

hey i see your from philly. i moved here from philly to minnesota dec 2010. so it will be almost 2 years. i havent experienced racism yet. but im not blind to think it doesn't exist. and yes minnesota is diverse. but when we think diverse, we think black and white. diversity in minnesota means every damn body. blacks, whites, somalians, asians, indians.

[Mikay2]

Originally Posted by daboywonder2002

hey i see your from philly. i moved here from philly to minnesota dec 2010. so it will be almost 2 years. i havent experienced racism yet. but im not blind to think it doesn't exist. and yes minnesota is diverse. but when we think diverse, we think black and white. diversity in minnesota means every damn body. blacks, whites, somalians, asians, indians.

Good to hear. By the way, how is the weather there compared to Philly? Obviously, it's cold in Philly but is it anymore cold in Minnesota? And did you find the people to be nicer, meaner or about the same?