is Nashville A Muslim friendly city? (Murfreesboro, Franklin: rent, high school, community college)

[Egyptian2009]

Hi

Would a Muslim family feel happy there specially if the wife is wearing a hair scarf ??

In Some portions of US , that is faced with stares , comments

how are things going in Nashville

[soulful]

I don't think you'd have a problem. good luck to you

[septimus]

have you watched the Daily Show with Jon Stewart?

There is a large Kurdish population here, but in general I find this area fairly anti-muslim from email forwards I've received from "friends" and the opposition to building mosques in Brentwood and Murfreesboro

[Kyle]

Originally Posted by septimus

There is a large Kurdish population here, but in general I find this area fairly anti-muslim from email forwards I've received from "friends" and the opposition to building mosques in Brentwood and Murfreesboro

This is correct on both counts. As far as the city goes, the Kurdish population is actually a few thousand from what I have heard, and Nashville was even one of the few cities in the US that allowed the Iraqi expatrites to vote in the inaugural Iraqi elections. - Nashville Kurds have high hopes for Iraq election | Nashville City Paper

The suburbs on the other hand....

[0'Farrell]

In the city of Nashville, you would be fine. In the suburbs you would probably get some stares. But I can't think of anywhere in the city that you would feel uncomfortably. The majority of Nashville's muslims live in South Nashville and Antioch. The Kurdish enclave is off Nolensville road.

[ariesjow]

I agree with the sentiments expressed by some of the other posters. I think you'll be just fine in Davidson County. We actually rent from a Kurdish friend of ours and there seems to be a decent amount of Muslims in West Nashville as well as aforementioned areas like South Nashville and Antioch. But I think things may get dicey outside of Davidson County where there is less religious diversity and people tend to be less welcoming to people of Islamic faith.

For the record, I personally found the anti-mosque madness in Murfreesboro & Brentwood to be disturbingly vile and I know many other Nashvillians who felt the exact same way. I can only hope that this metro continues to become more welcoming to people of different faiths as it continues to grow.

[BirdieBelle]

The Tea Party and 912 Project faction has grown tremendously in this area. I would not call it Muslim "friendly."

[ycats82]

As a current resident of Murfreesboro, I would advise against this city. I think Nashville would probably be more welcoming (Davidson is generally one of the few counties that comes up blue on election nights). The mosque protest here has been RIDICULOUS the past few years. I currently work on the square so I have been witness to the inane protests that the bigots have been putting on in this area for the past 2-3 years regarding the mosque, and even though it's not in the news so much anymore, it is STILL going on. I have a friend who came here for grad school 3 years ago and though she eventually decided to stay in the area instead of moving back to DC, I know the decision was difficult for her, and I know she has struggled with facing bigotry because of her religion and her skin tone (she was in the middle of a three car wreck several months ago and for no reason one of the officers began interrogating her as to her parents' nation of origin).

I can't speak to Brentwood but I can tell you that Williamson County (Brentwood and Franklin) is decidedly a red county.

[lizpluschris]

Short story: No. Nashville, as much as we like to believe it's an accepting, kind southern city, is stil miles away from being "friendly" to Muslims.

You might find both acceptance in some spaces and harrassment in others. In recent years there have been death threats and plots to bomb a mosque being built in Murfreesboro. There have also been some vandalism reports at the mosque build site there as well as the local mosque here in Nashville. We do have a large Kurdish population and I recall a small hijab-wearing population of girls at my high school, Hillsboro High. Nashville State Community College has a good number of Muslim students as well. I imagine the Muslim population continues to grow here. And I hope that in time that the atmosphere will change and we will become a more accepting city but right now I would definitely say no to your question. I can practically guarantee you will encounter stares and comments here.

[Edmund_Burke]

Nohing to worry about.