Brown, Interracial Couple Moving to Vernal (Provo: high school, university, living in)

[Moonlight melvin]

the sly and phoney example were from personal experiences. People will be friendly but then have something negative to say about certain people at another time. Then I went on about how people are stereo typed.

The news reporter said 2 black men in their late 20's. I´m going off of what they said about the area, I wasnt watching KSL... But that's not entirely crutial here....point is, people need to stop assuming someone is a certain way solely because of their skin color. (here and everywhere). But here IN MY EXPERIENCE (just to clarify)...dont say you have no problems with black people or hispanic people, then go off laughing your head off at a racist joke.

[Moonlight melvin]

The suspect shot the 2 victims.....because they gave him bad directions. Way to go news reporters way to throw out assumptions before knowing the deal.

[mandy80]

I live in roosevelt I didn't want to move either but the people up here are EXTREMELY nice we are LDS but def not the shining example of mormonism I haven't seen or heard any kind of problems with race or religion some of our friends drink/smoke some are lds some are not we are actually renting a room to someone from ohio because he couldn't find anywhere to live and he smokes he's not LDS and he's a wonderful person. PEOPLE ARE INDIVIDUALS race/religion does not make them who they are. I've been treated dif because I'm LDS and the narrow minded shouldn't ridicule the narrow minded. There isn't much to do here but you don't have to join THE CHURCH to make friends and be a part of a community.

[tol_mommy]

Hey guys, I am a black (non-mormon) female married to a white (mormon) male from Utah. Isn't that funny. We live in NC now but will be moving to Utah soon. I understand your concerns. I have read that black people make up 1% of the population. I have visited twice, I think I saw maybe 2 black people. Racism is everywhere you go. Dont let ignorance stop you from living. When people encounter something new they don't always do it with open arms. So my advice is to be who you are and if you get into an uneasy situation dont be defensive, use this opportunity to educate. I am sure I'll be answering alot of questions and getting a lot stares. So look your best and give them something pretty to look at.

[kaytidid]

Originally Posted by tol_mommy

Hey guys, I am a black (non-mormon) female married to a white (mormon) male from Utah. Isn't that funny. We live in NC now but will be moving to Utah soon. I understand your concerns. I have read that black people make up 1% of the population. I have visited twice, I think I saw maybe 2 black people. Racism is everywhere you go. Dont let ignorance stop you from living. When people encounter something new they don't always do it with open arms. So my advice is to be who you are and if you get into an uneasy situation dont be defensive, use this opportunity to educate. I am sure I'll be answering alot of questions and getting a lot stares. So look your best and give them something pretty to look at.

I don't know that you will necessarily get a lot of stares. Of course, I hail from back east, so maybe I am just not noticing if others are giving stares. It is all the same to me. I know that at my daughter's school there are several children that are a mixed race and they are treated just as every one else is.

Either way, I think Utah is a great place to live and hope you and your family will be very happy here!

[stycotl]

Originally Posted by tol_mommy

Hey guys, I am a black (non-mormon) female married to a white (mormon) male from Utah. Isn't that funny. We live in NC now but will be moving to Utah soon. I understand your concerns. I have read that black people make up 1% of the population. I have visited twice, I think I saw maybe 2 black people. Racism is everywhere you go. Dont let ignorance stop you from living. When people encounter something new they don't always do it with open arms. So my advice is to be who you are and if you get into an uneasy situation dont be defensive, use this opportunity to educate. I am sure I'll be answering alot of questions and getting a lot stares. So look your best and give them something pretty to look at.

good post.

racism is everywhere, utah included. there are plenty of black people around the universities in utah; look around the u of u, byu, uvu, etc. i don't know much about utah state, ceu, suu, etc, but the others have decent populations.

as for the weird stares, i'm not sure that there is an answer. my two-year old daughter grew up mostly in north carolina and florida; her best friend in black. but the other day when i took her to hollywood video, a black man stepped in line behind me and she got that slack-jawed stare that says 'i've never seen a black person before'. he laughed. i just rolled my eyes and chalked it up to maybe 'i've never seen a guy that tall before'.

who knows. either way, it happens. those on the giving end, try not to be oblivious idiots. those on the recieving end, try to understand that some people are oblivious idiots, and that some others might not be staring because you are a different color (maybe she really was awed by his height; he was a good 7 or 8 inches taller than me).

good luck all. aaron out.

[michael11747]

been in and around the area MANY times, on business and recreation. my wife's entire family is LDS, very strict, no caffeine, etc.

from what i gather from vernal is that it is a good ole boy's club, like many areas of the west. if you have a job offer already, you will be fine. if, on the other hand, you were moving there without one in hand, i would say you would be hard pressed to find a job. i have seen minorities in vernal, not many but they seemed happy. i was just observing them, so i could be wrong, but to be honest, unless you accept jesus christ as your lord and savior, you will have to look hard for friends.

but it is a lovely area! the high uinta's are beautiful, make sure to check out the giant cave on little dry creek, and walk around the BLM land near the skinwalker ranch for a truly spooky experience. i get goose bumps thinking about it. there's the flaming gorge, the wasatch front, park city, dinosaur national park, etc. if you like the outdoors you will like it.

you can, on the other hand always go to park city or salt lake for night life and concerts, clubs, etc. you better get used to drinking beer with 3-4% alcohol. i would suggest just quitting drinking since this beer will get you fat before it gets you drunk.

[dackerie]

i moved to vernal recently.. have a lot of experience living in different parts of the country ..rural and inner city.

it has been a great experience. the people are really friendly and helpful whether they are LDS or not, whether you are LDS or not.

the schools are great. there does not seem to be an issue of racism there. the students normally reflect the attitudes of their parents and i have to-date heard nothing racist in the classroom.

as far as drugs. i do not see a big problem with drugs. i know drugs are everywhere but it does not seem to be a big problem in Vernal schools yet. however, i am comparing this aspect to other bigger city schools.

minorities do not make up a significant part of the population but that is changing. seems everybody gets treated the same here. this is based on how my friends who are hispanic are treated when out. i think this community is influenced by the prevalence of LDS and the christian influence can be seen in the way people are treated.

it is hard for a single person to find activities to do. esp in the winter time. there is a lack of night life, even for a western town.

i think this would be a great place to raise a family.

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[DizzMcMinyard]

Well, I just moved to Park City area in a town called Kamas. I am from the suburbs of Chicago (Elgin area) and I gotta put my two cents in as an outsider. First of all, I am a white dude-24. I work in park city which is extremely diverse due to all the foreigners who come here to work and ski. Now Vernal is quite a distance from where i'm at. So I can't really speak for Vernal, but race doesn't seem to be an issue over here. I have noticed at least in Park City, that the mexican immigrants here can't speak as much english as they did in Illinois. They are however some of my favorite people out here, as the whites in Park City tend to be snobs to the max! The people who live in the boondocks however are much nicer and easy-going, you should be fine! You will probably have to be doing outdoor type activities for fun, as everyone out here seems to prefer 4-wheeling and such to dinner and a movie type stuff. I don't know for sure, but the only racism out here is more anti-immigrant sentiment, which I'm sure your husband is already used to!

[KHavity]

I am a white male and I grew up in Utah about 10 miles S of Provo. I left the state in 1994. I graduated High school in 84 and my senior yr I dated the only black in the school. I didn't even think of her as black or white. it seemed irrelevant. She was a jr and was elected to be the Student Body President for the next year. Since I have left UT I have lived in Indiana, and AZ, In both states I have seen a lot of racism. especially in IN. It really upset me when people I knew at the University I was attending would make racist comments when no one else was around. I think people thought because I was from UT I must be racist (you know the rumors outside of UT). What a Crock. Needless to say I would always look for other company. I all the years I lived in UT I never had anyone say or show me racist attitude. I am sure it exist there, but I was only in IN for 4 years, and it happened regularly. I have also seen it in AZ where I am now. It really was never spoke of in the home I grew up in because it was really a non issue. we were just taught that everyone is a child of God, and should be treated that way. There were no except such and such, and no behind the back conversations. I am a Mormon, and we do receive our share of discrimination, but who cares that is the problem of those who give it. They don't deserve our time, and those who would be racist to you don't deserve yours. Just move on to those who understand that thinking your better than others for whatever reason is just plain foolishness, and we should avoid them until they grow up.