Best Places to Live

[AspenRose]

Sort of a spinoff of the "Where do you live" thread...except you don't have to have lived in the area you suggest; what you've heard from others would also be helpful. I can't find Interrace or Maven online anymore (they used to cover this topic yearly) so perhaps others will find a list useful.

I am curious about places in the south. I saw an interracial couple on TV from Nashville, which surprised me. I'm also curious about the Triangle area (NC) and DC suburbs.

[TroubleMan]

1. I met my wife in the DC area (northern VA)....lot of mixed couples

Maryland, Northern VA, and DC have a ton of mixed couples. It's very normal.

In fact, the time I was up there (1992-1995, 1995-2000) it was almost like the thing to do.

As a white guy (in the Marine Corps), I dated at least 5 or 6 times more african-american women than I did white women. I also dated a lot more hispanic women than white women, at least double.

I don't have a racial preference for women at all. I don't consider it at all. I would approach just as many white women as I would women of color. It's just the atmosphere up there, combined I guess with my music interests (hip hop, soul, merengue, reggae, jazz, and salsa). I also hung out in a lot of hip hop, reggae, and salsa clubs there, so that might have something to do with it. A large majority of white women paid no interest in me at all, but many women of color actually approached me first, and when I approached them I was much more successful. I had like a 5-15% success rate trying to ask out white women, and like for black women it was way over half...almost 75%. However, this wasn't just at the clubs. This applied anywhere: the stores, the malls, the point (a pick-up place in DC), ect.

I wasn't the only one experiencing this. There are a lot of mixed couples and kids there. My friends in the Marines with me also had high percentage of interracial dating. I had a lot of civilian friends up there, and the same thing applied to them.

Mixed couples there get no strange stares at all. It's really nice to see all the races mixing up there: black, white, hispanic, and asian. You'll see every combination. A lot of people there don't care about what your color is at all, and it's refreshing. Of course, there's a section of die-hard racists out there, and you can tell who they are. But they're so in the minority (bad pun not intended), they just keep their mouths shut most of the time.

(on edit) I should add that this high percentage of dating women of color really only applied to that area. In Florida and California it was about 50/50, and it Okinawa (for one year) I only dated Japanese women (and two Filipino women), because that was all that was there. All the military women had about a million guys hitting on them and were always taken, so I didn't even try. Not just because it was useless, but it so many guys would hit on them, I felt bad for them. It was like they were under constant pressure. I didn't want to make it worse for them. Some liked the attention, and some hated it.

[AspenRose]

14. You are so right!!!

I am visiting northern VA right now and it IS quite refreshing!!!! Santa Fe isn't even this diverse.

I've seen so many mixed kids who look like they could be a brother or sister to my kid it's not funny! I love it!!!

Maybe we should consider moving here.....

[NEOBuckeye]

2. Cleveland seems to be more and more open to interracial dating

I would say the door has widened dramatically, particularly within the past 10 years. There has been a major shift in perception about interracial dating, even in many suburban, mostly white areas here, though it still seems to be most common in mixed urban communities and among the younger generations (under 35).

I think a lot of children and young people coming up now really don't have the same prejudices as their parents and grandparents did.

[bliss_eternal]

4. (very late response) I'm glad to hear this...

...I know that the Ohio area has had some major problems with racial discrimination and such. I hope that things continue to grow for the better there.

(I wasn't on-line when this thread or your response were posted...so sorry for the late response)

:hi:

[NEOBuckeye]

7. Things aren't so bad at all in most of the largest cities and urban areas.

Particularly in and around the metro Cleveland, Akron, Canton and Columbus areas. Diverse relationships are becoming more and more the norm in these areas, rather than the exception.

Cincinnati still has some major racial issues, though. And unfortunately, Ohio as a whole is not particularly kind to gays.

Toledo just had a NeoNazi demonstration, but I suspect that that is much more the exception there, rather than the norm. But last time the KKK dared to show up in Cleveland, (circa 1995) they were outnumbered, humiliated and run out of town by a very large and diverse crowd of counter-protesters.

I know it's even later, but welcome to DU!

[fortyfeetunder]

3. Pacific NW

I found out this area was more accepting of it years before other parts of the country. I have several family members living here who are in interracial marriages and it's been OK. I am the odd ball of my PacNW family ;o)I am not in an interracial relationship!

[bliss_eternal]

5. I'm looking forward to visiting this part of the country..

...dh and I are growing tired of southern California.

:hi:

Apologies for my very late response--I was w/out computer access when this thread was posted...

[bliss_eternal]

6. Anyone else? I'd love to see this thread grow as a resource for

anyone seeking to move to other parts of the country.

[NEOBuckeye]

8. I'm looking at the Washington D.C. Metro Area right now...

Seems to be one of the best places to meet people, from what I understand.

[jeffrey_X]

12. Chicago has some decent areas...

The wicker park/bucktown area is a very mixed neighborhood, although it's becoming more gentrified by the day. The South and West loops also seem to be very mixed.

[ComerPerro]

9. I live in Lawrence, KS. A liberal oasis surrounded by NeoCon wasteland

And this area is pretty good about it. We don't get many looks. Actually, we see a lot of interracial couples in town.

Although, when we go to cities in the area, we get some stares. Although part of me is unclear on whether those are because of our relationship or because we are in a small town and aren't "from" there. (You know, the creepy, "we know everyone in town, and you aren't from here" vibe)

Also, the bigger cities like KC and Topeka are pretty good, too.

Mainly, it seems that urban areas and places that are stereotypically progressive are your best bet.

[AspenRose]

10. I live in Santa Fe

Pretty much anything goes, here. Very "blue."

[Swamp Rat]

11. New Orleans

:)

We ARE gumbo.

[bliss_eternal]

13. Whatever you do stay out of Orange County, California...

it is changing, but not quickly. I wouldn't send someone I hated to live in that area. I know there are more interracial couples there than ever before, but I don't think it is easy on them by any means.

In California, Northern California has some cool ir areas. Also, Pasadena California is very diverse... One of my professors at the local jc was interracially married, with two kids--she lived in Pasadena and stated it was great for them!