Ahhh... is a move to Miami insane? (Fort Lauderdale, South Beach: condo, low crime)

[shanlow]

Wow. This thread is truly scaring me! I'm seriously contemplating moving to Miami from Los Angeles with my husband and one-year-old daughter to be closer to his wonderful family. We literally have no family here and I see how that absence diminishes the love my little girl knows. But these threads about MI-ami and high crime/low graduation rates are really starting to give me second thoughts. On my trips to visit family, I've definitely noticed a general lack of consideration for others. I mean, who answers a phone (OR TRANSLATES AN ENTIRE FILM) in a packed movie theater?! And then gets huffy when I suggest they act like considerate human beings! I'm starting to worry that this general lack of politeness is truly pervasive. Will my daughter, regardless of what school we place her in, be slammed up against a tide of selfish, self-absorbed kids? My husband and his family are Cuban and I truly love Latin culture, (you know there's a but coming) BUT I am also a little concerned with a strange hyper sexuality I think I've witnessed amongst many young Latin women there. Is there anything to that? Will my five year old be begging me for short skirts and lip gloss? Also, will I find anyone like me there? I'm white, protestant(ish), got a couple of relatively useless MAs from Berkeley, progressive, don't speak Spanish... yeah, it sucks to make yourself a stereotype, but there we have it. Also, are there any progressive schools in Miami ala San Francisco? Schools that have core values that focus on altruism, stewardship, the intellect over worrying about what others think about you? Am I going to be miserable there, people? Help...

[muscleman305]

I would never raise a daughter anywhere near here period! Take it from a guy in his late 20's that has seen everything and believe me no girl is safe from the club culture in Miami. For example, I have met and hung out with Jewish girls that walk to temple on Saturdays and never wear a skirt above their knees in public, do and say some really crazy things I would never dare repeat on this forum. In fact one of my biggest fears is having a daughter, which is probably the reason why I'm 29, married for 3 years and still havent had a child yet. My cousin had girl twins and she moved to North Carolina a year after, a neighbor moved from New jersey with her 13 year old daughter and she sent her back to live with her dad after she caught her sneaking out in the middle of the night with marijuana in her purse, my wife moved here when she was 12 from new york and almost comitted sucicide throughout her high school and middle school years because of peer pressure and verbal abuse from envious classmates because of her innocent naive personality at the time. I'm sure there are many good schools here that will shelter her from the bad environment, but the closeness and draw of the clubs and the element it attracts is sometimes hard to avoid. Even the best private schools are going to have kids that socialize with other kids from bad public schools that will most likley introduce them to drugs like extasy, cocaine and marijuana which are very prevalent here and the Miami mentality among young latins is so idolized with scarface, money and strippers that it creates an environment very difficult to raise a young latin daughter with morals. Sure odds are she can probably be corrupted in California too, but from personal experience the odds are a whole lot greater in Miami.\
Why don't you visit here during the summer and enroll her in some sort of summer school program where she can meet some peers her own age and that way you can get an idea of what to expect.

[Mrs.Kim]

OMG someone call Family Services! We are raising our daughter in Miami, and in South Beach of all places!
I am a major advocate that Miami is a great CITY to raise children (I said City, like LA, Chicago, or NYC not place like generalized NC).
Like any other major city it is definitely better for those who can afford it.

[HowGoesIt]

For a single guy, Miami is a great town. There are plenty of bars, clubs, and wild women with fake ta-ta's. The cost of living is pretty low compared to other cities, so you can get a nice house or condo in a decent neighborhood for relatively cheap. Though traffic is tough around rush hour, overall it's pretty easy to get around town if you have a car.

However, I would NEVER want to have kids in Miami. There is a prevalent thug culture and the schools are horrible. I remember reading in suburban Fort Lauderdale (Plantantion), the public school had a 'pull up your pants' day. Where else in the country could this possibly happen? I'm well traveled, but I think this kind of thing would only happen in Miami.

I plan on staying here a couple of years and living it up. However, once I want to settle down and do the whole mortgage/kids/responsible thing, I'm out of the entire state of Florida.

[doggiebus]

OP - You will find people on here that have moved here with children, and they will say they are happy. And then you have people like me, who has had a few friends leave South Florida to raise their children in better places in their opinion. So its really an opinion, no one can give you the right answer for you. I personally wouldn't raise children here in South Florida that is just my opinion.

[Chrome Microphone]

In short, yes.

[Lost in Translation]

We are raising a kid in Miami and doing just fine. So are those in our social circle. There are thousands and thousands of children in Miami, and no, they are not all coke snorting, materialistic sex maniacs. Basically, it boils down to how involved you are as a parent, and to be brutally frank, the resources you have to spend on education, environment, housing, etc.

I would discourage you from moving to Miami based on how you described yourself. This is not the place for Berkley liberal types, really. You will not be happy here, as the culture here is quite low brow compared to places like San Fran, NYC, Seattle, etc.

But the whole 'do not raise your kids in Miami' nonsense is just a load of BS.

[rogerbacon]

Originally Posted by shanlow

But these threads about MI-ami and high crime/low graduation rates are really starting to give me second thoughts. On my trips to visit family, I've definitely noticed a general lack of consideration for others. I mean, who answers a phone (OR TRANSLATES AN ENTIRE FILM) in a packed movie theater?!

That is typical Miami behavior. Don't see a movie the first 4 weeks it comes out. After that the theater is empty enough that the people talking on their phones are far enough away that it doesn't bother you so much.

BUT I am also a little concerned with a strange hyper sexuality I think I've witnessed amongst many young Latin women there. Is there anything to that? Will my five year old be begging me for short skirts and lip gloss?

Expect her to have many sexually active friends by the time she is 12. Even if you are a great parent and watch her like a hawk there will be great pressure for her to get involved with sex and, to a lesser extent, drugs, by the time she is 11-12.

Also, will I find anyone like me there? I'm white, protestant(ish), got a couple of relatively useless MAs from Berkeley, progressive, don't speak Spanish... yeah, it sucks to make yourself a stereotype, but there we have it. Also, are there any progressive schools in Miami ala San Francisco? Schools that have core values that focus on altruism, stewardship, the intellect over worrying about what others think about you? Am I going to be miserable there, people? Help...

If you are a progressive why would it bother you if your daughter is sexually active at a pre-teen age or does drugs? I thought progressives were in favor of those things? However, you won't find much support for other progressive positions such as forced sterilization of the mentally handicapped or eugenics.

[Lost in Translation]

Originally Posted by rogerbacon

Expect her to have many sexually active friends by the time she is 12. Even if you are a great parent and watch her like a hawk there will be great pressure for her to get involved with sex and, to a lesser extent, drugs, by the time she is 11-12.

These are issues found in every major US city and not unique to Miami. This same crap is going on in my hometown city that has a population of less than 100K.

Rumor has it that these same social pressures are even happening in the promised lands of North Carolina.

[intelfan11315]

Look at society, you daughter isn't going to have more or less pressure in Miami than any other US city. I grew up in Michigan, in a nice city, low crime, good public schools, and most of my friends were from the great catholic school. Yes, drugs and sex were rampant

Miami is a great place to be, with wonderful people! I also think if would be great for your daughter to have her learn Spanish. It will be smart to know for the future and what an amazing way to give her a head start. In my opinion, the people of Miami are more friendly than people in other cities throughout the US. I honestly never see these horrible things the people on this board talk about, I don't really understand it to be honest. I go out a lot, and have nothing but great things to say. Don't worry so much, come down with a good attitude and people will treat you great. I've also noticed that latinas have more morals than other nationalities and are oftentimes more connected with their family. Don't worry so much about the crap you hear from the haters on this board, once you get down here, you'll realize that most people you talk to love Miami, and the people here are a small population of the views of the city.