Question about racism in Minnesota.... (Minneapolis: credit, high school, gated)

[kuan]

In my kid's preschool class white kids are the minority.

[Auntie Bob]

Originally Posted by sydniesmommy

My husband and I are an interracial couple. We have two children and plan to have a lot more. We have been thinking a lot about moving out to Minnesota, but we've heard that there is a lot of racism there. Are there any places in Minnesota where there is very little racism, without it being "ghetto"? The state sounds so perfect for us besides the racism issue, so we'd hate to not be able to move there.

Thanks

I don't know if you are still reading here but, in case you are I thought I'd put in a plug for Duluth.
Because the USAF base was located in Duluth for so long and because so many people chose to stay in Duluth after their tour of duty was over, inter-racial couples have always been very well accepted in Duluth. My best friend is white, married to a black man. Their kids never had a problem in school here and they were always fine in any neighborhood they lived in. Since they are an Air Force family, they've been a lot of places both stateside and overseas and she still says it was easiest in Duluth.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Auntie Bob

I don't know if you are still reading here but, in case you are I thought I'd put in a plug for Duluth.
Because the USAF base was located in Duluth for so long and because so many people chose to stay in Duluth after their tour of duty was over, inter-racial couples have always been very well accepted in Duluth. My best friend is white, married to a black man. Their kids never had a problem in school here and they were always fine in any neighborhood they lived in. Since they are an Air Force family, they've been a lot of places both stateside and overseas and she still says it was easiest in Duluth.

I am glad to see there is a silver lining somewhere in Minnesota. I have never had a racial experience in Minnesota, then again, I was 6 years old and with relatives in MPLS. The red flag for me is St. Cloud.

[Auntie Bob]

Originally Posted by pirate_lafitte

I am glad to see there is a silver lining somewhere in Minnesota. I have never had a racial experience in Minnesota, then again, I was 6 years old and with relatives in MPLS. The red flag for me is St. Cloud.

I don't know what it's like down there at all. I just know that the Air Base being in Duluth had a tremendous impact on most things that could be considered racial. There just wasn't a lot of any kind of discrimination that I can think of.
It's getting a little different in Duluth in some ways now. Some of the people coming from places like Chicago and Detroit show up here being all "gangsta" and that doesn't go over too well.
Laffin...this is still Minnesota and since we all like conformity...we like people to look and act like Minnesotans.
That usually means... don't make a huge effort to call attention to yourself.
(and pull your dang pants up)

[MidniteBreeze]

I'm from Duluth originally and though I'm not a person of color, I'd agree that it's a pretty tolerant place. I had a good number of non-white friends/neighbors/classmates growing up and I don't think anyone really gave it much thought. Interracial couples/families weren't a big deal at all (at least not in my circles) and not uncommoon. I actually had several white friends who almost exclusively dated outside their race. Of course I do recall a few redneck types (mostly country boys who rode the school bus in from the sticks) who complained about "black men taking their women", but most people thought they were idiots anyway.

Auntie Bob brings up a good point about today's Duluth, though...I think some people are much more leery of the "gangsta" types who are moving into town these days and that is, unfortunatley, causing more tensions. But I think any normal, productive, considerate citizens (of any race) would ulitmately be welcomed in most neighborhoods.

[green_mariner]

Originally Posted by Auntie Bob

I don't know what it's like down there at all. I just know that the Air Base being in Duluth had a tremendous impact on most things that could be considered racial. There just wasn't a lot of any kind of discrimination that I can think of.
It's getting a little different in Duluth in some ways now. Some of the people coming from places like Chicago and Detroit show up here being all "gangsta" and that doesn't go over too well.
Laffin...this is still Minnesota and since we all like conformity...we like people to look and act like Minnesotans.
That usually means... don't make a huge effort to call attention to yourself.
(and pull your dang pants up)

I don't wear my pants down to my(well, I'm not going to say), and I don't have that "gangsta" mentality. Another thing. If I move into a different neighborhood, I don't like to make a big deal about moving in. I just move in and keep quiet(and look for a place with activities that suit me), so in that instance, I don't try to attract alot of attention. On the other hand, there are many things Minnesotan that I would like to try, but never get to do, such as many of the state's ethnic festivals, engaging in activities that involve alot of snow(I never do so in GA due to the lack of it.), I have been fishing before and would gladly do so whenever possible.
As for race relations, I just don't want to attract any stares.

[holkel1]

My husband and I are a mixed couple (Indian & White). We have 2 children (2 & 4 oy). This is my second time living in MN in the past 5 years (long story and many moves in that time), but I'm originally from Southern Cal. I can't think of one time when my husband or I ever really felt uncomfortable or out of place due to race. I know a few other interracial couples that live here as well. The one thing I have noticed and that made me willing to move back to MN is just how friendly the people are and we live in a small town (Rogers-NW suburb). We have met all of our neighbors and after only being here this time for a year, we have formed some very strong friendships. People in MN tend to just be more open and friendly than in So. Cal. I can't speak for comparing with No. Cal. as I haven't lived there. In So. Cal., I lived in my house for 3-4 years and only met the neighbors directly around my house. Here, I have met neighbors as far as a few streets over. We've been up to Duluth and to areas a little more remote and race still didn't seem to be an issue. Good luck!

[MissingMinnesota]

I am a white woman and my husband is black. We have three bi-racial children. We lived in the Twin Cities area of Minnesota until three years ago when we had to relocate to Oklahoma for my husband's job. We never had any problems the entire time we lived in Minnesota. People were always friendly and we never felt slighted because of our interracial marriage. In my son's preschool class there were two other bi-racial children. Actually, in Oklahoma we see many more interracial couples and bi-racial children then we did in Minnesota and we also have never had a problem here. I think a lot of it has to do with if you are a professional couple and tend to live in areas where there are other professional couples people are educated and don't really care what the color of your skin is. I grew up in a more rural area and agree with a previous comment that you will run into some racism in those areas. But, generally those people say inappropriate things but tend not to fully grasp the problem with what they are saying. They will be very nice to you while obliviously offending you. It is not so much hate or animosity as ignorance.

[TheDeacon]

The amount of racism you find in Minnesota is a direct correlation between where you're originally from and how aware you are of your surroundings.

I've lived all of the country, but most recently I'm from Las Vegas, NV. I've lived in Minnesota 1.5 years and in January I'm returning to Las Vegas....January cannot come soon enough.

I'm a biracial man (african american and caucasian) married to a white woman and the reception we've received since moving here has shocked me to no end.

From day one, we've had people stare at us constantly, not even trying to be surreptitious, just openly gawking.

My defense mechanism was to smile and say 'hello' to them. Their reaction is always to turn away and pretend they didn't hear me say anything. Honestly, in most of the places I've lived, if you stare at someone for 10-15 seconds without saying anything, you're inviting a fight.

I've held doors for people only to have them rush silently past me as if I wasn't there.

I've tried striking up conversations or ask for directions and have them either ignore me or speak to my white wife.

Even in restaurants, when I pay, they often hand the change to my wife.

Lot of rude drivers...if you're not driving 80 mph in a 55mph zone, you WILL be tailgated, chased (that part's happened to my wife a few times, but not me) and flipped off.

In 1.5 years we've been pulled over 5 times. The first was my wife. The cop pulled her over and refused to tell her why she was being pulled over. Then he did something unusual: He asked her who *I* was, even though I wasn't in the car at the time and both of our names are on the title!!!

So he ran the plate, pulled my driver's license up, saw I was black and then pyulled her over.

His explanation for pulling her over was "I thought your license plate looked strange"...

I've been pulled over for speeding....but only after the cop saw my face. When I asked to see the radar gun, he let me go with a warning...because I wasn't actually speeding.

I've had a random sobriety check in the middle of the day....on a Wednesday.

Last night we went to a karaoke bar and immediately upon entering, *every person* in the establishment was staring at me. I'm 32, I was wearing clean blue jeans and a white dress shirt with glasses; hardly a "gangsta". They kept staring suspiciously until I started smiling and saying hello......then in true Minnesota fashion, they turned and looked away, ignoring me.

No applause when I sang either, until the host MADE them applaud
Even she interjected "come on guys, you need to show a bit more enthusiasm!"

The end result is that I'm isolated, I don't go out very often (last night was the first time we went out for fun in weeks), I have no friends and I'm depressed all the time.

I'm a nice person with a good sense of humor that really cares about folks, too. I don't give off an angry vibe or push people away....well, at least I didn't used to. Lately I've been of the mindset that if people are going to stare, I'm going to take that as an invitation to say "what the f*** are you staring at?

It's horrible. In Las Vegas, you could be pink with plaid stripes and nobody would treat you differently. I could strike up a friendly conversation with almost ANYONE in vegas and will have exchanged numbers 10 minutes later. My customers were great friends (I repair/build computers, do websites, networking, etc) and we enjoyed a high measure of success.

We moved because living in a VERY urban place like Vegas makes you long for something a bit more simpler, some trees, etc. We thought we were making a good choice, but.

Minnesota is xenophobic to a degree that I've only seen in parts of Georgia and Milwaukee, WI. Is it outright racism? Sometimes, but not always.

If you're an outgoing person with a good sense of humor, you will hate Minnesota. The term "feeling Minnesota" is so very true.

If you're bland, boring and white, come on down, you'll love it

[green_mariner]

A mix of experiences.