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I am looking for about 5 acres (Sorry for not clarifiying in my first post)
We are liberal. Proud that Obama is in office and made history in the USA.
Hope that the people of Alabama feel this way also.
I will look into the areas that skinem and gsp4ever have posted.
What is this "culture shock" all about? It's not like I'm moving into a third world country. I have never been to the south. Unless you count Maryland as the South. lol
Up North, all I heard was that the South was still segregated and full of racist people. When my husband told his friends that he got accepted into a job down in Huntsville, Alabama all of his friends looked at us and said "You want to move to ALABAMA?". They made it sound like Alabama was hell on earth. Which I'm sure it is not.
Let me tell you guys a little more about ourselves.
We are Atheist.
We like privacy, hence why I asked for a home with some acreage.
We are like stated before liberal. I know that the south tends to vote republican.
My child has a disability, so was just asking about schools that have a good special education program.
We have 2 dogs. Are there any dog parks in Huntsville?
My husband said that he doesn't mind driving at least 20 minutes to get to work so we can narrow to areas around that distance to Huntsville.
Anything else you all would like to know just ask.
I am looking for about 5 acres (Sorry for not clarifiying in my first post)
We are liberal. Proud that Obama is in office and made history in the USA.
Hope that the people of Alabama feel this way also.
I will look into the areas that skinem and gsp4ever have posted.
What is this "culture shock" all about? It's not like I'm moving into a third world country. I have never been to the south. Unless you count Maryland as the South. lol
Up North, all I heard was that the South was still segregated and full of racist people. When my husband told his friends that he got accepted into a job down in Huntsville, Alabama all of his friends looked at us and said "You want to move to ALABAMA?". They made it sound like Alabama was hell on earth. Which I'm sure it is not.
Let me tell you guys a little more about ourselves.
We are Atheist.
We like privacy, hence why I asked for a home with some acreage.
We are like stated before liberal. I know that the south tends to vote republican.
My child has a disability, so was just asking about schools that have a good special education program.
We have 2 dogs. Are there any dog parks in Huntsville?
My husband said that he doesn't mind driving at least 20 minutes to get to work so we can narrow to areas around that distance to Huntsville.
Anything else you all would like to know just ask.
Okay. Thanks for clarifying.
Here's the deal. A northern refugee myself, I've learned that people in Alabama are pretty much an embracing sort, as long as you understand a few things, based on my time here:
1) Alabama is different culturally from wherever you hail. Think of it as moving to a different country where a lot of things are the same, but a lot of the things are different.
2) With this in mind--and for God's sake--don't start kvetching about how much better you did things up North twenty minutes after unpacking the moving van. Please. You wouldn't move to Colombia or Papua New Guinea and criticize how the people do things there, would you? Yet some transplants do this reflexively the moment they arrive, then wonder why Alabamians get annoyed. And, quite frankly, if things were really so swell up north, then why have so many of us had to move down South to follow jobs?
3) Contrary to popular belief, people here did vote for Obama in the election. Yeah, McCain won handily, but when you realize that Obama outpolled Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary by a 2:1 margin, it's not like people here are afraid to vote for a black man. The other thing you have to realize is that the South suffered a great deal at the hands of the Democratic Party over the past 120 years in terms of cronyism, corrupt government, and sleazy backroom dealings that would have made any Russian apparatchik blush. So when speaking of Southerner's Republican voting, stop treating it like a pejorative and think of it as the natural distrust of Democratic misrule over more than a century. What's more, Southerners tend to have a profound suspicion of 'progressive' government, given how Southern states actually had much more heavy-handed governments than Northern ones for a long time. I myself am a political independent. Whenever anybody tells me they vote straight party lines, I start checking for the lobotomy scars. But after learning a great deal of Alabama history, I can understand why so many educated Alabamians are so hostile to the Democratic Party.
4) Etiquette matters here a great deal. People down here say, "Please," "Thank you," and "You're welcome," a great deal--and tend to mean it. "Sir" and "Ma'am" are also used liberally in conversation. Southerners believe in a lot of the little civilities. And if a child addresses you as "ma'am," please don't correct them. Southerners believe that this is a fundamental part of raising children. And, having been shocked by the rudeness of some teenagers when visiting family up in Ohio, I can see their point.
5) The degree which people have a problem with your being atheist will be directly proportional to the amount of times you bring it up. It is not uncommon to be invited to church by a new acquaintance, but a simple, "No thank you" will be accepted graciously. There are plenty of atheists down here. They are not persecuted, pilloried, or put in the stocks.
6) Perfect strangers will strike up conversations with you in the checkout line. Yes, this weirded me out at first. Now, however, I like it a great deal. If you have a flat tire, perfect strangers will slow down and ask if you need a hand. Again, I like this a lot.
7) Two Saturdays ago, I was enjoying barbecue at Bob Gibson's in Decatur, and there were three different interracial couples there, each sitting at different tables. I'm happy to report that nobody pelted them with rocks and garbage. Nobody spray painted obscenities on their cars. The waitress smiled at them, exchanged pleasantries, and didn't dump food in their laps. No impromptu Klan rallies formed in the parking lot and the patrons weren't sprayed with buckshot. I think you'll be fine.
8) Having been a northerner myself, I can tell you that folks up north seem to indulge in far more stereotypes than the Southerners do. Oh, sure, it's not Nirvana here, but I actually think race relations are better down here than in , say, Chicago. Or Cleveland. Or at least more cordial.
In short, Southerners tend to be people-driven. If you are nice and respectful to them, they will be nice and respectful to you, regardless of your race, religious beliefs, or political creed. If you make the effort to make friends, they will invite you into their homes. We have found the vast majority of Alabamians to be hard-working, wise, intelligent, kind, and considerate of their neighbors. You know, kind of like the people where you come from.
However, if you remain cool and aloof, condescend to them, and don't respect their beliefs, then don't be surprised to get the cold shoulder. And if you approach them warily, as if your dealing with a bunch of knuckle-dragging yokels straight out of Deliverance, then you're not going to enjoy life down here. Really and truly, how you get treated when you arrive will all be up to you.
All that being said, it's not Tobacco Road down here. The tone of your posts kind of assumes that it is. I hope I'm wrong.
Generally, our politicians are pro-life, pro-gun, pro-traditional marriage, pro-low tax, God-fearing Christians... And those are the Democrats.
Obama is toxic in this state - for example, the Democratic primary front-runner for Governor (Congressman Davis) voted against the health care bill and is distancing himself from the national Democrats and running away from Obama.
While the State votes mostly GOP for for national contests, Alabama has had a Democratic State legislature since Reconstruction (1870s). Recently, the State voted overwhelmingly for a Constitutional Amendment affirming traditional marriage. Alabama also bans the sale of sex toys.
We have low taxes, and therefore have limited State services. Tax increases are almost always voted down. Politicians who vote for tax increases are usually run out of office. It's not Taxachusetts.
Maybe this is "culture shock" to you, but it is how we like it. So, as long as you're not liberal, you'll be fine...
Edit: I should say, as long as you're not the person cpg describes, you'll be fine. There are at least a dozen liberals in HSV and I've heard that they lead relatively normal lives...
Last edited by Reactionary; 11-24-2009 at 04:32 PM..
Generally, our politicians are pro-life, pro-gun, pro-traditional marriage, pro-low tax, God-fearing Christians... And those are the Democrats.
Obama is toxic in this state - for example, the Democratic primary front-runner for Governor (Congressman Davis) voted against the health care bill and is distancing himself from the national Democrats and running away from Obama.
While the State votes mostly GOP for for national contests, Alabama has had a Democratic State legislature since Reconstruction (1870s). Recently, the State voted overwhelmingly for a Constitutional Amendment affirming traditional marriage. Alabama also bans the sale of sex toys.
We have low taxes, and therefore have limited State services. Tax increases are almost always voted down. Politicians who vote for tax increases are usually run out of office. It's not Taxachusetts.
Maybe this is "culture shock" to you, but it is how we like it. So, as long as you're not liberal, you'll be fine...
Cpg35223, that was just about as good a primer for moving to the area as I have ever read! Kudos!
1 little detail I'd add on the liberal/atheist thing...the OP needs to realize that this is generally a conservative area--heck it's primarily a defense oriented town, they tend to be conservative. While they won't be alone by any means, it isn't Massachusetts in that regard.
Secondly, just to emphasize cpg35223's point #5--they need to know they are moving to what is often called the "buckle of the Bible belt". As such, I would like to ask them to PLEASE don't take it as a personal affront or insult when they get invited to church. It's considered by many to be the polite, friendly thing to do. Just say no thanks and leave it alone, don't make it a big deal, and guess what...most likely they'll be left alone. Don't get bent out of shape when your kids' friends invite them to church...again, it's the thing to do, and with kids, it's often a social thing only.
I've seen more than one atheist down here just go into orbit because someone DARED to say the "G" word or invite them to church.
I really do think the original poster will be very pleasantly surprised about their experiences in narrow-minded, racist Alabama. I expect they will surprise some folks in Massachusetts with their reports.
I look forward to hearing how they are doing with their move and acclimation.
Here's the deal. A northern refugee myself, I've learned that people in Alabama are pretty much an embracing sort, as long as you understand a few things, based on my time here:
1) Alabama is different culturally from wherever you hail. Think of it as moving to a different country where a lot of things are the same, but a lot of the things are different.
2) With this in mind--and for God's sake--don't start kvetching about how much better you did things up North twenty minutes after unpacking the moving van. Please. You wouldn't move to Colombia or Papua New Guinea and criticize how the people do things there, would you? Yet some transplants do this reflexively the moment they arrive, then wonder why Alabamians get annoyed. And, quite frankly, if things were really so swell up north, then why have so many of us had to move down South to follow jobs?
3) Contrary to popular belief, people here did vote for Obama in the election. Yeah, McCain won handily, but when you realize that Obama outpolled Hillary Clinton in the Democratic primary by a 2:1 margin, it's not like people here are afraid to vote for a black man. The other thing you have to realize is that the South suffered a great deal at the hands of the Democratic Party over the past 120 years in terms of cronyism, corrupt government, and sleazy backroom dealings that would have made any Russian apparatchik blush. So when speaking of Southerner's Republican voting, stop treating it like a pejorative and think of it as the natural distrust of Democratic misrule over more than a century. What's more, Southerners tend to have a profound suspicion of 'progressive' government, given how Southern states actually had much more heavy-handed governments than Northern ones for a long time. I myself am a political independent. Whenever anybody tells me they vote straight party lines, I start checking for the lobotomy scars. But after learning a great deal of Alabama history, I can understand why so many educated Alabamians are so hostile to the Democratic Party.
4) Etiquette matters here a great deal. People down here say, "Please," "Thank you," and "You're welcome," a great deal--and tend to mean it. "Sir" and "Ma'am" are also used liberally in conversation. Southerners believe in a lot of the little civilities. And if a child addresses you as "ma'am," please don't correct them. Southerners believe that this is a fundamental part of raising children. And, having been shocked by the rudeness of some teenagers when visiting family up in Ohio, I can see their point.
5) The degree which people have a problem with your being atheist will be directly proportional to the amount of times you bring it up. It is not uncommon to be invited to church by a new acquaintance, but a simple, "No thank you" will be accepted graciously. There are plenty of atheists down here. They are not persecuted, pilloried, or put in the stocks.
6) Perfect strangers will strike up conversations with you in the checkout line. Yes, this weirded me out at first. Now, however, I like it a great deal. If you have a flat tire, perfect strangers will slow down and ask if you need a hand. Again, I like this a lot.
7) Two Saturdays ago, I was enjoying barbecue at Bob Gibson's in Decatur, and there were three different interracial couples there, each sitting at different tables. I'm happy to report that nobody pelted them with rocks and garbage. Nobody spray painted obscenities on their cars. The waitress smiled at them, exchanged pleasantries, and didn't dump food in their laps. No impromptu Klan rallies formed in the parking lot and the patrons weren't sprayed with buckshot. I think you'll be fine.
8) Having been a northerner myself, I can tell you that folks up north seem to indulge in far more stereotypes than the Southerners do. Oh, sure, it's not Nirvana here, but I actually think race relations are better down here than in , say, Chicago. Or Cleveland. Or at least more cordial.
In short, Southerners tend to be people-driven. If you are nice and respectful to them, they will be nice and respectful to you, regardless of your race, religious beliefs, or political creed. If you make the effort to make friends, they will invite you into their homes. We have found the vast majority of Alabamians to be hard-working, wise, intelligent, kind, and considerate of their neighbors. You know, kind of like the people where you come from.
However, if you remain cool and aloof, condescend to them, and don't respect their beliefs, then don't be surprised to get the cold shoulder. And if you approach them warily, as if your dealing with a bunch of knuckle-dragging yokels straight out of Deliverance, then you're not going to enjoy life down here. Really and truly, how you get treated when you arrive will all be up to you.
All that being said, it's not Tobacco Road down here. The tone of your posts kind of assumes that it is. I hope I'm wrong.
As a former Detroiter, I have to totally agree with CPG on every point he made here. As for number 8, I experienced FAR more racism in Detroit than down here. Now, I will admit, there are a few ignorant people down here, but they are few in numbers... No different than the ignorant people I ran into on a daily basis in Detroit.
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