Moving to Chicago from NY - LGBT Family (restaurants, stores)

[ChicagoMeO]

You can live anywhere. I know people who are gay and have moved to Roselle, IL, and to Morton Grove IL, just go where you want to live. if you are decent neighbors you'd be welcomed. People dont necessarily want to live in just one or two neighborhoods (which is referred to as "the gay ghetto" and people are starting to want to not be restricted like that.. people are moving wherever they want!

[wase4711]

exactly; no one cares about your sexual orientation, people only care about what kind of neighbor you are

[ToriaT]

Oak Park, Illinois. The schools are excellent and the housing stock is great. High taxes though. Other options are Evanston, IL. and other suburbs mentioned. These are outside the city proper. Berwyn and Forest Park are good budget choices. Berwyn has a large gay community. Schools not so good but many private options.

[paytonc]

Three things I'd flag:
- "larger house and yard" in the Midwest may mean a much larger spread than in NY; Evanston and Oak Park have "smaller lots" by our standards but still leaves plenty of yard space
- as mentioned above, suburban Chicago prices are lower but property taxes can be quite high, with $10-20K annual bills that are comparable to NJ suburbs
- for an early 30s social scene, you might consider places within the city as well

FWIW, Joanne Trapani of Oak Park was the first openly GLBT elected mayor in Illinois, back in 2001.

[bedhed64]

The north shore is generally LGBT friendly. When considering price range, commute time, crime, schools, overall environment, I’d say that Wilmette is in the “Goldilocks Zone”. Average home prices are around 750k.

[Vlajos]

Originally Posted by wase4711

exactly; no one cares about your sexual orientation, people only care about what kind of neighbor you are

This.

[Master Jay]

wase4711 and Vlajos, YES to "This"

Unfortunately, there ARE people who will be vocal about their unwelcoming-ness to diversity, even towards someone conducting themselves as a "good neighbor." And some are not vocal about it. Personally, I would rather have the person be vocal because then you at least KNOW their true feelings!

When I was married and first moved to Hales Corners (a southwest suburb of Milwaukee), I was always very cordial with my neighbors. I thought I was well received.

And about 6 months later I received an anonymous letter in my mailbox, to NOT fly my Mexican flag alongside my American flag because we are ALL Americans (and yet, I walked to a couple of neighbors' homes who were flying a Polish flag.... You bet they did NOT get the same instructions!).

Also in my letter I was told to NOT practice my "karate" in the front yard because it has such a negative impact on the neighborhood children.... Well, I practice Tae Kwon Do, and I teach children self-defense and control and respect.

...

So I would say to ANYONE: Just be yourself. Just be the good neighbor like wase and Vlajos mentioned. Continue to be kind, respectful, and helpful. I would have to believe that the real majority of people are going to happily welcome you.

P.S. I never found out who wrote that letter! Could very well have been a neighbor that always said HI to me everyday!... I'd like to think that after getting to know me, they changed their ignorant attitude about me, genuinely.

Any that said, perhaps to someone ignorant to LGBT (or fill in the blank "adjective"), maybe after they get to know you, you will be the moving force to help them shape their opinion.

Maybe?

[Boddicker]

Originally Posted by Master Jay

And about 6 months later I received an anonymous letter in my mailbox, to NOT fly my Mexican flag alongside my American flag because we are ALL Americans (and yet, I walked to a couple of neighbors' homes who were flying a Polish flag.... You bet they did NOT get the same instructions!).

Sorry you had to experience that, MJ. No one should have to deal with that from their neighbors. Luckily they picked on the right guy, as you seem to be a man who possesses good humor and a decent sensibility about people in general.

I think some people are insecure about the large numbers of Mexicans that have arrived in the United States since, what, the 70s? (Well, considerably more than the Poles, no?) And I think the reason is only that they tend to fear America becoming more like Juarez into than say Krakow. (Yes, extreme examples, but hyperbole is a rhetorical strategy :-). Maybe it is racism, or maybe it's just cultural and societal concerns? Mexico has been poorly governed for as long as I can remember. I'm in Cicero, IL all the time and it definitely doesn't feel like a "traditional" American town to me. Lots of Spanish spoken and some pretty run down ghetto areas. The town used to be primarily Czech-Bohemian. I don't care for Cicero, to be honest, but maybe it sucked back then too.

I bet your neighbors, at the end of the day, don't care what "color" you or others are, but simply want more assimilation and cultural cohesion. I certainly don't care what color my neighbors are: I just want to share some sort of common ground with them, and you dignified them that by also flying the American flag. So, again, sorry to hear that. Anyway, I love difference since it's the spice of life, but I've always preferred multiracial over the multicultural.

[Master Jay]

Boddicker, good morning.

Thank you for reaching out. And thank you for your kind words, as well as sharing your thoughts.

...

I don't force my views on others, and so I don't ask that they do the same with me. THAT way, we have a better chance of having a dialogue, and a better chance of finding some "meeting in the middle."

I strive to learn as much as I can on as many languages/religions, etc. that I can.

As a "bi-racial" person, I never liked it when I was little and transferred from a more culturally diverse grade school to a predominately "White" grade school, and the people would ask me, "What ARE you?". And I remember I would even try to stay out of the sun so that my skin would not tan darker.

THEN, I learned to just be happy, LITERALLY, in my own SKIN! Diversity is such a beautiful thing. There is nothing to fear, and certainly nothing to be ashamed of.

My ex-wife is German-American, so our 3 children happened to be born rather fair. And yet I never spoke to them in English, so they could grow up bilingual. And now they have studied French in school, as well.

When we come to Chicago, we have played in parks in Wilmette, as well as in Pilsen. We have walked the trails in Skokie and we have walked 26th Street.

I did my best to teach them to treat a person like a person. I taught them that what is on the OUTSIDE never counts in the sense that you judge a person by their character.

If the OP feels more comfortable to reside in, or live near, a community that shares the "LGBTQ... community" I say they are welcome to seek it out, just as they are welcome to seek ANY community that would make them happy!

I love Edison Park. There certainly are not a lot of "Hispanic" residents from what I have seen. Even though I am of Mexican descent, I never feel like an outsider. And also I come across a lot of staff in the restaurants that appear to be Hispanic to me. So guess what? I speak English and I speak Spanish with whomever wants to speak English and Spanish with me.

The biggest problem/hurdle for human beings as a species: We need to get OVER ourselves and think the world only is proper based on whatever it is the individual happens to BE.

PEACE!

[Gaylord_Focker]

Originally Posted by Boddicker

Sorry you had to experience that, MJ. No one should have to deal with that from their neighbors. Luckily they picked on the right guy, as you seem to be a man who possesses good humor and a decent sensibility about people in general.

I think some people are insecure about the large numbers of Mexicans that have arrived in the United States since, what, the 70s? (Well, considerably more than the Poles, no?) And I think the reason is only that they tend to fear America becoming more like Juarez into than say Krakow. (Yes, extreme examples, but hyperbole is a rhetorical strategy :-). Maybe it is racism, or maybe it's just cultural and societal concerns? Mexico has been poorly governed for as long as I can remember. I'm in Cicero, IL all the time and it definitely doesn't feel like a "traditional" American town to me. Lots of Spanish spoken and some pretty run down ghetto areas. The town used to be primarily Czech-Bohemian. I don't care for Cicero, to be honest, but maybe it sucked back then too.

I bet your neighbors, at the end of the day, don't care what "color" you or others are, but simply want more assimilation and cultural cohesion. I certainly don't care what color my neighbors are: I just want to share some sort of common ground with them, and you dignified them that by also flying the American flag. So, again, sorry to hear that. Anyway, I love difference since it's the spice of life, but I've always preferred multiracial over the multicultural.

I've visited quite a few Chinatowns and other ethnic Asian towns. I don't believe I've ever seen a Japanese, Chinese or Korean flag outside a store front. Could be wrong. Now, when I visit little Italy, I see a lot of Italian flags. Doesn't bother me, just find it interesting