operafan
New member
Posts: 1
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« Reply #46 on: October 26, 2006, 04:30:16 PM » |
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I live in a liberal oasis of Indiana, which is Bloomington. I am biracial and my husband is white. When we first moved here from the East Coast, my husband used to jokingly nudge me whenever we saw another black person, because there were so few compared to where we came from. But we've had a wonderful time here. During the three years since we moved here we have seen an increasing number of mixed-race couples with families, and so that trend is encouraging, and I hope speaks well for the Midwest in general.
I have always been an open minded person, although I've struggled with the effects of racism my whole life. Mostly my attitude has been, "there's racism everywhere, so what difference does it make where you live"? And, I also tend to subscribe to the idea that closed mindedness on my own part is no better than institutionalized or cultural racism, so if I want people to treat me with an open mind, then I have no business pre-judging others.
However, I have come to the conclusion that there is a difference between having that attitude on a personal level, which is of course the best approach, and deciding what kind of a community you want to live in. It's easy to say that one should disregard fears about racism in any area when you're not the one who would be contributing to integrating the community and your children aren't the ones who could feel socially isolated in school and even prevented from advancing academically (a situation that happened to me as a child growing up in a liberal East coast small town that at least in theory had very progressive social ideas). People who haven't directly experienced the subtle and demeaning effects of racism often don't understand the implications that it can have for one's life, and in the case of children, the kind of future ramifications in areas of personal development in terms of confidence, self esteem and even educational opportunities.
My husband has convinced me (at least for now) in our last segment of our recurring debate about the presence of racism in small communities in our state that there is a big difference between experiencing racism in a community that outwardly speaks for fair treatment of all (like our town does) and experiencing racism in a town where you might have few people actively "on your side" so to speak. And remember, disinterested passivity, or denial that racism exists is just as harmful as racism itself. Although I've never lived anywhere else in our state, I've never experienced any outward problems or difficulties in the other areas that I have visited. So who knows what it could be like? I would like to be an optimist.
Being a faculty member on a large research university in a midsize Midwestern town means that I am somewhat culturally insulated from the kinds of racial concerns that one might have about living in this area. My husband, on the other hand, has a different experience of the community, one which makes him nervous about what could happen. For example, he found out that there is an actively circulating KKK newsletter in a town 20 minutes away from here! Admittedly, or hopefully, the membership in that group is probably in the minority--but would you feel comfortable living there if you were black? What if you moved there and found out about it after the fact? Also, within the last year or so there was an incidence of racially motivated violence even in our liberal town--how would you feel if that happened in your town and you felt that there was little support for the minority community?
So, my advice would be to weigh your options carefully. It is wise to have concerns, and to investigate them thoroughly before making this important decision. And I don't think this is an issue of Coast snobbery, because quite frankly I think these are concerns that need to be addressed no matter where you move in this country. One of the other posters mentioned bringing your family with you--I think this is very important. The same year that I accepted my current position I also had a job interview at a small liberal arts college in a rural area of Indiana (I guess it was fated that we move to this state)--I liked the school and the students, but I just didn't feel comfortable there (and I didn't get the job anyway). I felt like I stuck out like a sore thumb, and I just didn't want my personal identity to feel like an issue every time I walked out the front door. I never felt that way here, and I think that gut feelings about an atmosphere are very important to recognize. I would also recommend reading newspapers (go back 6 months to a year to get an idea about recurring threads) from the communities you are considering--they can tell you a lot about people's attitudes and community values.
In sum, good luck! I hope that wherever you move you find a supportive and friendly community.
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