Are people more racist in the north or south?

Question

I live in the south.When I watch the news people talking about the racist south,I say who are they talking about.I grew up here and I can count the racist I've met on one hand.When people move here from other parts of the country,they always say that race relations in the south is there biggest surprise.

Answer 1

I think it's more racist in the North. I grew up in the south and I did not really experience much racism until I have moved to the North as an adult. What I experience was more of a hidden racism. It is not something anyone openingly admitted, but it's was there. I am back in the south and on familar ground again.

Answer 2

It's a stereotype. Most people still think the South is like it was during the 1950s, but it isn't. And no true newsperson should ever, EVER use stereotyping like they did when you heard that. Where do they get off calling themselves news people? A certain news director should get a letter from you on that one.

I had the same exact experience. I'm originally from Tennessee and moved to Connecticut. They had a hard time believing that where I grew up was pretty much the same way except the main ethnicities were Cherokee and Irish instead of Italian. That's the media's fault, I believe---and I WORK in the media;) Connecticut also has an Attorney General who's hell bent on destroying Native sovereignty. There are idiots everywhere on this sad planet...and Connecticut is just as racist as Tennessee.

This is the UNITED STATES, people---regional prejudice has no place in this day and age.

Answer 3

It's more a question of whose legacy of racism is stronger or more evident. In many respects, racism is equally distributed North and South, but the perception of it is not.

Many northerners hated blacks, and the thought of fighting for them during the civil war caused many a rebellion. Also, the Northern race riots (especially in New York) were just as murderous and bloody as any action in the south. But if both Northeners and Southerners did not believe in blacks being equal, the vast majority of abolitionists and supporters of such resided mainly in the North. That's still less than 1% of the population, but when taken as a whole, thats even better than the Southern percentage.

Again, it's difficult to tell exact percentages, because there were many Southern sympathizers of abolition and many Northern sympathizers of slavery and inequality who went unrecognized, but the institutions of racism and racial divide were so openly instituted in the South, even after the Civil War, that the perception remains.

One has only to study the history of the big cities of the north (New York, Chicago, Los Angeles) to discover insiduous and blatanly racist forms of seperation being enacted. But any Southerner, who says that race relations in the South are non-existent or a thing of the past, obviously didn't watch or read anything about the disparity of what happened when Katrina hit New Orleans. And they also haven't heard about all the hullaboo about people trying to resurrect the Confederate flag as a strictly historic symbol, thereby allowing for it's display upon public buildings. Do you think it would be ok if Germans decided to display a Nazi flag in their governmental offices, purely for historical sake?

There are alot of good people, both North and South, and I've met my share of them, but I also know I don't have to scratch too far down the surface (on either side) to see the legacy still alive and well.

Answer 4

Why is it racist only against Blacks. Whites get it also. And I'm so sick of hearing we owe something to blacks that happened before i was born. You can look at this as a racist comment but I'm in the Marines and most of my Friends in the Corps are Black or Mexican. It's like we are walking ( White people that is) on eggshells. Don't say this or that. Look at all the big news with race it has to do with what a white guy did to a black guy. Then something the other way around happens and it's Hardly broadcast. I'll get some thumbs down for this but I speak my mind. And what about the Jews look what they went through!!!

Answer 5

I came to the South from the North. From my experience, there is more racism in the South. People do still hate Yankees even though the war has been over for a long time, and we get weird looks from other white people when we go places with our black friends. But that's just my experience. There's still racism, of all kinds, everywhere unfortunately.

Answer 6

I'm black and I live in the South. Matter-of-fact, I love the south. I think racism in the north is worst because its somewhat hidden and sneaky, under handed stuff. In the south, its another story. You can be walking down the street and here some redneck holler out the window "N..." or you can see a confederate flag on their cars, in the yards, and also on their clothes. So you know right off the bat what they are about and to stay away from them. LOL!!!

Answer 7

There are many racists everywhere. Geography doesn't seem to play a part. Ignorance, however, plays a huge part.

By the way I'm tired just from scrolling through Kovamomma's answer. :-)

Answer 8

I've lived in the south and north. Being a minority, I can tell you that I've definitely been treated worse in the south. Perhaps it's because it's more obvious and blatant down here. I don't know.

Either way, I guess you have to be a minority to understand (even if it's a temporary situation... .say the only caucasian in a spanish speaking neighborhood, or something).

Answer 9

Both. Northerners are just more self-righteous. There's plenty of nonracist southerners and racist Yankees. The only difference is Northern racists are usually closet racists or PC racists that patronize minorities.

(Experience from yours truly- a black southern girl;-))

Answer 10

I am from Vermont - and there is no evidence of racism there, because there is hardly race difference - (less than 1% are anything but white). People develop opinions based on their interactions with other races.
Now, in St. Louis? That's a different story. We have a bunch of different groups here. The Chinese & Mexicans seem to hate the African Americans and vice versa, and so on. There is a lot of racism here, but I think it is because of the strength in numbers of the different cultures & their effect on each other. I think it is definitely worse in the south - because that is where slavery lasted the longest & had the worst long-lasting effects.