Moving from Central NY to Shreveport

Former Resident wrote:

I rather enjoy my life here in Shreveport. I've lived in several major metropolitan areas, and I won't lie and say Shreveport is better, but I've made myself a nice little life here. There are delicious places to eat, adequate shopping, and plenty to do. We have a huge community theater scene. Is it Broadway? No, but it's fun! I've recently seen some really neat performances out of our community groups. There are local musicians and bands playing most nights. The Robinson shows unique movies and has monthly events. Yes, there are plenty of churches here if that's your thing. There's also a mosque, several Jewish temples, and an active Freethinkers (atheist) Association. There are groups that meet up for drinks, knitting groups, board game groups, book groups, etc. You just need to find people who are into whatever you're into. Are there people who are into hunting and fishing? Yes. But there are a large and growing number of us who are not. We have a growing international community, and a growing number of interesting ethnic restaurants. We have diversity here, and I have never been made to feel unwelcome because I am educated and liberal. You just have to find the diversity.

I wrote up a nice long post which addressed all of these cultural aspects of Shreveport, but when I hit post, it did not go through.

I'll just say that while Shreveport has restaurants, shopping, casinos, and these small time cultural venues, mentioning these things does not even remotely address the problem with the people here. You can find diversity, but within that diversity, the rude and anti-Yankee attitude just seeps right on out.

The people who go to the mosques and Jewish temples are just as victimized by this rude attitude as I am. You should hear what people say about the Asians who work in our many sushi restaurants. One newspaper went so far as to compare Sushiko's offerings to fishing bait.

We may have a growing international community, but Shreveport residents are loudly and proudly telling them to get out. If you haven't witnessed this first hand, you aren't getting out as often as you claim. My fiancée and I have attended several of these events and there are some certifiable crazies among the bunch who rant and rave about all the usual BS I've previously mentioned. We usually don't even bring any of that nonsense up either. That said, the local art shows and theatre products are more high school productions than anything else. Our local education system needs to pump out better quality in terms of performers and designers, but it can't. We have to hope that more outsiders arrive to thicken the soup. Otherwise, we're all just a bunch of cultural enthusiasts who get called condescending liberals and damn Yankees.

I welcome the flood of outsiders to our area, but as one, I am not hesitant in expressing my reasons why they should avoid this town altogether in favor of something better.

Better Shreveport produce rudeness than whatever hellish place you are from to produce such dour and smug fools.

FriendofDog wrote:

Better Shreveport produce rudeness than whatever hellish place you are from to produce such dour and smug fools.

So says the person who thinks southern Christianity is better than northern Christianity. Quite smug. Quite arrogant. Quite condescending.

So much hate for such a fine upstanding church goer. You'd think with all your godly ways, you'd have a much kinder tongue, but alas, you're just a hog raised from this southern Shreveport mud.

My point being, rudeness is not something you should be at all proud of, but it's nice that I can easily drag it out of you so the northerners curious about moving here get to know what kinds of people are from this town. Very useful to my cause. Shitty town. Shitty people.

All kidding aside.. you are a miserable person in Shreveport, so the sooner you can get out, the better off you will be. Shreveport is a small town actually... folks like things the way they are. Probably not going to change so, and, you aren't interested in finding anything good about Shreveport, so the faster you can get out of there, the better off you will be. I'd be working every day, all day long to get out of there instead of bitching on a thread.

FriendofDog wrote:

All kidding aside.. you are a miserable person in Shreveport, so the sooner you can get out, the better off you will be. Shreveport is a small town actually... folks like things the way they are. Probably not going to change so, and, you aren't interested in finding anything good about Shreveport, so the faster you can get out of there, the better off you will be. I'd be working every day, all day long to get out of there instead of bitching on a thread.

Ah, but then nobody would bring out the scumbags to show Shreveport's true colors, leaving other outsiders to believe that coming to Shreveport might be a good idea when it clearly isn't.

"Folks like things the way they are" is something an apathetic person says. You have been verbally beaten into a submissive pulp and now you live without a spine, afraid of what might happen if you actually begin to question "things the way they are."

The second you believe you cannot change this town for the better, these Yankee hating assholes win and other outsiders like myself will continue to be treated like shit.

I do work all day, every day, aside from week ends. My fiancée works just as hard. We are saving up enough money to buy our first home together.

But if you don't have the stones to call attention to the bullshit, then I'll be the one to do it until I pack up the moving van. I don't want someone else to get the impression that this place is nice when I know what kinds of people actually live in this town.

waveform wrote:

<quoted text>
Ah, but then nobody would bring out the scumbags to show Shreveport's true colors, leaving other outsiders to believe that coming to Shreveport might be a good idea when it clearly isn't.
"Folks like things the way they are" is something an apathetic person says. You have been verbally beaten into a submissive pulp and now you live without a spine, afraid of what might happen if you actually begin to question "things the way they are."
The second you believe you cannot change this town for the better, these Yankee hating assholes win and other outsiders like myself will continue to be treated like shit.
I do work all day, every day, aside from week ends. My fiancée works just as hard. We are saving up enough money to buy our first home together.
But if you don't have the stones to call attention to the bullshit, then I'll be the one to do it until I pack up the moving van. I don't want someone else to get the impression that this place is nice when I know what kinds of people actually live in this town.

I know, you are just a real crusader aren't you? I'd like to be a fly on the wall where you do move next time. I guarantee that there'd be the same type of drivel, pizzing and moaning about that place on the thread. I suspect you are just a miserable uptight person and will not be happy no matter where you move. Your posts prove that. Anyway.. have a nice life- if you are capable.

Waveform, having been involved with and after attending several of these groups you belittle so much, and experiencing mostly positive encounters with friendly people, I wonder if it may be that your personal outlook on life is coloring your experiences with others. I am quite intelligent, and not particularly socially awkward, and I found myself able to engage in great, stimulating conversations with members of the Freethinkers. They are quite friendly and welcoming. The only time I can think of that they have asked a person not to come back is when a person was making violent threats towards a certain group of people, which is not what that organization is about. Sure, I've gotten sick from eating food at a couple of places here. I've also gotten sick eating on vacation in many other cities as well. I don't know what local music scene you're talking about, but I've attended several nice, quite house concerts with no drug use or fights to be found. My friends who are artists often collaborate and meet together to share wine and the creative spirit. I don't find them to be petty or abrasive at all.

It's possible that we are associating with entirely different people, or it's possible that people with a positive outlook in life and a willingness to try different things and seek out off beat experiences will have fun no matter where they live, and people who expect negative encounters will get exactly what they are looking for.

Former Resident wrote:

Waveform, having been involved with and after attending several of these groups you belittle so much, and experiencing mostly positive encounters with friendly people, I wonder if it may be that your personal outlook on life is coloring your experiences with others. I am quite intelligent, and not particularly socially awkward, and I found myself able to engage in great, stimulating conversations with members of the Freethinkers. They are quite friendly and welcoming. The only time I can think of that they have asked a person not to come back is when a person was making violent threats towards a certain group of people, which is not what that organization is about. Sure, I've gotten sick from eating food at a couple of places here. I've also gotten sick eating on vacation in many other cities as well. I don't know what local music scene you're talking about, but I've attended several nice, quite house concerts with no drug use or fights to be found. My friends who are artists often collaborate and meet together to share wine and the creative spirit. I don't find them to be petty or abrasive at all.
It's possible that we are associating with entirely different people, or it's possible that people with a positive outlook in life and a willingness to try different things and seek out off beat experiences will have fun no matter where they live, and people who expect negative encounters will get exactly what they are looking for.

Reread post #44

http://www.topix.com/forum/city/bossier-city-...

I can sit and not say a word, not interact, and get volunteered comments, from overt racism, to flagrant comments about Yankees. This thread alone has stirred up anti-Yankee comments that have nothing to do with me or anything I've said. A person who doesn't like Yankees wouldn't just single me out for being a Yankee unless they had a problem with all Yankees.

So no, it's not me. My posts on Topix are full of conflict because people who post on Topix are shit stains, no matter what part of Topix you visit. Doesn't matter what region, North, South, or otherwise. Topix is just a breeding ground for conflict and the unsavory. Obviously, I'm going to clash with that volatility. Anyone would. Most do, in fact.

Pull yourself out of this daydream you're in and spend some time actually reading my damn posts, will ya?

Former Resident wrote:

It's possible that we are associating with entirely different people

Ah, but now you're avoiding my point altogether with this line of thinking.

There are most certainly people with whom YOU get along with in this city. I don't know where you are originally from. I don't know your religious affiliation. I don't know if you have your own set of bigoted viewpoints that make you more aligned with this despicable southern flavor. Perhaps beneath all of your happy happy joy joy, you simply coexist with those who share your views on the outside world. I don't know.

Regardless, what I am saying is, this town harbors a very negative element, a group of people who have such a strong dislike for outsiders, democrats, people of color, atheists, northerners, and just about any other group you can think of that deviates from the old confederacy. While you may have found people you get along with, this does not mean Shreveport is not chock full of people who treat outsiders like dirt.

I know at least one Freethinker who agrees with me. I know several local artists who agree with me, even a member of the SRAC. I know physicians who agree with me. I know nurses who agree with me. I know residents in Haughton who agree with me on this subject. I'm not alone on this, unfortunately, so the notion that all of these issues have to do with me personally are simply unfounded when I have a whole line of people who have experienced the same horrible BS Shreveport has to offer outsiders.

On top of all of those first hand accounts, I also have the posts at city-data.com , Craigslist, and travel sites to back me up.

So while you are living in some dream land, the reality is staring you straight in the face if you choose to see it for what it is.

I probably also need to clear up something you might be confused about. I bet you seem to think I don't have any friends here, but many of the people I mentioned in the previous post are good friends of mine. I do have a good group of friends myself and my fiancée regularly hang out with. I still have the sense to realize much of Shreveport is a hell of a lot worse and I consider myself lucky to have stumbled across a few likeminded adults who aren't Yankee-hating rednecks.

Luckily, I met my fiancée when I was on the go and she moved here for work and to be near me. Now that we're both here, we both want to leave. I pity anyone who is single and in my situation because he or she will have lots of trouble finding love. I have one friend who has struggled for a few years with dating around here simply for being himself. I really hope the original poster from New York already has someone.

Shreveport needs to just be a pit stop or avoided altogether if you're different.

You are just stupid and a whiney ass bag! That's the real problem here.

I just don't find that to be true, and I'm sorry you've had such a negative experience here. Are there jerks in Shreveport? Sure. There are jerks everywhere. You seem to be bringing about all of the volatility associated with your posts on Topix. I'm glad you have other people who agree with you. I'm offering another perspective and saying that I have others who agree with me. We are young, progressive, educated professionals who sponsor and attend cultural events, participate in community activities, and are working to build a different kind of city. We are active in the arts, we tutor underprivileged kids, we volunteer to clean up trash on the weekends. We are politically active. We are Muslim, Methodist, atheist, or Catholic, and we all meet for coffee or drinks anyway. We make music. We play board games. We go dancing. We play ultimate frisbee. We donate to charity. We are kind and play well with others, creating an inclusive group. We'd love for other positive, caring people to come join us.

To the original poster: my husband recommends checking out the Shreveport subreddit. There are several helpful discussions with great advice! Best of luck, and I hope to run into you some day around town, and show you what real southern hospitality is about!

Former Resident wrote:

I just don't find that to be true, and I'm sorry you've had such a negative experience here. Are there jerks in Shreveport? Sure. There are jerks everywhere.

You don't find this to be true? Do you not come on Topix often? Go back a year or so and find posts by Freebird. Go back and find the thread about opening a Whole Foods here. Go find the Shreveport Sucks thread. I could go on and on. The fact is, it's true and you need to start seeing the truth about this town once and for all.

Again, I cite posts at city-data.com , travel sites, and comments on Craigslist as my sources for validating my claims. I'm not the only person in this town who knows what goes on and if you don't know about it, you're living under a rock. The outsiders who have posted on those sites have all reiterated just how close minded and hate filled this town is. They have all...ALL...said that northerners are not welcome in Shreveport. The "Don't like it, leave" is the only response Shreveport residents can give them.

There are jerks everywhere, but the regional-specific problems are only in the South. Shreveport has a very specific kind of jerk and they are widespread and vocal, not simply chance occurrences in public. Oh yes. It is very real and very widespread.

There are several people on Topix who have expressed anti-Yankee sentiments. If you are not part of that crowd, I expect you to condemn those comments from this point forward. Without condemnation, it is complacency and complicity. If you don't have a problem with Yankees, but you also don't want Shreveport to be represented by those people, then step up and express your disgust with their posts.

Or are you simply ignoring those posts and only focusing on mine? Yeesh.

The next time you need your air conditioning fixed, your roof fixed, your plumbing fixed, or any other work related to your house, actually sit there and listen to what the repairmen have to say about the North, people of color, and outsiders.

The next time you're in a hospital, ask patients and some of the staff what they think of the Arab, Indian, and Pakistani physicians.

The next time you're in a grocery store, turn around and try to start a conversation with the person behind you or the person ahead of you. See how that southern hospitality works for you.

You know what? Go ask Kaylon Johnson about this town. You do remember Kaylon Johnson, don't you?

Topix is a very narrow sample to really get a good glimpse into what goes on around here. If you actually open your ears, express more progressive ideas, and otherwise differ with the norm here in Shreveport, you can guarantee some redneck Christian conservative is going to tell you off for your beliefs. It is an amplified version of Shreveport Topix.

I invite you to take a moment to post on Craigslist just to watch the shit storm that evolves. Simply ask if this problem exists. You'll get responses from both sides. The original poster can do the same if he wants. shreveport.craigslist.org . Go ahead. Give it a try. I won't add to the discussion so that I don't introduce any bias.

And there are people who specifically joined the Freethinkers because of how difficult it was in this area for them to find likeminded individuals who accepted them for having different views. That right there says it all. You must have avoided meeting those members entirely.

I don't form my opinion about an area based on the Internet. Please remember that not all who post on Topix or Craigslist are even from a particular area. Even if they are, they are a small, and not a representative sample of the population. My solution to people I don't like? I avoid them. You seem to inhabit the Internet. Guess what? That's where the trolls live. People on the Internet, no matter where they are from, will tell you off for your beliefs, just for fun, even if you agree with them! I live in Shreveport, and spend very little time living on the Internet, really.

Let me tell you my experiences with my fellow Shreveport dwellers. Repair men? One nice cable repair man was late for his next appointment because he was discussing football and baseball with me, a conversation sparked by my collection of northern teams sports memorabilia, mixed in with some Saints items. When a man came to fix my dryer, he asked about my hybrid car, said he was interested in purchasing one, and we had a lovely chat about my grandparents. My yard guy helped me rescue an abandoned puppy, and we occasionally discuss politics, though we've respectfully agreed to disagree.

I've seen people come to the defense of my Middle-Eastern pharmacist when someone made a negative comment about him. I've had many lovely conversations with the Indian men who own the local gas station. One of my favorite people is a man in his 60s from Trinidad!

My husband is laughing at you telling me to have a conversation with people around me at grocery stores. I do that constantly, and it drives him crazy. I'm just a social person, and I enjoy meeting new people, so I'm always talking to strangers. I find it's much better received here than when I lived up north.

I've met Kaylon Johnson, and he has a pretty positive outlook on life. As far as the attack on him, a quick search shows that similar attacks happened in many major cities, north, south, east, and west, and carried out by both Republicans and Democrats. It was a terrible thing, but not an indication of the normal state of things in Shreveport.

You can keep living on the Internet. I'm going to continue to live in the real world, where things just really aren't as bad as you say they are.

Former Resident wrote:

You can keep living on the Internet. I'm going to continue to live in the real world, where things just really aren't as bad as you say they are.

My experiences in grocery stores, hospital elevators, barber shops, street sidewalks, Artspace, Freethinker meetings, tire shops, retail outlets, etc are all real world experiences, not internet fabrications. You are not reading my posts.

You also keep avoiding condemning the hatred of Yankees here and elsewhere. I find such complacency despicable and telling of your willingness to speak out against such wrongs. The person who stood up for your pharmacist has more courage than you, it seems. You need to acquire the same level of gusto here before posting again. Otherwise, I am going to have to label your posts as disingenuous and self serving, not geared towards making Shreveport a better place.

I wonder why you can't bring yourself to say a few words to these Yankee hating asshats, but you can write a few paragraphs in response to my posts. Yes, trolls inhabit the internet, but at least I'm standing here condemning their behavior. You? You just want to ignore it, it seems.

But here's the deal. The posts on the internet, on Craigslist, on travel sites, and on city-data.com are all comments about real life experiences.

Former Resident wrote:

My husband is laughing at you telling me to have a conversation with people around me at grocery stores. I do that constantly, and it drives him crazy. I'm just a social person, and I enjoy meeting new people, so I'm always talking to strangers. I find it's much better received here than when I lived up north.

I've experience the exact opposite. In the Midwest and in the Northeast, people were much more likely to engage in a conversation. In Shreveport, it has been next to impossible to start with a smile and casually talk about something while waiting in line. People mind their own business here. People will tell you that's "just how things are here."

I've said this elsewhere on here, in fact. Shreveport's slogan on the sign shouldn't be Welcome to Shreveport. It should read Mind your own damn business. It should be promptly followed by the words Get out.

Former Resident wrote:

I've met Kaylon Johnson, and he has a pretty positive outlook on life. As far as the attack on him, a quick search shows that similar attacks happened in many major cities, north, south, east, and west, and carried out by both Republicans and Democrats. It was a terrible thing, but not an indication of the normal state of things in Shreveport.

He recognizes Shreveport has real problems with race relations and readily admits things I've discussed in this thread, things you continue to live in denial about.

You cannot bring yourself to say anything honest about this damn town and I have to wonder what it is that motivates you to avoid saying the obvious about Shreveport and its residents.

Maybe you are trying to woo outsiders into coming here in hopes of making this a better place, thinking that if enough new people arrive, you can have more friends and your volunteer work will receive more area coverage and publicity. I'm not sure. What I can say is, you are in denial and you are intentionally avoiding the reality of Shreveport. There is a reason. I'm not sure what that reason is yet, but there is a reason you cannot bring yourself to openly condemn those people.

Johnson knows just how bad the racism is here. It seems like you don't.