Rate these cities from most desired to least as a black man.

[.༼-◕_◕-༽.]

I really liked Philly when I visited last month. I have a friend from college that has lived there for 10 years now. It's just that for my line of work it's not really in my top 5.

Raleigh seems like a young professional city. I've always liked NC. I'm in my early 30s BTW.

Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill are pretty much international cities that haven't left Black people behind. Black people in NC are VERY education minded for the most part. NC people are chill, even in the country parts, people are chill. The police are NIGHT and DAY from Virginia (aggressive/speed trap outside of Northern Virginia). Charlotte is probably even more progressive in terms of the economy for the financial sector with the corporate bank headquarters (maybe?).

Black people are doing well in RDU area and so you'll fit in as a young professional. Tons of educated and professional Black people.

 

[Kliq_Souf]

I can't get into Seattle. Visited a few times and it ain't my speed at all.
People say there's black people there but I can't ever find em...
If I'm in a big city, need some "soul" in there... Some hood vibes

 

[BigMan]

Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill are pretty much international cities that haven't left Black people behind. Black people in NC are VERY education minded for the most part. NC people are chill, even in the country parts, people are chill. The police are NIGHT and DAY from Virginia (aggressive/speed trap outside of Northern Virginia). Charlotte is probably even more progressive in terms of the economy for the financial sector with the corporate bank headquarters (maybe?).

Black people are doing well in RDU area and so you'll fit in as a young professional. Tons of educated and professional Black people.

im considering moving to NC for grad school but I've heard that nc blacks are docile and theres country ass cacs all over

 

[.༼-◕_◕-༽.]

im considering moving to NC for grad school but I've heard that nc blacks are docile and theres country ass cacs all over

NC Black people have never seemed particularly docile. And the hillbillies aren't usually any where near the schools. The schools are used to Black achievement, so there's not as much of a hostile environment. I would say, like any area to visit and find out how Black people have done in your program. Some programs- even at HBCUs- are run like visa programs and will recruit Black folks and then try to weed you out (STEM) so they can stay mostly Indian, or some other foreign group. Again, this is a national issue and not a NC issue. That's what I'd tell any grad student. It comes down to your department and your advisor.

 

[MalikReloaded]

If you're interested in IT, then I'd recommend the D.C./NOVA area. The area is crawling with IT jobs. The economy is essentially recession proof. I'd go there for a few years, build up your resume, and if you don't like it, transfer to another city. Also, if you like major world cities, you'd enjoy living in D.C. more than any other city on that list. Raleigh, NC is good too, and the cost of living is cheaper than D.C. Seattle, as many have stated, is a good choice. Major tech city. COL is higher than Raleigh but, slightly cheaper than D.C. The scenery is amazing. You picked Austin? You should think about going to Dallas instead. Just as strong for tech jobs, except it's a larger city, has a larger black population and it's considerably cheaper (at least in my own research).

So I'd rank them like:

1. D.C. / Northern Virginia
2. Raleigh
3. Seattle
4. Austin / Dallas
5. Denver
6. Doesn't matter after this

 

[BigMan]

NC Black people have never seemed particularly docile. And the hillbillies aren't usually any where near the schools. The schools are used to Black achievement, so there's not as much of a hostile environment. I would say, like any area to visit and find out how Black people have done in your program. Some programs- even at HBCUs- are run like visa programs and will recruit Black folks and then try to weed you out (STEM) so they can stay mostly Indian, or some other foreign group. Again, this is a national issue and not a NC issue. That's what I'd tell any grad student. It comes down to your department and your advisor.

Spoiler

duke tho, many a breh has had bad experiences there[/spoiker]

 

[.༼-◕_◕-༽.]

Spoiler

duke tho, many a breh has had bad experiences there[/spoiker]

Have you visited your department? Have you talked to any current Black students? I know someone who turned them down and got burned really bad by some racist Indians at an HBCU.

 

[REdefinition]

As a black man I would go with 1. DC. Lots of opportunity and all the amenities of a world class city. And of course its called "chocolate city" for a reason. 2. Raleigh-Durham/RTP area. Smaller and slower paced but that can be a plus or negative depending on the type of lifestyle you're looking for. Raleigh is one of the fastest growing areas in the country and very educated. They have a vision of turning RTP into the "silicone valley of the south." These are probably the "blackist" areas in your search (Philly too, but I don't consider it as desirable).

 

[ViShawn]

Awesome! Me putting NC on the list was a good idea.

For reference I'm an experienced IT Professional in Cloud right now and again that's more West Coast leaning, but I still like the south and want to go somewhere that I flourish.

I'm in Texas now but the city where I'm at I feel a bit of but my ideals are in conflict with the culture here also...just not about it and I'm fed up.

 

[BigMan]

Have you visited your department? Have you talked to any current Black students? I know someone who turned them down and got burned really bad by some racist Indians at an HBCU.

Working on it

 

[1thouwow]

#1 Los Angeles

#2. Atlanta

#3. Houston

#4. Bronx

Bruh ain't none of them on the list

 

[Absolut da poet ®]

I work in tech so I picked these for a reason. Not every career path offers a black person to live in a place such as Atlanta, which I have lived in, with a strong black experience.

Anyway I have listed some of these places I would at least consider career opportunities to move. Some I omitted like Phoenix, Boston, or San Francisco because fukk those places. Anyways here's my list.

Discuss.

-San Diego (sorry I'm a sucka for a beautiful atmosphere)
-Raleigh, NC (Research Triangle Park in particular)
-Nashville
-Austin, TX
-Seattle, WA
-Philadelphia. (I love my city but I wouldn't move back.. visiting is the shyt tho )

-Northern VA / DC Area
-Denver / Fort Collins

 

[ViShawn]

I'm going to have to visit Nashville sometime but I honestly think if I chose Denver, Raleigh, or Seattle over it I wouldn't be complaining.

 

[ViShawn]

Just bumping this because it seemed like a pretty productive thread.

Given I just accepted a job offer in Austin, I will be there for a while and build my wealth and income there. As much as I dislike certain parts of Texas, the fact that there is no state income tax and the COL is low it has treated me well.