Small Towns: The Real America?

I didn't grow up in a small town, but I think there's a lot to be said for the reality of this comment, which I found while perusing one of the many websites/blogs that I peruse. This is one person's experience, of course, and I hate stereotyping, but I really hate the myth that conservatives use when describing the "Real America." Real America is everywhere-it is in small towns and it is in big cities. And in between! Why must we make such distinctions? To me, saying that "Real America" is in the small town folk is implying prejudice and even racism. Why? Because most small towns are filled with Caucasians. There is (relatively speaking) no diversity in small towns. If you say you want to live in a small town, fine. But think about the reasons why. Consider what "community" really means to you. And diversity-is it better to have your kids grow up sheltered and limited rather than be exposed to all kinds of viewpoints?

I believe the person that wrote this comment lives in Chicago, which is nice.

Oh, and I freely admit my own prejudices here. I don't ever want to live in a big city. I want to live in a diverse city though. I want to live in a place where people of all kinds of races, genders, sexual orientations, class levels can be accepted without fear. And I want to raise my kids to appreciate that diversity. I just feel that small towns, far removed from any large city(also not counting university towns, because they can be quite diverse), don't really do that so well.

Here is the quote:


"The one thing that I hate is that small towns are supposed to be real America. I grew up in a small town and have since chosen to go to the big city. I don't believe that people are nicer in small towns or more willing to help their neighbor or more moral. In fact for me, I've always found the opposite to be true. Growing up in a small town, I found people there, small minded, short-sighted, judgmental, viciously guarded against "outsiders" and highly immoral. Also, there were huge, I'm talking epic issues with drugs and alcoholism there. Many of my classmates grew up to be meth addicts or have serious issues with addiction. When I go there, I am constantly made to feel judged and that I'm strange because I'm a career-oriented woman. The people in my life who have gone out of their way to help me and care for me are people from big cities. I've found some of the nicest, most moral people I've ever met to be native San Franciscans. I've met highly family oriented people in Chicago and had a greater sense of "community" there than in the small town I was raised. I knew my neighbors and would babysit for them and sit out on their porch and have a glass of wine or beer, something that never happened in my small town. It's just bizarro land to me that small towns are held up and bastions of "America.""



So whatever. Live where you want to live. But don't say that where you live is superior to somewhere else. It can be highly offensive to a whole lot of people who do make their homes there.
Everyone should have the choice of where they want to live without being judged for it.