| And... That's why statistics alone don't paint a very accurate picture. The culture of the midwest varies a lot from state to state. In many ststes like Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona white and Mexican cultures are pretty consistently intermixed. Most of the hispanics are second or third generation Chicanos who grew up in American schools and primarily speak English. Basically, Caucasian and Hispanic family makeup is pretty much indistinguishable. Outside of the major metros (ie Detroit, Chicago), citys don't have inner-city ghettos like you'd find on the East/West coast.' In Colorado, the suburbs that are almost all white, upper middle class consist mostly of Californians who left Cali for cheaper property and a higher standard of living. They are, by no means, representative of the local culture. I'm not sure how you came to the conclusion that more homogeneity causes less inequality. Maybe in terms of cultural homogeneity. The opposite is true in areas where strictly racial homogeneity is the norm. In cities like Detroit and Memphis neighborhoods could be clearly and easily separated on racial boundaries. Racism is rampant on both sides. As for Black people in the midwest. I didn't live close enough to the city so I can't really say one way or another. The black families that live in the suburbs are clearly the minority in terms of numbers and apparently in terms of culture. The black families I've known from the suburbs usually have good, stable families, and their children do as well or better in schools than the norm. Of course, I'm speaking in terms of the western mid-west. The demographic of, say, Iowa will be dramatically different. Likewise, St. Louis it will be dramatically different in a completely different way. Trying to assess the US statistically as one whole is like trying to measure all of Europe as one country. There is a lot of cultural variation between the different states and people generally migrate away from areas that lack a culture that they identify with. |