portland is white. like, really really white. [people]
Wednesday, July 28, 2010 at 8:22AM
last week, i went to portland, oregon for a conference. it was a quick in and out trip - i arrived at about 1am on monday and took the red eye home on tuesday night. since i was there for work, i didn't have much time to actually see the city. i was staying downtown, so i got to see some of the 'hood on the way to dinner (at veritable quandary, one of the best restaurants i've ever been to) on monday night. and i had a few hours to kill before my flight tuesday night, so i got to hit a few bars, another great restaurant (mother's, where i had some divine mac n' cheese), and the uber-popular voodoo donuts for dessert. it was a perfect trip. except for one thing: there were no minorities.
it's weird to be in a city and turn around and see nothing but white people. like, only white people. i think i saw two black people, one indian, and a hispanic - and i'm almost positive they were all in town for the convention. i'm from new york. i'm used to seeing a rainbow of individuals. and being in a place with only crackers got me a little nervous and uncomfortable.
adding to the discomfort were the tons of homeless youth walking the streets of portland. homeless 22 year olds begging you for money, and not letting up when you say no. again - a total shocker. the nyc homeless are no fucking joke. these kids just came off lazy and annoying to me.
but maybe i didn't see the right portland. so tell me folks - anyone been to portland before and have something different to say?
Reader Comments (3)
I went to a conferece in Portalnd last year. Here's what I remember: (1) homeless people everywhere! and (2) lots of goth kids outside Voodoo Donuts. Maybe they were just homeless? I didn't think it was still cool to be goth...
I can't speak to Portland per se, but Seattle looks like that too. Only it isn't lily-white, it's segregated: there are black people in the city but the races mix surprisingly little, and just as you say, for someone from the East or the South, it's disturbing. It's a mystery I've wondered about for some years. And, just as you say, the amateur homeless, who go back to their upper-middle-class suburban, yes, HOMES, when the weather gets bad are a giant annoyance. No mystery there: I blame grunge.
It's weird to be in a city and turn around and see nothing but white people." Try small-town England!
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