[Rosanne]

Why do most black people in the South walk slowly? I live in Central Florida and most of the black people - young and old - walk slowly going from one place to another. The white people who walk slowly are usually old.

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Name : Rosanne, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Methodist, Age : 44, City : Tampa, State : FL Country : United States, Occupation : Purchasing manager, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Tish]

Yes, black people move slower in the South, but so do most Southerners. I wasn't aware of this until I moved from Georgia to New Jersey. I think the South has just got a more laid back pace than other places.

User Detail :  

Name : Tish, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 22, City : Newark, State : NJ Country : United States, Occupation : Graduate student, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, 

[PappaJerry]

Funny, we're from the same place, and I never noticed.

User Detail :  

Name : PappaJerry, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 66, City : Tampa, State : FL Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Richard]

It is difficult to say or nod salutations (hello, good morning, how you doin, etc.) while racing from one place to another. I was born, raised, and educated in the South. Saying hello or good morning is/was a way of life and it was considered quite rude if you did not greet a passer-by. with such a habit engrained in my way of being, I experienced a severe culture shock when I visited California at the age of 18 (I am now 42) where people would give me strange looks for saying hello or good morning or how you doin'. My new California friends commented on how slow I walked, too. Not only did we greet people but "back home" we were never in a hurry unless we were running late for the bus. Even then, if we saw a familiar face we at least raised a hand to gesture hello.

Taking our time to say hello or "How you doin?' also allowed us the opportunity to chat, to gossip, to educate, to spread the news, to understand life, to share joys, to share fears, to show respect, and most of all to share the love that gave us a sense of community. Our lives today are so hurried that we are rapidly losing respect for each other, our sense of love is misguided and our families and communities are disjointed and often filled with impersonal contacts.

Many of the old ways are still a part of my life and the lives of many blacks raised in the South, as you so keenly noticed. However some habits have given way to modern civilities (i.e "It's not nice to talk to strangers."). So, although there may be some caution with saying hello to people these days there is no harm in taking your time to get where you are going.

User Detail :  

Name : Richard, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Age : 42, City : orlando, State : FL Country : United States, Occupation : architect, 

[Augustine23580]

First of all, I'm not going to lie and say I've never noticed this. Not all black people walk slowly and not all slow walkers are black, but it is something you notice, especially in 'crowd' situations such as shopping malls. It only becomes an issue if one person wants to walk slowly, another person wants to walk quickly, and the slow walker is impeding the fast one, or put another way, the fast walker is about to trample the slow one. I'm afraid that it does come across as passive-aggressive, whether intentional or not, as if to say 'I am walking at my own pace, and what's more, I was not put on this earth to cater to white people, so if you want to walk fast, you're going to have to wait until there is some clearance between us, and even then, you'll have to shove around me'. On the other hand, my wife and I (both of us are white) were in the store the other day, and a man (white) was right on our heels. I motioned for my wife to step aside and muttered something like 'let's let this man get past us --- run us down, why don't you?' loudly enough for him to hear it. A little mutual consideration all the way around could help human relations in general and race relations in particular.

User Detail :  

Name : Augustine23580, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 39, City : Columbia, State : SC Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Todd24650]

I have noticed the same thing in the Midwest. I am a college student at a school with few blacks. Everytime I am behind one walking they do walk sooooo slow. I have no idea why. Maybe I just like to walk fast. But it sure seems to me they do walk slower than whites. Another thing I noticed is that they always have headphones and a CD player and sing to the music. Why don't whites do that?

User Detail :  

Name : Todd24650, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 22, City : Hays, State : KS Country : United States, Occupation : Student, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Lower class, 

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