[Stacee27910]

I live in Sugar Land, a small community on the outskirts of Houston, Texas. My neighborhood is highly culturally diverse. We have a large population of Asian Indians, and their presence is wonderful. I see so many lovely Indian families, including the grandparents, taking walks in the evenings. When I work out at our community center gym, it is very unusual to see a group of teens who are all the same ethnicity. As far as homophobia, I don't know about my neighborhood, but my parents live in another of Houston's burbs. They have a same-sex couple on the same street, and it's really no big deal. As far as conformity, if you live in a "master planned community" your deed restictions will result in some uniformity in the neighborhood, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It sets some minimum standards for housekeeping. Finally, in some burbs, people don't interact much on the sidewalks of the neighborhood. Many people have long commutes and two-income households and just want to crash when they get home. But these neighborhoods often have community centers and social and service organizations that act as a means for people to get to know one another. I hope you enjoy your new home. My hubby and I love ours!

User Detail :  

Name : Stacee27910, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Christian, Age : 30, City : Sugar Land, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : TV director, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, 

[Rhiannon]

For commuting reasons, my partner and I are moving from the city to an upper middle-class suburb (Eden Prairie, MN). My head is filled with nasty stereotypes about suburbia. I fear conformity, materialism, unfriendliness, racism and homophobia. What can we really expect?

User Detail :  

Name : Rhiannon, Gender : F, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Jewish, Age : 28, City : Minneapolis, State : MN Country : United States, Occupation : Media studies graduate student, 

[Ne1]

I moved to a middle-class suburb of Milwaukee when I was sorta young, and I'd just like to tell you that the stereotypes aren't 100 percent true. Oh, sure, there are those perfect, straight-laced people. There are old women who will gawk and gasp about every little thing. That's not a lie. But they aren't all like that. My family is really extremely loose about quite a lot, and it's not like there's June Cleaver/Carol Brady android-types coming over and attacking us. There are decent people here, but there are a couple wackos, too. But isn't that true everywhere?

User Detail :  

Name : Ne1, Gender : F, Age : 15, City : Greendale, State : WI Country : United States, 

[Andrew]

As with people, there's a lot of variety in suburbs. In many, you'd be right to fear rampant conformity, materialism and narrow-mindedness of all stripes. Many people move to suburbs to get away from the messy city, where there are too many different kinds of people for these poor dears to cope with. But many suburbs are quite nice. The one I live in has a major gay pride parade every year. The school district is about 40 percent minority. There is a foreign film theater. A big independent book store. Several organic groceries. Lots of nice restaurants. So, there's hope. And if you happen to have picked the 'wrong' suburb, I guess you can start to make it a 'right' one.

User Detail :  

Name : Andrew, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 35, City : Huntington, State : NY Country : United States, Occupation : Reporter, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[John C.]

About 13 years ago, my father, a successful Hispanic businessman, was planning to move into our present house. The neighborhood was affluent upper-middle class, and because he worked late into the night, he found himself moving a carload of things into the house in the evening. A party was going on, and the guests had parked in our driveway, so my dad got out to ask a hired security guard to get someone to move them. He scoffed at my father, as did others who were just leaving, not believing my father could live there. My father showed he lived there by producing the control to the garage door, and the party-goers then rushed to get out of his way. Today, I don't know a single one of my neighbors, except for my uncle, who lives across the street, but I believe this is because of apathy on all parts. I'm not saying all neighborhoods are like that, but that's what ours is like.

User Detail :  

Name : John C., Gender : M, Race : Hispanic/Latino (may be any race), Age : 17, City : San Antonio, State : TX Country : United States, Occupation : Host, Education level : High School Diploma, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Shirlee]

You need to know the type of suburb you're moving to. All are different. We have one child and moved to a suburb filled with children younger than she. We knew everyone's kids and pets, but we never really knew the people. We've since moved to 'the city' and feel infinitely more at home. Friends I have would never live in the city. Their suburban neighbors are friendly and they are happy. Research your suburb. Know why you are moving there. Don't listen to Realtors who say the city is 'unsafe.' We bought that line and had to give away our house in the suburbs just to get out. We love the convenience of being close to the art museum, the theater, the independent movie house and the unique shops and restaurants, as well as the colleges that have programs for the public. If you want a house, convenience to the malls, etc., then the suburbs may be for you.

User Detail :  

Name : Shirlee, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 46, City : Rochester, State : NY Country : United States, Occupation : librarian, 

[Tim24600]

How about if you don't 'expect' anything. Move there, get active in your community, and make it the kind of place that you want it to be. Why form prejudices before you even get there?

User Detail :  

Name : Tim24600, Gender : M, Race : White/Caucasian, City : Milwaukee, State : WI Country : United States, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Upper middle class, 

[Charles32273]

'Commuting' was the second word of your question, and I hope you're ready for it. Living in the suburbs means, basically, that everything on earth (except TV) is at least a twenty minute drive away. As the other answers mentioned, there is always more diversity flooding into the suburbs, but they are a very special kind of mixing pot. People of all backgrounds are accepted, as long as they are willing to chip in and be judged on the same things. Is your house nice? Well-painted? Is the lawn finely manicured? Is your all-important car freshly washed? It isn't more than 5 years old, is it? Do you have your 2.5 kids yet? If not, why not? If so, how are they doing in school? What sports are they playing? Are you enjoying the books Oprah tells you to enjoy? When are you having a barbecue/dinner party? In short, in the modern suburbs you get to meet a surprisingly wide cast of characters - genuinely interesting and diverse people - but all of them choosing to play a surprisingly few roles. Best of luck!

User Detail :  

Name : Charles32273, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Agnostic, Age : 24, City : Albuquerque, State : NM Country : United States, Occupation : Architect, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Lower middle class, 

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