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Duluth scores low on accepting those not
"from here"

by Melanie Ford
Zenith City Weekly

hen I was thinking about moving to Duluth years ago, friends warned me to think twice. Tight–knit, they called it. "Good ol’ boys" run the town. If you’re not "from here," you’ll never belong. I even heard the word "incestuous."

Always up for an adventure, my daughter and I moved here anyway. She was a junior in high school and had a bad time of it.

Her only friends were foreign exchange students (maybe because she was perceived to be one, due to her last name). She soon left to live with her dad so she could go back to her old school district.

The friends I’ve made here are mostly other transplants. It is rare for us to have friends who grew up in Duluth. Even those who have lived here many years still can’t quite say they’re "from here." I see there was something to those warnings.

In a metro area, people rarely ask where you’re from; here, it’s the first thing I am asked. For people of color, the question is a constant reminder they don’t "belong."

Why isn’t this a community where people are judged for their attributes instead of where they came from?

In 2010, the John S. & James L. Knight Foundation, with help from Gallup, concluded a three–year "Soul of the Community" study of 26 cities, including Duluth, to find out what attaches people to a community.

Prior Gallup research showed a link between employee engagement in the workplace and business success. Soul of the Community similarly found higher rates of economic growth in communities where residents feel higher attachment.

The study concluded that, beyond basic services, three factors create that sense of attachment:

•aesthetics, the physical beauty of the area and availability of parks and green spaces;
•social offerings, such as places to meet people, a vibrant nightlife, arts and cultural opportunities, and the feeling that residents care about each other; and
•openness, how welcoming the community is to different types of people.

Duluthians rated our aesthetics highly, but were rather negative about social offerings and significantly negative regarding openness.

About a quarter of survey respondents felt Duluth is a good place to meet people. Four–fifths thought people don’t care about each other and even more said the area lacks art and cultural opportunities.

Only nine to eleven percent agreed Duluth is a welcoming place for people of color, immigrants, and gays and lesbians.

Among comparable cities in the study, Duluth scored lowest in openness. Given that 93 percent of our community identify as White, it must not be only people of color who feel this way.

Considering my own perceptions of Duluth, these results came as no surprise. I’ve tried to recruit people of color to work here because not many have applied for positions I have needed to fill.

But when I approach the subject with people from other areas, I hear that Duluth is too racist. That elected leaders don’t take a public stand for an open community. The media are biased. Law enforcement profiles people of color. They are confined to their "’hoods" and expected to "know their place." Neighbors and merchants are suspicious of them.

If Duluth wants economic success, we would be wise to read the Soul of the Community report and heed its findings. Our leaders alone cannot create attachment.

We need to engage our neighbors in conversation, learn the histories and cultures of people who aren’t like us, volunteer our time to undo racism, celebrate differences, find our similarities, and strive for equality.

We need to insist our government leaders, including those in education, take racial equity into account and call media outlets to the plate when they edit reports in a way that perpetuates bias.

I’ve often wondered why more White people don’t attend cultural celebrations, such as Kwaanza, Juneteenth, Cinco de Mayo, Native American powwows or forums, or Hmong New Year. Why don’t more straight people attend Gay Pride? Our colleges and churches offer many opportunities to learn about people in other countries and why they immigrate.

People ask me why I write a column about racism. Sure, I want racial equity, but I love people. I want everyone to feel attached to his or her community, neighborhood, and schools.

That can’t happen if we don’t talk about race and make a commitment to creating a positive and open social environment. And, if you believe the Knight Foundation, it would go a long way towards our economic growth as well.

Melanie Ford is a lawyer in Duluth. She is on the Board of Directors of Clayton Jackson McGhie Memorial, Inc., which works to eliminate racism and the disparate impact of political, social, and governmental policies on people of color.

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