The "New South" - could someone from the area tell me a little more?

[absyntheNsugar]

Could someone from the area tell me a little bit about the "New South"?

From what I know:

- They voted for Clinton in 92 and 96, they voted for Bush in 2000
- Made up of a demographic very similar to Silicon Valley
- More conservative than Silicon Valley
- More religious than Silicon Valley
- Drives Acuras and Accords, not Pick up trucks
- Biggest concentrations in RTP, NC and Atlanta, GA


Are they a big factor? Do they vote?

[southerngirlwriter]

1. I live in Huntsville, AL

where we have better-educated people than just about anywhere else in the state -- mostly transplants who work NASA and various government agencies and defense contractors.

I would concur with your characteristics listed above. I know many "New South" types. The only caveat I would add is that while they are religious, they do not, as a rule, attend nutcase-RW type churches. They are Episcopalians, Lutherans, and Methodists, for the most part, not Southern or Fundamental Baptists, and certainly not Pentecostals or Holiness or Nazarenes.

Hell yes, they vote, and all the ones I know well HATE whistle-ass. They're not rabid liberals, like I am, and like most people on DU - they're much more centrist - but they HATE whistle-ass.

[absyntheNsugar]

3. Thats what I hope!

Since they did make all the difference in 92 and 96...

I guess religion is a given in the South as it seems a lot of social structure is based around it. I had a good friend from Nashville and when I met her in the Peace Corps one of her first questions was "what church do you go to?" She wasn't strictly religious per se, but the churches in Nashville had a lot of social functions built around them. If you were single in Nashville, she said, your chances of meeting other people in a new town increased if you went to church.

[southerngirlwriter]

4. Churches here take the place of many social services

and other social functions. Most "dances" and stuff like that around here are in churches. Most square dancers, bridge players, bingo players, supper clubs, book clubs, recovery groups, etc., meet in churches.

When it comes to hard times here, you're much more likely to get help, and get it fast, calling a church than calling the police or seeking help through the state.

So yes, it's a big part of the social structure. Even in department stores that aren't explicitly Christian-owned like Hobby Lobby, lots of times the music in the background will be contemporary Christian music (usually without lyrics, though).

[SharonAnn]

5. Yes, they also are the places with facilities for large meetings

or other functions. I've never before lived in a place where you had to have a connection to a church (could be a friend) in order to find (or even rent) a place to have a large gathering, dinner, fund-raising event, etc.

Just boggles my mind.

[whistle]

2. Dean had it pretty much pegged...

...:headbang:

[Physicist]

6. I'm from Florida

I spent 10 years of my life in Florida. I always thought "the New South" referred to the entire region, because it is now different from the "old South" of previous times. The "New South" is more technology and service oriented, and desegregation is accepted and African Americans get a long better than in some parts of America partly because they are a decent-sized minority. The South has 55% of America's Black population.

Florida has a lot of people from New York and Illinois.

[Jose Diablo]

7. Based on the primary vote in Georgia

Roughly 70 percent of the voters in the Georgia primary voted to select a democrat. But the numbers within my county indicate only about 10% of registered voters voted in the primary.

I cannot give a prediction for November, there is a lot of anger at *Bush down here.

Much of the area I live in is filled with transplants, but it is still republican. There is a potential Democrat base here due to the transplants, but its like the local party is asleep. A least the local has a web site now. 8 months ago, this county didn't have a Democrat web site that was up. There is one now. I doubt there is enough time to gather the transplant vote.


The left is almost non-existent here. When the unions fought and won up north, down here the unions fought and lost. The few unions that where here, came mostly from huge corporation factories like Automotive (UAW) and Communications (CWA, IBEW).

Outside of the large cities, you have a lot of one factory towns. And many of those factories have closed the doors and gone to places like the "rich coast".

But new factories do come in sometimes. Georgia is very corporate friendly, tax and labor laws wise.

This is the buckle of the bible belt. You get out of the large cities, its mostly Southern Baptist, very conservative.

I expect Georgia to go to *Bush, sorry to say.

[mlawson]

8. ??? I was in Charlotte this afternoon.

HUGE city now: the downtown is all chrome and glass, hotels, banks, smart cafes and expensive shops, just like many other US cities, all over the place. It looks like NY, from the distance, but getting around is easy as pie.

People there were from everywhere: I head not one stereotypical "Southern" accent the whole time I was there. I saw NO bumperstickers, for any person any party. I saw all the 'major' races interacting, just as we would want them to. I was not honked at or yelled at one time. Everyone I dealt with was friendly, and they do look you in the eye.

I found a gigantic Oriental supermarket (the reason I went). Inside, there were shoppers of many different nationalities; no rudeness, no glaring (that I saw). Everyone seemed to be completely respectful of each other.

I saw no racist or religious billboards, and nothing of that sort on the radio. Tis was a thoroughly pleasant experience, and I expect to return there soon.

[arewethereyet]

9. do they vote ? every one of them !

and they vote moderate and they vote their pocketbook.