I have previously voiced my skepticism of rankings of various kinds, be they complementary or critical of the Bull City. But the appeal of traffic-pleasing ratings arms race is too strong for many online publications to resit. The latest, courtesy of the Daily Beast, crowns Durham the most tolerant city in America. Durham comes ahead of San Fransisco (third) and Honolulu (second).
The rankings were based on measuring racial diversity, religious tolerance, same-sex marriage rates and hate-crime reporting rates. But this analysis conveniently ignores the larger tapestry of state laws that,arguably, affect local residents to the same if not greater extent than the cities where they live.
Although I am very proud of Durham's diversity and progressive politics, we are still living in a fairly conservative southern state. To say that Durham is a better place for a same-sex couple than New York City or Boston would be ludicrous, as both of those states have legalized gay marriage. Similarly, no matter how welcoming a community Durham may be to undocumented migrants, the larger policies of North Carolina are surely less advantageous to that community than the more immigrant-friendly laws of California and Hawaii.
So readers, we’d like to know what you think.Do you think Durham is the most tolerant city in America?
No comments:
Post a Comment