Exactly my feelings. Totally recognize most states have lots of accepting, lovely people, but doesn’t change the laws.
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You just REALLY REALLY cannot generalize about a whole state. I am sure there are conservative Christian communities in parts of California and New York, too. They are everywhere.
BUT one of THE most liberal voting places in the country is in NC. Durham County voted 79.85% Harris to 18.16% for Trump (slightly more Harris voters than San Francisco which was 79.7% for Harris). It’s super diverse with a majority minority population (about 40% white folks, the rest, Black, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, and others).
ALL of the major cities in NC vote blue. We are heavily, heavily gerrymandered and have a GOP led state legislature, but a Democratic governor. Trump won the state twice (lost once), and Obama won once. We’re a very mixed bag.
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There are absolutely conservative communities (Christian and non) everywhere.
And even in my uber blue community- we have a Planned Parenthood clinic near me which has protesters almost every day. Some of them are loud and aggressive (but it’s not against the law to be loud). Some of them cross the boundary into really obnoxious and tasteless in terms of their signs and chants. But again- not against the law to carry a tasteless sign.
BUT- when you calmly tell them “The law allows you to protest on the sidewalk across the street from the clinic, but NOT to block the door or to menace people getting out of their cars and if you don’t move back I will call the police” they move. Because they know that the cops know the law. And will not hesitate to enforce it.
So yeah- the local cops understand that it is their job to protect people who are walking into a health facility, regardless of what they are there for, and regardless of their own PERSONAL beliefs about said legal (in my state) medical procedure.
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Hence my comment above that some kids might consider say NC and Georgia but not some other southern states.
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In my sons’ SF Bay Area HS, more kids than ever in the class of 2025 went to out-of-state flagships, especially those in the South and Florida, including my S25, who ended up at the University of Florida after considering mostly southern flagships over any UC or CSU school. S26 is hoping for the same as are many of his friends.
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I actually wasn’t talking about that at all (and I think people can be authentically themselves across the political spectrum without imposing their politics on others – I’m fine with comfortable and even uncomfortable disagreement as long as it does not seek to oppress).
I meant friendliness that’s so pervasive that it feels fake (i.e., the southern “bless your heart” or the SoCal beach vibe). I was responding to the comment that the South is friendlier than other regions, and I meant that I prefer a culture that doesn’t impose a universal expectation of friendliness and rather allows for a wider spectrum of personal demeanor.
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I think the colleges we mention on this forum are all safe. Yes, UGA is not flashy like Harvard or Duke but they are an extremely well-respected state flagship - A flagship! Probably in the top 10% of all colleges in the US.
Note that there are over 2000 colleges and universities in the US. People may make fun of schools like Alabama or Mississippi State on football forums but they still represent the top 10% of all universities in the US.
The troble start brewing, IMO, at schools like [insert direction, city, school] - like Northwest Missouri State or Denver Technical College (totally made those names up). That is where the brunt of foreclosures and enrollment declines will be felt
Actually, there are over 4000 degree granting post secondary institutions in the US!
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But what do the demographics look like for those who go south versus go non-south?
University of Alabama enrollment is 1% Asian and 72% White, even with nearly 2/3 from out of state. Seems like the attraction to it is limited demographically.
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My D would be very happy about that if she does end up going to GA Tech!
Hard to believe it’s gayer than San Francisco though. (Speaking as someone who lived in the Castro for many years!)
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I was going to say exactly that. SF wins 
https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/MSA-LGBT-Ranking-Mar-2021.pdf
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That’s for sure! For D26, ‘good weather’ = ‘I can get away with just wearing a sweatshirt in the winter.’ 
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477 out of 32253. You are correct. But there was a thread on this once and I pointed out others even more white. UVM 83% - likely a lot of NYers. There were others including elite privates. And many schools - like Delaware and Colorado - aren’t far behind in % of white students. Others are higher - will have to find the post.
You can have that anywhere.
Are certain ethnicities or religions less likely to make a move ?
I’m sure - but many have no choice - they put employment or in the case of college - football or cost - first.
Bottom line is - and the thread said kids - data of the last 20 years doesn’t lie.
It’s not all but there’s a pattern. And it’s where job growth will be.
Will NYC and Boston still exist and thrive ? Of course. But maybe Albany or Pittsfield or Wilkes Barre or Altoona won’t.
Albany is the state capitol. Whether you like it or not it’s not going anywhere. Between the lobbyists, the legislators, and the overseas investors who are there to make investment/economic development deals, it’s got a long way to go even if every kid in the State of NY packs it in for Mississippi.
Need a 
response emoji!
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Utica, Bing, Worcester, You understand the point.
Let’s not forget Hartford came very close to going bk the other year. State bailout.
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A quarter of the cities in the sunbelt have under-funded pension liabilities for their firefighters, police officers, sanitation workers. Their time in the BK spotlight will be here before you know it.
I get your point- the Northeast is dead. But that’s not what the numbers in the Brookings study showed. And if indeed most of the population growth in our country has come from/will come from immigration (which the Brookings study showed) then the more friendly immigration locales are likely to benefit more than the immigration-hostile locales.
It’s a little more complicated than just a bunch of 18 year olds who want to join a sorority for four years.
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What is the point? There are numerous small cities and towns in trouble in the south, too. Not to mention the rankings in certain states for K-12 education, health etc.
As somebody upthread alluded to, it would be interesting to see how many of these students actually stay in the south. My close relative went to school in Atlanta, and had a great time there, but never even considered staying in the south after graduation. I’m sure some do though, especially in places like the NC research triangle. But how many stay in Alabama, Mississippi , South Carolina etc? (Not that it matters, but I turned down a job at one of the companies you mentioned earlier as relocating headquarters, because the destination was unattractive to my family - not the city itself, but the state laws. Yes, the lack of state income tax was appealing, but nowhere near enough to offset state laws and similar considerations. For other people, cost will trump those. Everyone has their own priorities.)
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Agreed. I noted employment all along. Thx
Tik Tok resonates. 
There’s some high profile sorority, football and cheer tiktoker’s and the marketing is working. Personally I would never pay out of state tuition for a state school. In Dallas lots of the kids think the big SEC schools are cool and “look fun” - cost is no concern. 
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