How is Houston's African-American Culture/Population compared to Atlanta

[Houston?]

I'm moving from Atlanta in a year. I'm tied between Dallas, Houston, and Charlotte. As a black man I will miss Atlanta AA culture. If I decide on Houston will I get that same AA culture there that I have here in Atlanta.

[ricco67]

I think american airlines operates the same way here compared to atlanta.

Otherwise I don't think you would notice much of a difference here.

[lockmat]

alcoholics anonymous?

[ChrisPHous]

African American...

I am white and I can't comment on Charolette, but Houston is very mixed. Houston has a very strong black culture and I think that it is very comparable to Atlanta's. If you could be more specific as to what you are wondering about it would probably be easier to answer any questions.

Dallas I find a little more segregated than Houston and AA culture doesn't have much of a presence, at least on the surface in that city.

[ToryGattis]

From my blog:

http://houstonstrategies.blogspot.com/2007/04/curing-everything-metro-analysis-2.html

"

Black Enterprise magazine recently

ranked

Houston the fourth-best city for African Americans, behind DC, Atlanta, and Raleigh-Durham (???). Thanks to

Houstonist

for the heads up, and they have

some of their own thoughts

.

And here's more on the culture of Houston, which I believe also applies to the local AA community:

http://houstonstrategies.blogspot.com/2007/07/many-meanings-houston-as-open-city-of.html

http://houstonstrategies.blogspot.com/2006/07/houston-branding-identity-week-history.html

Just ranked as the most diverse major city in the country, including over NYC

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Houston-region-is-now-the-most-diverse-in-the-U-S-3382354.php#photo-2584248

[lockmat]

I doubt it. You're best chance for something comparable is to stay on the west side of town.

['Stonian]

Great Question!

Being an African-American (although I simply prefer "Black") and a native Houstonian who has live in Atlanta for the last 8 years with plans on moving back to Houston before the end of the year, I can say that you would be hard-pressed to find an equivalent of Atlanta's "AA" culture anywhere in the U.S. save for maybe the Washington D.C./Balitmore area and to a lesser extent Chicago or New York. While NYC has a huge AA population, it's considerably less "American" with it's strong, Dominican/Puerto Rican/Jamaican/Caribbean influences. Atlanta has always appeared to be more "straight-up" African American, with less foreign born black ancestry. Generally the further west you travel in the U.S., the less black, and hence less "black culture", you'll encounter.

When comparing black culture in Houston and ATL you have to first take into account the fact that the Atlanta MSA has almost 2 million blacks (30% of its entire population) while Houston has about 1 million (roughly 17% of the population) and Dallas-Fort Worth a little less than 1 million (or 15%).

Houston is also similar to NYC in that a good portion of its blacks are of foreign ancestry, mainly African and Caribbean. IMHO opinion I think Houston has a good mix and diversity of people. Whereas in ATL you could absorb yourself in black (african american) culture and never experience much outside of your race, that won't be as easy to do in Houston as you will miss out on much else of what the city has to offer. Houston's Hispanic, Asian, and Indian communities add considerably to the vibe of the city and I believe you would cheat yourself by not embracing or appreciating their culture.

I do feel you on your main question though because I've asked myself time and time again "Can I submit to live full-time in Houston again, having become use to (spoiled by?) all the black culture of a place like ATL?" and I can honestly say that Houston has a large AA community and can replicate some of the black culture seen in Atlanta, but it will never be an exact equal. As stated earlier, the only cities I've found to replicate what Atlanta has in terms of black culture would be the Washington D.C./Baltimore area.

Cities like Detroit, Memphis, and Birmingham are similar to Atlanta in terms of demographics however they are not nearly as affluent, neither do they give you that big city vibe. DFW is similar to Houston as far as black culture goes, however overall the area is not as diverse as Houston and as an earlier poster commented, you kind of sense more of a segregated atmosphere, although I sensed that same heavily segregated vibe when I first moved to Atlanta (and still do for that matter).

If you choose to relocate, I think you'll eventually learn to love H-town. It will definitely take some getting used to if all you're looking for is an Atlanta copy. But eventually you'll expand your horizons and begin to appreciate ALL of the black culture the city has to offer.

I hope that helps!

[Simbha]

I certainly can't offer the sort of embedded perspective that Houstonian (N-ATL) can provide, but I will say that I have found Atlanta to be a somewhat more segregated town than Houston.

Eric Fischer visualized the distribution of race/ethnicity by metro area with the following maps (other cities are available, as well):

Race and Ethnicity 2010: Houston

Race and Ethnicity 2010: Atlanta

Red is whites; blue is blacks. You can see that Houston's diversity is largely spread out as pie slices around the city center, while Atlanta's is very much divided between north and south sections. Also, Houston's map shows quite a bit more purple (and other mixed colors - as well as more colors, generally).

Houston's generally a more diverse city than Atlanta, and also has much more mixing of these groups. I live on the border between the south-central blue spoke in that image, and the red spoke that's to its left. As mentioned by Houstonian (N-ATL) above, Houston has a large number of foreign-born black people, and this is reflected in the diversity of the third ward (the center of Houston's historic black culture) itself in some ways. There are many venues I love to visit on the weekends, for example - the Reggae Hut, a variety of soul food places, and others. I recognize that black culture is far more than just my patronizing a few venues on the weekend, but this city is just too rich in culture for me to focus on just one!

Anyway, to answer your question more directly -- It does appear that Houston's black culture will be quite different from that of Atlanta... but, who knows? Maybe it'll be more your thing once you're exposed to it.

[Houston?]

Thanks for the replies. I didnt try to come off as racist but I just thats one thing I like about Atlanta...its black culture. Being that Im thinking about settling in Houston or the other cities I was trying to see if I could get the same black experience in Houston as in Atlanta. I didnt even know Houston had a large black population though.

[ricco67]

Thanks for the replies. I didnt try to come off as racist but I just thats one thing I like about Atlanta...its black culture. Being that Im thinking about settling in Houston or the other cities I was trying to see if I could get the same black experience in Houston as in Atlanta. I didnt even know Houston had a large black population though.

Your post did come across as being a bit xenophobic.

To simply make sure you have a particular "culture" you want to hang out with, to me, describes someone that isn't that open to other things and other ideas.

It's akin to a Mexican American that simply seeks out a portion of the city where you don't have to speak english, eat nothing but tacos, and hang out at the mexican bar and listen to Tejano and Ranchero music.

Of course, I could be totally off base of what I'm saying.

[mikehouston]

It's akin to a Mexican American that simply seeks out a portion of the city where you don't have to speak english, eat nothing but tacos, and hang out at the mexican bar and listen to Tejano and Ranchero music.

I think it is totally legitimate to ask if "your culture", whatever that culture is, has a decent presence in another city. It does not mean you are not also open to experiencing other things and cultures.

I actually hear this all the time from Hispanic people who are not so keen on moving to places in the North that are otherwise big / diverse cities - like Seattle / Minneapolis / Detroit - because they are used to having the plethora of options for Hispanic culture, food, etc. that they have here in Houston - cities like LA / Miami with the established Hispanic cultures are much more appealing to them - and I don't blame them. The fact is Houston is a top US city for Hispanic culture (and have you tried the Mexican food in Seattle? It is terrible).

Also - I think this comes into play for religious groups - since for many religions being able to experience their celebrations / rituals / foods as part of the larger community is important to them. This is especially true for religious minorities in the US - who do not want to go live in some place like Fargo ND if that means giving up their religious community.

Also - they've done studies on racism, and one interesting finding I've seen is that although most people are not what we would consider racists, most people do have a strong preference to live in a neighborhood where there is at least one other member of that neighborhood that is like them - whether that is black / white / hispanic / or some religious minority. So - some diversity is actually something we are wired for. But living in an area where we are basically "sticking out" is not something most people look for. You can see this in Houston - we have historically black areas, white areas, Chinatown, etc - even though these areas still tend to be pretty diverse as well.

That said, I agree with previous posters that ATL is pretty much in a league by itself when it comes to AA culture. But Houston does have a large AA community so if that is what you are seeking you should be able to find that culture here as well. Of the "black" places I know around town, Etta's (http://www.29-95.com...ts-ettas-lounge) used to be a blast. And the Breakfast Klub is supposed to be awesome though I haven't been yet: http://www.youtube.c...?v=ekAupa6_jQA. Third Ward is the historic black area: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Third_Ward,_Houston. We also have a black theater - the Ensemble - http://www.ensemblehouston.com/. They put on some great shows. We have great jazz clubs etc. I say all of this as a non AA who just likes to try various cultures out. Doesn't compare to ATL but pretty good compared to a lot of other places.

[KinkaidAlum]

Here are just the raw numbers between DFW and Houston.

The State of Texas estimates that there are currently 6,955,794 people in DFW. Of that number, 654,714 are black. That represents 9.4% of the total population.

Greater Houston is estimated to have a population of 6,280,138. Of that, 1,025,005 are black. That's 16.3% of the total population.

I don't have a ton of experience with DFW, but it appears on the surface to be less diverse than Houston AND more segregated. Also, DFW doesn't have a strong HBCU in town. The only one I can think of is Paul Quinn College. Meanwhile, Houston has Texas Southern in the heart of the Third Ward (still the hub of inner-city African-American culture with things like Emancipation Park, TSU, Riverside, Project Row Houses, S.H.A.P.E, numerous mega-churches and the growing Almeda Rd. corridor) and Prairie View ATM just up the road off of US 290.

Now, TSU and PVATMU can't compete with the likes of Stillman, Morehouse, Clark Atlanta, etc... but I think they do help with the Houston "scene."

[KinkaidAlum]

I'd also add that the U of Houston, just across Scott Street from Texas Southern, has a large African-American presence (estimated to have around 7,300+ black students). Frenchy's Chicken on Scott St. is a must to check out, especially late night after the bars close. Frenchy's is also a reflection of how much this city's "African-American" culture is peppered with Creole culture from Louisiana.

[RedScare]

Here are just the raw numbers between DFW and Houston.

The State of Texas estimates that there are currently 6,955,794 people in DFW. Of that number, 654,714 are black. That represents 9.4% of the total population.

Greater Houston is estimated to have a population of 6,280,138. Of that, 1,025,005 are black. That's 16.3% of the total population.

I don't have a ton of experience with DFW, but it appears on the surface to be less diverse than Houston AND more segregated. Also, DFW doesn't have a strong HBCU in town. The only one I can think of is Paul Quinn College. Meanwhile, Houston has Texas Southern in the heart of the Third Ward (still the hub of inner-city African-American culture with things like Emancipation Park, TSU, Riverside, Project Row Houses, S.H.A.P.E, numerous mega-churches and the growing Almeda Rd. corridor) and Prairie View ATM just up the road off of US 290.

Now, TSU and PVATMU can't compete with the likes of Stillman, Morehouse, Clark Atlanta, etc... but I think they do help with the Houston "scene."

I don't know where you found those numbers, but they appear to be way high for total population, and way low for Black population. The most optimistic population estimates usually come from the North Texas Council of Governments. Their 2012 estimate is 6,515,710 for the 12 county DFW MSA. The 2010 Census suggests a Black population of around 13.9%, or 900,000. However, this blog shows a population of 900,000 in just the 4 most populous counties.

http://gregsopinion.com/?p=10499

[KinkaidAlum]

I got the numbers from the Texas Department of State Health Services website. These are their projected 2012 population figures. However, I made a mistake in reading the columns.

This department gives figures for DFW combined as well as break downs for Dallas-Plano-Irving and Fort Worth-Arlington. The 654,714 number represents the estimation of black population for Dallas-Pano-Irving, not DFW total. The total figure for black population in all of DFW is 921,022 according to this agency (13.4% of total population) which would put it more in line with your link.

[citykid09]

A lot of the post on here seem to minimize the AA population in Texas and particularly in Houston. Texas has the 3rd largest AA population of all the States (just under New York and Florida). Houston is known as a top destination city for AAs just as Atlanta is, but Houston is also a top destination for many other groups of people as well. Atlanta is diverse, but not like Houston. I don't know how old you are, but if you are in your 20s or 30s, you may want to take a look at this site to get a feel of some of the AA club scene in the Houston Area. http://indmix.com/ Scroll down and click the "picture" tab to get a better glimpse.

[musicman]

i didn't realize saying african american was still acceptable. all my black friends hate it.

[Houston?]

Hey guys. Thanks for the replies even though I'm very very very late on the appreciation. LOL. I'm still torn. I really want to move to Houston considering that the economy is much better there than it is here. Due to that, many blacks from Atlanta are moving to Houston. Hopefully, the influx of blacks to Houston from Atlanta will give me that similar black vibe in Houston if I were to move to there.

['Stonian]

Embrace change, bite the bullet and move to H-town! I think you'll be just fine, but if you find Houston's black culture is not exactly on par with Atlanta, you can always hit up ATL every now and then for your "black-fix".

As I stated in an earlier post, I'll be moving to Houston just as soon as I can sell (more like "give away") my condo in Atlanta. Many friends of mine have moved away in the past 2 years as well, mostly due to the economy. The A has lost some of it's luster recently.., it'll come back eventually but it's going to take a while.

[Houston?]

It has really lost its luster. How is the nightlife? Atlanta's nightlife is a little played out and ghetto to me.

['Stonian]

Houston's nightlife is "up and coming". Every time I go back there's a new spot to visit. I prefer more upscale type of places though, so most times you'll definitely have to kinda dress-up. No blazers or slacks required, but some places will require a collared shirt, no caps and hard sole shoes for sure.

Still I'm somewhat laid back and casual so I always keep a pair of nice kicks in my car just in case I'm denied entry. H-town has its hood spots as well, but I can only do those places when I'm feeling gangster.

As citykid09 stated earlier, we don't know how old you are, but if you are in your 20s or 30s, you may want to take a look at http://indmix.com/ to get a feel of some of the AA club scene in the Houston Area. That's a popular site in Houston and the spots they advertise attract a nice crowd, very similar to what Atlanta can give you at times.

[Houston?]

I'm 30 and single. I'd just looked at the website and I must say that I am very impressed. Houston's AA nightlife doesn't seem pretentious and stuck-up like Atlanta's AA nightlife. It seems more fun. Hopefully I will visit at the end of the month.

[Simbha]

I'm 30 and single. I'd just looked at the website and I must say that I am very impressed. Houston's AA nightlife doesn't seem pretentious and stuck-up like Atlanta's AA nightlife. It seems more fun. Hopefully I will visit at the end of the month.

Dude, Houston is the most fun and laid back city in the world!

Okay, that's unnecessary and unjustified hyperbole - but it is a great town. I think if anyone comes to Houston with an open mind and heart, they'll find that this is a wonderful city in which to live with something for everyone.

[Houston?]

I've heard from friends that the party scene in Houston is not on par with Atlanta's. I will find out at the end of month.

[Blade Runner]

I only have one dog in this fight, and here it is.

Unless you were born in Africa, and emigrated here, you're NOT an "African American". You're simply, an American. That goes for ANY other culture as well. I see FAR too many people who want to label themselves as other than Americans, and it makes me sick. Personally, IMOO, if people want to label themselves that way, then they should go live where they are attempting to label themselves from.

Say for instance, (just an example here...) a fourth generation American kid whose lineage is Mexican, and yet he labels himself as a Mexican-American. If that kid wants that label, then he should move his little butt down there for a while, and see how it is. Until then though, just be proud to live in America, and be proud to call yourself an American.

Rant/off

[august948]

One nice thing about Houston, and Texas in general, is that you'll find less tension here between blacks and whites than there is in the southeastern states. People here tend to mix more and there's just more diversity.

[Houston?]

The thing is, here in Atlanta, it's segregated to say the least. Come on, this is Georgia. LOL. I want be around blacks and still stay true to my culture through social events and what nots but I don mind a little diversity.

[august948]

I think you'll find Houston to be quite a bit different. Atlanta is a magnet for well-to-do and well educated blacks, maybe in a unique way in the entire US, due to the Morehouse, Clark U nexus. Houston overall is more diverse and more working class. As far as I am aware TSU doesn't hold a candle to Morehouse/Clark I lived in Atlanta during the 90's and knew a lot of young black professionals who had moved there from all over the US, but particularly from the North East. I don't think Houston tends to draw young, well educated folks of any race except for energy sector jobs. That said, once you're here and settle down to raise a family, your perspective on what is important will change and Houston will shine in ways Atlanta never can.

[skwatra]

Previously someone had posted city snapshots of racial/ethnic maps. Here is an interactive version that is really neat to play with (contains income driven maps as well):

http://projects.nytimes.com/census/2010/explorer

[kylejack]

I only have one dog in this fight, and here it is.

Unless you were born in Africa, and emigrated here, you're NOT an "African American". You're simply, an American. That goes for ANY other culture as well. I see FAR too many people who want to label themselves as other than Americans, and it makes me sick. Personally, IMOO, if people want to label themselves that way, then they should go live where they are attempting to label themselves from.

But slavery erased the history and cultural background of dozens of generations. The AA name was an attempt to reconnect to that history.

Say for instance, (just an example here...) a fourth generation American kid whose lineage is Mexican, and yet he labels himself as a Mexican-American. If that kid wants that label, then he should move his little butt down there for a while, and see how it is. Until then though, just be proud to live in America, and be proud to call yourself an American.

Rant/off

Fortunately for that kid, this is a free country where you can call yourself whatever you want, even if others like you don't like it.