Where to live in the DMV as a gay middle eastern family?
![[Post New]](/jforum/templates/default/images/icon_minipost_new.gif){kind=icon}
Anonymous
| if they are gay, should stay away from muslim neighborhoods |
Anonymous
| Rt1 Corridor - Mount Rainier/Hyattsville/etc |
Anonymous
Schools aren't great, and not a great commute to Foggy Bottom. Definitely look into buying near a metro station so you can commute that way instead of driving. Maryland still feels more LGBTQ friendly than Virginia on a state level although the Northern Virginia suburbs are quite friendly. It's stuff like soon to be former Virginia governor Youngkin state level agenda related to schools. |
Anonymous
| DC proper or MoCo. Would not take the risk in NoVa with that profile. |
Anonymous
|
I don’t understand why they are trying to pick a place based on school aged children they don’t have yet. There’s literally at least six years between now and the time they’d need it, and that’s if they get pregnant tomorrow.
|
Anonymous
Agree. I’d stick to the long-time gayborhoods in DC (Logan / 14th St area, DuPont) or Takoma Park. If you have to do VA I’d do Del Ray and that’s even iffy - nova is ground zero for the performative progressives / liberals who claim to be welcoming and are anything but. DC has progressives and liberals who live and breath their values, same for Takoma Park. |
Anonymous
| If they have kids, Takoma Park or Silver Spring. Tons of gay and Muslim families (though I only know two families that include people who are both queer and Muslim and they are both women). If they don't have kids, somewhere fun and diverse with a good commute. |
Anonymous
| Budget? |
Anonymous
| If you don't have kids yet, there's no reason to move somewhere for the schools yet. You've got 5 years at least. |
Anonymous
| Very progressive Arab family here (not religious). Whatever you do, do NOT move to MoCo. Not going to get in to it here, but I would definitely do DC first and then NOVA. Many of our Arab friends have faced very real discrimination and racism in MoCo. Most of the DCPS ES feeders to Hardy and Deal are going to be the best fit. Fairfax County would be my next choice, but trust me on this. |
Anonymous
Ignore this person. Both Jews and Muslims receive comments about hijabs or see swastikas on desks in the US. It's gotten worse since 9/11 (for Muslims and Arabs), and since the Gaza genocide (for Jews), but really, both populations are at risk in the US, and in many other parts of the world. This is definitely not specific to MoCo. I live in Bethesda and the complaints here are mostly from my Jewish neighbors. Neither my Persian nor my Arab neighbors have ever complained of community discrimination. Since Trump's inauguration, however, ICE has been trying to deport Iranians by any means necessary and some families have ended up in detention, even though they were entirely legal. |
Anonymous
Maybe 20 years ago. |
Anonymous
|
Dupont circle - Ross elementary
Mt Pleasant - Bancroft. But they have about five years from having the baby to worry about schools. These are the bright hoods that would match the vibe and offer scenery DCPS elementary options. |
Anonymous
I’d agree that there could be a lack of welcomeness in the west side of MoCo where the more affluent and conservative families strive to land for the better public schools…and the influx of Asian/Arab/Middle Eastern families skew conservative. ^^^ That’s the delicate piece for the op’s situation: these newly arrived families (with money and connections) or even first or second generation families from certain backgrounds have far more conservative values than the average American—let alone the average MoCo resident—noting MoCo is literally the most diverse county in the country and skews very, very, super-duper liberal and welcoming overall. But there’s zero chance the couple would face anything but a warm welcome in Takoma Park which has catered to gay families for several decades. Hyattsville would be another option, but it’s still more “up and coming” for gay families than TP. I know there’s a big ME community in fancy parts of NoVA, but I’m not convinced their own community will be as welcoming as the gay and uber-progressive community in TP. PS - MoCo has historically had a big Jewish community (for many, many generations). And they have historically been over in the west side of the county (Potomac, Bethesda, Chevy Chase). As other communities with money and connections have moved in, I can imagine some friction…particularly with the influx of Arab families and businesses. But overall, I really don’t believe MoCo is worse than NoVA…I mean, how could it be? |
Anonymous
Yes but silver spring is a much closer commute 🙄 |