At some point, everyone has felt like an outsider. For most, this sense of otherness begins in high school but evaporates after you leave its exclusive cliques and pressures to conform. Alternatively, as was my case, it can follow you into early adulthood. I was born and raised in Memphis, but I chose to relocate to Oregon to attend college. Never had I felt so displaced, and the slew of comments regarding my hometown did not assist in making me feel welcome. I laugh at them now, but, in retrospect, I see how they contribute to an unfair and untrue perception of the South that perpetuates harmful, and largely false, stereotypes.
Upon introducing myself and my hometown in my first days as a wide-eyed freshman, I quickly learned how non-Southerners perceived Memphis and the South generally. You see Southerners portrayed in the media as backwards, conservative bigots who will go to extraordinary lengths to preserve their depraved traditions. With this in mind, I had expected a couple of gasps when it came time for me to introduce myself. But this was Portland: a city I had hitherto regarded as teeming with a certain open-mindedness that accepted nearly everyone who meant well. Turns out even liberals can be guilty of harboring unfounded prejudices.
I received a lot of questions and remarks that day and for the rest of the time I lived there. “But you don’t have an accent?” Yes, I grew up in a city. Not everyone speaks like the antagonists from Deliverance. Get a few drinks in me, and you may begin to detect a slight drawl. “Why did you move here?” To this inquiry, I responded, “Well, why did you?” That normally shut them up. The majority of my undergraduate class hailed from California and could simply not fathom why I would move out west, even after I explained I had secured a scholarship, financial aid, and other resources that made such a drastic move monetarily beneficial. They didn’t know how to talk to me; they couldn’t reconcile their preconceived notions of a Southerner, which they had learned primarily from media and hearsay, with the reality that stood before them.
“It must have been hard to have grown up in such an intolerant place.” This seemingly sympathetic quip aggravated me the most. Yes, work still needs to be done in the South to ensure that everyone has rights regardless of class, race, or sex, but that same work must be done on a national level, even in progressive havens whose citizens think they have accomplished unconditional equality. And, to be fair, Memphis itself is a relatively welcoming city with a thriving community of diverse residents. Can Portland, where 77.4 percent of the population is white according to the U.S. Census Bureau, say the same?
While all of these comments bugged me and continually reminded me of my status as an “outsider,” the pleasure of dispelling these misconceptions using my own personal experiences could not have felt any better. When someone offered pity as a response to learning my geographical origin, I volleyed back pride. I often said, and still proclaim, that I am proud to be from Memphis, warts and all, and that I am forever grateful for how this place has shaped my worldview for the better.
Growing up in Memphis has taught me that you cannot simply turn a blind eye to injustices, such as systemic racism or social inequities; you see them every day. You interact with people who hold different political beliefs than your own, which, in turn, makes you critically examine why you harbor your own beliefs. You encounter people who challenge the ideas you hold true, and it makes you stronger for it. And you see people with wildly different backgrounds from yourself on a daily basis. Contrary to what many people would say elsewhere, the diversity present in this city promotes tolerance, for the most part, instead of stifling it.
My main point is this: Progress needs to happen everywhere. The fabricated stereotype of the South as culturally inept reveals more about the believer of the stereotype than it does about the South. We collectively need to stop worrying about how the rest of the country is fairing with regards to social progress in order to accomplish the work that must be done in our own states, cities, and neighborhoods. And the rest of the country needs to seriously alter how it conceives of the South (Memphis included) so this derogatory perception can finally be put to rest.
Justin Howerton is a Memphian since birth, an avid reader, and a lover of swimming and house plants. He likes cats but hates cat hair.
