Hello all, I’m wondering if any of you have any stories to tell about how population movement patterns are impacting your local communities.
For me, I relocated to a Arizona a couple years ago, after living most of my life in the desert southwest. In many ways it was like coming home, but there was also that purely local flavor that all communities possess. I value the differences because nothing is more boring than a strip mall filled with national chains.
One observation popped out at me that caught me a little by surprise. It was that regardless of age, color, creed, or politics, most Arizonans had a real case of chapped @ss about Californians and Canadians. 😀
When the locals find out I’m non-local they get cautious; when they find out I’m not from California (by accent it’s obvious I’m not from Canada 😀) they relax.
It varies in degree and passion but the locals feel overwhelmed by mass migration of foreign attitudes.
There's an entire website centered around it (not endorsing or refuting - just observing).
https://www.dontcalifornicatearizona.com/
With Canadians it’s mostly a seasonal thing but the impact is huge due to numbers.
When I ask the locals, it mostly that both groups are culturally smug and disdain Arizona even though they’re obviously there for a reason. And want to change Arizona to better match where they come from.
To most Arizonans it feels like:
Anyway, that’s my observation. Yours? Not seeking confirmation of this in Arizona as much as I’m curious what other issues face you in your communities.