Queer life in Portland vs. St. Louis

[bragierrnot]

Hi everyone, I'm an MSW applicant trying to decide between Portland State and WashU in Saint Louis. They both have great programs, but WashU's is a bit better and offering me a sizable scholarship. I've visited both cities and truly fell in love with the Portland environment. I just loved the energy. Most places and people felt progressive and friendly which is essential to me as a gay man. I didn't get to explore much while I was in St.L, so I'm not sure about their community. Does anyone have any experience living in either place?

[zebrafish]

I'm a second year PhD student at WashU. I have never felt unsafe walking down the street holding my girlfriends hand. There is definitely an LGBT community here, with student organizations, gay bars, and community centers. I won't pretend that it's the same as Portland, but I have been really happy here!

[history110]

I went to undergrad at PSU, though I lived/commuted from a smaller town 45 mins away so I probably didn't spend as much time on campus as some. That being said, it and Portland are obviously very queer friendly. I'm bi, most of my friends (without even specifically looking for them, they were just other History students) were LGBT in some way, and there were a decent amount of attention given to things like gender inclusive bathrooms, etc. Side note that Portland is fairly white and I think that spreads to the LGBT community as well, though I do think people are aware of that and trying to make things more intersectional. I also have a sister who lives in Portland, is married to her wife, and as far as I know has always felt very safe and has been involved in various LGBT events/clubs/groups.

WashU sounds great though! While I loved PSU, I'm going to a different school for MA since funding is sadly pretty hard in the History dept.

[bragierrnot]

On 3/31/2020 at 4:08 PM, starshiphistory said:

I went to undergrad at PSU, though I lived/commuted from a smaller town 45 mins away so I probably didn't spend as much time on campus as some. That being said, it and Portland are obviously very queer friendly. I'm bi, most of my friends (without even specifically looking for them, they were just other History students) were LGBT in some way, and there were a decent amount of attention given to things like gender inclusive bathrooms, etc. Side note that Portland is fairly white and I think that spreads to the LGBT community as well, though I do think people are aware of that and trying to make things more intersectional. I also have a sister who lives in Portland, is married to her wife, and as far as I know has always felt very safe and has been involved in various LGBT events/clubs/groups.

WashU sounds great though! While I loved PSU, I'm going to a different school for MA since funding is sadly pretty hard in the History dept.

Hey thanks for telling me your perspective. It's interesting that you bring up that up because that was something I noticed right away about Portland. I grew up and live in DC and i've always questioned places that are predominantly white. I talked to some people while I was there and it sounded like there was at least awareness of the fact.