Please no derogatory remarks here but what is this all about?

I went to a friend's house for the game yesterday in Edmond and some people came and they kept referring to themselves as 'southsiders' ... not wanting to appear really clueless, I was asking them what the boundaries are and what does they really mean? They had a few choice descriptions some of which included racial slurs... (I didn't know people still talked like that in normal conversation). I was trying hard not to flinch and told them I hadn't heard those words in a long, long time since I moved from CA ( which went over really well.. lol )

I was just wondering about the whole northside/southside issue.

Southsiders - Northsiders? Where did this come from?

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" You've Been Thunder Struck ! "

From what I understand, it's pretty much the North Canadian River/Oklahoma River/I-40.

The Southside has a negative stereotype and the Northside has a more positive one. Others can elaborate, I'm sure.

For decades, there has been a rivalry (actually prejudice) against the opposite side of town. The southsiders think the northside is too snobbish and the northside thinks the southside is nothing but low income trailer trash. The COC has also, until recently, neglected the southside by not promoting it to new business. It use to be you would not see Best Buy, Circuit City, PetSmart and others locate on the southside because of the stereotype that not much money lives there.

Since the 60's, I can say 100% that is inaccurate. Granted, the southside has far more blue collar people than the north, however, some of the wealthiest people in Oklahoma City, and the state itself live south. And have since before I was even born.

Where did it come from? I doubt anyone alive can answer that. It is like Texas vs. Oklahoma except for the most part, the stereotypes in Texas are accurate.

What's more, there was a substantial split on the City Council, with Wards 3, 4 and 5 representing the south and 1, 2, 7 and 8 on the north. (Ward 6, ever since the city went to eight wards, has been in the middle.)

And it's no accident that there's a South Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce. It began as the Capitol Hill Chamber in 1905, back when Capitol Hill was a separate city; I suspect much of the rivalry originated right then.

Southside? Northside? What's the differance...

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Keep away from Miss Margarita Mean...

The northside is north of Main and the south side is south of Main. That is the difference.

With the southside, the rough neighborhoods are the rule, the nice ones are the exception.

The converse is true for the north side (or more accurately, the northwest side).

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It's a friendlier OKCTalk!

If you wanna talk scary, try that skatepark around S.W. 17th and Robinson. I drove there in the summer after it opened, along a dirt road running behind it. There were cars parked with guys just hanging out, drinking beer, etc. It was one of those moments you knew you couldn't drive through those cars. I told my son, we've got to turn around NOW.

That is the scariest skatepark area I've ever seen. I basically begged my son not to ever go there. Go to the Mathis Brothers Skatepark in Edmond instead.

Make sure your son wears his helmet.

When I first started doing the TV news thing at UCO, I covered several accidental skateboarding deaths -- all of which were caused by falls which resulted in fatal head injuries.

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It's a friendlier OKCTalk!

Growing up I dont think southside was as bad as it is now. I mean I remember NE side being the worse of the places I ever heard of. I was raised southside and we were put on buses all the way to NE to capital hill 5th grade center. Now you want to talk about scary??? I remember being able to walk to and from school and not worrying about being hurt, now I would not live any where in the "city" to save my life. I moved back to the country so my daughter would be safe and have smaller classrooms sizes. Southside from what I have seen has turned into the majority being hispanic, northside more of a mixture. I guess it depends how far north and south you go?

southside = meth & natty lite
northside = coke & martinis

LOl - that's an interesting way of describing it.. what's natty lite?
Is it Bush Natural Light? why do I know this? ha,ha..

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" You've Been Thunder Struck ! "

Northsiders- People who wish they could live in Edmond, but can't afford it

Gotta represent my southside

I worked around SW 44th and Western for about a year. I didn't think it was any differant than any other inner city neighborhood. And don't try to tell me that the suburban parts of the northside are any differant...

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Keep away from Miss Margarita Mean...

Ugh. I get the creeps when I go to the southside of town. Actually, I should say the southEAST side of town. Probably just b/c that's where I grew up and I couldn't wait to get away from there.

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"The worst sin towards our fellow creatures is not to hate them but to be indifferent to them: that’s the essence of inhumanity." -George Bernard Shaw

Go look at an income by zipcode map some time. The place you were in may have been the exception, but not the rule.

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It's a friendlier OKCTalk!

If the southside is dirty from white collar trailer folk then them folk need to get out more and clean up the streets. Keep the streets clean and clear of clutter then maybe it won't be so bad. I know any neighnorhood I lived in, am in norman, I kept my yard clean and around my house includeing the neighbors, just to try and make the street look decent. If you keep your street dirty and trashy than thats where it will gather.

Midtowner actually you're very wrong there. Whilst looking at that map you'll notice that the metro's highest income ZIP is 73170.

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Keep away from Miss Margarita Mean...

And technically, the dividing line between North and South on the street grid is Sheridan.

Going south of SW 59th things are not bad with the exception of a few spots along Shields Blvd. Below SW 89th are some very nice neighborhoods. Also the traffic on the south side is not bad compaired to the north side, except for I240. All being said, the rat race is on the north side.

That may be the "official" dividing line, but I still like to think that the Oklahoma River is the north/south dividing line.

I live in SW OKC, and there is not a trailer park within 5 miles of my house. The ones that are over 5 miles away are in nice areas, not dumps. I would not want to live in SE OKC or NE. OKC, because the crime ratie is higher in those areas. Just watch the news, and notice where all the drive bys and homicides are.

In the area I live in, I have many hispanic neighbors, but, I have never had any problems with any of them. As a mattr of fact, they keep their property cleaner than my caucasian neighbors.

I've noticed that as they moved into the inner southside. The differance is immediately noticable once they take over your neighborhood.

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Keep away from Miss Margarita Mean...

There are "Undesireable" neighborhoods on both the Northside and Southside, as there are "Desireable" nighborhoods on both as well. It's just a rivalry, just like OU vs. UT, in my oppinion

I like it in Mustang, but I guees because of our growth we will end up with issues in the near future.

I grew up near 59th and sheilds....Not a very nice neighborhood by a long shot, But really taught me to appreciate the finer things in life and not take anything for granted.

Anyone looking in from the outside are "scared" of what they dont know....You would have to actually live there to understand the area.

After moving around some to different areas we have settled in the 73170 zip and could not be more happy.

Now just driving around southeast area gives me the creeps and kind of makes me sad to see it so bad around there now.

I work in Edmond and have been all over the "northside" and have no desire to move over there, Somehow people just seem a little more "friendly" on the southside of town....especially the extreme south side.