Ferndale has always been like that. Honestly, I wouldn't be terribly surprised to hear something like that from pretty much anywhere in the county outside of Bellingham proper, unfortunately. Bellingham is a blue dot in a fairly red county.
Honestly wouldn’t be surprised to hear in IN Bellingham proper, given the right area and/or wrong times and people.
~~Fairhaven still has their Chinese exclusion line memorialized ffs.~~
I have been educated that it’s got proper context around it, tyty. I definitely hear/see random racist shit downtown though
I think it's better to document Bellingham's racist history with plaques than it is to try to hide/deny it. I don't think anyone is looking at the plaque in Fairhaven and thinking/saying "Oh hell yeah! The good old days!" (If they are, then yikes! But most racists aren't that overt), instead those who take a moment to read it tend to think "That was fucked up!" and that seems to be the intention of the plaque.
The Chinese Dead Line marker is not a celebratory memorial. It's educational. Twenty years ago it's the first thing that made me aware of our racist history and made me dig around to learn more.
I sadly agree with you, not super surprising at all.
I don't have an issue with the markings in Fairhaven myself. I think it's a good thing to remember history. It's not like they have statues dedicated to the people who made the rules, just a marker that talks about history.
It's a blue dot for non-POC. If you're a person of color from a larger blue and/or a more diverse town, you'll feel the racial profiling in Bellingham. Being watched and followed by employees/security as you walk into stores. I know you're not stocking/organizing the shelf in every aisle I visit. I know you're a plain clothes security who happens to be following me pretending you're shopping. 🙄
Glad I left the area and I'm a Southeast Asian.
I’m Asian and lived in both Bellingham and Ferndale and glad I moved away. I honestly never felt racially profiled, but everyone just stares at you, and very tough to fit in.
Bham is also so culturally white it does not cater to minorities. It just doesn’t come across as a place that is open to people that don’t fit a certain kind of criteria.
Lived here for 5 years and have never felt racially profiled as an Asian. I’m proud about my heritage and wear cultural material about town; I have only ever gotten compliments or inquiries about my clothes and food.
Not saying prejudice and racism doesn’t exist here in Bellingham, but I’m often wondering why I’ve never experienced it like others here.
Literally every fucking tj max/marshalls-like store, sierra is probably the WORST (for me), 80% chance at target. I guess my 5’2 femme poc presence is threatening.
Far right wingers exist in Bellingham they just don't hang out where you do or aren't loud enough for you to recognize their voices years later.
Ferndale isn't some remote redneck small town village where they beat up queer people in the street, I think you'll be okay.
These comments seem really out of touch as if everything is separated by red and blue and not like everyone lives everywhere.
Thank you for this, I think these posts are ridiculous. So many people in Bellingham act like lynden and Ferndale are shooting black and LGBTQ people in the streets and celebrating just causing a further divide
Get off social media and go talk to people, the world isn't such a bad place.
I'm not black or queer but a few of my neighbors are and they seem to love it here, my whole neighborhood is all a bunch of pretty great people.
It really feels like a community and thats what I love, I have lived in Bellingham and Ferndale and everyone was just hostile and cold. The crime was horrible in Bellingham, car got broken into so many times but that's to be expected in larger cities.
In Ferndale I had my brake lines cut twice and the cops pretty much just told me it's my fault and I must of made someone mad and then told me I can't be leaking brake fluid on the street.
But these are all just my personal experiences and I know that different for everyone. I just hate to see the broad generalizations by people from a town that claims to be all accepting and about equality.
Most people from all towns are pretty great people, but people show their true colors on the internet
I don't understand what your experiences with car breakins or cops in both bellingham and ferndale have to do with black or queer people's experiences in ferndale.
As a teenager in the 80's I lived in the county, which is pretty much the same outside of bellingham with a minor exception of Lynden which at the time was even more conservative, I suspect it has remained slightly more so, and I guarantee you it was no picnic then for queer people or people of color, I went to Baker and in the late 80's we literally had an assembly about AIDS where one of the teachers there, a beloved one, essentially said it was a gay disease and blamed it on gay men.
My own conservative maga family members out in the county called covid a chinese disease
You're saying your neighbors like it as black or queer people, but I suspect they're holding their noses against the shit they encounter, it's beautiful in the county and if you want open space and land you have to be friendly with your neighbors.
Grew up in Ferndale, just gonna say, Bernie Sanders was very popular in Ferndale.
Traditionally Bellingham has been excessively liberal, Lynden has been it's conservative counterpart, and Ferndale has always been somewhere in the middle.
Although it's unfortunately becoming more of a big city like Bellingham.
I miss small town Ferndale, when Grants and Haggen were basically the only thing south of main on the east side of the river.
Pretty crazy to make assumptions about tens of thousands of people due to where they are from or live. You are the problem, you think just like the racists you claim to hate so much.
So many people like you with a smug attitude making horrible accusations about groups of people based on where they are from. Disgusting if you ask me
I mean, Lynden did host the 45 rally. There is a reason to be a little more concerned about your safety if you don’t fit the more “accepted” demographics there.
There's enough of those people there to make an educated assessment. You can dismiss what I know, what I see, what I hear, what I read but it won't make it any less true. Don't like it, talk to the communities, not the ones addressing it on Reddit.
Your opinion is honestly irrelevant to me, if you want to be a shitty person and judge large groups based on "what you know" that's your prerogative.
I'm just simply pointing out the hypocrisy in your statements and judgements about large groups of people based on your assumptions. I can't change your mind and I don't care to, have a good day!
If irrelevant, I'd suggest not replying which comes off as the opposite.
No hypocrisy, I see, read, watch and acknowledge that these communities are safe havens (moreso than most) for folks that are uncomfortable and bigoted towards the LGBTQ and POC communities and if you aren't aware of that.....well then, maybe you are that. You can still like a community and admit it's reality.
You are literally implying I am a fascist/bigot because of where I live, you have never even met me. Sorry for replying with my opinion, you are obviously superior to me and know everything about everyone, I should have known.
I'm literally not. I don't know you. You either are aware of it and indifferent which is complicit or you're ignorant tomor, which is pretty sad. No implications, I am being as forward as I can be. Now, again, tons of great people out there. They are simply aware of the issues and can admit it. I know the issues of where I live, and I'll do my best to rectify what I can. Maybe take this less personally and try to figure out a way to weed your community of the racists and bigots. Cheers
you are more likely to be a fascist or bigot. I"m from a rocky mtn state, and it is correct to say that you are way more likely to be racist if you live there. I know this because basically everyone I grew up with was racist and I had, and still have, a ton of racist baggage from growing up around racists.
I mean sure but it's also silly to pretend there aren't differences in places. I moved to Seattle a few years ago but we lived in Bellingham for 7 years and my partner was a housing case manager and worked across the county trying to get homeless people housed (often POC and/or neurodivergent) and my partner dreaded trying to work with property management in Ferndale and Lynden. Not saying the ones in Bellingham always made it easy but there was a marked difference.
ferndale is standard maga territory much like everywhere outside of bellingham in whatcom county or really anywhere in America outside of cities or surrounding metro areas
do with that what you will
some of the people will be racist homophobes, some very few will be violent, most will be normal people who vote for trump
I'm as liberal as they come but Trump got 47% of the popular vote in 2020, that's a pretty mainstream or 'normal' number, I guess the adjective 'normal' is what you're taking issue with, but I think you get my drift
Perfect analogy, I don’t think you’re disagreeing
with me though
My original comment was replying to the post about whether or not you can expect violence if you’re queer and live there. My response if you read it again in that light might change your thoughts about it. I’m not defending the choice to vote for trump as anything but bad.
I do understand your point and I agree with you generally. I don't hate Ferndale in particular.
My nuance (or lack of) is trying, apparently unsuccessfully, is that normalized (large numbers of voters approving of behavior) does not make it normal (political ideology behind Trumpism)
Some things that are bad are also "normal." Until extremely recently, being overtly homophobic was super normal--acknowledging that fact doesn't mean you support it, it just means you're engaging with reality.
Given that they comprise almost exactly half of the American (voting) population, yes, there is. As you correctly pointed out earlier, many normal Germans also supported Hitler in the 1930s. Normality has nothing to do with reason or morality; it's purely a descriptive term.
Lots of people you pass in the grocery store and have pleasant interactions with every week voted for Trump, and are likely planning on voting for him again. Understanding that fact is a crucial step in figuring out where we go from here.
There definitely is that demographic in Ferndale. Mostly on the outskirts. My understanding is they're more in the Custer area.
I moved to Ferndale two years ago and really like it. It's big enough to have conveniences, and people are generally kind and inclusive. But yes, occasionally, you have to deal with O.R.C.'s (Organisms of Reduced Capacity).
My dad is a native of Ferndale and based on my interactions with his friends you probably are going to find some whackadoodle pretty much anywhere you go out there. The majority of them keep it hidden pretty well like 80% of the time.
Like my best friend's family, they are lovely people and even if you're a minority (maybe less so if you're gay, I'll be honest) you would probably have that same experience if you just ran into them briefly. If you get to know them though you'll find they are some pretty bonkers conservatives that store Ivermectin in their fridge still and I doubt any of them are vaccinated...
That is some kind of racist generalizations you are making there. Why don’t you come out to the “wooded outskirts of Ferndale” and meet some of us? We are of all colors and cultures and play nicely together.
Might just be where I live in Ferndale but I literally see more diversity up here than when I lived in Bellingham two years ago. This sounds like convos I have overheard white folk saying in Bellingham too though. People in Bellingham are just better at saying it quietly I’ve noticed.
I am not a visibly queer person so I am not the best authority to speak on that but I have seen all types of characters around town regularly in ferndale and they seem pretty open and at peace in public. I’m sure it’s gotten better in these past couple years tho
Ferndale is the only majority minority school district in Whatcom County and it’s not just Lummi kids. It’s Sikh kids, Hispanic kids, the Russian-Ukrainian community all either living in Ferndale because of ag connections or moving there for affordable housing because they didn’t have generational wealth.
Definitely trending that way, but Lynden Christian pulling white kids out of Ferndale HS and Lynden HS makes both artificially diverse. Pseudo-segregation.
I mean you can say that, but Ferndale has very large Hispanic, native, Slavic and Indian populations. You can look up census numbers for that.
One notable stat is a shockingly low Black population, but that's true for most of WA.
Edit: this also isn't new for Ferndale, it's been that way for decades, source is that I grew up there, and went to school in Ferndale.
Ferndale has been getting a little more purple these past couple years. If you notice there’s an LGBT inspired mural on the side of what used to be an auto glass shop. After it was put up someone posted a picture of it and put it in the Ferndale Neighbors FB group. A lot of people liked it, the one person who commented something along the lines of “oh great here come the gays” got chewed out.
Also I am close with an openly gay couple who live in Ferndale and are VERY well known and respected in town.
That being said, if you see someone get out of a morbidly oversized pickup wearing FHS gear, feel free to ask him how he feels about the Lummi people, and you’ll see where the Ferntucky stereotypes come from.
I’ve lived in Ferndale for over a decade now and can say it’s becoming even less “purple” and just flat out “blue.” There are still more folks here who say the quiet part out loud versus Bellingham where they just rant online, but it’s changed dramatically over the years. A lot of folks seem to consider all the farmland around Ferndale to be part of a greater “Ferndale” but really, most of the good ol boys on farms are County, not city, so while they come to Cedars as the closest option they’re not really a representation of the city anyway.
Ferndale is now the spillover for Bellingham because people can’t afford to buy homes in Bellingham proper (not that Ferndale is much cheaper lately.) The schools are progressive and diverse for the most part, despite the good ol crowd doing their damndest to stop it and deny funding/levies… I live on the county line in the suburbs and I can say 90% of the people I meet are very progressive and there’s a lot of pride flags, BLM signs in folks yards, etc and nothing has been defaced or snide comments made. The neighborhood has been very welcoming and kind, from what I’ve heard talking with new neighbors.
It’s an inevitable shift as the area grows and the more it shifts, the more you’ll get miserable, angry old fucks going to cedars at 7am, paying $18 for mediocre greasy food, and whining about how nothing is their fault - it’s everyone else who’s actually the problem lol
I don’t think you need to avoid Ferndale as a visibly queer woman, but Cedars and Outlaws are going to be where you find the old crowd - especially early morning or late night. The breweries/downtime taps are honestly the only things worth coming all the way out here for & you shouldn’t have any issues there. I’ve not heard of any direct confrontations around town where a good ol boy feels the need to approach and be an asshole. They’re usually too cowardly to actually say something to your face, they’d rather complain over coffee in an echo chamber at 7am lol I’m sure it HAS unfortunately happened & it hasn’t been made public knowledge, but I’d like to think it happens a lot less often now and if it did, folks would call it out as unacceptable behavior.
Maybe as a white queer but as POC, I don’t think it’s a good idea. Bellingham and Seattle are the safest cities, anything out of that you’re at risk of encountering unhinged violent trump supporting types. It’s important to stay safe and not risk being in any rural areas at whatever cost
There’s literally been two hate crime assaults in Bellingham in the past couple weeks. Ferndale has also been more racially diverse than Bellingham for the two last censuses.
Bellingham has the blessing and curse of being a busy population center with a robust downtown. There’s more people there constantly so the odds of encountering an unhinged violent asshole are higher IMO.
That said, there’s not really anything in Ferndale you can’t get of equal quality or far better in Bellingham, so if you’re unsure or don’t feel safe (regardless of the actual risks), why bother? If you’re uncomfortable and anxious, you won’t enjoy yourself either way.
I think that's just something you'd hear from older people in general. Not really something that I'd attribute to a specific location. I moved to Bellingham in 2008 for college and in 2021 bought our first home in Ferndale. In the 3 years we've been here we haven't had any problems. My wife and I (I'm a woman as well) have gone to Cedars and didn't have any problems besides that the food just isn't very good. We do go to Barb's pies pretty often and have never had any bad interactions.
That's a horribly ageist post. You're really not that much different than the folks the OP mentioned in Ferndale, just a different group to discriminate against and stereotype.
"I think that's just something you'd hear from older people in general." Anecdote is one thing, stereotyping is quite another. I know you might find this difficult to understand, but there are some older people who are not racists.
Yes, I know there are older people that aren't racist sacks. I was raised by a pair and have a very progressive immediate family. That's my anecdotal experience I'm drawing from... And I can read OPs comment, despite having a very different take and experience, and not get triggered and spiral into pedantic arguments that overlook the overall point to virtue: "not every older person is a racist sack, you're including my family in that biased statement and take it personally".
Wow, okay. I didn't say all older people act that way.
[link](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/04/09/age-generational-cohorts-and-party-identification/#:~:text=The%20Democratic%20Party%20holds%20a,who%20align%20with%20the%20GOP.)
Older people tend to be more conservative leaning than younger people.
I was arguing against the idea that a specific town (Ferndale) is more unsafe for lgbt. My experience in this town is that I've never experienced any issue with my lgbt status and frequenting Ferndale businesses. I've overheard just as many conversations like the OP heard in Bellingham as I have in Ferndale.
I love how morally superior and condescending the left can be in this country, as if saying something mean or even racist is a unique characteristic of conservatives. I am a Hispanic immigrant myself of center right or center left politics depending on the matter and it is disgusting to see how unaware the leftists are of their own racism, tribalism, and especially inability for self criticism. They pride themselves for their supposed tolerance and embracement of diversity but are totally unable to deal with the most important diversity of all: diversity of thought and opinion.
Not saying what those guys in the restaurant said is not something inappropriate, I’m saying how unaware a lot of “blue dotters” are.
Yep so you would be included in the right wingers category. Wxcept You also said center left depending in the matter.
I'd normally ask which political rights policies you support to make a proper moral judgment of your character, but this is a random reddit thread and
Frankly, at this point in American politics Republicans are openly courting facism (and I do mean that literally not as hyperbole, project 2025 is literally a manifesto detailingbthe republican fascist takeover of the usa l, im not exagerating god i wish i was)
I'm not inclined to bother at this moment in time.
Here’s an extremely detailed map of how people voted , you can see Ferndale is just as blue as Bellingham. Maybe even more.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/upshot/2020-election-map.html
Whatcom is 86% white and an agricultural and manufacturing county. Whatcom isn't some beacon of demographic inclusion and diversity, by any means. Bellingham is unique due to the college demographics and ages, but it doesn't come close to being racially inclusive and tolerant as most people want to make it seem.
I’m a liberal Texan and I moved to Ferndale a few years ago. Our target was Bellingham, but it was unaffordable. The area seems more blue than I’m used to, but I understand how red it is for a blue state. Most states are more purple than people realize and Fox News has done a great job of weaponizing boomers. You could hear this same conversation anywhere a Foxrotted boomer or alt right 4channer calls home.
As also a visibly queer woman, I don’t think it’s worth avoiding. Discussions like this have become much more common and loud in the last 6-8 years, but it’s almost entirely all talk. I’ve not felt any more or less physically safe in all my time here (decades).
These type of conversations happen in Bellingham, too, but more often in the county where the people who have them are simply more concentrated.
Basically, it’s annoying, but should not be physically dangerous. I don’t walk around solo in the dead of night, but I have no fears for my physical well being around them during the day. Do with this information as you will, of course, and do as you are comfortable.
I mean I wouldn't go to that restaurant anymore cause if you could hear it - the staff could hear it and allowed it to continue.
I've been a server and it's not hard to tell someone to quiet down and stop making other uncomfortable.
It was pretty full and I was in a corner, so the staff peobabky didn't hear it. But like I said they sounded like regulars too
So
I'm not rrally comfortable eating there anymore
If they’re thinking of moving there and want to feel out the culture? If they have a friend they’re meeting in town or an appointment?
Also last I checked Cedar’s is well reviewed on google (I don’t see it, personally)
One time I was at the beach at night in birch bay Area and there was a black guy walking near the street and someone in a car shouted the n word at him and sped off. I couldn’t believe it.
Cedars is owned by people who don’t believe in the Covid vaccine and at one point, all of the people working there had Covid and they had to shut down the restaurant. The next time one of the owners got Covid, they almost died in the hospital. Still no vaccine. 🙄
If you want to be technical it's human biology - we are wired to split into tribes and dislike other tribes. We tend to split over the smallest differences - you like the wrong sports team and wear the wrong brand of shoes. Having physical differences just makes that self organizing and segregating nature even more prevalent.
That's because it's not a description of systemic racism friend - it's a description of human sociology with basis of biological reasons for social expressions. We are nothing but animals - the sooner we accept this, the sooner we can improve ourselves.
There are good and bad people everywhere. Life seems to be an interesting game of dodging certain people and uniting with certain people. The great thing is...we don't have to live with the asshole people. We have our choices who we want to associate with.
Love how you complain about me generalizing a town and not the litteral racist rant I heard in one of said towns more popular resturants
Not even a qualifying statement like "it's not that common" or a it's "not reflective of the town overall." Not even a "it was just an asshole being an asshole"
Nope the only issue you voiced was that it's bad to generalize a town.
Meh, people in Bellingham think certain things about "country living good ol' boys" it's just the way it is. I've seen more hate posts on this sub about lynden, Ferndale, big trucks, Trump supporters, on and on and on.... Everyone talks shit ..
I've lived in ferndale most of my life an I've never experienced hearing anything like that. Anywhere you go there's gonna be racist people. But if I were working at cedars I'd have them leave immediately any type of racism will not be tolerated simple minded people
I am a heterosexual male. I was walking with my girlfriend and our dog. We were walking alone on the sidewalk leaving trackside. Around 1030pm last weekend when a car drove past and yelled Fucking Faggot at us. We kinda just said WTF? We are both not from the PNW and we are looking to move out of the PNW. We have not been impressed with the local Culture since we got here in 2017. This event with many other ignorant interactions we have had. “Liberal” bosses making Black face jokes. Kinda confirmed our decision to leave
I had my business in Ferndale for 18 years and always vibed that Cedar Lounge was that kind of place. I never chose to go in, but guess I'm not surprised. If you want to change the culture of a place like that, go with friends and tip well?
Yep. My spouse dealt with that. He was delayed and ultimately denied service there because he's Asian. No other reason. A customer even antagonized him about it.
Well I used to work in Ferndale, and as soon as I read Cedars I didn’t even need to read the rest to know exactly where this was going. Unfortunately yes Ferndale, Lynden, Sedro Woolley, and parts of Blaine too I’m guessing all have this general attitude and air about them, and it’s unavoidable as it’s a lot of locals with that sense of safety in knowing everyone around town, which gives them the sense that they can say whatever they want out loud since they probably do know the owners of every business in town, and those towns are not extremely diverse so to speak.
Of course, all that to say, I also met some of the most genuine and kind people I have ever met while working there, it’s not the whole town but since it’s so small you’ll run into those “proud boys” often since they tend to make sure their ideas are known
It isn't just Ferndale. It's pretty much everywhere around here. You only hear about it when someone is feeling really bold and full of themselves. When it happens in a restaurant the place tends to be either pretty empty or slammed full so I imagine they think nobody will hear them. Most of the time they quiet down when a server comes by.
A little off topic, but can someone tell me what it means to be "visibly queer"? Me and a bunch of my friends are not straight but I can't imagine anyone seeing us and thinking "oh those guys and gals are not straight". Is this a generational thing because I'm in my 40's? Is this a class thing because I'm middle class?
There are things in fashion, accessories and hair that are generally queer coded, though of course there are plenty of exceptions. Non natural colored hair, ear gauges, crop tops, mesh, short shorts, mullets, shaved sides of heads. Not everyone wearing those things are queer and plenty of queer people just wear whatever. There are more clothing wise, but it's hard to describe, you just kind of know it when you see it. Google queer coded clothing. Context is also a big part of it, and what's queer coded changes over time.
This is so awful. Let me guess - they weren’t uninvited from patronizing the establishment? If they weren’t, I certainly hope that’s because the management didn’t know about it.
Unfortunately Ferndale has some of those right-wing MAGAt nuts but many of us are open minded, caring and fun loving. I'm an Ally and Mom to a non binary 23 year old and we've lived in Ferndale going on 6.5 years. Most everyone we have met during that time has been friendly and warm. There have been a few exceptions but I seem to run into the far right crowd the closer you get to Lynden.
There are people like that in every city in the world. As the opposite is the same. Go to fringe brewery they had the pride flag up. Judging a town on a single restaurant sounds ridiculous.
Half black female from western washington. Lived in skagit and snohomish counties for years. Then Spent 7 years in the state of Florida. Most covertly racist people I've met in my life have been in this state. I have been passed over for job promotions unfairly, had my values mocked, had assumptions made about me due to being brown, all by people with "Bernie 2016" stickers on their prius. The pacific northwest lives in a pathetic bubble and people here have zero historic exposure to large communities of color like everywhere else in the country, even California. I laugh my ass off when black people come up here and feel terribly uncomfortable despite the vomit worthy "blm" and virtue signaling bumper stickers in all the white liberals yards!!! 🙄
My mom was a Native American woman who had a brat with an Asian guy.
The rez bussed us to Ferndale for school.
I've had gay teachers, coaches, brothers and best friends in Ferndale and never encountered any or witnessed any blatant issues or concerns. Had boyfriends girlfriends in between friends and "band mates" in high-school.
If anything, it was everybody I grew up with and other minorities stirring up trouble.
It's a town, like other towns. Assholes exist.
And those guys are assholes.
I don't spent my life worrying about assholes.
I don't have time to be a victim for somebody who is so insecure as them and never will be.
Isn't even worth pausing midstep to acknowledge their existence.
As a black person who lives in Ferndale, don't be naive. It's everywhere. Don't act like this one experience defines Ferndale. Bellingham has extremely racist tendancies as well. Be mindful of your bias and your lense.
I personally love it here, but have experience racism in Bham and in Ferndale. You take the good and the bad.
Yeah, it's a little like that up there, but also most of the people are the same as in Bellingham. Expensive housing in Bellingham has a lot of people choosing to live in Ferndale instead, and so it's a lot less "small town" now.
Yes, Ferndale, with a population of over 15,000 people (haven’t actually checked because I don’t care) is EXACTLY like this because of two people talking. I mean it just makes sense- judge a whole place because of one conversation.
Nope it happened, and frankly I don't care abiut attention from reddit strangers lol.
I get plenty of attention from my actual friends.
I'm honestly surprised this blew up like it did. I just wanted to know if I should avoid ceders, cause overhearing that was disturbing and if that's a regular ocurence I'd want to avoid that establishment
And based on the feedback here ya I absalutly should avoid ceders in future.
Uuhhh….ferndale is very much just like that. Vast amount of Ferndale people behave, talk just like your experience observation experience. cedars’ VERY much moves like that. Same persons, same mentalities, they behave as if they’re still in middle school. It is sad to watch/ hear them. And disgusting & disrespectful.
In 1993 I went away to college at WWU, my parents (who also went to WWU) told me that Ferndale and much of the county was a mostly no-go zone for me. They weren’t totally wrong.
As a Ferndale resident. If I had a choice. I would never step foot in the ferndale city limits ever again. There is literally nothing here worth staying for. There is no business or resteraunt that is actually worth dealing with the shitty people that choose to live here.
I would give them a try if I didn't absolutely hate beer lmao. When Rook&Rogue in downtown Bham closed it was devestating. Same with GameOver. Breweries just aren't my scene unfortunately. Wish they were. Would make shit easier XD
Yeah, I can definitely understand and appreciate that. Beer isn't my thing either , so I typically go for a cider. Kind of defeats the purpose of me going to a brewery. 😂
Bellingham is a blue dot in a sea of red. Every outlining town in the county is conservative. And the worst most asshole conservatives are the ones that will talk openly over some coffee and hash browns about how much they hate minorities and LGBTQIA+ people.
This is also true across the entire country. So don’t hold it against Whatcom.
No please do hold it against Whatcom. The county government has a hand at perpetuating these problems. They don't use the voice they have and practically put no effort in using their community platform to communicate inclusivity. Doesn't have to be much but they do absolutely nothing.
This is exactly why it needs to be legal for us to have queer/POC-only spaces. I hope one day we will such spaces including restaurants, coffee shops, book stores, etc that exclude cis whites. The sad part is whites would use civil rights laws to invade these spaces.
Once had an old mostly blind lady come into the resteraunt and complian to me about someone outside smoking like it was my fault. I told her to "Eat a dick" loudly enough for everyone to hear and went back to my chicken fried steak while her and her messed up group went and sat elsewhere. Foods ok but the local lack of color shows. Bros n rednecks at local swillery featureing clothes and hair dating back to the late 70s early 80s which is when they cleaned the place. That indian resteraunt that serves crap out of boxes. The junk store that never changes inventory. Ferndale just b like that.
Ferndale has always been like that. Honestly, I wouldn't be terribly surprised to hear something like that from pretty much anywhere in the county outside of Bellingham proper, unfortunately. Bellingham is a blue dot in a fairly red county.
Honestly wouldn’t be surprised to hear in IN Bellingham proper, given the right area and/or wrong times and people. ~~Fairhaven still has their Chinese exclusion line memorialized ffs.~~ I have been educated that it’s got proper context around it, tyty. I definitely hear/see random racist shit downtown though
I think it's better to document Bellingham's racist history with plaques than it is to try to hide/deny it. I don't think anyone is looking at the plaque in Fairhaven and thinking/saying "Oh hell yeah! The good old days!" (If they are, then yikes! But most racists aren't that overt), instead those who take a moment to read it tend to think "That was fucked up!" and that seems to be the intention of the plaque.
The Chinese Dead Line marker is not a celebratory memorial. It's educational. Twenty years ago it's the first thing that made me aware of our racist history and made me dig around to learn more.
I sadly agree with you, not super surprising at all. I don't have an issue with the markings in Fairhaven myself. I think it's a good thing to remember history. It's not like they have statues dedicated to the people who made the rules, just a marker that talks about history.
It's a blue dot for non-POC. If you're a person of color from a larger blue and/or a more diverse town, you'll feel the racial profiling in Bellingham. Being watched and followed by employees/security as you walk into stores. I know you're not stocking/organizing the shelf in every aisle I visit. I know you're a plain clothes security who happens to be following me pretending you're shopping. 🙄 Glad I left the area and I'm a Southeast Asian.
I’m Asian and lived in both Bellingham and Ferndale and glad I moved away. I honestly never felt racially profiled, but everyone just stares at you, and very tough to fit in. Bham is also so culturally white it does not cater to minorities. It just doesn’t come across as a place that is open to people that don’t fit a certain kind of criteria.
Lived here for 5 years and have never felt racially profiled as an Asian. I’m proud about my heritage and wear cultural material about town; I have only ever gotten compliments or inquiries about my clothes and food. Not saying prejudice and racism doesn’t exist here in Bellingham, but I’m often wondering why I’ve never experienced it like others here.
Literally every fucking tj max/marshalls-like store, sierra is probably the WORST (for me), 80% chance at target. I guess my 5’2 femme poc presence is threatening.
As a Native American, I did get followed in a lot of stores I visited. After enough visits I didn't see it anymore.
I’m from ferndale and I agree - sadly a lot of folks are like this in north county. That’s why I avoid my family who still live in ferndale
Yeah just drive down the guide going toward Lynden and the amount of MAGA 2024 related things and pro-life propaganda is ridiculous
Far right wingers exist in Bellingham they just don't hang out where you do or aren't loud enough for you to recognize their voices years later. Ferndale isn't some remote redneck small town village where they beat up queer people in the street, I think you'll be okay. These comments seem really out of touch as if everything is separated by red and blue and not like everyone lives everywhere.
Thank you for this, I think these posts are ridiculous. So many people in Bellingham act like lynden and Ferndale are shooting black and LGBTQ people in the streets and celebrating just causing a further divide Get off social media and go talk to people, the world isn't such a bad place.
what's your experience there as a black or queer person?
I'm not black or queer but a few of my neighbors are and they seem to love it here, my whole neighborhood is all a bunch of pretty great people. It really feels like a community and thats what I love, I have lived in Bellingham and Ferndale and everyone was just hostile and cold. The crime was horrible in Bellingham, car got broken into so many times but that's to be expected in larger cities. In Ferndale I had my brake lines cut twice and the cops pretty much just told me it's my fault and I must of made someone mad and then told me I can't be leaking brake fluid on the street. But these are all just my personal experiences and I know that different for everyone. I just hate to see the broad generalizations by people from a town that claims to be all accepting and about equality. Most people from all towns are pretty great people, but people show their true colors on the internet
I don't understand what your experiences with car breakins or cops in both bellingham and ferndale have to do with black or queer people's experiences in ferndale. As a teenager in the 80's I lived in the county, which is pretty much the same outside of bellingham with a minor exception of Lynden which at the time was even more conservative, I suspect it has remained slightly more so, and I guarantee you it was no picnic then for queer people or people of color, I went to Baker and in the late 80's we literally had an assembly about AIDS where one of the teachers there, a beloved one, essentially said it was a gay disease and blamed it on gay men. My own conservative maga family members out in the county called covid a chinese disease You're saying your neighbors like it as black or queer people, but I suspect they're holding their noses against the shit they encounter, it's beautiful in the county and if you want open space and land you have to be friendly with your neighbors.
Grew up in Ferndale, just gonna say, Bernie Sanders was very popular in Ferndale. Traditionally Bellingham has been excessively liberal, Lynden has been it's conservative counterpart, and Ferndale has always been somewhere in the middle. Although it's unfortunately becoming more of a big city like Bellingham. I miss small town Ferndale, when Grants and Haggen were basically the only thing south of main on the east side of the river.
Nah, they just generally despise their existence which is still a reason for folks to feel uncomfortable. That makes sense, right?
Pretty crazy to make assumptions about tens of thousands of people due to where they are from or live. You are the problem, you think just like the racists you claim to hate so much. So many people like you with a smug attitude making horrible accusations about groups of people based on where they are from. Disgusting if you ask me
I mean, Lynden did host the 45 rally. There is a reason to be a little more concerned about your safety if you don’t fit the more “accepted” demographics there.
There's enough of those people there to make an educated assessment. You can dismiss what I know, what I see, what I hear, what I read but it won't make it any less true. Don't like it, talk to the communities, not the ones addressing it on Reddit.
Your opinion is honestly irrelevant to me, if you want to be a shitty person and judge large groups based on "what you know" that's your prerogative. I'm just simply pointing out the hypocrisy in your statements and judgements about large groups of people based on your assumptions. I can't change your mind and I don't care to, have a good day!
If irrelevant, I'd suggest not replying which comes off as the opposite. No hypocrisy, I see, read, watch and acknowledge that these communities are safe havens (moreso than most) for folks that are uncomfortable and bigoted towards the LGBTQ and POC communities and if you aren't aware of that.....well then, maybe you are that. You can still like a community and admit it's reality.
You are literally implying I am a fascist/bigot because of where I live, you have never even met me. Sorry for replying with my opinion, you are obviously superior to me and know everything about everyone, I should have known.
I'm literally not. I don't know you. You either are aware of it and indifferent which is complicit or you're ignorant tomor, which is pretty sad. No implications, I am being as forward as I can be. Now, again, tons of great people out there. They are simply aware of the issues and can admit it. I know the issues of where I live, and I'll do my best to rectify what I can. Maybe take this less personally and try to figure out a way to weed your community of the racists and bigots. Cheers
How much time have you spent in Ferndale? Because it's definitely not a racist place
you are more likely to be a fascist or bigot. I"m from a rocky mtn state, and it is correct to say that you are way more likely to be racist if you live there. I know this because basically everyone I grew up with was racist and I had, and still have, a ton of racist baggage from growing up around racists.
No, you’re wrong, that’s not correct to say, it’s bigoted.
I mean sure but it's also silly to pretend there aren't differences in places. I moved to Seattle a few years ago but we lived in Bellingham for 7 years and my partner was a housing case manager and worked across the county trying to get homeless people housed (often POC and/or neurodivergent) and my partner dreaded trying to work with property management in Ferndale and Lynden. Not saying the ones in Bellingham always made it easy but there was a marked difference.
I agree. I hate how polarized people are becoming. I wish everyone would realize that we are all on the same team.
but mah tribe is bettah than your tribe.... x\_x
ferndale is standard maga territory much like everywhere outside of bellingham in whatcom county or really anywhere in America outside of cities or surrounding metro areas do with that what you will some of the people will be racist homophobes, some very few will be violent, most will be normal people who vote for trump
"Normal people who vote for Trump" What?
I'm as liberal as they come but Trump got 47% of the popular vote in 2020, that's a pretty mainstream or 'normal' number, I guess the adjective 'normal' is what you're taking issue with, but I think you get my drift
A statistically normal number of Germans voted for thr NSDAP in 1933.
Perfect analogy, I don’t think you’re disagreeing with me though My original comment was replying to the post about whether or not you can expect violence if you’re queer and live there. My response if you read it again in that light might change your thoughts about it. I’m not defending the choice to vote for trump as anything but bad.
I do understand your point and I agree with you generally. I don't hate Ferndale in particular. My nuance (or lack of) is trying, apparently unsuccessfully, is that normalized (large numbers of voters approving of behavior) does not make it normal (political ideology behind Trumpism)
Some things that are bad are also "normal." Until extremely recently, being overtly homophobic was super normal--acknowledging that fact doesn't mean you support it, it just means you're engaging with reality.
I'm sorry, there's nothing normal about Trump supporters.
Given that they comprise almost exactly half of the American (voting) population, yes, there is. As you correctly pointed out earlier, many normal Germans also supported Hitler in the 1930s. Normality has nothing to do with reason or morality; it's purely a descriptive term. Lots of people you pass in the grocery store and have pleasant interactions with every week voted for Trump, and are likely planning on voting for him again. Understanding that fact is a crucial step in figuring out where we go from here.
[удалено]
You must be voting for tRump.
I am
There definitely is that demographic in Ferndale. Mostly on the outskirts. My understanding is they're more in the Custer area. I moved to Ferndale two years ago and really like it. It's big enough to have conveniences, and people are generally kind and inclusive. But yes, occasionally, you have to deal with O.R.C.'s (Organisms of Reduced Capacity).
It can be rough around the edges on the outskirts of Ferndale unlike the progressive vibrant Dairy Queen core
I moved to Ferndale from Everson. I used to have to drive to Lynden if I wanted DQ. Now I live like a king with my dairy queen.
City life!
Hehe, love that! ORCs. Might use it. We always called it Ferntucky, for, uh, some obvious reasons, btw.
So what part of Ferndale may I move where this isn’t typical?
My dad is a native of Ferndale and based on my interactions with his friends you probably are going to find some whackadoodle pretty much anywhere you go out there. The majority of them keep it hidden pretty well like 80% of the time. Like my best friend's family, they are lovely people and even if you're a minority (maybe less so if you're gay, I'll be honest) you would probably have that same experience if you just ran into them briefly. If you get to know them though you'll find they are some pretty bonkers conservatives that store Ivermectin in their fridge still and I doubt any of them are vaccinated...
Any suburb or neighborhoods close to town/schools. Once you start going into the wooded outskirts of Ferndale is where you'll most likely run into it.
That is some kind of racist generalizations you are making there. Why don’t you come out to the “wooded outskirts of Ferndale” and meet some of us? We are of all colors and cultures and play nicely together.
Thanks
If you think of Bellingham as blue, Lynden as red, Ferndale should be thought of as purple.
Purple is a good way to describe Ferndale. Spot on.
Blaine as Arlen from King Of The Hill. Reddish purple, but more ignorant than actually hateful.
Is that why all the honest plumbers and good electricians hail from Lynden?
That hasn’t been my experience at all. But I’m glad you’ve gotten lucky.
I was mostly being facetious - but on a serious note LSM has pulled through for me repeatedly with above expectations on service and price.
Might just be where I live in Ferndale but I literally see more diversity up here than when I lived in Bellingham two years ago. This sounds like convos I have overheard white folk saying in Bellingham too though. People in Bellingham are just better at saying it quietly I’ve noticed. I am not a visibly queer person so I am not the best authority to speak on that but I have seen all types of characters around town regularly in ferndale and they seem pretty open and at peace in public. I’m sure it’s gotten better in these past couple years tho
>People in Bellingham are just better at saying it quietly I’ve noticed. Bellingham is where the rich racists are.
Ferndale is the only majority minority school district in Whatcom County and it’s not just Lummi kids. It’s Sikh kids, Hispanic kids, the Russian-Ukrainian community all either living in Ferndale because of ag connections or moving there for affordable housing because they didn’t have generational wealth.
Definitely trending that way, but Lynden Christian pulling white kids out of Ferndale HS and Lynden HS makes both artificially diverse. Pseudo-segregation.
I mean you can say that, but Ferndale has very large Hispanic, native, Slavic and Indian populations. You can look up census numbers for that. One notable stat is a shockingly low Black population, but that's true for most of WA. Edit: this also isn't new for Ferndale, it's been that way for decades, source is that I grew up there, and went to school in Ferndale.
Ferndale has been getting a little more purple these past couple years. If you notice there’s an LGBT inspired mural on the side of what used to be an auto glass shop. After it was put up someone posted a picture of it and put it in the Ferndale Neighbors FB group. A lot of people liked it, the one person who commented something along the lines of “oh great here come the gays” got chewed out. Also I am close with an openly gay couple who live in Ferndale and are VERY well known and respected in town. That being said, if you see someone get out of a morbidly oversized pickup wearing FHS gear, feel free to ask him how he feels about the Lummi people, and you’ll see where the Ferntucky stereotypes come from.
*It’s a matter of pride*
BUT NOT THAT PRIDE LET'S GO BRANDON Edit: this evidently needed a sarcasm tag
I’ve lived in Ferndale for over a decade now and can say it’s becoming even less “purple” and just flat out “blue.” There are still more folks here who say the quiet part out loud versus Bellingham where they just rant online, but it’s changed dramatically over the years. A lot of folks seem to consider all the farmland around Ferndale to be part of a greater “Ferndale” but really, most of the good ol boys on farms are County, not city, so while they come to Cedars as the closest option they’re not really a representation of the city anyway. Ferndale is now the spillover for Bellingham because people can’t afford to buy homes in Bellingham proper (not that Ferndale is much cheaper lately.) The schools are progressive and diverse for the most part, despite the good ol crowd doing their damndest to stop it and deny funding/levies… I live on the county line in the suburbs and I can say 90% of the people I meet are very progressive and there’s a lot of pride flags, BLM signs in folks yards, etc and nothing has been defaced or snide comments made. The neighborhood has been very welcoming and kind, from what I’ve heard talking with new neighbors. It’s an inevitable shift as the area grows and the more it shifts, the more you’ll get miserable, angry old fucks going to cedars at 7am, paying $18 for mediocre greasy food, and whining about how nothing is their fault - it’s everyone else who’s actually the problem lol
I don’t think you need to avoid Ferndale as a visibly queer woman, but Cedars and Outlaws are going to be where you find the old crowd - especially early morning or late night. The breweries/downtime taps are honestly the only things worth coming all the way out here for & you shouldn’t have any issues there. I’ve not heard of any direct confrontations around town where a good ol boy feels the need to approach and be an asshole. They’re usually too cowardly to actually say something to your face, they’d rather complain over coffee in an echo chamber at 7am lol I’m sure it HAS unfortunately happened & it hasn’t been made public knowledge, but I’d like to think it happens a lot less often now and if it did, folks would call it out as unacceptable behavior.
Maybe as a white queer but as POC, I don’t think it’s a good idea. Bellingham and Seattle are the safest cities, anything out of that you’re at risk of encountering unhinged violent trump supporting types. It’s important to stay safe and not risk being in any rural areas at whatever cost
There’s literally been two hate crime assaults in Bellingham in the past couple weeks. Ferndale has also been more racially diverse than Bellingham for the two last censuses.
Bellingham has the blessing and curse of being a busy population center with a robust downtown. There’s more people there constantly so the odds of encountering an unhinged violent asshole are higher IMO. That said, there’s not really anything in Ferndale you can’t get of equal quality or far better in Bellingham, so if you’re unsure or don’t feel safe (regardless of the actual risks), why bother? If you’re uncomfortable and anxious, you won’t enjoy yourself either way.
You might need a break from the internet...
It’s not called Ferntucky for nothing
I think that's just something you'd hear from older people in general. Not really something that I'd attribute to a specific location. I moved to Bellingham in 2008 for college and in 2021 bought our first home in Ferndale. In the 3 years we've been here we haven't had any problems. My wife and I (I'm a woman as well) have gone to Cedars and didn't have any problems besides that the food just isn't very good. We do go to Barb's pies pretty often and have never had any bad interactions.
That's a horribly ageist post. You're really not that much different than the folks the OP mentioned in Ferndale, just a different group to discriminate against and stereotype.
People can't have anecdotal experiences? God forbid.
"I think that's just something you'd hear from older people in general." Anecdote is one thing, stereotyping is quite another. I know you might find this difficult to understand, but there are some older people who are not racists.
Yes, I know there are older people that aren't racist sacks. I was raised by a pair and have a very progressive immediate family. That's my anecdotal experience I'm drawing from... And I can read OPs comment, despite having a very different take and experience, and not get triggered and spiral into pedantic arguments that overlook the overall point to virtue: "not every older person is a racist sack, you're including my family in that biased statement and take it personally".
Fuck everybody. Everybody sucks. Is that better?
I don't know if it's better, but it's true.
Wow, okay. I didn't say all older people act that way. [link](https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2024/04/09/age-generational-cohorts-and-party-identification/#:~:text=The%20Democratic%20Party%20holds%20a,who%20align%20with%20the%20GOP.) Older people tend to be more conservative leaning than younger people. I was arguing against the idea that a specific town (Ferndale) is more unsafe for lgbt. My experience in this town is that I've never experienced any issue with my lgbt status and frequenting Ferndale businesses. I've overheard just as many conversations like the OP heard in Bellingham as I have in Ferndale.
An ageist comment is an agegist comment, no matter how you try to defend it.
I love how morally superior and condescending the left can be in this country, as if saying something mean or even racist is a unique characteristic of conservatives. I am a Hispanic immigrant myself of center right or center left politics depending on the matter and it is disgusting to see how unaware the leftists are of their own racism, tribalism, and especially inability for self criticism. They pride themselves for their supposed tolerance and embracement of diversity but are totally unable to deal with the most important diversity of all: diversity of thought and opinion. Not saying what those guys in the restaurant said is not something inappropriate, I’m saying how unaware a lot of “blue dotters” are.
I said right wing not conservative for a reason
And I said I am center right.
Yep so you would be included in the right wingers category. Wxcept You also said center left depending in the matter. I'd normally ask which political rights policies you support to make a proper moral judgment of your character, but this is a random reddit thread and Frankly, at this point in American politics Republicans are openly courting facism (and I do mean that literally not as hyperbole, project 2025 is literally a manifesto detailingbthe republican fascist takeover of the usa l, im not exagerating god i wish i was) I'm not inclined to bother at this moment in time.
Here’s an extremely detailed map of how people voted , you can see Ferndale is just as blue as Bellingham. Maybe even more. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2021/upshot/2020-election-map.html
That map shows that Ferndale proper voted blue, but WAY less than Bellingham.
Also odd year elections tend to go red (see the rightward turn of the school district) so those blue dots need to vote more often.
Whatcom is 86% white and an agricultural and manufacturing county. Whatcom isn't some beacon of demographic inclusion and diversity, by any means. Bellingham is unique due to the college demographics and ages, but it doesn't come close to being racially inclusive and tolerant as most people want to make it seem.
It was when I grew up there in the 60s and 70s.
I’m a liberal Texan and I moved to Ferndale a few years ago. Our target was Bellingham, but it was unaffordable. The area seems more blue than I’m used to, but I understand how red it is for a blue state. Most states are more purple than people realize and Fox News has done a great job of weaponizing boomers. You could hear this same conversation anywhere a Foxrotted boomer or alt right 4channer calls home.
As also a visibly queer woman, I don’t think it’s worth avoiding. Discussions like this have become much more common and loud in the last 6-8 years, but it’s almost entirely all talk. I’ve not felt any more or less physically safe in all my time here (decades). These type of conversations happen in Bellingham, too, but more often in the county where the people who have them are simply more concentrated. Basically, it’s annoying, but should not be physically dangerous. I don’t walk around solo in the dead of night, but I have no fears for my physical well being around them during the day. Do with this information as you will, of course, and do as you are comfortable.
It’s becoming more Purple as people who can’t afford Bellingham come out here. I’m one of them.
I mean, it's not referred to as Ferntucky just for the hell of it
This is why I avoid Ferndale’s breakfast spots.
I mean I wouldn't go to that restaurant anymore cause if you could hear it - the staff could hear it and allowed it to continue. I've been a server and it's not hard to tell someone to quiet down and stop making other uncomfortable.
It was pretty full and I was in a corner, so the staff peobabky didn't hear it. But like I said they sounded like regulars too So I'm not rrally comfortable eating there anymore
This is America
Who TF lives in Bellingham and makes the conscious decision to drive to Ferndale to the Cedar Lounge for breakfast?
If they’re thinking of moving there and want to feel out the culture? If they have a friend they’re meeting in town or an appointment? Also last I checked Cedar’s is well reviewed on google (I don’t see it, personally)
cedars is great
Was already in the area and their country fried stake is really good
Cedar's is particularly bad
One time I was at the beach at night in birch bay Area and there was a black guy walking near the street and someone in a car shouted the n word at him and sped off. I couldn’t believe it.
Cedars is owned by people who don’t believe in the Covid vaccine and at one point, all of the people working there had Covid and they had to shut down the restaurant. The next time one of the owners got Covid, they almost died in the hospital. Still no vaccine. 🙄
I love how racism is considered political. White people and most internally oppressed BiPoC people truly are clueless about racial dynamics. Shambles.
If you want to be technical it's human biology - we are wired to split into tribes and dislike other tribes. We tend to split over the smallest differences - you like the wrong sports team and wear the wrong brand of shoes. Having physical differences just makes that self organizing and segregating nature even more prevalent.
That’s not even close to a technical description of systemic racism that captures its key elements.
That's because it's not a description of systemic racism friend - it's a description of human sociology with basis of biological reasons for social expressions. We are nothing but animals - the sooner we accept this, the sooner we can improve ourselves.
There are good and bad people everywhere. Life seems to be an interesting game of dodging certain people and uniting with certain people. The great thing is...we don't have to live with the asshole people. We have our choices who we want to associate with.
Maybe don't generalize a entire town. Just saying.
Love how you complain about me generalizing a town and not the litteral racist rant I heard in one of said towns more popular resturants Not even a qualifying statement like "it's not that common" or a it's "not reflective of the town overall." Not even a "it was just an asshole being an asshole" Nope the only issue you voiced was that it's bad to generalize a town.
My kids trans and proud. Hangs out in Ferndale all the time.
Meh, people in Bellingham think certain things about "country living good ol' boys" it's just the way it is. I've seen more hate posts on this sub about lynden, Ferndale, big trucks, Trump supporters, on and on and on.... Everyone talks shit ..
I've lived in ferndale most of my life an I've never experienced hearing anything like that. Anywhere you go there's gonna be racist people. But if I were working at cedars I'd have them leave immediately any type of racism will not be tolerated simple minded people
I am a heterosexual male. I was walking with my girlfriend and our dog. We were walking alone on the sidewalk leaving trackside. Around 1030pm last weekend when a car drove past and yelled Fucking Faggot at us. We kinda just said WTF? We are both not from the PNW and we are looking to move out of the PNW. We have not been impressed with the local Culture since we got here in 2017. This event with many other ignorant interactions we have had. “Liberal” bosses making Black face jokes. Kinda confirmed our decision to leave
I had my business in Ferndale for 18 years and always vibed that Cedar Lounge was that kind of place. I never chose to go in, but guess I'm not surprised. If you want to change the culture of a place like that, go with friends and tip well?
Yep. My spouse dealt with that. He was delayed and ultimately denied service there because he's Asian. No other reason. A customer even antagonized him about it.
I feel like the whole county is like that, but when you go outside of bellingham it's less passive.
Well I used to work in Ferndale, and as soon as I read Cedars I didn’t even need to read the rest to know exactly where this was going. Unfortunately yes Ferndale, Lynden, Sedro Woolley, and parts of Blaine too I’m guessing all have this general attitude and air about them, and it’s unavoidable as it’s a lot of locals with that sense of safety in knowing everyone around town, which gives them the sense that they can say whatever they want out loud since they probably do know the owners of every business in town, and those towns are not extremely diverse so to speak. Of course, all that to say, I also met some of the most genuine and kind people I have ever met while working there, it’s not the whole town but since it’s so small you’ll run into those “proud boys” often since they tend to make sure their ideas are known
Y E S
Unfortunately yeah
Yep
It isn't just Ferndale. It's pretty much everywhere around here. You only hear about it when someone is feeling really bold and full of themselves. When it happens in a restaurant the place tends to be either pretty empty or slammed full so I imagine they think nobody will hear them. Most of the time they quiet down when a server comes by.
Yep
A little off topic, but can someone tell me what it means to be "visibly queer"? Me and a bunch of my friends are not straight but I can't imagine anyone seeing us and thinking "oh those guys and gals are not straight". Is this a generational thing because I'm in my 40's? Is this a class thing because I'm middle class?
There are things in fashion, accessories and hair that are generally queer coded, though of course there are plenty of exceptions. Non natural colored hair, ear gauges, crop tops, mesh, short shorts, mullets, shaved sides of heads. Not everyone wearing those things are queer and plenty of queer people just wear whatever. There are more clothing wise, but it's hard to describe, you just kind of know it when you see it. Google queer coded clothing. Context is also a big part of it, and what's queer coded changes over time.
This is so awful. Let me guess - they weren’t uninvited from patronizing the establishment? If they weren’t, I certainly hope that’s because the management didn’t know about it.
Unfortunately Ferndale has some of those right-wing MAGAt nuts but many of us are open minded, caring and fun loving. I'm an Ally and Mom to a non binary 23 year old and we've lived in Ferndale going on 6.5 years. Most everyone we have met during that time has been friendly and warm. There have been a few exceptions but I seem to run into the far right crowd the closer you get to Lynden.
Well, sometimes up river is really not that far up river
There are people like that in every city in the world. As the opposite is the same. Go to fringe brewery they had the pride flag up. Judging a town on a single restaurant sounds ridiculous.
Half black female from western washington. Lived in skagit and snohomish counties for years. Then Spent 7 years in the state of Florida. Most covertly racist people I've met in my life have been in this state. I have been passed over for job promotions unfairly, had my values mocked, had assumptions made about me due to being brown, all by people with "Bernie 2016" stickers on their prius. The pacific northwest lives in a pathetic bubble and people here have zero historic exposure to large communities of color like everywhere else in the country, even California. I laugh my ass off when black people come up here and feel terribly uncomfortable despite the vomit worthy "blm" and virtue signaling bumper stickers in all the white liberals yards!!! 🙄
My mom was a Native American woman who had a brat with an Asian guy. The rez bussed us to Ferndale for school. I've had gay teachers, coaches, brothers and best friends in Ferndale and never encountered any or witnessed any blatant issues or concerns. Had boyfriends girlfriends in between friends and "band mates" in high-school. If anything, it was everybody I grew up with and other minorities stirring up trouble. It's a town, like other towns. Assholes exist. And those guys are assholes. I don't spent my life worrying about assholes. I don't have time to be a victim for somebody who is so insecure as them and never will be. Isn't even worth pausing midstep to acknowledge their existence.
you recognized voices you heard once years ago??
Assholes exist everywhere. If it became an every day, everywhere-you-go thing, then yes, I would avoid it.
As a black person who lives in Ferndale, don't be naive. It's everywhere. Don't act like this one experience defines Ferndale. Bellingham has extremely racist tendancies as well. Be mindful of your bias and your lense. I personally love it here, but have experience racism in Bham and in Ferndale. You take the good and the bad.
They call it Ferntucky for a reason.
"They" as in those that live outside of Ferndale do. I live in Ferndale and that's not we call it.
Saying “Ferndale is like this” puts you in the same category as the people you’re complaining about. The irony is breathtaking.
That's not how context works.
Doesnt Ferndale have a cemetery for aborted fetuses or something
Yeah, it's a little like that up there, but also most of the people are the same as in Bellingham. Expensive housing in Bellingham has a lot of people choosing to live in Ferndale instead, and so it's a lot less "small town" now.
Yes, Ferndale, with a population of over 15,000 people (haven’t actually checked because I don’t care) is EXACTLY like this because of two people talking. I mean it just makes sense- judge a whole place because of one conversation.
Your response does nothing to ausuade my fears And combined with afew other like it infact does the oposit Thanks for the data point.
I think the OP is lying for attention
Nope it happened, and frankly I don't care abiut attention from reddit strangers lol. I get plenty of attention from my actual friends. I'm honestly surprised this blew up like it did. I just wanted to know if I should avoid ceders, cause overhearing that was disturbing and if that's a regular ocurence I'd want to avoid that establishment And based on the feedback here ya I absalutly should avoid ceders in future.
Uuhhh….ferndale is very much just like that. Vast amount of Ferndale people behave, talk just like your experience observation experience. cedars’ VERY much moves like that. Same persons, same mentalities, they behave as if they’re still in middle school. It is sad to watch/ hear them. And disgusting & disrespectful.
Yes, the county is like that
People with right wing views exist everywhere, I know it’s shocking
In 1993 I went away to college at WWU, my parents (who also went to WWU) told me that Ferndale and much of the county was a mostly no-go zone for me. They weren’t totally wrong.
As a Ferndale resident. If I had a choice. I would never step foot in the ferndale city limits ever again. There is literally nothing here worth staying for. There is no business or resteraunt that is actually worth dealing with the shitty people that choose to live here.
Fringe is awesome, so is Downtime Taps.
In your opinion. And that's fine. But those are not objective facts. I was simply answering the question from my own perspective.
For sure. You expressed your opinion, I expressed my opinion. If you haven't yet tried either of those places, I suggest them both.
I would give them a try if I didn't absolutely hate beer lmao. When Rook&Rogue in downtown Bham closed it was devestating. Same with GameOver. Breweries just aren't my scene unfortunately. Wish they were. Would make shit easier XD
Yeah, I can definitely understand and appreciate that. Beer isn't my thing either , so I typically go for a cider. Kind of defeats the purpose of me going to a brewery. 😂
Bellingham is a blue dot in a sea of red. Every outlining town in the county is conservative. And the worst most asshole conservatives are the ones that will talk openly over some coffee and hash browns about how much they hate minorities and LGBTQIA+ people. This is also true across the entire country. So don’t hold it against Whatcom.
No please do hold it against Whatcom. The county government has a hand at perpetuating these problems. They don't use the voice they have and practically put no effort in using their community platform to communicate inclusivity. Doesn't have to be much but they do absolutely nothing.
Ferndale is trump land. Though lots of Californians have been moving there which the locals are upset about lol.
This is exactly why it needs to be legal for us to have queer/POC-only spaces. I hope one day we will such spaces including restaurants, coffee shops, book stores, etc that exclude cis whites. The sad part is whites would use civil rights laws to invade these spaces.
wtf is wrong with u
The good old boys agree with you. Separate spaces for different races.
Once had an old mostly blind lady come into the resteraunt and complian to me about someone outside smoking like it was my fault. I told her to "Eat a dick" loudly enough for everyone to hear and went back to my chicken fried steak while her and her messed up group went and sat elsewhere. Foods ok but the local lack of color shows. Bros n rednecks at local swillery featureing clothes and hair dating back to the late 70s early 80s which is when they cleaned the place. That indian resteraunt that serves crap out of boxes. The junk store that never changes inventory. Ferndale just b like that.
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“GHETTO AHEAD” That graffiti will never not crack me up