<p>MomCares, that’s exactly what it is, my opinion. Having been in 14 countries and having visited cities such as Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Kyiv, Amsterdam, London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, Medan, Nassau, Los Angeles, Denver, Boise, Ft. Lauderdale, Houston, Birmingham, New Orleans, Dallas, Austin, San Antonio AND Chicago…I would say it definately pales in comparison. I’m sure “many very worldly people” would agree with me. With a crime rate comparable to the West Bank and Rahm Emmanuel for mayor I’m not sure what there is to like other than it’s home to some world class universities. Northwestern, University of Chicago and a few others are probably some of the few redeeming factors in that city. ;-)</p>
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<p>Yeah, all those cities are considered among the world’s finest…not. Thanks for the morning laugh.</p>
<p>I’ve seen my fair share of cities around the world and I love Chicago. The people are friendly, the art and culture scene is fabulous and the shopping… well I haven’t found shopping anywhere that I don’t like.
We are visiting Chicago this summer (NU and UC) and are looking forward to it :)</p>
<p>Different strokes for different folks. Like I said, seeing the post is about Northwestern University to me that’s the only downside to NU. Definately wouldn’t prevent me from attending NU or UoC, I’d just take my flak jacket since I can’t pack. ;-)</p>
<p>franko, you can perpetuate stereotypes all you want, but the fact is most of Chicago is as safe as any other major metropolitan area. There are parts of every big city that have crime and drugs. Are some areas of Chicago especially bad? Yes. But there is no reason a student would ever have to go there. You display your ignorance about Northwestern with your extreme remarks.</p>
<p>Give it a rest sally. It’s the homicide capital of the nation, that’s not a stereotype that’s a fact. Some people can’t seem to hold back & throw the word ignorant around the moment someone disagrees with them on something. So much for tolerance.</p>
<p>franko, the crime in Chicago that is giving the city the “homicide capital” status is concentrated in areas that are rife with gangs and guns and drugs. Northwestern is in Evanston–miles away. There is nothing in the crime-ridden areas for you or me or the typical student to do and thus no reason to get hysterical. You ARE ignorant on this subject as evidenced by your statements.</p>
<p>franko,</p>
<p>You treat misconception as a fact on this one. That’s pretty common so I don’t blame you (but the media):
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<p>What doesn’t make sense to me is how you actually felt safer in New Orleans? That’s just puzzling. Where you only hanging out in the South Side when you were in Chicago?</p>
<p>All I can say it I’d rather be female and Jewish in Chicago than most of the cities you mentioned. Plus, Chicago is a walking city that is alive and active and exciting most of the day and night. Ever try walking around or doing anything in Denver, Boise (Idaho, really?), Houston, Dallas, etc. at night? These cities close up at night as people drive to the suburbs and their new developments with their national chain stores/restaurants, not my cup of tea at all.</p>
<p>Of course, I grew up in NYC when crime was rampant and somehow I survived and thrived. I would die in most of those cities you profess to be first class. I do like London however. Again, being a female and Jewish, most of the other cities would not be very welcoming except as a short term tourist. </p>
<p>And finally, as someone said, NU is not in Chicago, it’s in Evanston which is a wonderful walking city with easy access to the “horrid” Chicago. My daughter spends about 2 days each week there, she’s a senior and somehow has survived and not even seen any crime happen in her presence. But to each his own.</p>
<p>^Actually, I think you’d be fine in Singapore and Hong Kong. The Chinese don’t have any antisemitism; they just don’t have that concept and to them, Jews are just like other Caucasians. That said, they may be too hot and humid for you in the summer. :)</p>
<p>During the WWII, Shanghai was one of the few safe havens for Jewish refugees since it didn’t need a visa. Perhaps if not for the logistical difficulties, many more lives could have been saved.</p>
<p>I think franko5150 tips his hand here:
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<p>Don’t feed the ■■■■■■.</p>
<p>I mean, I’m not the biggest Rahm Emmanuel fan either, but I can’t wait to be in Chicago. And saying that Chicago is a horribly terrifying place to be is like saying that planes are dangerous, because when you get in a 50 year old plane you are likely to be injured. If you stay away from the bad areas you’re fine. And honestly, what person would purposefully go that area if they were worried about safety?</p>
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<p>Your statements imply that you’ve never spent much time on the Northwestern campus. Honestly, lumping the location of NU and UChicago is a bit like equating the locations of Stanford and Berkeley. They’re all awesome schools, but two of the campuses are in urban locations, while the other two are suburban. </p>
<p>Lakefront Evanston, on the North Shore of Chicago, is by no stretch a rough neighborhood. Our D has late rehearsals virtually every night, lives off campus, and has never had any problems aside from the high cost of groceries at Whole Foods. She also routinely travels to downtown Chicago to see shows and loves it.</p>
<p>Sam - as a woman, Singapore and Honk Kong are not great. The Chinese dislike and distrust most caucasians (especially Americans) and women are still a second class citizen at best. That has been my experience over the years. But I don’t go back 70+ years!</p>
<p>But we’re far off topic now, I think it’s time to end this part of the discussion!</p>
<p>^I agree we are far off the topic but I feel compelled to respond since others are reading this thread. </p>
<p>I am actually from Hong Kong; I simply never heard that Americans/Caucasians feel unwelcomed in Hong Kong. I never read anything about that, never observed that while there, never heard from local friends that they dislike or distrust caucasians, and never heard that from American friends that lived or visited there. Sometime I would go to some expat forums and when people think about moving to Hong Kong, all the questions are about housing, education, etc, never concern about whether they will be welcomed. That doesn’t mean racism doesn’t exist there; but the victims tend to be other people of color, instead of caucasians (just like the US though racial violence is extremely rare there). Perhaps it’s really been a very long time since you last visited.</p>
<p>As for women’s rights in Hong Kong, I think it’s a bit too much to say “women are still a second class citizen at best” in Hong Kong. If you are a visitor or even living there as an expat, it’d take you a while to tell the subtle difference between women’s rights in the US and in Hong Kong. Like the US, women are now more than half the college enrollment. There are well-known and immensely popular women holding high posts in the government. The subtle differences I referred to are soemthing like the length of maternity leave (only 10 weeks there) or hiring where a larger fraction of companies may view them as risk (because they may get pregnant and leave, etc). The gender gap becomes very real when one looks at some statistics. For example, males dominated the executive positions but US isn’t that far ahead in that category either (9% vs 12%). </p>
<p>It’s definitely ahead of most Asian places (I have a sister married to a Singaporean and living in Singapore; she definitely feels Singapore is more sexist) and way better than middle-east. But it’s also no Sweden and there are still work to do for gender equality. I think if places like Sweden got a score of 90 and the US got 80, Hong Kong probably got 70, not 40-50.</p>
<p>Jeez, I’m off a bit due to finals & find this mess. “Your statements imply that you’ve never spent much time on the Northwestern campus.” - You are right I’ve never been to the NU campus. I’m surprised to see this thread on NU deteriorate over comments that I stated that were my opinion & part of them being in a joking or sarcastic manner. I guess, jesting sometimes doesn’t convey itself very well on the internet. Having said that, I stand by my opinion on Chicago, & it’s that my opinion. I honestly don’t care what anyone might think of the cities I mentioned, they’re entitled to like or dislike. Also someone mentioned New Orleans…I love NO but I did have one bad experience there getting mugged in open daylight in the French Quarter in front of many people who just stood there & did nothing. Anyways, post was originally about Northwestern & how it compared to HYP, I apoligize that my jesting on the homicide capital of America derailed it. ;-)</p>
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<p>No worries, I just didn’t want misinformation coloring other reader’s thoughts about the safety of NU’s location. You should visit sometime as it often makes “most beautiful campus” lists, in part due to it’s amazing beachfront location.</p>
<p>Hope your finals go/went well!</p>
<p>As a parent of an upperclass-level undergrad at NU, I feel compelled to comment: I think Chicago is a wonderful city - I am speaking as someone who lives close to San Francisco/Oakland, CA. I have had far more trouble as a female in public in San Francisco than in Chicago region (aggressive crack-smoking panhandlers, etc., and crackpot city policies prevail in San Francisco and Oakland).
There are innumerable assets for ANY college student in Chicagoland - I know students who attend other academic institutions there besides NU and U Chicago.
I have not been witness to the sad violence which is concentrated in certain very narrow sectors well away from NU.</p>
<p>Here is an article from the Daily Northwestern that may help answer your question: [The</a> Daily Northwestern : Northwestern class of 2017 marks most selective, diverse class to date](<a href=“http://dailynorthwestern.com/2013/04/01/campus/northwestern-class-of-2017-marks-most-selective-diverse-class-to-date/]The”>Northwestern class of 2017 marks most selective, diverse class to date)</p>