To be worried about Norfolk holiday as an ethnic minority?

[Faffandahalf]

I’m from London.

Going to north Norfolk in the summer. It’s been booked. Research showed it was a beautiful part of the UK. Want to do more UK hols.

We’ve been to Cornwall which seemed ok, the Cotswold we were openly stared at.

But now I’m doing some more reading and turns out Norfolk is horribly racist.

We are Asian. Me DH, 2 young kids. My sister is coming too...she wears a headscarf but very modern dress...jeans and hoodie etc. I don’t wear a headscarf. But we are all brown!

Are we going to get trouble? We’ve booked a cottage in a lovely little village which I imagine doesn’t see many brown folks.

I don’t venture out of London much and forget it’s a different world out there sometimes.

I just want a nice holiday without being gawped at.

I don’t think I would live here, if I wasn’t from here and my extended family didn’t live here.

I have holidayed in Norfolk (brown hijab wearing) and it never occurred to me to be worried about racism. We visited lots of beautiful towns and it was lovely! We are visiting Norfolk again this summer.

OP my DD is mixed ethnicity (adopted so she's the only one in the family poor soul) and I agree it is not nice to be stared at. She's too young to notice yet but we are going to have to talk to her about how to approach this when she's older.

We live in NW England and often go up to the Lakes. There are lots of Asian (both S and E Asian) families in all the main tourist areas and visiting small to medium sized attractions (can't move in places like Beatrix Potter's house for non-UK tourists, US, Chinese, Italian, Indian, you name it). For a fairly empty rural county it's really cosmopolitan in the summer.
Not so much up a fell or in a tiny village but it's quite nice to be able to take the family somewhere DD doesn't look out of place.
So I'd recommend that another time for you!

I hope you have a fabulous time OP.

Norfolk isn't diverse, but North Norfolk is touristy, and full of people who've moved up from London/home counties.

Bewilderwood is a great day out for small kids. There's loads of nice places to visit that they'll love.

marchin. I'm sixty. I was beaten up by the NF in London in my teens. My dd has been the subject of racist slurs etc. all the way through her Norfolk schooling, from primary through to sixth form.
1)I don't need to be told how to deal with it.
2) I'm really pleased that you have had a different experience to me, but that's what it is, a different experience.

In Scotland, where are you from means where do you live.
But a friend lives in Norfolk and moved away from where she initially settled because of the racism and homophobia. But it is fine where she is now.

marchin personally, I would count staring as 'trouble'. It is psychologically difficult to deal with, especially for kids.

Name changed for obvious reasons
I grew up in the part of Norfolk where the road signs are in the local dialect rather than in normal English "Drive you steady bor" and "Slow You Down" etc.

I knew adults who had never been to Norwich let alone out of the county, so anyone who was from outside was unusual and stared at, whether that was 5 miles away or 5000 miles away irrespective of the colour of the skin or the clothes worn.

It's changed a lot since I was a child, but I suppose perceptions about Norfolk change more slowly.

Sorry you feel that way OP, but I think you'll all be fine and I wouldn't worry about it. I know what you mean about the staring - I am white British but used to live in rural China and got stared at a lot! Staring at my chest was the worst!! But just remain pleasant and smile, they are probably just curiuos. Act like "nothing to see here". Another vote for Blakeney Point - take the boat and see the seals.

We went to Cornwall as a mixed raced family never ever again

I'm sixty. I was beaten up by the NF in London in my teens. My dd has been the subject of racist slurs etc. all the way through her Norfolk schooling, from primary through to sixth form.

The OP didn't ask about primary schooling in, judging by your age, 20-40 years ago. That's an entirely different question and I too would be worried about such incidences in primarily white areas of the country (worried, but not necessarily decided).

And I didn't tell you how to deal with it.

So, it appears that you're claiming that my experience atypical, which is entirely possible. But judging by what others are saying, it isn't. Frankly, if someone discouraged me from going to Norfolk because of the likelyhood of "trouble", I would have been pretty unhappy given my experience. It would feel infantilizing and condescending. I don't want people's paternalistic protection, nor anecdotes about what old racist men and women say in their homes. I'd want an honest assessment about how likely it is my security would be compromised, especially if the question I asked was about security. I am not trying to say that being stared doesn't suck, but that's really quite different from being threatened.

Norfolk isn't London. There are far fewer non-white people there. OK. It's also a low crime area in a low crime country. It's a close cheap destination, with lots to see.

personally, I would count staring as 'trouble'. It is psychologically difficult to deal with, especially for kids.

you do realize that is a pretty high bar, right? I am pretty well travelled, so I can give you a list of 4-6 cities where you are unlikely to be stared at because of your skin colour.

If we let Norfolk scare us, the racists really have won.

Just fyi OP for future reference as you say you'd like to do more UK hols - we went to the Lake District last year and it was so diverse and multicultural, especially around Windermere, it was like the United Nations, visitors of every race and religion all having a lovely time. It was really nice to see so many people from different backgrounds holidaying happily, I would totally recommend it. That said, you should feel comfortable going anywhere in the UK in 2018, so I'm sorry to hear it's something that worries you.

Have a great holiday OP. Cley is lovely- go to blakeney, Sheringham, cromer. Don’t bother with Great Yarmouth or hunstanton (not for racism related reasons - there’s just nicer places to go).

Hi from Norfolk!

Just because we aren't as diverse as other areas of the country, doesn't make us racist.

Bewilderwood is a lovely place to go, I wouldn't bother with Hunstanton beach when you can visit Gorleston beach which is stunning.
Pleasurewood hills is a bit tired and out dated tbh.

Petits is a lovely day out if you have younger kiddies as is the dinosaur adventure park.

Lots to do at thetford forest also.

If we are going to be not PC ... I thought Norfolk was known for its incest/inbreeding more than racism.

Also places which do not have many non whites eg northumberland where I am from 3% not white only - does not mean we are racist at all. as spark says above. Some parts of the UK simply don't have many people living there who aren't white. That does not indicate they are racist although there will be some rcasist people whether they are white black or anything else everywhere, hopefully a minority. The Uk is a fairly non racist country compared to many.

One of the funniest things I find about Norfolk is that if you see someone in their 30s or 40s chances are they’ve moved here from somewhere else, mostly London. Almost everyone I bump into is from somewhere else. But the older people are usually born and bred Norfolk and have the accent to boot (which I love).

you do realize that is a pretty high bar, right? I am pretty well travelled, so I can give you a list of 4-6 cities where you are unlikely to be stared at because of your skin colour

There's staring and there's staring. Most major cities, we'll get people having a little look, but go to the countryside and it is pretty grim at times.

Yes, I have high standards. Is that a problem? I don't particularly want my kids growing up feeling like they are to be stared at.

Oh dear, was your holiday in the Cotswolds in the 1970s?

You're a bit paranoid. So long as you are polite no one gives a shit. You'll be fine. Have a good time.

@Thisisthefirststep. I have had lots of staring everywhere I have been. But I am 100% white passing. I look white than a lot of native brits. I think you need to get over yourself. For all you know it may just be because you dress strangely or have massive breasts.

Careful, brizzle, certain posters on MN simply won't have it that white people singling out a non white child to stroke and coo over their hair and how 'gorgeous' and 'exotic' it is is anything other than them being nice and friendly and that you're a racist for thinking otherwise 🙄

Then they can fuck right off. It's racism no matter how much they want to try and sugar coat it.

For all you know it may just be because you dress strangely or have massive breasts

Or it may be because there are lots of racist fuckers in Korea.

Yes, I have high standards. Is that a problem? I don't particularly want my kids growing up feeling like they are to be stared at.

you are free to have whatever standards you want, and raise your kids as you wish. No need to be defensive.

You can see parts of the world or not, and if you are going to places where most of the people look different from you, you will likely get looked at. I agree it's not pleasant. And I also think it might be particularly unpleasant for minorities approximately my age who were living in the west when there weren't many of us and it was really uncomfortable and sometimes outright dangerous. But it's good to have perspective and make an informed choice. I'd say if the bar is higher than Norfolk, you'll have a limited number of places you can visit. you can avoid all of this by staying home, or you can take it in stride, and figure out a way to deal with it, and see some different places.

I remember the most interesting staring we got was when we went by boat to the remote Kuna Indians in Panama. I was with my very small blonde sons. That particular morning trip felt a bit difficult because rich tourists were shipped to an island to see the locals who had goods to sell. However it then totally turned on its head as they had not seen so blonde a child before and their island was full of albinos - white hair so suddenly my little boy was the curiosity (had the same with some Japanese in London actually wanting to photograph those of my children who are white blonde just because it's different).

Staring is always rude in England neve rmiknd all the rest - scanning my old diaries from teenage years the number of times men shouted at me when I was out on my bike etc just because I've large breasts is just dreadful. I think it's a bit better now but that was similar - staring, shouting out etc. Not racist though.

if would be a pity if people who are black stopped going to English country areas because they felt stared at as then we end up with ghettos. I remember my son'sblack friend years ago convinced the UK was 50% black (in fact it's 82% white I think) probably because he had not had many trips outside his mostly black bit of London.

figure out a way to deal with it

The thing is, you're putting all the blame on the victims here. We're allowed to have a whine about how shit it is that there are still so many racist twits in the world. They're the ones who need to change, not us.

I do deal with it, daily, obviously. I don't have any choice but to go outside.

I will NEVER take it in my stride and I will always get angry about it. That's how I deal with it. I use my anger to fuel me to try to make a change.