The Midwest?

A discussion arose among colleagues recently about the actual location of the Midwest in this country. The discussion was centered around the question “is Cleveland in the Midwest?” Geographically, as shown by the map above, all of Ohio, including the Cleveland area, falls within the Midwest portion of the country. However, opinion skewed greatly based on where people spent the majority of their life. My colleagues who grew up or spent a significant amount of time on the East Coast believe the mentality in Northeast Ohio is of the Midwestern persuasion. Those who grew up in Ohio, though outside of the region itself, see Columbus as a portion of the Midwest, Cincinnati as part of the South, and the Cleveland area as an extension of the East Coast. Northeast Ohioans, born and raised, see the entire state as a Midwest entity. Though among those of us who grew up in the Midwest outside of Ohio, we believe that Cleveland and the surrounding area is in fact not a Midwestern entity.

These opinions have little to do with physical location and more to do with the distinct personality traits and behavior of the residents within each region. To me, Cleveland is a balance between the friendly, down-to-earth nature attributed to the Midwest and the pretentious rudeness unique to the Northeast – skewing, in my mind, more toward the latter. But ‘Ohio’ cannot be lumped together, rather the state seems to be separated into multiple regions. In my relatively short time in Ohio, I’ve found that there is a dichotomy between Northeast Ohio and Central Ohio, though I’m still learning why this is exactly. I honestly think it has to do with the accent (Clevelanders have a distinct accent where people from Columbus think they don’t have an accent at all – but as an outsider, and I hate to break it to you that in fact yes, you do). But I digress…

This was all a part of a broader discussion of regional disposition across the United States. My colleagues from the East are highly self-aware and fully admit that habitants of the cities in that region of the country are so self-absorbed that they don’t realize that life exists outside of their rude little world (sorry, but as a Midwesterner, I find behavior in that part of the country to be rude). The same goes for Texas. The majority of Texans do not acknowledge that life outside of Texas actually exists. The state pride is unbelievable and the region provides it’s residents with everything they could possibly need or want. Houston and Galvison have coastline, Austin is the liberal city providing entertainment and one of the largest universities in the country, Dallas has professional sports and a growing economy providing jobs of all kinds, and San Antonio has culture with a military flare. What more could you ask for? Not to mention that flights between cities are outrageously cheap! Born and raised a Texan, I probably would remain ignorant of the other 49 states too.

So how does this tie back to the Midwest, you ask? Every region has its own culture, that special something that sets it apart from the rest and makes the residents fall in love more and more every day. For me, I have yet to find the city that’s most suited to me, but for now, I’m soaking in the culture of Northeast Ohio. But the question still remains, am I in the Midwest or not?

My vote is no. What’s yours?

Cheers!

-A