Review of San Antonio, Texas


No work or friendships for non-Hispanics
Star Rating - 10/13/2014
I moved here after my unit finished Desert Storm. I WAS an outgoing, friendly, trusting, happy person. NOW? None of the above. Yes, the indigenous men and women are very unfriendly and clique-y. They come off first as being outgoing and wanting to be friends (they will tell anyone who wants to listen all their life's history in 5 minutes) but you WILL get the chill. This has happened to me time and again. I would make plans to have a friends' night out with some of the local ladies and men and then would end up being ALONE at the venue. Later I would get strange excuses of "family" this and that, etc. ad nauseum. Why am I still here? No work for someone who has an M.A. degree but doesn't speak Spanish. So I work for myself doing service jobs' work. Saving up nickels, dimes and pennies to get the hell out of here hopefully by 2015 when I will have saved enough $$$ to pay cash for a modest home in a PROGRESSIVE state....Washington State.....where it isn't a black mark on your history if you speak ENGLISH and are educated and NOT Mexican Hispanic!
Anikka | San Antonio, TX
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3 Replies


YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT. I have had the same experience as you. Not Hispanic, not from San Antonio, educated but not bilingual ... you’re screwed in this city. When people like us finally leave, the city loses. Never been subjected to anything like this in any other U.S. city. Btw, "bilingual" is often code for "don't bother applying for this job if you're not Hispanic".
Contributor | San Antonio, TX | Report Abuse

Many of the posts I have been reading in this thread strike me as being honest and accurate. Yes, it is extremely difficult to get a decent paying job in San Antonio, regardless of your work experience and level of education, etc. --- even more so if you are not Hispanic. This especially seems to be the case if you are of the same gender as the person interviewing you but you're not Hispanic and they are; the chances of you getting that job are virtually zero. It does not matter how great the interview went, it's simply not going to happen. I am speaking as a person who has lived all over the United States and never had a problem getting a job anywhere else, ever. And the wages here reflect those of the 1980s, especially for jobs not requiring a college degree. The FM radio stations are also stuck in the 70s-80s. One plays some boring pop from the 90s. Absolutely no progressive or cutting edge interesting music on the radio. No variety. Just obnoxious stuff like the noise pollution blasted in H-E-B and many other local stores. Speaking of stores, EVERYTHING seems to be in unattractive strip malls, except in the city's urban core. Education and higher skills are often not valued much here. Dumb down your resume and don't indicate you're over 30, maybe you'll finally get a $10 job, even if you're not Hispanic. As one person has already expressed, it seems like many Hispanic people in San Antonio appear unable to be sincere friends with white people. That's perplexing and sad for white people from outside of Texas who've relocated to this city. The population in San Antonio is approximately 75% Hispanic ... good luck making real friends if you're not. However, in my opinion, the biggest problem with San Antonio, Texas is not race relations or the miserably humid suffocating summer season, which lasts at least 4 months. It is that this city is disorganized on every level and there is an undercurrent of incompetence. I am truly sorry to say these things because this is where I am living now and most of the people in this city are very polite and friendly. That, by the way, is a huge plus. I respect and appreciate it very much. But ubiquitous disorganization and incompetence is preventing the city from reaching its full potential. Myopic, stupid decision-making, most visibly evident in the thoughtless uncontrolled sprawl (they can't stop building ugly structures and cramming them onto every last piece of vacant space) and also evident in the not hiring of the best people for important jobs, will continue to drive away talented residents who could bring vision and change for the better to San Antonio. These are the people can do arithmetic and also know the cost of living here does not explain the low wages and salaries --- nor the lack of career advancement opportunities. Greed does. Stupidity does. Nepotism does. So does exploitation. Perhaps too many of the people in this city have not moved past a mentality of tribalism.
Contributor | San Antonio, TX | Report Abuse

You been here since Desert Storm?! That was in the early 1990's!!! You couldn't make any friends in over 20 years?!! Did you ever take some time to reflect and think, "hmmm...maybe it is me?" For instance, take a look at the racist tenor of your comment. It really does say something about you and your attitude. You have an MA in what, basket weaving? You say you cannot find work, but you got a Masters in Arts, not a Masters in Science!!! Get a STEM education and I bet you would find work fast. However, instead you got an MA, and think it somehow entitles you to a good paying job, and lasting friendships. HAAA! Please save up fast and move to a "PROGRESSIVE" place as fast as possible. Hell, do a Go Fund Me and I'll even chip in to get your racist, hateful ass shipped to Washington! Sames goes for all you others who agree with this bozo. Why are all the progressives so racist?
San | San Antonio, TX | Report Abuse
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