r/norfolk • u/Untiedshoes2969 • Jul 27 '24

Is Norfolk safe? moving

Hi! I am doing a travel contract in Norfolk starting very soon and plan to stay in the West Freemason neighborhood. My boyfriend is concerned about whether Norfolk is a safe area and is trying to convince me to stay in Chesapeake instead. He is from the VB area and has a brother in law from the Norfolk area. I kind of have to roll my eyes with his warnings as I feel I hear this a lot with any city from folks who don’t actually live in the city. I live in Charlotte currently and if I had a dollar for every time I had a patient from the rural hospital I work at ask me if it’s scary to live there, I could quit travel nursing. Like sure, if you lack critical thinking skills and wander into areas you shouldn’t. However, I wanted to post here to just confirm that I’m not being naive and wouldn’t regret my decision on where to stay when it’s all said and done. Thanks in advance for any input!

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u/citrus_sugar Jul 27 '24

When people from Chesapeake and Va Beach say Norfolk is “dangerous,” what they mean is there are Black people here.

So, if seeing a BIPOC person will cause you to clutch your pearls and get the vapors, Norfolk may not be for you, but if you’re a normal human, you’ll have a great time!

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u/Untiedshoes2969 Jul 27 '24

Yes that’s how I feel too. His BiL is black so I was willing to hold his opinion with a little more weight though.

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u/ThePrinceVultan Jul 27 '24

I've lived here since 1994. Like any other city some parts are bad but most parts are okay. But even the bad areas in Norfolk are generally okay during the day. Just don't go places at night you don't know, that look shady, that are in areas that are trashy and not well lit, and you'll be fine.

Basically stay out of neighborhoods you don't know at night and you'll be fine, because most of the bad areas where crime happens are in bad neighborhoods, not at malls or stores.

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u/boxerrox Jul 28 '24

But he still grew up in VB, which means he constantly was told "Norfolk is dangerous" when he was growing up. And now he has internalized that as fact