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Comment by travisjungroth | Hacker News Reader

I grew up in Sonoma and lived in San Francisco for three years. I’m near the end of a two month stay in Medellín, Colombia. I’m looking to make the move out of SF permanent. People here ask me why I’d move to a city like Medellín from SF. It’s because there’s less crime, less drug use, less homelessness and less street harassment for my girlfriend.

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While I sympathize with your position, this feels a little misleading and lacking in perspective.

I’ve lived all over San Francisco and am now in the Inner Richmond. It’s easily my favorite place I’ve ever lived. Amazing food, easy access to two of the more incredible city parks in the country (Golden Gate and Presidio), and very safe [1]. I’ve gone for many a walk listening to music after midnight with no threat of danger.

Though I’ve never been to Colombia, I’ve been to Tijuana, Mexico City, San José, Buenos Aires, Bangkok, Saigon… in none one of those places would I want to walk around with AirPods, take pictures with a nice digital camera, or have my phone out in public for more than a few seconds. There’s simply too big of an income disparity between you and the average citizen.

[1] https://www.trulia.com/real_estate/San_Francisco-California/...

It’s wild that you say that my comment is lacking in perspective when you haven’t been to one of the two cities I’m comparing.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but it sounds like you lived in one of the more crime-ridden parts of SF (Tenderloin/SoMa/Mid-Market/Mission) while living in a relatively good neighborhood in Medellin (estrato 4 or above from my limited research). If that’s the case, I don’t see how that’s a fair comparison.

And you’re right - I can’t say for sure what Medellin is like because I’ve never been there.

That’s like saying “I’ve never been to Manhattan, but I’ve been to Baltimore, Detroit, and St Louis and I wouldn’t feel safe in Manhattan”

Baltimore, Detroit, and St. Louis have the three highest murder rates in the U.S. [1]. If you’re implying the cities I listed have higher rates of murder or violence than Medellin, that is only true of Tijuana. Medellin has a murder rate of roughly 25/100,000 people [2], more than double any of the other cities I listed.

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_b...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crime_in_Colombia

Having lived in Medellin for a few months and currently living in SF I feel like this is a gross exaggeration. While SF certainly has more pronounced problems with homelessness and drugs, Medellin has vastly more violent crime. There are many neighborhoods Medellin I wouldn't dare be in past midnight.

There are definitely parts of Medellín worse than the worst parts of SF. There are also commercial zones in Medellín that are nicer than any commercial zone in SF, and I live near one of them.

Also if you’re in a good neighborhood and not involved in the drug trade, the occurrence of violent crime is very low.

I feel safer in Medellin than in San Francisco. In Medellin harassment and crime is not random. I’ve lived in both cities and currently live in Medellin while frequently traveling to SF for business

You have to deliberately go into the wrong neighborhood and mess with the wrong people.

Every time I’m in SF I’m on edge when I walk in the street.

In Medellin I feel safe walking around with AirPods and iphone out, plus I’m not on defensive mode ready to dodge feces or harassment.

I’m glad to hear you feel safe exposing valuables in Medellin. From looking at your LinkedIn profile though, I noticed two things:

- You’re a board member of a programming school based in Colombia. There’s inherent bias and conflict of interest in sharing your experiences.

- You are fluent in Spanish and appear to be of Latin American descent. I imagine that adds to your relative comfort level when in Colombia.

When I am in the areas near downtown SF, I also feel on edge and weary of my surroundings.

I encourage you to leave SoMa/Tenderloin/FiDi and check out the Richmond, Sunset, Japantown, Potrero Hill, North Beach, Marina, Pacific Heights, Mount Sutro, Presidio, or Golden Gate Park.

I think you’ll find SF has a lot to offer.

Your girlfriend gets harassed walking down the street of SF more than she does in Colombia? What kind of harassment are you talking about?

Walking down Market street from 5th - 8th Street gives you a 50/50 chance of getting cat-called as a female.

There is also non-sexual harassment that happens too :/

And the smell of piss and shit everywhere.

Could you give an example of non-sexual harassment you've encountered/are aware of?

Random homeless person getting aggressive / in your personal space, etc.

Aggressive pan handling.

Agressive sales people trying to buttonhole you.

(Not specific to SF. I experienced such in San Diego.)

What type of people are doing the cat-calling? Homeless people or construction workers or.....?

I'm struggling to understand why getting catcalled is specific to San Francisco. If you walked down Miami, Atlanta, New York, etc., you feel you wouldn't be catcalled? Why does San Francisco yield a higher catcalling rate?

Yes, she does. The kind of street harassment she experiences in SF: “catcalling me, yelling at me, following me around closely.” She’s also been robbed at gunpoint on Market Street.

Interested in a move to Medellin as well. Mind if I message privately to ask some questions?

Sure, my email is my last name at gmail.

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