I don't actually think I would have fallen into the "in-group" for most of my neighbors over the years.

In most cases I've had pretty wildly different political and religious views, and for a period was myself an immigrant that could hardly speak the local language.

My honest view is that people individually and in small groups are surprisingly friendly, helpful, and welcoming. Its only when the community or group gets too big and people start defining teams that things get nasty.