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As an example of how inconsistent the concept Latino is, I am Portuguese born and raised in France 2 "Latin" countries, still upon moving to the US I encountered the very large Mexican community celebrating one of their tradition, day of Dead (consisting in celebrating in cemeteries) and I couldn't help but feeling uncomfortable and borderline disgusted. It's their culture nothing wrong with it. It's just that it was going against a something my culture regards as taboo. This coupled to seeing Aztec dances was an eye opener for me on how the "Latin" culture is an absolute non-sense.
As an example of how inconsistent the concept Latino is, I am Portuguese born and raised in France 2 "Latin" countries, still upon moving to the US I encountered the very large Mexican community celebrating one of their tradition, day of Dead (consisting in celebrating in cemeteries) and I couldn't help but feeling uncomfortable and borderline disgusted. It's their culture nothing wrong with it. It's just that it was going against a something my culture regards as taboo. This coupled to seeing Aztec dances was an eye opener for me on how the "Latin" culture is an absolute non-sense.
I remember the very Italian looking buenos aires, with people drinking wine in terraces, with French style boulevards and imperial European architecture built by the Europeans who settled there. Then I compare it to the most Aztec and indigenous Mexican heritage with spicy food, day of the dead, colorful indigenous celebrations and I see no connection.
In my trips throughout Colombia I was exposed to Candomble, and all sorts of west African rituals in black-Colombian communities, they even have a small language spoken by west African descendants called Palenque. In the north of the country they have a thriving Arabic community
If you visit Guatemala you can live in Mayan villages where not a word of Spanish, English or any other European language is heard.
The assessment is right, Latino is an inconsistent term only used largely by Americans generally and Americans with south of the border heritage to cling onto an American stereotype of an identity that does not exist.
We use the term 'Latin America' regarding the continent, but as we have no race classifications, something 'Latin' is usually used as a general classification of something more or less abstract, like 'Latino football' or 'Latino music'. But a Colombian is a Colombian, a Brazilian a Brazilian and a Peruvian a Peruvian. For romance-speaking Europeans we don't use any general definition, instead we have slurs for everyone; you're a Baguette, Macaroni, Manolo or Gypsy. The Portuguese we don't have a slur for, but call them sometimes 'Lusitanians' (from the Roman province).
It means that schools taught real geography classes in Finland. When I studied geography we had to learn all the flags and know every single country. I still have the Atlas we had almost 50 years ago and it was very complete. But I think that the new "democratic" education we have is rather "iffy".
There was a television progran that asked kids who was Franco, and some said he was a short guy with a paunch, or that "he killed people with machine guns in the middle of the street".
History was the same, we had to know every king, battle, etc, a few years in the past, back in the 50's.. kids had to learn the "30 Spanish Visigothic Kings by heart" which was excessive.
There was less brainwashing and PC duing that era that now.
But it is still crystal clear that when you come from Anglo America to Latin America you notice a huge difference, and find lots of similarities in all the sphere.
The same in Europe. More recently due to the UE these differences are not that huge in Europe, but you do identify the Latin sphere, just cruising the Eurotunnel
It is also infuriating how I have to go through great lengths to prove my Mexican heritage to Nordic and Germanic Americans that even Mexico received vast immigrants from Europe during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Both of my parents came from Mexico. Specifically: Jalisco.
My dad is of French and Spaniard descent while my mother is of mestizo and Sephardi descent...but telling this to ignorant Americans and TSA they judge me as Middle Eastern or Pakistani (due to my taller stature and caucasoid features with a tan/olive skin tone instead of being short, dark skin, and indigenous looking).....it is annoying.
It is also infuriating how I have to go through great lengths to prove my Mexican heritage to Nordic and Germanic Americans that even Mexico received vast immigrants from Europe during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Both of my parents came from Mexico. Specifically: Jalisco.
My dad is of French and Spaniard descent while my mother is of mestizo and Sephardi descent...but telling this to ignorant Americans and TSA they judge me as Middle Eastern or Pakistani (due to my taller stature and caucasoid features with a tan/olive skin tone instead of being short, dark skin, and indigenous looking).....it is annoying.
Perhaps that is because your Shephardic (Semitic) side is more dominant in your phenotype. You look more "Middle-Eastern" instead of looking like most Mexicans do (Mestizo). You should know that there are millions of Mexicans in the US. So most Americans are acquainted with how most Mexicans look. You are just outside the "average" look. It has nothing to do with ignorance.
We use the term 'Latin America' regarding the continent, but as we have no race classifications, something 'Latin' is usually used as a general classification of something more or less abstract, like 'Latino football' or 'Latino music'. But a Colombian is a Colombian, a Brazilian a Brazilian and a Peruvian a Peruvian. For romance-speaking Europeans we don't use any general definition, instead we have slurs for everyone; you're a Baguette, Macaroni, Manolo or Gypsy. The Portuguese we don't have a slur for, but call them sometimes 'Lusitanians' (from the Roman province).
In South America is the same as Europe
if you're Colombian, you are Colombia.... if you're Chilean you are Chilean and of course you are different from a colombian, if you're Brazilian, then you are Brazilian and from a different place than neighboring Uruguayans and so on....
South Americans don't use with these unifying labels like white, black, latinos that Americans use so much!
Terms like white, black, latino, asian which are very commonly used in America, do nothing but simplify, water down, stupidity the complex diversity of the human race!!!
Human diversity CANNOT be fit into four or five little neat racial labels created by the US census!!!
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