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I have found some people from Latin America like to stress some sort of European connection. I've spoken with quite a few who have stated they are "Italian" but look nothing like an Italian and when I start speaking Italian to them, they have a puzzled look on their face and say their great grandfather (or another distant relative) was from Italy. This seems to happen a lot with Brazilians.
Does it though? I lived in Miami, and the only thing I saw were a bunch of Latinos waving their flags. I never saw any mentions to Spain.
I can gaurantee you that at any latino flag waver you see is most likely born and raised in the US of A. Take stateside Puerto Ricans, for example. Many of them are flag waving idiots; in PR hardly anybody does that except during a gubernatorial election.
Quote:
Originally Posted by paul1981
I have found some people from Latin America like to stress some sort of European connection. I've spoken with quite a few who have stated they are "Italian" but look nothing like an Italian and when I start speaking Italian to them, they have a puzzled look on their face and say their great grandfather (or another distant relative) was from Italy. This seems to happen a lot with Brazilians.
I bet you 99% of the time it's some mestizo trying to distance themselves from their "dirty brown side" and overemphasizing their white heritage. In Latin America, many mestizos try to overcompensate for any perceived shortcomings by saying they are part white, and overemphasize that part of their ancestry. Having brown skin is strongly associated with poverty in LatAm. That's why, on the US Census, even if a Hispanic obviously looks multiracial, they'll almost always check the White box even if they are like 1/4 white.
Simplest answer to the OP's question: Because it is what colonials do. Hispanics do it. European Americans do it. Australians do it. Canadians do it, etc.
Identity and heritage are intensely important things to many people. Many people in the 'source' countries can't understand it, or even dismiss it haughtily.
Think it's just typically the same race-dominated ideas from colonialism. European back in the day meant white, cultured, educated, and most of all, "powerful," compared to the indigenous people they colonized. These indigenous, darker people were often seen as stupid, breeding racial notions that do still exist today. Just look at most famous Latin American actors/actresses, talk show hosts, singers, etc. They mostly have white(r) skin and more "European features."
The OP must be talking about the Chicanos who say they are Spanish because they think Spanish must be synonymous to Mexican.
That is the most ignorant statement l have ever heard and it makes absolutely no sense. Chicanos, or people who calk themselves Chicanos, are politicized people and align themselves to Aztlan, the original Aztec homeland in the US and to Native American cultures. Not all Mexican Americans consider themselves Chicanos.
They actually push to NOT be called Hispanics because they believe that is continuing a colonized mentality with ties to Spain.
1) Look at Latin American television: all the whitest looking Latinos you've ever seen in your life playing the important roles. Yet in all my travels in Mexico, I didn't see any of these 'white' Mexicans like portrayed on Mexican telenovelas. It's as if all these white Mexicans are mythical creatures of lore like the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot. They're on TV and you hear about them but you rarely come across them in real life. I wonder if when casting actors they have a "whites only" policy, thereby weeding out 97% of the country.
2) Then there's the example of the Dominican Republic. The people of this country seem to want to consider themselves anything but black, despite the fact that people the world over would probably call most of them that. They consider Haitians black, and use this term disparagingly. I have befriended Latinos from various Latin American countries who expressed views of superiority towards blacks, the kind of stuff that most white Americans wouldn't say.
3) The few possibly white Latinos you do come across, always seem to bring up the topic of whiteness. I came across a real live white Mexican a couple of years ago, a very nice girl: guess what topic she brought up? Her whiteness, and her Spanish roots. I made a friend from abroad who came from Costa Rica - guess what topic he randomly brought up? His whiteness, even though this guy wouldn't be considered white in my country. I made several Brazilian friends when living abroad, and guess what topic they randomly brought up one day? Their whiteness. One out of six or seven of them would actually be considered white here, yet they all alluded to their European ancestry, with no mention of their obvious African or native sides. Even City Data could be an example...look at all the whiteness threads concerning Latin America.
All of this is meant to demonstrate that many Latin Americans do go out of their way to pass themselves off as white, and what they consider to be "white" is different than what Americans consider to be white. Highlighting your connection to European countries is the best way to demonstrate your whiteness, as it legitimizes your claim to whiteness. I know a lot of you are going to hate this conclusion, but I think the emphasis placed on whiteness in Latin America is too simply great too be ignored, and unquestionably plays into the OP's question. Latin America is a great place, but the reality is that their views on race are very different than those in North America.
ive noticed that in most of the hispanic countries in the caribbean & south america till this day are so big on having ties to spain. which is weird because i usually hear of spaniards looking down on hispanics.
i found it interesting because people in north america could care less about having ties to the UK or at least don't make a big deal about it
Well you are correct, but it is more complex than that. It is like a love hate relationship. Most Latin Americans still have a great colony mentality towards anything European and towards their European heritage. I have met people from ALL Latin American countries who do this. Aty the same time, there is a lot of resentment for all of the abuse and destruction that they caused. It also varies depending on countries- a Cortez statue would burn to the ground in Mexico where as in Argentina there wouldn't be a problem.
Though I have met Argentines who have a very Latin American identity and believe the Europeans came to take and destroy, which is true. Uruguayan writer Eduardo Galeano is very prominent in writing about this.
Its mixed. There are many people who really don't care about anything having to do with Spain and are very disconnected from it all.
Last edited by rosa surf; 03-09-2014 at 02:32 PM..
More than Spain itself, I'd say a big chunk of people from Latam, like to share their "connection" to Europe.
For some reason Hispanics loveeeee and look up to Europe like a god continent. I've met countless people from all over the region, who would tell you about their French last name, or the great grandmother who came from Italy, or how at home they keep a family seal from Spain, among others examples.
Lol that is so true, especially the French grandma or Spanish grandfather. I had a Mexican friend who would always brag about his Spanish grandfather. Argentines and Brazilians love mentioning their Italian connection often.
1) Look at Latin American television: all the whitest looking Latinos you've ever seen in your life playing the important roles. Yet in all my travels in Mexico, I didn't see any of these 'white' Mexicans like portrayed on Mexican telenovelas. It's as if all these white Mexicans are mythical creatures of lore like the Loch Ness Monster or Bigfoot. They're on TV and you hear about them but you rarely come across them in real life. I wonder if when casting actors they have a "whites only" policy, thereby weeding out 97% of the country.
2) Then there's the example of the Dominican Republic. The people of this country seem to want to consider themselves anything but black, despite the fact that people the world over would probably call most of them that. They consider Haitians black, and use this term disparagingly. I have befriended Latinos from various Latin American countries who expressed views of superiority towards blacks, the kind of stuff that most white Americans wouldn't say.
3) The few possibly white Latinos you do come across, always seem to bring up the topic of whiteness. I came across a real live white Mexican a couple of years ago, a very nice girl: guess what topic she brought up? Her whiteness, and her Spanish roots. I made a friend from abroad who came from Costa Rica - guess what topic he randomly brought up? His whiteness, even though this guy wouldn't be considered white in my country. I made several Brazilian friends when living abroad, and guess what topic they randomly brought up one day? Their whiteness. One out of six or seven of them would actually be considered white here, yet they all alluded to their European ancestry, with no mention of their obvious African or native sides. Even City Data could be an example...look at all the whiteness threads concerning Latin America.
All of this is meant to demonstrate that many Latin Americans do go out of their way to pass themselves off as white, and what they consider to be "white" is different than what Americans consider to be white. Highlighting your connection to European countries is the best way to demonstrate your whiteness, as it legitimizes your claim to whiteness. I know a lot of you are going to hate this conclusion, but I think the emphasis placed on whiteness in Latin America is too simply great too be ignored, and unquestionably plays into the OP's question. Latin America is a great place, but the reality is that their views on race are very different than those in North America.
Unfortunately your assessment is true, except for this idea that white Mexicans are so rare. In my office there are at least 20 Mexicans working there, and 6 of them are white. I am talking about natural blonde hair, blue eyes, two are even red headed with freckles. The majority of Mexicans are dark skinned, but there are still many inbetweens and pockets/areas with large white populations. TV definitely does NOT represent the diversity of the country, that is for sure and it is a shame.
i dont know where yall are getting that americans do the same thing, probably unless they're from the northeast & migrated here as late as the 20th century. however, americans generally just say they are "white", they dont go the extra mile like hispanics to feel like you should bow to them.
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