anti-americanism

i first came over to england in 2005 when bush was still president and the iraq war was very unpopular.  and so, there was a lot of anti-americanism going around.  there were giant signs and graffiti in the metro stations, saying things like, “nothing good comes out of america!” (really? then why’re you all buying it up, then?  coca cola, starbucks, and all those american movies, etc. don’t keep themselves in business, after all.)  as for bush, it’s amazing how readily people indiscriminately associate every citizen with his/her government.  no, like many other americans, i did not support the bush administration and i did not vote for him, contrary to what terrorists seem to think.

like racism and other forms of discrimination, anti-americanism is based on nothing more than crude stereotypes that are only caricatures of reality.  the worst part is that, unlike racism, anti-americanism is considered to be okay and socially acceptable, even though it is based on the same level of ignorance.

at the end of the day, If You Have Not Lived In The States, Then You Do Not Know America.  and no, going there on holiday for a few days does not count.  america is like a worldwide celebrity that everyone hears about, but whom few people actually know in person.  nevertheless, because of all the gossip, everyone thinks they know everything about this celebrity, when really, all they have are bits of distorted truths.  for example, i heard people say things like, “but america’s so racist, they’ll never elect obama!”

surprisingly, living abroad makes you more patriotic.  in the states, you hear about anti-americanism, and for some reason, you become apologetic, probably because you’re at home, surrounded by other americans, and anti-americanism is just something far away, across the seas.  but when you’re living alone in a foreign country, encountering anti-americanism on a regular basis, you become very defensive, and no less because the discriminatory assumptions are so erroneous.

a lot of anti-americanism appears to result from culture clashes and a seeming inability to appreciate american culture.  you’ll hear people say that america has “no history” and “no culture”, which makes no sense whatsoever.  we might not have a long history that spans thousands of years, and we might be an amalgamation of a wide variety of cultures from around the world, but that in itself is american culture and identity.

americans are also seen as brutish and ignorant, but again, this results largely from cultural differences.  european culture values being an “artist” and an “intellectual”, while american culture values the “ordinary man” and being “real” and “down to earth”.  so, people here in england tend to talk themselves up, pretending to know things they don’t and trying to sound smarter than they are.  in the states, however, if you don’t know something, then you just say so, and even if you are ridiculously intelligent and accomplished, you play it down.  so when the two cultures meet, americans come off as “less intelligent”, when it’s mostly just outward posturing than the reality.  besides, how can americans be stupid when many of the world’s best universities are in america?

here in more socialist europe, you’ll also find an idealistic (and perhaps, naïve) contempt of capitalism and the american dream.  yes, we may be a capitalist nation, but we’re not without aid for the homeless, disabled, and unemployed, etc.  moreover, from what i’ve seen, a lack of competition decreases the quality of nearly everything, because, let’s face it, most people are fundamentally self-serving and lazy, disinclined to work harder when an increase in taxes with salary takes away a large chunk of pay and the incentive along with it.

thankfully, anti-americanism has drastically decreased with obama’s election.  hopefully, the future will be brighter – after all, things could only get better from here, i hope…

what do you think about anti-americanism?

. rese