Job Discussion Forums

[gringojoe]

Thanks for the links Samanthta!

[MELEE]

I find it interesting that Samatha should post a story by my old friend Jon Clark. Most of his writings from his time in Mexico reflect an experience more like Johnny T's than most of ours. Which brings up a important point; no two people will have the same experiences. I've been living in the same town for the past 9 and a half years. Over the years I've worked with at least 80 differnt teachers. Some have had a very hard time hear--read Jon Clark's essay about joining a local baseball team! Other's have found their home here. And of course, there has been everything inbetween. If there can be so many different experiences of the same place, in a country as large and varied as Mexico, it should come as no surprise to anyone that different people have different experiences around the country.
What is sad to me is when people come to live here for a year or more and don't take time to see as much of the place, meet as many people and learn as much as possible.

[Samantha]

Melee wrote:

[eclectic]

Level of education has alot to do with xenophobia. I am Italian-American, so you'd think when I went to Italy to see my long-lost relatives it would be cool. But they were extremely uncomfortable with me because I was American. Forget that I looked just like them, same skin-tone, same exact facial features, I even speak conversant Italian. But since they were countryside uneducated Italians, they couldnt imagine that I ate anything but hamburgers and french fries. They would talk about hamburgers everyday until I was ready to kill them. I dont even eat hamburgers.

So just imagine a person who doesnt even look anything LIKE the native population of another country, going into the countryside and living and working there. I think it is quite natural people would be curious, or even a bit awkward or in extreme cases rude or abusive to that person. Whereas in a big city, Rome, DF, Rio, NYC, there is simply no WAY to be a racist because 80% of NYC is foreign. They say in the last century of the Roman Empire, there was a city census, and that 70% of the Roman population wasn't even Roman by blood.

[thelmadatter]

Gotta agree with eclectic for the most part, being from the NYC metro area. The more experience you have dealing with "others" growing up, the more tolerant you learn you have to be... just to get along! Its easy for people who grow up and live only with people just like themselves (no matter what the culture/ethnicity) to be bigoted simply because all they have know is the "right" (their) way of being.

Oddly enough however, Ive been called "racist" because I have used ethnic humor, but thats from people who dont know NYC area humor. Ethnic humor and playful insults are our way of bonding! (Heck I grew up knowing and reciting about 20-30 different Polish jokes and my maiden name was Szymanski) I was watching a cop show once on TV and I was laughing as the Puerto Rican and Black cops were hurling "racist" insults at each other for fun while my friends were aghast. My friends were only exposed to a culture where any mention of race/ethnicity was necesarily bigoted/racist and couldnt wrap their minds around another way of thinking.

Education helps because it exposes people to "other" - assuming of course we are talking about a true education and not poliical/social/religious indoctrination.

[eclectic]

I find thelmadatter to be right on there. I am so used to making ethnic jokes and having the SUBJECTS of my jokes fall on the fall laughing hysterically (and I also fall on the floor laughing when I am the subject of a joke) that it is so odd and almost frightening really when I make the same jokes in a state like, say, Arizona, or Indiana, and the whole room goes suddenly quiet, and people pull me aside later and say things like, "You know, that was really uncalled-for and RUDE!"

My God, I just snap back at them and say "You wouldnt survive in NJ for 2 days, you'd be in tears or in shock at what the people there consider to be good healthy fun!"

I can't stand sheltered, delicate, anal-retentive people.

But now I have a crush on somebody.

[Guy Courchesne]

[thelmadatter]

You be cruising for a bruising! Tho I wouldnt mind having her waistline!

[eclectic]

Is that a man or an AUTOMOBILE?

I would think there may be a fair # of East Indians in DF since they, too, love high-spiced foods. Now there is a PC statement. What do "chilangos" (is that right, Guy?) think about Hindus, Jains, etc.?

Just curious, though I am not one.