Racism

[Arealmanithink]

I'm American. .I see a helluva lot of people slagging off Americans.. People that usually proudly proclaim their non racist beliefs.. Sorry but isn't making assumptions about people from another country and stereotyping then .. racism??

[Bells76]

Not in this case as being American is not in its self a race but a nation of different people made up of different races and ethinicty's.

[Dawndonnaagain]

[formerbabe]

You mean xenophobia.

[gamerchick]

americas not a race and to be fair going on loads of american tv programs and films... brits get digged quite a bit.

I got a right slagging off from an american wench once on a forum just for being English. It was great fun but wouldn't that be classed as racism in your book?

[Alisvolatpropiis]

Yabu.

Look up racism and then look up xenophobia.


HTH

[ErrolTheDragon]

Dictionary definition of racism:

1. the belief that races have distinctive cultural characteristics determined by hereditary factors and that this endows some races with an intrinsic superiority over others
2. abusive or aggressive behaviour towards members of another race on the basis of such a belief

Clearly 'Americans' are not a race.
What you are describing is cultural/national stereotyping which can be unpleasant but isn't the same thing.

FWIW I think stereotyping 'americans' is particularly strange as it's such a heterogeneous nation.

[Juliaparker25]

Septics ............Up their own selves 100% of the Time ........Go drive round Patterson NJ I never saw a White face

[wobblyweebles]

Yes, there is a lot of xenophobia directed towards Americans, usually from people who don't think of themselves as particularly intolerant.

[TheGirlWhoKickedTheVipersNest]

Septics?

[Alisvolatpropiis]

TheGirl

Septic Tanks = Yanks.

There's a lot of similar stereotyping about English people, Scottish people, Welsh people, Irish people. It's not racism.

"All British people have bad teeth" is a US favourite.

Have I just stereotyped a stereotype?

[Nancy66]

I think the Americans give as good as they get about the Brits. Certainly when I lived in the US I heard a lot of it.

It's mostly good natured and affectionate.

[Mimishimi]

Quite a lot of people are pissed off at the U.S government for starting wars and the stupidity of those who believe them, right or, more often than not, completely in the wrong. What has been done in their name in not a few regions of the world, most notably Middle East and South America, over last half century has been horrendous. I quite like the average American though (lived there for six years).

[gamerchick]

yes, the teeth, we wouldn't be here if it wasn't for them in the war, crusty filthy cocks on english men because of foreskins and so on.

[NearTheWindmill]

I worked with Americans for many years. They were cheerful but they didn't seem able to say simple words like please very well - it irked - and they were also very very rude about the English whilst unable to take teasing in the other direction.

[dreamingbohemian]

frankly, given how much Americans like their 'jokes' about the Brits, the French, the Germans, oh the whole world really, I think they need to suck it up. I say this as an American myself btw.

[BillyBanter]

No. Bigotry. Possibly xenophobia. Not racism. American isn't a race. Racism is only one form of bigotry. I wish people would stop trying to stretch it's meaning to encompass all bigotry.

Also - get over it.

[Iwannalaylikethisforever]

Yes to Americans not being a race and actually giving as good as they get. I've worked for American company with some pretty unkind remarks shamelessly thrown around.
For example, why do British people have such yellow teeth!!!!
YABU

[aquashiv]

Personally love the Americans but I wouldn't trust their websites on illness they would have me dead and buried within a week with a boil.

[Crowler]

Americans do tend to have some annoying habits (loud speaking, for example) that make them an easy target.

[TheGirlWhoKickedTheVipersNest]

Ah, thanks Alis!

Agreed it's not really racism, but I do sometimes think I'd get sick of it pretty quickly if I was American. I do get pissed off by some of the Irish ones too, whoever mentioned that - the actual prejudiced ones that is, not silly jokes - and I'm normally one of the Professionally Unoffended (haven't heard that phrase round here in a while!) Maybe just because it annoys me that some people are 'allowed' to be stereotyped more than others, I don't know.

Then again the only American I've ever worked closely with went on and on about how cold and snobby British people were, then got really annoyed when our other (Israeli) colleague made a joke about Americans always suing people, so there's my two pennies' worth of anecdotal evidence

[wobblyweebles]

To be fair, British people do have embarrassingly shit teeth, speaking as a Brit. And we are cold, unfriendly, irritable and pedantic judging by mumsnet AIBU threads. Also we expect to be bailed out of wars by the Americans but hate it when they bail other countries out. And we blame everything on Americans rather than taking responsibility ourselves.


But you know, other than that we are entirely superior. Mostly.

[Alisvolatpropiis]

wobbly which wars have we expected America to bail us out of?

World War II was all but won by the time the Americans joined in, after Pearl Harbour.

[MeepMeepVrooooom]

Was going to comment but it's all been said.

[DelightedIAm]

What do American's think of the Irish Cock? Is it also considered crusty?