Hilaria Baldwin pretended to be Spanish wtf?!

[Ballstothis148]

This is the least important and most weird story of 2020.... this woman comes up on my Instagram a lot as a suggested page. Tbh I don’t find her interesting but know she’s Spanish and is into health, having babies with Alec Baldwin and that’s pretty much it. She speaks with a Spanish accent, on her IG page she calls her children “Baldwinitos” I do remember an article saying when she speaks Spanish to her kids people confuse her for a nanny so I thought an interesting take on a European mum in the States.

Except it’s all a lie. She’s not remotely Spanish. Her wealthy Boston parents (no Spanish ancestry) now have a holiday home there.

What is wrong with people?! I include me for being too interested :) why pretend to be Spanish? In one interview she even pretended she didn’t know the word for cucumber as her English isn’t that good

Oh and she’s not even called Hilaria, she’s called Hilary. This year I swear... what an odd story!! I did know a girl who went very French after a romance there one year... maybe it’s a thing!

It's sort of amusing to read so many posts saying, "But she grew up in Spain/only moved to the US when she was 19/has a Spanish mother, so she's correct to identify as Spanish" - like, all those statements are lies? That's the entire point? That she invented a complete tissue of lies?

I do somewhat get it. My dad was obsessed with France and French culture. We had a holiday home in France and I was taught French from infancy. Both parents spoke good French. (And most likely I spent a hell of a lot more time in France than Hillary spent in Spain). But I'd never claim to be French or part-French! You can have a strong love for and familiarity with a culture without claiming to be from there. And there's no justification for flat out lying about your birthplace.

@IcedPurple

So, it's all nice and good if she identifies as Spanish

How can you 'identify' as a nationality though?

If she wanted to take up residency in Spain, the Spanish govt would require her to go through all the procedures and paperwork required of foreigners. Because that is what she is, however she 'identifies'.

Question? How do you identity as British if you are British?

@Kaliorphic

Well she's clearly seems to be a fluent Spanish speaker who has strong links with and a love for Spain. Can't see the issue here. Apart from the fact she's another white woman getting tried and convicted on social media. Who really cares that much. Why don't people just get on and live their lives instead of spending their time picking apart and destroying other people's.

Well I'm a fluent Spanish speaker who lived there for a year, has been loads of times on holiday, watch Spanish TV shows without subtitles, and love the country very much.

None of that makes me Spanish.

Question? How do you identity as British if you are British?

Usually through citizenship, an objective fact.

@Kaliorphic

Well she's clearly seems to be a fluent Spanish speaker who has strong links with and a love for Spain. Can't see the issue here. Apart from the fact she's another white woman getting tried and convicted on social media. Who really cares that much. Why don't people just get on and live their lives instead of spending their time picking apart and destroying other people's.

One of my relatives studied German at university, married a German and spent a few years living in Germany. She now works as a German-English translator. She's never claimed to be German or lied about being born and educated there. HB is delusional.

Seriously who fucking cares? The woman clearly spent far more of her time in Spain than I ever did. Her parents live there. She loves the place. It's part of her life. Why on earth do people feel the need to find people to target and destroy on sm all the bloody time. Usually white woman. So so unpleasant.

I care, actually. I couldn't give a hoot about what she looks like or who she is. She could be a Black or an Asian man AFAIMC and it wouldn't change my view. She isn't Spanish and she should not appropriate what isn't hers and publicly misrepresent herself. She's either sick or a huge attention seeker.

If she wants to be Spanish, there's a legal route to citizenship, off she goes like everyone else.

None of the arguments you raised are relevant to the issue of nationality. And if someone is living a lie publicly, they take the risk of being publicly criticised when the truth comes out. Can we not try to square the circle here, please.

For me it’s a problem because it’s inauthentic. Personally I think you have to own who you are. The realisation that someone is not who they have been claiming/ projecting to be is a disquieting one. I totally get that you can admire Spain and Spanish culture ( I do) but to want to claim it as your own is a step too far. I grew up in North Africa in a very French environment and speak French fluently, know the songs, the writers etc. But I do not allow any ambiguity and if French people assume I am French I correct them and say I’m British. Else it’s a slippery slope and you end up in a Hilary-esque web of lies, IMO.

@Kaliorphic

What strong links? Going there on summer holidays? I guess that also applies to Brits who go to Spain every summer too - they must be Spanish as well

Seriously who fucking cares? The woman clearly spent far more of her time in Spain than I ever did. Her parents live there. She loves the place. It's part of her life. Why on earth do people feel the need to find people to target and destroy on sm all the bloody time. Usually white woman. So so unpleasant.

Because she accepted a load of accolades from Latina magazine and was regularly featured. Hola! magazine regularly gave her front covers. All of which takes away representation of actual Spanish/Latin American people. I imagine some of them are a tad annoyed.

My parents have had a holiday home in Spain for 20 years. My father made an effort to learn Spanish and is quite fluent now. We are all still British to the core.

@IcedPurple

Question? How do you identity as British if you are British?

Usually through citizenship, an objective fact.

What about double nationality? Or people with multiple (perfectly legal) citizenships and passports?

Authenticity went out the window with self-identity.

It’s not about whether you are authentically one thing or another, it’s about how you feel and what you choose to identify as.

@OvaHere - 100% agree. It’s that damn white privilege again! 🤦🏻‍♀️

Not sure why people have a problem with her lies take on things. I went to Calais for a day trip once, identified STRONGLY with the cheap wine culture and refuse to answer to anything apart from Madame le Blogger ever since.
Quite normale n'est-ce pas?

What about double nationality? Or people with multiple (perfectly legal) citizenships and passports?

Then obviously they are people with multiple nationaties.

Slightly puzzled by what point you're making here? Ilaria Baldwin, (nee Hilary Thomas) is an American citizen. She does not hold Spanish citizenship and has no Spanish ancestry. She's American, end of story, whatever stories she tells herself and others.

Always thought she was a bit of a space cadet

What about double nationality? Or people with multiple (perfectly legal) citizenships and passports

It is pretty clear that one can have dual citizenship and consider themselves one nationality or the other or both, depending on their personal circumstances. The point is, they have clearly spent long enough living in both countries and have such strong cultural, heritage and family links that this is completely fine. It is a personal matter then, I would say, although as someone in this position I consider nationality is linked to the place of birth, citizenship is a legal status and heritage is linked to family origins.

@TatianaBis

Authenticity went out the window with self-identity.

It’s not about whether you are authentically one thing or another, it’s about how you feel and what you choose to identify as.

I disagree. Authenticity has not gone out of the window and a lack of authenticity will eventually work its way out and affect how people get perceived.. I get that people constantly re negotiate their identity but to me there is an actual core, upon which we can add various life experiences, achievements, ideologies etc. You can’t just choose to be Spanish, Indian, Jewish etc. Or if you do, you need to acknowledge that it wasn’t your point of departure.

@Genderless

Literally my span-ero (Spanish hero). She must do a 'how to be a Spaniard' conference in Spain.

Or a spanner!

Small lives gossip. With no care about who is being destroyed. Repulsive.

I have dual nationality. I only identify with one of them.
I'm Spanish because I was born in Spain, raised Spanish and my passport, birth certificate and ID say I'm Spanish. My first language is Spanish.
I have a second passport through my parents' heritage but I don't identify with that citizenship. If I ever get a British or French or Indonesian or whatever passport, I still won't identify as such. My children probably will, if that's the country and culture they've been raised in.

By far the most ridiculous thing I've ever heard, I assumed she was Spanish too. How strange

It seems harmless to me, although (as with so many celebs) the pasty whiteness of her children does highlight that her colouring may not be entirely natural.

But Alec Baldwin has previously mentioned being Irish (and indeed called his daughter Ireland) and nobody has laughed at him or made a big deal of the fact that he is American. At least Hilaria has lived in Spain and speaks Spanish.

And as for the accent, I have an old school friend who has lived in France for 20 years. She is the last person to pretend she is anything but Irish, but her accent has changed from constantly speaking French, and she does sometimes struggle to find a word in English. It varies with context, and is definitely not assumed.

@IcedPurple

What about double nationality? Or people with multiple (perfectly legal) citizenships and passports?

Then obviously they are people with multiple nationaties.

Slightly puzzled by what point you're making here? Ilaria Baldwin, (nee Hilary Thomas) is an American citizen. She does not hold Spanish citizenship and has no Spanish ancestry. She's American, end of story, whatever stories she tells herself and others.

My point? You can't expect someone to feel the nationality of their parent if their formative years is in a different country, language and culture.

You identify being British as holding a British passport. No wonder minorities in Britain are having such a tough time feeling a part of your society.

@OvaHere yes she has earned $$$ from the Spanish/latin press and gained lots of followers and fame. Spanish and latin Hollywood stars feature heavily in those publications

If you choose to live a public life and tell a bunch of lies, it's a bit much to complain when people laugh at it/gossip about it. If she was that worried she could have

a) not lied
b) not lived out her lies through instagram

@Kaliorphic

Small lives gossip. With no care about who is being destroyed. Repulsive.

But she wants people to gossip about her. She's a yoga teacher who married a washed up ageing actor . She could very easily have had an anonymous life but instead she has chosn to enthusiastically use social media to put herself, her yoga poses, her children, her pregnancies in the public eye. She has also 'marketed' herself as being Spanish when she is no more Spanish than a couple from Birmingham who regularly holiday on the costa. Since she's chosen to sell this image of herself, it's perfectly reasonable that she gets called out on it when she is revealed to be a fraud.