AIBU to feel uncomfortable about anti-English vibes from family?

[Notcominhomenow]

I'm English, my DH is Argentinian, and we have a 2-year-old DS.

I've always got on well with his family and we've visited them a few times or theyve come here. I speak the language fluently and am fairly integrated in that sense. DH has lived in the UK for 13 years and has always been very clear that he'd never move back to Argentina because of the economic situation there.

This week's football match was the first time England and Argentina have played each other since we've been together. I supported England (as I always would) and DH supported Argentina. Neither of us are particularly hardcore football fans, so we watched it without any issues like mature adults.

The wider family has been a different story though. My BIL and some of DH's cousins have been sharing anti-English posts on social media, "The Falklands are Argentinian" posts, and videos in the family WhatsApp group after the match showing people in DH's hometown chanting that the Falklands belong to Argentina and waving inflammatory flags. It's a very conservative small town.

I genuinely can't imagine my own family sharing any anti-Argentinian content or trying to inflame tensions like that if the situation were reversed.

I've never had particularly strong feelings about the Falklands issue or cared that much, but I can't help feeling there's just no need for thus politicisation of a sport. Most of the people posting are the younger members of the family, but they seem to have forgotten that both me and DS are English. It just feels unnecessary and, if I'm honest, a bit disrespectful. The older ones haven't said anything or have been more diplomatic.

It's also made me wonder about the future. Am I being unreasonable to worry that, as DS gets older, they might try to influence him with those kinds of views? I obviously expect him to know and appreciate both sides of his heritage, but I wouldn't be comfortable with anyone trying to push very political or nationalistic opinions onto him.

We were due to sort an Argentinian passport for DS (already has British and Italian) but now I don't feel that enthusiastic about the whole thing. Dh isn't bothered about the citizenship, it was mainly me who was driving it so he'd have more options when he's older.

Would this bother anyone else, or am I overthinking it? I just feel a bit shit and uncomfortable about the whole thing and that a stupid football match has brought out a very ugly side of people I considered family.

I don't really want to turn it into an issue as if these are personal posts meant for me, DH says its young family members being immature. I've muted everyone on social media for now for the foreseeable so I don't have to see anything else.

The match is over now

All the associated noise will disappear within a day or two

Maybe they consider the falklands to be an instance of British anti argentinian sentiment and aggression? I don’t mean to be rude about it but I think if you look at history generally “the past isn’t dead, its not even past.” Countries remember and regret the loss of territory for hundreds of years let alone 40 or so.

Yes, thank goodness. I'll be supporting Spain in the final

Maybe, but this was a football match???

Do we bring up Hitler every time the Germans play us???

The match has stirred emotions particularly with that banner the Argentine players brought out at the end (which I hope they are punished for). It would bother me too but it’ll die down soon enough.

Ill be supporting Spain on Sunday too.

It does get brought up, more the war rather than Hitler. I remember jokes when we beat them in a World Cup years ago, I believe we beat them 2-0 so I’ll let you guess what the jokes were.

All the young family members shared the picture of that banner after the match. They all were happy to see it.

Argentinian football fans have always had a reputation for being a bit.....intense

Vamos España 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸 🇪🇸

To be fair, the Falklamds should be Argentinian. We can’t expect recent history to be completely ignored just because the reality of British colonialism makes some people uncomfortable.

England doesn’t get to treat the rest of the world as if it owns them and then complain when they are disliked.

You can say that again.

I've been shocked by the intensity of feeling.

They did it before and were fined, they don’t care.

You're making a mountain out of a molehill. No one cares anymore.

The match is over, there won't be another one for years.

I'm not opposed to them being given back. Never had a strong view on the matter as I said.

I'm certainly not an English nationalist

Thanks for that. Easy to say for you

I don't even like football and have never watched a whole match but even so I am aware of the England fans chanting "two world wars and one world cup" when playing Germany...!

The Falkland Islanders had a vote in 2013 - do you wish to remain a British Territory Overseas? There were 3 votes against.

So no, the Falkland Islanders have the right to self determination. If you'd ever been there you'd know that, and why.

Fair enough, but with Argentina is not harmless banter and jokes.

I'm in a few Argentina whatssapp groups too for Argentinians in local area in case of events/ kid meet ups for DS.

The stuff I've been reading in those groups has been disgusting- coming from Argentinians living in the UK. I've had to exit them all

England doesn't own the Falklands

The Falklands are a British protectorate. They have voted by a huge majority not to be Argentinian.
There are plenty of cases of England (and Spain) colonising countries and in some cases displacing the old population and replacing it with a new one. This didn't happen in the Falklands. The first people to live there arrived before Argentina was an independent country, and before the ancestors of most modern Argentinians arrived in Argentina. Those first people are the people still living there now and they don't want to be part of Argentina any more than Brazil does.

It's not anti-colonialism, it's national machismo that's being whipped up to distract from the issues with the economy.

Some fans are bad losers.
Argentinians are bad winners .

Give it a few hours and all of their crap will be directed at us 🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸🇪🇸

😂😂

Can we not turn this thread into a debate on Falklands.

I think you’re jumping on the Argentina bandwagon.

Yesterday’s news is today’s fish and chips paper.

Channel your energies into supporting England against France.

You should also see what happens when they turn their frustration onto their own team....their capacity for creative insults is spectacular. 😅

. . . and yet you brought up the Falklands in your thread, and it's a public forum. People can respond to the points you have made.

Incidentally Argentina has huge economic issues as I'm sure you know as you too have been there. Perhaps the continual harping on about the FI is a distraction from the real issues.

The Falklands have never been part of Argentina, so they can't be "given back". They also have nothing to do with British colonialism (they were uninhabited when first settled).

God, the sheer ignorance of some posts are of the scale.

I agree. It's something politicians use to distract and anger the masses.

It reminds me of the Brexit/ immigration stuff over here. Whipping up nationalist hatred.