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DRzPreciosaNena

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k lo k everyone!
I just was hoping for a little clarification...what makes someone Dominican? I know that might sound stupid but being born in the US and speaking limited Spanish I am always questioned and ppl are constantly comparing me to other "real" Dominicans they know and they say I don't fit the criteria I feel deprived of some of my culture a bit but does that mean I'm not a "real" Dominican?

cuidate 1
 

haitianobeisbol

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Aug 28, 2004
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Here is somthing to ponder.....

DRzPreciosaNena said:
undefined

k lo k everyone!
I just was hoping for a little clarification...what makes someone Dominican? I know that might sound stupid but being born in the US and speaking limited Spanish I am always questioned and ppl are constantly comparing me to other "real" Dominicans they know and they say I don't fit the criteria I feel deprived of some of my culture a bit but does that mean I'm not a "real" Dominican?

cuidate 1

Ive pondered somthing like that before and let me give you my opinion:

If you were born in the US with Dominican born parents and you grew up speaking spanish first and learning all the customs and culture of DR, then there is no reason why you shouldnt be considered a "TRUE" domincan.

Here is a case with one of my friends who is Puerto Rican......(dont worry, im only making a point, it can apply to any nationality, so to the harsh people dont jump on me because i am mentioning PR).......Anywayz, His parents were Puerto Rican and they both sadly died of aids but my friend didnt have it and he has been raised by his grandmother, aunts, uncles in different times and recently during his teem years been living with a friend of his. He doesnt know spanish, he doesnt know the culture that much and has never been to P.R. and we grew up in NYC so he knows the tough ghetto street but still managed to recently graduate HS on time with me.....

..... My point is that i never considered him Puerto Rican that much because he didnt grow up PR. He may look it but he doesnt have any other "characteristics" of it. Thats 1 view.

Another view is lets say there is a Haitian. He is born in Haiti and immediatly moved to DR as a baby. So he grows up "Dominican" and knows spanish and everything else about being from DR. If you were to meet a guy like that, WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER HIM? I would have to say Dominican because that is all he knows and thats his mindset.

What would the rest of you consider this man, Dominican or Haitian?

P.S. What would you consider my freind?
 

ERICKXSON

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Dec 24, 2002
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www.creambay.com
DRzPreciosaNena said:
undefined

k lo k everyone!
I just was hoping for a little clarification...what makes someone Dominican? I know that might sound stupid but being born in the US and speaking limited Spanish I am always questioned and ppl are constantly comparing me to other "real" Dominicans they know and they say I don't fit the criteria I feel deprived of some of my culture a bit but does that mean I'm not a "real" Dominican?

cuidate 1

Do you eat Mangu'? Do your feets start moving as soon as you hear a merengue or Bachata? Do you like Baseball? were you born in washington heights? you like Presidente beer, barcelo or mamajuana? and now to confirm that you are a truly DOMINICANA pay attention........breath in...................

THE FIRST THING THAT COMES OUT YOUR MOUTH WHEN YOU ARE AMAZED BY SOMETHING OR SOMEONE IS !OH!, OH! PERO BUENO>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

MY DEAR FRIEND CONGRATS YOU ARE A TRUE DOMINICAN....................

REGARDS FROM EL MILLON
 

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
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It would be interesting to know just "who" says it

I would say that being a "true" Dominican is more of the heart and mind that the accident of birth or language.

There are Dominicana that were born and raised iin Santo Domingo that are more Americanized than Dominicanized! In their parents drive to "make them better" they were sent to English language schools from Kindergarten onwards, they listen only to American/European/Austrailian rock music and thing and dress only like whatever is on MTV. Can they be any less Dominican? Hardly.

YOu, on the other hand, are considering your roots. And you are certainly more Dominican than many that want to add a fa?ade or a veneer of quasi-americanization to their behaviour.

Just be you.

HB :D
 

haitianobeisbol

Snap... Arrrrrr!
Aug 28, 2004
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ERICKXSON said:
Do you eat Mangu'? Do your feets start moving as soon as you hear a merengue or Bachata? Do you like Baseball? were you born in washington heights? you like Presidente beer, barcelo or mamajuana? and now to confirm that you are a truly DOMINICANA pay attention........breath in...................

THE FIRST THING THAT COMES OUT YOUR MOUTH WHEN YOU ARE AMAZED BY SOMETHING OR SOMEONE IS !OH!, OH! PERO BUENO>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

MY DEAR FRIEND CONGRATS YOU ARE A TRUE DOMINICAN....................

REGARDS FROM EL MILLON

LOL, those are good ways to tell if you are Dominican. Dont forget Platanos and totones. And when you are gossiping with ur girlfriends you start alot of sentences with "Di que". (i think i spelled that right).
 

AZB

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Jan 2, 2002
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ERICKXSON said:
Do you eat Mangu'? Do your feets start moving as soon as you hear a merengue or Bachata? Do you like Baseball? were you born in washington heights? you like Presidente beer, barcelo or mamajuana? and now to confirm that you are a truly DOMINICANA pay attention........breath in...................

THE FIRST THING THAT COMES OUT YOUR MOUTH WHEN YOU ARE AMAZED BY SOMETHING OR SOMEONE IS !OH!, OH! PERO BUENO>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

MY DEAR FRIEND CONGRATS YOU ARE A TRUE DOMINICAN....................

REGARDS FROM EL MILLON
No, this would make you a chopa,or a typical dom-york chopa. Don't listen to these foreigners, they only know domincian chopos / chopas.
If you feel you are dominicans then you are dominican, period. Stop acting like spoiled gringas and mix in with your own people, in the end, your people will back you, not the street hiphop culture. Not all dominicans live in wash. hts and not all listen to bachata, drink mamajuana or eat frituras on the street. Pick the best aspects of both cultures and assimulate it into your personality. You are a dominicana by blood and you should be proud of it. People tell you that you are more gringa is because you probably act like one, so I say, start visiting your country and get to know your own roots. Dominicanas are some of the most sexiest, feminine women in the world.
AZB
 

DRzPreciosaNena

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Jul 21, 2004
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AZB said:
No, this would make you a chopa,or a typical dom-york chopa. Don't listen to these foreigners, they only know domincian chopos / chopas.
If you feel you are dominicans then you are dominican, period. Stop acting like spoiled gringas and mix in with your own people, in the end, your people will back you, not the street hiphop culture. Not all dominicans live in wash. hts and not all listen to bachata, drink mamajuana or eat frituras on the street. Pick the best aspects of both cultures and assimulate it into your personality. You are a dominicana by blood and you should be proud of it. People tell you that you are more gringa is because you probably act like one, so I say, start visiting your country and get to know your own roots. Dominicanas are some of the most sexiest, feminine women in the world.
AZB



Thank You sooo much AZB! I got scared for a moment.
I love dancing and I rice, beans, plantains etc but you're right. I feel that I am a "true" Dominican. I guess I'm a preppy, Americanized one but nevertheless a Dominican. It's just hard in the US I'm called oreo n crap but it's ok. thanks all :cool:
 

vaquita

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Aug 20, 2004
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does it matter?

I know it matters but who are other people to tell you what you are. You are what you consider yourself...and if you consider yourself dominican, then you are...and if you consider yourself american, you can be that too, who said you can't be both....so don't let people tell you who you are, nor put criteria as to what makes you what. A lot of people nowdays can't really classify themselves into one cultural (me included) because of mixing and moving etc. Just be proud to be you and whatever you consider yourself and tell all those people that try to tell you what you are to go ....... themselves. :squareeye
 

DRInMySoul

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Aug 30, 2004
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i couldnt help but post

in my eyes both vaquita and ABZ are right..but i cant help but add my two cents.

there is no ONE thing that makes you dominican. thats like asking what makes a sunrise in DR so bright and glorious like a pheonix rising up from the ashes...brighter and more fiery and beautiful with each day that passes. its like asking why the stars shine so brightly and the sky looks so immense and like a universe all its own in a campo somewhere far off in the hills where there no electricity..at all. its like asking why juan luis guerra and countless other dominican musicians cant touch the very heart and souls of our ppl. there is no one answer.....i believe anyone can consider themselves dominican...if you love that land like theres no tomorrow...if you can appreciate what can be found there...past the nightclubs, past the prostitution, past the Presidente's and various other liquors and cigars, past the tourist spots. if you can look to the very heart and soul of DR and stand in the middle of one of its fields or forests and witness the glorious environment and lush vegetation and say that you love it ..honestly love, appreciate and cherish it...and miss it like your own home when ur gone... if u can get up at 5am to the smell of coffee and breathe in morning air found no where else in the world and trap that little moment inside ur heart forever.........these things, though not ONLY these things..there are a variety of other things...can make u dominican whether ur japanese, brazilian, italian or african...even if just for a moment.
 

Marianopolita

Former Spanish forum Mod 2010-2021
Dec 26, 2003
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Well, you asked a somewhat profound question and the answer lies within. I think you do qualify as being Dominican from a cultural perspective whether you live in the US or in the DR.
Yes, there may be Americanized elements about you because you live in the US but that should not shadow or downplay your Dominican elements, customs and identity that you get from the home and other associations with Dominican culture. People may question your Dominican status because your capability to speak the language is limited but that can be resolved (if you have an interest in learning Spanish) and based on other "outward" observations that they have made about you. However, it's what you identify with. If you identify with Dominican culture partially or completely then you are Dominican. The way the world is today so many people have a mixture of cultural backgrounds for diverse reasons and the beauty about bicultural identity is that you can have the best of both worlds. It's up to you choose what you want from each one. Lastly, who cares what other people tell you? If you know what you feel and what you identify most with, then that's what you are.

En mi opini?n t? eres dominicana de pura cepa.

-Lesley D
 
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Tordok

Bronze
Oct 6, 2003
530
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DrzPreciosaNena,
For many people, national origin identification is a self-evident, simple fact of life. For some others, such things are anything but straightforward and simple. My own personal experience has taught me that this is not one of those all or nothing issues. You can be "un ch?n Dominicano(a)" and "un ch?n" something else. If you want to.

Thus it is perfectly fine for migrants or the descendants of recent migrants to sometimes feel confused. Understanding identity in general, and national origin identity in particular, requires having a nuanced and balanced view of the self and of the other. Which is all easier said than done since a big chunk of the equation emanates from the other rather than from the self.

I suspect that I am somewhat older than you, and I still deal with a lot of the confusion of others when they try to pin me down to whatever their concept of Dominican is. Just try not to let others box you into, or out of, whatever your particular definition of self-identity may be. Even if the ones trying to tell you what "real" Dominican is, are Dominicans themselves.

If being Dominican is part of your identity, you can project that in many different ways, without having to like baseball, eat plantains or dance merengue. I find it absurd to try to reduce national identity to such arbitrary manifestations of popular culture. These things may provide a tangible context for things that most Dominicans share and can readily relate to, but cannot by themselves define any individual's national identity.

It is oversimplistic to think of Italians for example, as folks who eat pizza and enjoy opera, since many don't do either and are no less Italian than those who do these things. A cheeseburger-munching evangelist truckdriver of Scottish descent from Alabama is as much an American as the Jewish college professor of Hungarian descent eating pretzels in Chicago. I think their diets, musical choices or religious inclinations say something, but not everything about them as individuals. Likewise, Dominicans are quite diverse in backgrounds and outlook; contrary to whathever stereotypical mindsets you seem to have encountered in your life.

best wishes,

- Tordok
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
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Dominican or not? Hmm, tough question for others to answer for you!

Here is my viewpoint into this:

You are worried that you are not "Dominican" enough, thus your post here. Your worryness (if that is a word) is due to the fact that you find alot of people telling you that you are not Dominican, and that is kind of bothering you because you don't want to lose your Dominican connection. Why? Because you love being a Dominican!

So, are you Dominican?

Yes and no. You are a Dominican because you obviously care about being one and you want to make sure that you are one! So, in that respect yes, you are a Dominican.

But, no because alot of people are commenting on your "lack" of Dominicanidad in your way of being. Remember that old saying, when you can hear the river is because it has water! So, what can you do if you "lack" the Dominican qualities that make up a Dominican?

Well, you will have to fill in that void that is preventing most people to see you as such. So, the real question is how do you become more Dominicanized?

The answer to that is complex and simple at the same time. You see, we can all sit on our comfy chairs or sofas and type into our computers or laptops what it is that makes a Dominican! However, you will not really assimilate some of the real "Dominican" qualities because you are going to continue living your current lifestyle which is the culprit of you lack of Dominicanidad.

So, how can you solve that problem much more effectively? Come and spend a good amount of time in the DR. Make it a goal of yours to come either for two weeks every year, or to come for the Summer, or to come and actually live here for a while - who knows, you might decide to stay here forever, which in many ways is not a bad thing at all!

Only by experiencing the real authentic Dominican culture in its own home turf, will you fully understand accept and assimilate what it is to be a Dominican. However, there are subtle differences between attitudes towards Dominicanidad all over the DR.

Quick example: Santo Domingo vs. Santiago

SDQ: Its a city filled with people that cherish and maintain their historic buildings, very patriotic people and probably the most mobile people on the island. In the other hand, SDQ's tend to accept the latest trends from the US, they watch the latest American movies, many areas of the modern parts of town are down right American style suburbs! So, obviously there is a slight conflict of interest here.

STG: Its a city filled with people that are much more refined than those of the Capital. These denizens describe themselves as the real aristocrats of the country. To them, nobody is more pure Dominican than a Santiaguero. Beyond that, there is a heavy sense of pride in the Entire Cibao valley, the pride is so strong that many anthropologist refer to the Cibao as the "Republic within a Republic" meaning, that if the Cibao citizens had a reason to break apart from the DR, they could certainly find many. And besides, the valley produces 40% of total GDP (the Capital produces another 40% and the rest of the country produces the remaining 20%), the Cibao is home to 60% of the people, the Cibao has contributed more to the country than any other region of the DR. So, in many respects the Cibae?os are a slightly more "Dominican" than the Capitale?os, simply because the Capitale?os a bit more materialistic than the Cibae?os.

Now, don't get me wrong. You still see Cibae?os drinking Coca-Cola and playing baseball, just like in the Capital. It's just that the things that are Dominican are much more pronounced in the Cibao than elsewhere I would say. This is a subtle change that would be noticed after a person has spent some time in the DR.

So, you want to be Dominicanized? Just hop on a plane and land on this island that will certainly make you feel welcomed from the moment you step off the airplane. In fact, as soon that the plane lands and the door opens and you walk into the Terminal you will most likely see a trio makeshift band playing some traditional Perico Ripiao giving you a welcoming sensation to your land. In addition to all of that, the palm trees fronds appear to be welcoming you as they sway in the wind with their shiny and deep green fronds, the atmosphere is alive and kicking and you truly feel as if you have arrive to your home, even if you never step foot here.

That feeling is the Magic Potion that makes people of all races, nationalities, and backgrounds become a real Dominican.

I am sure that that magic potion was one of the biggest deciding factors when most of these expats took the "plunge" to live in paradise!


PS. There are different status of Dominicanidad. A rich Dominican would not act like a Poor Dominican. A middle class professional would not act like a poor Dominican. A poor Dominican would not act like a rich Dominican. And a newly rich Dominican for the most part, don't act like the old money rich Dominican simply because they don't know how to portrait their newly aquired riches other than through what popular culture tells them.

If you were to talk to an elite, you will notice that their Spanish sounds more like the Spanish being talked in Barcelona, Spain. Speak to a middle class Dominican and you will notice a strong Spanish language with some inuendos and slang mixed in, while you will notice them trying to assimilate the language pattern of their upper class counterparts. And then you speak with a poor Dominican and you will notice that its almost a Different language compared to the Elites speach patterns.

Then there are the public display. The way you carry yourself, the way you attend others, the way you act, etc. has a huge display of what type of Dominican you are. If you are a guy and you dress in heavy jeans or in those short jeans that go as low as your ankles, it is obvious that you are a Dominican york. If you dress with khakis and polo shirts with a shiny shoe and you walk with your head slightly up, then you are of the upper classes. If you dress with tighter jeans, tucked in shirt, and slightly laidback but still firm you will be obviously portraying the image of middle class.

Of course, everything comes clear when its time to get in the car or when its time to go home. While everybody mixes in the Colonial Zone and elsewhere, when its time to go home, the poor head to the outerfringes of town, the middle class head to the neighborhood in the innercity and the rich head to the hills of Arroyo Hondo or other newly created high class neighborhoods.

If you eat mangu with "salchichon" in the morning, that is indicative of a Dominican campesino. However, if you eat a peace of bread with an espresso, then you are a Dominican urbanite, most likely a Capitale?o, etc.

There is more to being simply Dominican, because there are different kinds of Dominicans.
 
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DRInMySoul

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Aug 30, 2004
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excuse me Nal0whs but. why is it that i get a very disturbing, nauseating and sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when i think about the whole "rich/poor Dominican" idea?

to be honest i really cant stand rich Dominicans too much...some act like they shouldnt even be on the island but on the Swiss Alps skiing with the rest of the aristocrats...

i love my middle class to poor quisqueyanos ppl who work like dogs just to make ends meet..those who know about the struggle yet never lose hope or love for their country. seeing sweat drip down as they work their fields, drive in their motoconchos and carrera de carro ...i just find it much more real...
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
13,370
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excuse me Nal0whs but. why is it that i get a very disturbing, nauseating and sick feeling in the pit of my stomach when i think about the whole "rich/poor Dominican" idea?
That feeling comes when people know its true, but there isn't much they can do. People will always hate the rich for being rich and acting as rich as they are. In the contrary, people will always feel sorry for the poor and try to indentify themselves more with the poor because they feel pitty for them.

Don't get too caught up into all of this rich/poor thing. Its prevailant in every country in the world. Why is it that Rich Americans live in such lavish mansions and spend millions on boats and other luxuries while inner city impoverished Americans need to apply for food stamps and welfare to survive? The reason I mention the US is to bring it closer home and make you realize that its something prevailant all over the world.

The rich will always act rich and the poor will always act poor. There is not much people can do about this world order prevailant everywhere.

to be honest i really cant stand rich Dominicans too much...some act like they shouldnt even be on the island but on the Swiss Alps skiing with the rest of the aristocrats...

Well, that is what being a rich Dominican is about. Its the ultimate Dominican lifestyle. It's the lifestyle most poor Dominicans would take if it was given to them over night. That is why the baseball training camps are so chock full of young Dominicanitos trying to make it into MLB so they can cash those million plus dollar checks. They are content with their current lifestyle, but if someone was to present them with a wealthier one, they won't decline it for the most part.

Rich Dominicans belong in the DR as much as poor Dominicans for the simple fact that rich Dominicans and Poor Dominicans are Dominicans. Also, don't confuse the rich from Santo Domingo with the rich from Santiago. There is a difference between the two.

Example:
SDQ rich made their money either through tourism, government, or the manufacturing sector. Also, they might be expatriate Dominicans that made big bucks abroad and returned home again. These folks tend to be very flashy and are proud. Not all tend to be like that and not all try to be like, I'm one of the few Capitali?o's rich that don't try to be too arrogant. I TRY to be more down to earth as much I can. But, then again, my family is based for the most part in the Cibao (Santiago-Moca-San Francisco area), so maybe that has to do with my way of being.


In the contrary, STG rich are mostly old money. These folks made their fortune years ago through agriculture (those huge fields owned in the country belongs to many of these). Also, these rich have long history linking them to the country and these rich are the ones responsible for producing the pro-democracy cries and were the ones financing and support a pro-democratic government in the DR after Trujillo. Those that were in the Capital were very pro-Trujillo and pro-Totalitarian. The rich of Santiago, although they do live in luxury, they are not as austentacious as many Capital rich. The exception would be rich Dominican yorks that come back thinking that driving a hummer and talking down to a poor Dominican is the way to show wealth. That is not the way, but it is the image being given to rich Dominican by these chopos.

Just how in NYC, the Chopos that sell drugs have damage the image for the rest of Dominicans that do work hard, the samething is happening here with the same chopos damaging the image of the authentic real aristocracy of the country.

Aristocratic wives tend to be caring and are very active in donating money and sometimes time to organizations that help the poor, the sick, and the helpless.

Please, don't confuse the real aristocracy with many newly riches. Remember, the old aristocracy are the ones behind the Dominican corporations that are now so much a part of Dominican life that a person is not considered Dominican if they don't use these products, like Brugal, Lafier hairproducts, Grupo Leon Jimenez with their Presidente Beer, etc.

Also, recently my family and others were in Casa de Campo at a fashion show organized by a wealthy Colombian woman who wants to help the malnourished kids of the streets of the DR. Most of the Dominican rich that were at the event were old money Santiagueros with a few SDQ richs. All the funds collected at the venue went towards some organization that gives street kids a place to live, to study, to play in decent conditions. Many folks donated well over what was asked for, I myself donated quite a sum. So please, don't paint all of us with the same brush.

Those arrogant newly riches hardly contribute anything to Dominican society other than some headaches for the real aristocracy when it comes to their image being tarnished.
 
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Tordok

Bronze
Oct 6, 2003
530
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Nal0whs,
That you could actually write all that without any intended irony while smugly
patting yourself in the back is actually quite revealing about the nature of your convictions and it helps clarify why the status quo in the DR is the way it is. If you are indeed an example of the elite, which you imply has been 'naturally selected' to lead society, then I'm afraid the country is not going to be getting much further any time soon. You need to reexamine the Victorian precepts that make you rationalize your existence, and speed up to the 21st century.
cheers,
- Tordok
 

puropapi3

*** Sin Bin ***
Sep 1, 2004
181
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Hmmmmmm.......

haitianobeisbol said:
Ive pondered somthing like that before and let me give you my opinion:

If you were born in the US with Dominican born parents and you grew up speaking spanish first and learning all the customs and culture of DR, then there is no reason why you shouldnt be considered a "TRUE" domincan.

Here is a case with one of my friends who is Puerto Rican......(dont worry, im only making a point, it can apply to any nationality, so to the harsh people dont jump on me because i am mentioning PR).......Anywayz, His parents were Puerto Rican and they both sadly died of aids but my friend didnt have it and he has been raised by his grandmother, aunts, uncles in different times and recently during his teem years been living with a friend of his. He doesnt know spanish, he doesnt know the culture that much and has never been to P.R. and we grew up in NYC so he knows the tough ghetto street but still managed to recently graduate HS on time with me.....

..... My point is that i never considered him Puerto Rican that much because he didnt grow up PR. He may look it but he doesnt have any other "characteristics" of it. Thats 1 view.

Another view is lets say there is a Haitian. He is born in Haiti and immediatly moved to DR as a baby. So he grows up "Dominican" and knows spanish and everything else about being from DR. If you were to meet a guy like that, WHAT WOULD YOU CONSIDER HIM? I would have to say Dominican because that is all he knows and thats his mindset.

What would the rest of you consider this man, Dominican or Haitian?

P.S. What would you consider my freind?


As for the haitian, i would consider him dominican because i think it more of where you grew up and how you grew up even if your parents are of different nationality. He still will be "Haitian Blood" but if you met a person like that and conversated with him, you would never know he is haitian unless he told you.

Same thing with ur friend. He still is "Puerto Rican Blood" but the only way he can be figured out as being PR is because of his hispanic looks i guess. But its a situation that can go either way.

What do others think? What about the forum?
 

DRInMySoul

New member
Aug 30, 2004
47
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Nal0whs said:
That feeling comes when people know its true, but there isn't much they can do. People will always hate the rich for being rich and acting as rich as they are. In the contrary, people will always feel sorry for the poor and try to indentify themselves more with the poor because they feel pitty for them.

Don't get too caught up into all of this rich/poor thing. Its prevailant in every country in the world. Why is it that Rich Americans live in such lavish mansions and spend millions on boats and other luxuries while inner city impoverished Americans need to apply for food stamps and welfare to survive? The reason I mention the US is to bring it closer home and make you realize that its something prevailant all over the world.

The rich will always act rich and the poor will always act poor. There is not much people can do about this world order prevailant everywhere.



Well, that is what being a rich Dominican is about. Its the ultimate Dominican lifestyle. It's the lifestyle most poor Dominicans would take if it was given to them over night. That is why the baseball training camps are so chock full of young Dominicanitos trying to make it into MLB so they can cash those million plus dollar checks. They are content with their current lifestyle, but if someone was to present them with a wealthier one, they won't decline it for the most part.

Rich Dominicans belong in the DR as much as poor Dominicans for the simple fact that rich Dominicans and Poor Dominicans are Dominicans. Also, don't confuse the rich from Santo Domingo with the rich from Santiago. There is a difference between the two.

Example:
SDQ rich made their money either through tourism, government, or the manufacturing sector. Also, they might be expatriate Dominicans that made big bucks abroad and returned home again. These folks tend to be very flashy and are proud. Not all tend to be like that and not all try to be like, I'm one of the few Capitali?o's rich that don't try to be too arrogant. I TRY to be more down to earth as much I can. But, then again, my family is based for the most part in the Cibao (Santiago-Moca-San Francisco area), so maybe that has to do with my way of being.


In the contrary, STG rich are mostly old money. These folks made their fortune years ago through agriculture (those huge fields owned in the country belongs to many of these). Also, these rich have long history linking them to the country and these rich are the ones responsible for producing the pro-democracy cries and were the ones financing and support a pro-democratic government in the DR after Trujillo. Those that were in the Capital were very pro-Trujillo and pro-Totalitarian. The rich of Santiago, although they do live in luxury, they are not as austentacious as many Capital rich. The exception would be rich Dominican yorks that come back thinking that driving a hummer and talking down to a poor Dominican is the way to show wealth. That is not the way, but it is the image being given to rich Dominican by these chopos.

Just how in NYC, the Chopos that sell drugs have damage the image for the rest of Dominicans that do work hard, the samething is happening here with the same chopos damaging the image of the authentic real aristocracy of the country.

Aristocratic wives tend to be caring and are very active in donating money and sometimes time to organizations that help the poor, the sick, and the helpless.

Please, don't confuse the real aristocracy with many newly riches. Remember, the old aristocracy are the ones behind the Dominican corporations that are now so much a part of Dominican life that a person is not considered Dominican if they don't use these products, like Brugal, Lafier hairproducts, Grupo Leon Jimenez with their Presidente Beer, etc.

Also, recently my family and others were in Casa de Campo at a fashion show organized by a wealthy Colombian woman who wants to help the malnourished kids of the streets of the DR. Most of the Dominican rich that were at the event were old money Santiagueros with a few SDQ richs. All the funds collected at the venue went towards some organization that gives street kids a place to live, to study, to play in decent conditions. Many folks donated well over what was asked for, I myself donated quite a sum. So please, don't paint all of us with the same brush.

Those arrogant newly riches hardly contribute anything to Dominican society other than some headaches for the real aristocracy when it comes to their image being tarnished.

'scuse me for being a hippy at heart!! lol to tell u the truth i relate and sympathize more with the poor than the rich......and i would love to keep it that way 4ever....
 

AZB

Platinum
Jan 2, 2002
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The hell with the poor, they are the root cause of most problems in DR. Most are chopos, bad manners, give decent dominicans a bad name everywhere, their women go out with tourists (hookers), they steal electric, cable TV always get into trouble and make slums near good areas etc etc etc.
I wish most poor folks would just move to haiti or uganda.
AZB
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
13,370
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DRInMySoul said:
'scuse me for being a hippy at heart!! lol to tell u the truth i relate and sympathize more with the poor than the rich......and i would love to keep it that way 4ever....

That's perfectly fine. I was not trying to make you like the elites, afterall you have gone through many years disliking them for reasons that are probably mostly untrue.

All I wanted to do is let yourself and others know what is happening, not so you can feel pitty for the rich, but so that you don't point the finger at us everytime the faucet begins to leak after the plumber came to "fix it".

I really do hope that you are helping the poor. That is what they really need, they need that more than sympathy or relation. They need help. The rich has tried to help them the best we can with enterprises, organizations, etc. The rest falls on their backs.

Unfortunately, many simply want things handed to them and that is just not going to happen, because easy money comes, easy money goes and then we are all in square one again.

"Men that failed to succeed are those who kept doing the very samething that prevented them from succeeding" can't remember who said that quote, but it proves my point.

Too many people stay comfy in their comfort zone. That is a recepie for failure in anything. Only those who think out of the box, who are not normal, who are one step ahead of the crowd even when the crowd criticize them, only those truly make it to the top.
 
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