I'm offended by the term Gringo

[Redscot]

Blanquito.....

I live in NYC and am married to a Dominican woman. I find in general that Dominican's like putting quick nicknames to people and color is often the first/easiest to target. Just like so many families the darkest skinned brother in her house is nicknamed "moreno" the light skinned "rubio". Whoopty-do I say. We get so used to all color association's being derogatory these days that everyone is walking around on egg shells in overly PC areas. The important thing is intent, like many people mentioned earlier I don't think gringo is used as an insult the majority of the time, (if you think it is ignorance, so be it), but getting into confrontation's over it would probably cause you more hassle than it's worth.

On another note the term "blanquito" gets under my skin a tad :bandit: . Don't know if it is prevalent in the D.R., but here in NYC Dominican's use it all the time to describe white people. Still, I don't get bent out of shape, will only ruin my day, but I do find it amusing as I am 6'3" and tell them with a smile "no soy blanquito, soy un blanqone!

Ian

 

[guaroa]

to pib

As far as I know the origin is from: GREEN GO , (as in green uniformed soldiers get out of my country.)

yes narcosis you are right, you hit it men. I dont know where you find it but it is good that you know it. here are your answer to pib.

to add a little more to it, GREEN GO , (as in green uniformed soldiers get out of my country.)

to pib

to pib , according to prof. socialogy cotton, dominico americano, el cacique mi barrio, and USA educated people. this term bigen in mexico the conflict between USA and mexico. the USA soldier went to mexico to do something ( I will find out) and the mexican start to scream to the USA soldier GREEN GO AND GREEN GO ( LEAVE OUR OUR COUNTRY GREEN MEN) because this was the first time that mexicans saw the soldiers' green uniforms that USA did( I think the USA invented this green uniform).

then , this term becomes very fomous between latinos ( los hispanos) and sometimes, some people use it without knowing the meaning and the one that knows, uses it as weapon since this word hide its original meaning. as result, it is not good to use it to tourists from USA ( hey you blonde guy what you are doing here " you are different than us" ). the last, :bandit: :bandit: this is the way I used it in the capital.

in mi barrio people use it and the capital, people use it as insult ( the same way people use the word black) and the one that doesnt know the meaning use it for the USA white people (like you are blonde and you must be gringo ( USA)) . remember that there was something famous in the capital that says no every blonde is from USA because when we saw blonde person, we call him gringo ( from USA) . even me, in my ignorant I used to do it.

some people use the word without the meaning, a little story in the capital. a boyfriend from my cousin( he is PR) . one day , I ( as a kid) tell him cabron playing with him and he gets so upset that he thought to hit me. he told me that he doesnt hit since I didnt knowing what it was behind. he explained that in PR this word means that your mother is infiel to your father. I feel ashamed since I thought it means te pegan los cachos. I was just kidding with him since PR use it a lot.

I will ask prof. cotton to get some sources about it for you..

 

[Fiesta Mama]

To the original poster...

I don't ever like being called a Gringa BUT while living in the DR I came to accept that there is no way around it. However, this is my take on the word. One time when I was over at a friend's house, I was in the other room when a member of the family entered the main room of the house and said "where's the Gringa". I was quite offended. This person knew me well and knew my name and I confronted her on it. I told her I did not like it and how would she like it if I entered a room full of white people and said "where's the Morena". I explained that I understand the use of the term when someone does not know the name of someone and simply uses it as a means of identification between Dominicans, but when I considered myself close friends of these people I did not like it. She understood and I never heard it used again.

I even use the word now because when having a conversation and he want to refer to the one white person in the room (for example), it's just easier to say the Gringo over there than that white guy over there.

Further, many Dominicans have nicknames and I know several light skinned Dominicans that have the nickname "Gringa" or "Gringo" simply because they are light and it is meant affectionally when used.

 

[DominicanScotty]

Not a clue

People don't have a clue what I am. I too am white because of my father's Irish back ground and my mother was muy blanca from the Cibao. What I get a kick out of is when people tell me what they think I am. What really gets me is the African Americans that come to these cheapee cheapee AI's down here in "mi patria" and call me a "cracker". The term gringo is always used to refer to me by people that don't know me. I can understand the fuss about it but it doesn't really bother me if it is coming from a stranger. My friends and family call me "rubio".

 

[Pib]

yes narcosis you are right, you hit it men. I dont know where you find it but it is good that you know it. here are your answer to pib.

to add a little more to it, GREEN GO , (as in green uniformed soldiers get out of my country.)
...

Do you have something in the way of a cite? Like some reputable source?

 

[carl ericson70]

I've had people call me 'americana' & I'm very quick to point out that I'm not.............whilst feigning mock offence.
But I do recall a few years back when US troops went to Haiti, & there was worry here that there would be an influx of Haitian refugees, feeling the need to put up the Union Jack next to the Dominican flag outside our then house in the middle of Puerto Plata...........just to make it absolutely clear we were not americanos.
Sometimes I'll call myself a gringa...........no one seems to feel I'm being that rude to foreigners. I get the impression on the north coast that the term is used to denote less than wonderful foreigners, whereas expat. is used for the ok foreigners, by the foreigners themselves, that is.

I've heard of this happening on numerous occasions. Canadians for example are often mistaken for americans when traveling abroad. Many find the english speaking canadian accent to be on in the same with the standard east coast u.s. accent.

When it comes to u.k. nationals being mistaken for americans, this has much to do with the fact that american popular culture is the dominant culture on the planet these days and get's the most exposure.

I tell ya, last summer I was visiting a a former classmate in toronto(first trip to canada), we happened to stop at a local video store to stock up on movies for the weekend. I noticed that about 98% of the movies were american made. In the u.s. the foreign film sections in the average video store is typically one measely rack.

Later,upon watching alot of canadian television(much of it american), it dawned on me that canadians grow up with heaps and heaps of american influenece in their lives, but few americans know much about canada. It's the same in much of the rest of the world. It's no wonder that to many dominicans white skin is synonymous with americano/americana.

 

[Keith R]

Take my husband for example. I don't know how many times I've told some people that he is Danish, only to hear them later say that he is "americano" . I don't blame them though, most of us that know where Denmark is only do so because it is next to Germany .

Yeah, our kids' piano instructor in Santo Domingo was Korean, yet the Dominicans all called her "china," despite my efforts to explain that Koreans generally don't like to be lumped in with Chinese...

Likewise, I had an acquaintance in SD from Pakistan. Everyone called him "hindu," even though he was moslem and they knew it...

Also knew alot of Dominicans who refered to all Protestants as "evangelicos," whether they were evangelical or not....

 

[Pib]

Yeah, our kids' piano instructor in Santo Domingo was Korean, yet the Dominicans all called her "china," despite my efforts to explain that Koreans generally don't like to be lumped in with Chinese...

Likewise, I had an acquaintance in SD from Pakistan. Everyone called him "hindu," even though he was moslem and they knew it...

Also knew alot of Dominicans who refered to all Protestants as "evangelicos," whether they were evangelical or not....

And of course everyone that is of Middle Eastern descent is a turco.

 

[Chirimoya]

Although the meaning of gringo varies across Latin America (in some places it means all foreigners, in others just people from the US) these examples are pretty common. President Fujimori of Peru was known as 'el chino' even though he was of Japanese origin. All Middle Easterners, including Sephardi and Oriental Jews, as well as Arabs, are known as 'turcos'. European Jews are 'polacos'. When Salman Rushdie, who is a Muslim, born in India, visited Nicaragua in the 80s, he was amused when he heard himself described as 'el escritor hindu'.

 

[Pib]

When Salman Rushdie, who is a Muslim, born in India, visited Nicaragua in the 80s, he was amused when he heard himself described as 'el escritor hindu'.

Well, he was. Hind? in Spanish means "from India" as well as those who practice the religion. I suppose we don't use Indio to reserve that word for indigenous Americans.

 

[carl ericson70]

Well, he was. Hind? in Spanish means "from India" as well as those who practice the religion. I suppose we don't use Indio to reserve that word for indigenous Americans.

Yup! i'd say perecetion is something else, ain't it? Most of the people commonly called"idio" in the DR look black to me. Not typically fully amer- indian. Alas, I'm an outsider to the DR, so..........

 

[Chirimoya]

Well, he was. Hind? in Spanish means "from India" as well as those who practice the religion. I suppose we don't use Indio to reserve that word for indigenous Americans.

I omitted to mention why Salman was amused. He understood the reasoning behind it, but it was ironic in his particular case because his family had to leave India after partition, precisely because they were persecuted for not being hindu.

Yup! i'd say perecetion is something else, ain't it? Most of the people commonly called"idio" in the DR look black to me. Not typically fully amer- indian. Alas, I'm an outsider to the DR, so..........

Indio in the DR has its own special meaning. But that's another debate in itself.

 

[Celt202]

Throwing my Scalley Cap into the Fray

I don't particularly like being called gringo. I've wondered about the intent behind the use of it and spoken to several Dominican friends and acquaintances and always gotten the answer it doesn't really mean anything. I was born in the US of Irish descent so my skin color is best described as "funeral parlor pallor." I live in the DR and there are times when I hear it said and the intent seems obviously meant to insult. If I'm having a bad day and I start to feel insulted I ignore it. Many times, when I'm on my game I'll say this with a big grin "No soy Gringo. Soy Dominicano! Cuando yo fui beb? mi mam? me ba?? en cloro!" That usually elicits laughs and smiles. Many times it's elicited the comment "Que tiguerasso!" also accompanied by grins.

In a historical aside, there's another theory on the origin of gringo. In the Mexican American war there were Scots fighting on the American side and their marching song was "Green Grow the Rushes Oh"
Here's a link to a discussion of that theory:

http://www.dayproductions.com/in_distribution/gringo.htm

In another historical note there were hundreds Irish immigrants (as well as Germans and Scots) who deserted the US army to fight on the Mexican side during the Spanish American War. They called themselves the Saint Patrick's brigade (San Patricios in Spanish). They fought valiantly and a number were hanged by the American Army after their capture. Little known in the US, the San Patricios are remembered fondly in Mexico and because of them there has long been a special relationship between Mexico and Ireland.

Here's a link:
http://www.vivasancarlos.com/patrick.html

quoting from "The History Guy":
"One interesting aspect of the war involves the fate of U.S. Army deserters of Irish origin who joined the Mexican Army as the Batall?n San Patricio (Saint Patrick's Battalion). This group of Catholic Irish immigrants rebelled at the abusive treatment by Protestant, American-born officers and at the treatment of the Catholic Mexican population by the U.S. Army. At this time in American history, Catholics were an ill-treated minority, and the Irish were an unwanted ethnic group in the United States. In September, 1847, the U.S. Army hanged sixteen surviving members of the San Patricios as traitors. To this day, they are considered heroes in Mexico."

Here's a link to the page the above quote comes from:

http://www.historyguy.com/Mexican-American_War.html

 

[suarezn]

Dominicans don't understand that politically correct stuff. This in my opinion is a good thing. Who would want to have to be so careful about everything you say? Here in The US that's gotten to the point where you can barely say anything without offending someone. As someone mentioned earlier people in The DR call you whatever they see you as (i.e. moreno, enano, gordo, flaco, etc...).

I've been called rubio (even though I'm not really white, but light skinned with nappy hair), jabao (this one I hate), lagartijo blanco, abejon colorao, etc...

It's not just a Dominican thing either. For instance I remember that people in Peru call ex-president Fujimori "El Chino", even though he's Japanese.

The point is you can't get mad at every little thing. If you do it becomes worse. If people know that calling a Gringo will piss you off, you'll have all kinds of people calling you that, just to get a rise out of you. What are going to do then? Are you going to beat up everybody? Better to defuse it with a joke...

 

[Criss Colon]

"Lets Put This Baby To Bed!"

First of all,that "Green Go" origin for "Gringo" is just a bunch of "$hit"! They didn't wear "green" uniforms in those days!The "one" I heard was;Cowboys in Texas used to sing to comfort the cows at night,the song they sang was,"Green Grow The Lilacs".The "Spics" thought they were saying,"GRINGO The Lilacs" and started calling the "Cowboys","Gringos"!

Like that "Spics" I threw in there??? Well,to most "Americans"(Which is what people "Born In The USA" are called by 99.9% of the Worlds People,including Dominicans,wheather "YOU" like it or not!!)calling an American "Gringo",is like calling a "Spanish,Latino,or Hispanic person,a"Spic"!!
You can call me anything you like,I'm above being offended by anything you can call me! Just be advised that the term "Gringo",just like the term "Spic" can be taken as derogatory by the recipient!

 

[jrzyguy]

someone earlier meantioned how dominicans just like to use quick nicknames etc.....and not always pc nic's.

I posted a while back how my dominican friend here in nyc started calling me pancho one day. Of course that was a refernce to my mexican herritage. He also calls my cats cucuracha and barracho (otherwise known as sammy & lila). very seldom does he call me by my given name.

One may not LIKE being called gringo.....but ya aint gonna change that...next time you ARE called that...try coming up with a clever comment in reply.

Oh well...with that said....I AM BOOKING MY FLIGHT TODAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOOOOOOOO HOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :beard:

 

[miguel]

Boys, girls, men, women, kiddies, kiddettes!!

I thought that the term "gringo" was to differenciate(big word, I am said it while I wrote it and I did not bite my tongue, lol) an american from other races.

Whenever I use the term "gringo" I was not thinking about bringing anybody down or being racist. Sure, some DO use as an racist remark, specially in the DR and all over the world.

Hell, some people say the word when reffering to any caucasian, whether that person was from the US or the moon.

Even I have been called a "gringo" just because I live in the US. I am not that white and I really do not look like an american ( I have platano written all over my forehead).

Different people, different countries, DIFFERENT MEANING!!!!!!!.

 

[AZB]

The idiots call me Arabe (arab) here. I have been called arabe, iraqi, afghani etc etc. I am called all that except "pakistani", my real identity.
Before I went to my trip tp pakistan I made it clear to everyone that I am going to pakistan but when I came back, everyone is still asking me, how was my trip to Iraq, or afghanistan etc. I have come to a point where I simply insult them when I am called afghani or iraqi. they look at me as if I am a crazy person for taking it so seriously when I am called an iraqi or afghani. So I simply call the fools haitiano. I tell them since dominican republic is the same island as haiti, therefore they are all haitians too. Their justification for calling me an arab is that I am a muslim and come from the same area. what they don't realize is that arabs can be christains and pakistan is not an arab country. we don't even speak the same language. So I ask them this: do you speak the same language as colombians? Do you have the same religion? Do you folks have the same names as colombians? Same culture?? So I would guess that you are all colombians just like my mom thought all latinos were puerto ricans in NY.
I am still asked everyday "how was my trip to afghanistan?" You should see me go off at them.
AZB

 

[Redscot]

Some of it is just ignorance

It seems to me that in your case AZB and in many other's it is just pure ignorance, in the truest sense of the word. I suppose it is up to the individual to discern whether it is used in an offensive manner or just used out of lack of knowledge. I imagine it would get frustrating to have the same mistake made over and over after you have taken the time to clarify for them though.

Bottom line though IMO it is the intent with which it is used that is more important, all sorts of labels are thrown around in the world, and when you are the dominant culture in a particuliar place you have the home team rules. Not saying that it is right but most likely a fruitless war to wage and one that ultimately will make your life more difficult in a real sense. Often times these names are so superficial that takeing them too seriously is way counterproductive.

Ian

 

[miguel]

Listen!

The idiots call me Arabe (arab) here. I have been called arabe, iraqi, afghani etc etc. I am called all that except "pakistani", my real identity.
Before I went to my trip tp pakistan I made it clear to everyone that I am going to pakistan but when I came back, everyone is still asking me, how was my trip to Iraq, or afghanistan etc. I have come to a point where I simply insult them when I am called afghani or iraqi. they look at me as if I am a crazy person for taking it so seriously when I am called an iraqi or afghani. So I simply call the fools haitiano. I tell them since dominican republic is the same island as haiti, therefore they are all haitians too. Their justification for calling me an arab is that I am a muslim and come from the same area. what they don't realize is that arabs can be christains and pakistan is not an arab country. we don't even speak the same language. So I ask them this: do you speak the same language as colombians? Do you have the same religion? Do you folks have the same names as colombians? Same culture?? So I would guess that you are all colombians just like my mom thought all latinos were puerto ricans in NY.
I am still asked everyday "how was my trip to afghanistan?" You should see me go off at them.
AZB

You have to understand that some people are not educated enough to know the difference, whether it's in the DR or any other country in the world. Some just see the color of a person's skin and features.

I truly believe that it's not, in many situations, a racist "thing", per say.

By the way, AZB, how was your trip to Afghanistan, is your family ok ?????