So there was a bit of a heated discussion recently on the topic of “anti-white” or “reverse” racism and we (some of the mods) figured we would clarify some rules for this community:
- “White people” is a very vague term. Having low expectations of people in the imperial core is understandable for someone in the Global South, but it’s better to be specific. Saying “I’m racist against white people” when you mean “I don’t trust the average person in <insert imperialist country>” is going to cause misunderstandings
- People who were racist in the past are not necessarily racist in the present. Many of us were liberals before becoming Marxists, and there’s a significant overlap between liberals and racists
- No matter your ethnicity, don’t use terms like “subhuman” or “orc” to describe yourself and your group; it may make others uncomfortable
- Don’t call for violence (particularly against ethnic groups, but it’s best to avoid it in general so the instance doesn’t get in trouble)
- Stick to Lemmygrad’s rules of good-faith discussion
that’s all, folks
Well, gringo doesn’t have to be American or white at all. It’s usage (at least among the Spanish-speakers I know) seems to be much more akin to the term foreigner. I would definitely see gringo as having a different meaning than “white” or a word referring to people in the USA like Yankee or Statesian.
I never heard gringo being used in meaning other than “white Usian” (or occasionally their also Usian PoC lackeys), but i’m not from there, so…
I’ve certainly heard Caucasian Europeans called gringos before. I think the usage of the word gringo (at least my understanding) is that it can be used in radically different ways dependent upon the region as well. (For example I have heard people from Argentina called that.) I am from the USA but at least I have heard it used that way here in the past. It is probably depended on the area though.
As in, Georgians, Armenians, Azerbaijanis etc? /s
I think we should stop using nonsensical US terms.
I guess.
Reminds me of a scene in Evelyn Waugh’s The Loved One, where the main character, an Englishman working in Hollywood, goes to see about funeral arrangements for his recently deceased friend and has this conversation with the receptionist.
“I presume the Loved One was Caucasian?”
“No, why did you think that? He was purely English.”
“English are purely Caucasian, Mr Barlow. This is a restricted park. The Dreamer has made that rule for the sake of the Waiting Ones. In their time of trial they prefer to be with their own people…”
Fair point about the usage of the term Caucasian. I will keep that in mind. I am just saying that this is my personal experience of the usage of the term.
I thought gringo meant someone who doesn’t speak Spanish. Particularly if they can only speak English and are/act like a white person.
I’ve heard it used to broadly refer to people from western countries and also nth-gen Latin Americans who don’t speak any Spanish. But that’s it (from my experience).