Spanish Automatically = Illegal Immigrant

[Tria]

Same here. Well, I'd be able to read and write a bit. I SUCK at actually talking in foreign languages.

I just want to learn Gaelic.

[ArenaBoy]

You can't really determine hispanic heritage based on hair or eye color.

Agreed, there is this girl in my Japanese class who is part Japanese. Just a look at her and you'll think of her as a American, she has blonde hair and none of the facial features that make Japanese distinctive. She's short but there are a lot of short people.

[RecoveringKinkoid]

I can sing a couple songs in Gaelic.

I have no idea what I am saying. Well, I do, but only because I looked it up. There's one I want to learn in Spanish. Don't know what that one means, either, my kid likes the song and I'm good at learning lyrics phonetically, so what the hey. Probably get me picked on by rednecks.

What's funny is that unless I'm mistaken, legal Hispanics are a large minority here in the states, so to assume one is illegal is kind of ridiculous. To assume that to the point of making a scene is appalling.

That's okay. She'll do it to the wrong person eventually. That will be very entertaining, I'm sure.

[AnqeiicDemise]

I can sing a couple songs in Gaelic.

I have no idea what I am saying. Well, I do, but only because I looked it up. There's one I want to learn in Spanish. Don't know what that one means, either, my kid likes the song and I'm good at learning lyrics phonetically, so what the hey. Probably get me picked on by rednecks.

What's funny is that unless I'm mistaken, legal Hispanics are a large minority here in the states, so to assume one is illegal is kind of ridiculous. To assume that to the point of making a scene is appalling.

That's okay. She'll do it to the wrong person eventually. That will be very entertaining, I'm sure.

If she had done it to me, I would have ripped her a new one *and * made her feel stupid.

There was an old dingbat that got a 'talking to' when she was a racial wench like that.

[LizaMarie]

whenever discussions of illegal immigration come up I always just go red with anger. like, to the point of not being able to respond to someone coherently, even though it's a topic I'm really passionate about. It's very frustrating. My last name is Valdez, and you wouldn't believe the questions I've gotten from potential landlords when I was looking for apartments. It's always "Oh, are you related to the coffee guy?"

Juan Valdez is a fictional character people! I once convinced a classmate that he was my great uncle.

[mariamousie1]

The other day I started singing Alouette. OMG! I must be French! Never mind that I stunk at French in school and only passed the last year because my teacher gave me a pity point. Now where's my beret? I have to go out and buy an accordion.

[Neo_Classic]

And FURTHER, what world are you from that a white girl with gray eyes and red hair is MEXICAN??"

What exactly do Mexicans look like to you? The stereotypical short male or female with brown skin, brown or black eyes and black hair? Yes, a white person with gray eyes and red hair (even blond hair ) can be Mexican.

Might I also remind you that Mexican is a nationality and not a race.

As for the story that lady was wrong for her assumption and so were you for your assumption.

[Becks]

I just want to learn Gaelic.

Me too. I guess I didn't specify that.

A couple of birthdays ago, my sister got me Irish Gaelic language tapes. I lent them to her and haven't gotten them back yet.

[DGoddessChardonnay]

The other day I started singing Alouette. OMG! I must be French! Never mind that I stunk at French in school and only passed the last year because my teacher gave me a pity point. Now where's my beret? I have to go out and buy an accordion.

I wasn't that great at French either . . . but then, I can sing "Freres Jacques" (sp?)

Maybe I should do that at work one day just to see what kind of reactions I'll get out of my coworkers.

[Gawdzillers]

Stranger things have happened--perhaps she learned something that day.

I've been the "immigrant" myself--in Quebec--and I never "stole a job." How DO you steal a job? With a forklift?

I took the liberty of digging through jillions of Maddox articles to find this for you.

[MystyGlyttyr]

What exactly do Mexicans look like to you? The stereotypical short male or female with brown skin, brown or black eyes and black hair? Yes, a white person with gray eyes and red hair (even blond hair ) can be Mexican.

Might I also remind you that Mexican is a nationality and not a race.

As for the story that lady was wrong for her assumption and so were you for your assumption.

As I already pointed out once, I KNOW that, but that I figured anyone stupid enough to make a scene like that probably WOULDN'T.

The reason I was particularly shocked by it was BECAUSE I don't figure a racist bat like that would have thought a white-skinned redhead could be Mexican. I have never met a three-dimensional racist. They tend to see the world, to make a pun, in black and white. To someone like that, if someone is an illegal immigrant, they MUST be the stereotypical Mexican. That's what I figured was doubly insane about it...not only did she assume I was an illegal, she probably didn't notice I didn't "look Mexican".

[protege]

Now where's my beret? I have to go out and buy an accordion.

You also need a Citroen DS or 2CV to complete the package

Racists are usually not very smart people. They believe in, and help perpetuate all the stereotypes, which we all know are crap. To them, *anyone* speaking Spanish is immediately branded as an "illegal" nevermind where they came from, or if they are here legally.

For example, when I was in 8th grade, midway through the year, we gained a student from Venezuela. (I can't exactly remember why she was here...other than she was the cousin of one of my friends, and was here on a temporary visa.) She spoke very little English. Yet, because of that, quite a few people had a problem with her, made rude comments about how she was an "illegal alien," and *refused* to even come near her

Now, that just pissed me off. For one, she was *very* sweet, and was always nice to me...so I didn't have a problem with her. Second, she and her cousin were both like that, and did *not* deserve that crap. I didn't have a problem with either one of them...mainly because they didn't give me a *reason* to. In other words, respect went both ways

[Lace Neil Singer]

I'm basically crap at foriegn languages... yet, I can sing a song in Sanskrit, word perfect too. Hmm... I wonder if I go to a self checkout and sing "Govinda", will some racist old bat attack me cuz they think I'm Indian? O_o I'm white, with blue eyes and red and blonde hair, yet as Mysty said, racists are dumb.

[ShinyGreenApple]

Hmm. I think next time I'm at a self-check, I'll start singing E Nomine lyrics and see if I get accused of being a Nazi

[Bloodsoul]

Thanks, now I'm going to have "Königgrätzer Marsch" stuck in my head all day.