I cant stand it here. i hate it i hate it i hate it. this town is so dumb. they act like im a animal. so of they things the ask:
Do you live in the jungle?
Do you were clothes?
Do you go out and hunt your food?
And then they say stuff like i am here to make drugs, or to have sex. they say stuff like i cant speak english. maybe not very good but i speak 6 other forgein languages fluently. And i can speek english it just i saw somw word like when i first come here i would say i writed her or i gotted. i didnt understand plus english is very hard to learn way to many rules.
And they say stuff like is everyone as fat as you. i am size 14 here. that is not fat. You dont wont to be a stick that is bad .so everyone in macomb kiss my ass!!!1:mad:
Also bear in mind we get a certain number of first-time posters who have the same trouble with English, and they were born here… some people have a knee-jerk reaction that low post count + not the best English ever = fresh meat to be roasted. Not something we should be proud of, but it happens.
Racism is never pretty. Try to bear it the best you can, and remember that most people are doing it out of ignorance, not malice.
You are a recent immigrant in the deep south, am I right? Well, most towns in that region aren’t major centers for immigrants to end up at (compare Macon, Georgia to New York, New York), so the percentage of people who have ever dealt with new faces, so to speak, is smaller, and the population as a whole is generally less experienced with the whole thing.
Note that I am not defending them. Ignorance is never an excuse. But, in the long run, you will get better responses by being polite, forgiving, and understanding (in other words, some of the things they aren’t showing you).
It is laudable that you are making the effort to learn English, and I agree that it is an excessively complex language to get a handle on. Any language where ‘fly’ means both a part of a man’s wardrobe and a small insect is bound to be mangled, even by native speakers. And as for spelling… simply psychotic.
Sweetsensation, I read your previous posts to learn more about you. It’s a very brave thing to live and go to school in a different country, especially at such a young age. As a foreign exchange student, you have the opportunity to learn about the people & culture in the U.S.A, but you also have the opportunity to teach people here about your country & culture. Citizens of the U.S.A. are notorious for knowing very little about other countries. Questions that seem offensive and stupid to you may be asked out of curiosity & ignorance. You can help to dispel that ignorance.
Surely there are people in your environment who are friendly and kind. Focus on those people. Talk to them about your difficulties. A lot of what you’re feeling is probably due to culture shock and homesickness. Lean on your host family and your friends and let them help you through this.
I’m not sure which grade you’re in but do they have you do reports or presentations? Maybe everyone could research either where they moved to Macomb from or where their family ties originate from and share something about that place’s culture with the class. Sounds like your classmates could use a little more worldly of a view.
Wow. I guess I’m just the most naive person alive. I can’t believe that human beings in the 21st century would ask “do you wear clothes”? Are people that fucking ignorant? STILL?
I’m so sorry to hear that you’re being treated that way by some stupid people here. Size 14 is definitely not fat, especially if you’re taller - I’m a size 12 and look fairly slim, but some women just hear “size 12” and gasp. Trust me, I could never get down to a size 6 or less, my bone structure just wouldn’t allow it.
And don’t feel bad about your command of English; I’ve seen many native speakers of the language who have similar or worse grammar/spelling abilities. You’re right, it is a hard language to learn; it has many complex rules and it’s been created from so many other languages that it can be very confusing. I bet most of the people making fun of you don’t know any other languages at all, and would feel totally helpless in a country where English isn’t common. I’ve been to Italy a couple times and always tried to get by only using my very poor command of Italian and my phrasebook; fortunately the people I encountered seemed genuinely happy that I was at least trying and were helpful. Nothing like some experiences like that to hammer home the idea that poor command of the language does not necessarily mean someone’s stupid!
I hope you’ve met enough decent, nice, sensible Americans that you aren’t feeling too bad here. Shame on those ignorant and hurtful people making fun of you.
One of my best friends is from Brazil, and he had to deal with the same thing. He got really tired of people asking if they had toilets in Brazil. If you want to confuse them, try telling them that Sao Paulo will soon be the biggest city in the world. Most people probably think that it is New York. They simply cannot imagine that Brazil has big cities- much less cities larger than anything found in the United States.
I don’t know what to say. It makes me ashamed that you have been treated so poorly. Please remember that not all Americans are like this! If you need someone to talk to, feel free to email me.
YMMV, but it seems that stuff like this happens in small towns mostly. Hell, when I was in Canada I lived in a small town and got teased about being Jewish!
Sweetsensation, Please consider opening an “Ask the Brazilian Exchange Student” thread in the IMHO board. I’ve got lots of non-Pit questions I’d like to ask you.
Also, in the South, “Do you go out and hunt your food?” is not an outrageous question. The correct answer is, “No. Do you?”
Who is saying this to you? Macomb, Georgia? “here to make drugs” what’s that mean? -jarbabyj
thepeople i go to school with. Im in macomb Il. this toiwn is so little and very weird. see i come from Sao Paulo that city is huge the biggest in Brazil. the people told other people that i am here to make drugs. i was like no i think u got my country mixed up with like yours.
(May I ask how you feel about the School of the Americas? )Are they being mocking, or are they genuinely ignorant about Brazil? -Guinastasia
i like the school its not terrible. its the people here thats all. And the school is so far behind. You have no idea. they only offer two tongues here spanish and french and they dont even teach them right. And they put me in spanish 2 and french 1 . i told them i speak it already. they said i lie to make myself look good! iwas so mad. but now they move me to spanish 4 and i made them drop french it was too easy. Plus some of the teachers are like dumb or something. And they want to know where i get my accent. And then when i didnt answer they said i was trying to be stubborn.
im not sure i think sometime they mock and sometime they r just dumb. my teacher in college math yelled at me for taking my notes in portuguese. because he said i wouldnt understand them. i was so mad again. he thought they speak french.
I’m not sure which grade you’re in but do they have you do reports or presentations? lieu
im in 12th grade. yeah i do them in speach. i did one on talents so i did it on alll the languages i can speak and how i learn them. They all said brazil only speak poruguese!
when I was in Canada I lived in a small town and got teased about being Jewish!Silentgoldfish
oh that is bad. i no someone here he is jehovah person? and he tease me about being cotholic! i do not understand.
I feel bad for the way you are being treated. Try not to let it get to you too much. The phenomenon of an outsider being put down is very widespread, especially during the junior high and high school years.
For me, it was when I moved to St. Louis from the deep south. I, too, was starting my senior year of high school. I had people ask me if “we wore shoes to school down there” and “did we have outhouses” and equally ignorant questions.
This was in the mid-80s and I was as upper-middle class whitebread as they come. From a largish town and a family full of physicians, well respected in the community.
Basically you’re experiencing a whopping dose of culture shock. I grew up in New York City and then I went to college in a teensy town in the South – believe me its possible to experience culture shock even within my own country.
But, in all fairness, I think if you took an American a dropped them in the equivalent – a very small provinical town in Brazil – they would be asked lots of stupid questions as well, like:
Do you have a gun?
Have you ever killed anyone?
Are you in a gang?
To the average American these are silly and really a bit offensive, especially the last two (most gun owners are very responsible and use their guns to hunt animals). Because of music videos and “gangster rap” etc. some people who are not very worldly think that all Americans are gun-toting criminals.
Likewise, some Americans who are not very worldly think that all South Americans are involved in the drug trade.
I know its frustrating, but telling people all the time that their school is terrible and they are “behind” is not going to win you any friends. Why not offer to help someone who is having trouble with Spanish?
And as for spelling… simply psychotic.